Hopebound

Chapter I - Rinchi, the Forest Land

~Suketchi Snow~

"Where would you like me to put these?" Hāmonī Sketch, my older sister asks me.

"Meh. Just over there," I reply with a bored expression similar to hers.

Our family is made up of a peculiar little species called katori. We are essentially deer with wings, and some of us can cast spells with our antlers. We live on a planet called Rinchi and speak a plethora of languages. Nekūn, Katori, Kitshīru, Ōkamori, and Usamarisu are just some of the languages we speak.

My family lives in a territory named Hantochi. The district we live in is called Kinokomori. Our abode is deep within the forest of mixed plants. There is a very long path to a small clearing that my sister has named Kadan because it has many flowers. Kadan is closer to our siblings' and Aunt and Uncle's abodes than the one we live at. I have named our abode Alazne because we had been looking for a suitable area and we found one right before the first snow-fall.

We should get on to the introductions, now. My name is Suketchi Snow and I am a 12 year-old male katori. My coat is a light colour with a darker splotch on my flanks and my eyes are grey and brown. My mane is light brown with pale tips. My feathers are white with black tips and my ears have black tips. I don't have a Destiny Sign yet, but I love to gather food, make stuff, garden, and race. My biological parents are named Fuyu Sun and Haru Leaf. The katori I consider my parents are named Midori Brook and Kireina Sky. They are my biological Aunt and Uncle.

My sister's name is Hāmonī Sketch and she is a 13 year-old female katori. Her coat is a dark brown with lighter fawn spots and her eyes are hazel. Her mane is mint in the front and dark brown in the back. She has multicolored legs, ears, and wings. Her muzzle is dirty white. Her feathers are a gradient from violet to white. She has two Destiny Signs so far; a purple quill and a kusuri bottle. She also loves to draw, sing, and craft. She considers her parents to be Esupuresso Arts and Baioretto Crafts. They are her sister in-law and older brother. Hāmonī's wings are un-preened beyond repair, causing her to stay on the ground.

"How about this?" Hāmonī asks. "Su-Suketchi?" She gets my attention. My neck snaps up and I look at her, my head cocked to the side in curiosity.

"Hmm? Eh, just put it somewhere. But be careful!" I instruct, not wanting her to tear or break my favourite leaf-and-feather sculpture.

I watch her walk over to my room and set my sculpture down with care, her autumn-coloured wisps of magic encircling it until it is safely on the ground.

"Oi, wanna go to Kadan with me?" I ask my elder sister once she is done with everything.

"Um, sure," she replies hesitantly. I don't question it, as I know she will get angry at me if I do.

As we walk the path, something rustles in the leaves to our left. Hāmonī perks her ears up and her tail flicks upwards, showing the dirty white underneath. She sniffs the air and runs into the brush to our right. I sniff, too, and back away slowly. It's our father, Fuyu, and I can smell an overdose of Hāmonī's kusuri on his breath. I run as silently as possible to where I think Hāmonī went.

"Get back here, you gay little shits!" Fuyu yells at us. I can hear Hāmonī's laboured breathing through the brush, and hold back the tears that are forcing themselves out of my tear ducts. This is a monthly happening for us, and we are scared out of our minds when it happens.

"I'm 'oing to mama an daddy'," she whispers, almost silently, not pronouncing any s's or g's because she knows the sound carries farther than other consonants.

"Go," I whisper back, sending a quick prayer to our guardian, Papa Satan.