Fable (on hiatsu)

13. Festival

Hey there! My name's Kyuu <3 and I will be the one narrating this chapter~! I'm sure Craft already told you a ton of stuff about me, including some stuff I'd probably rather not let you know, but whatevs! Anyways, I'll tell you about what happened.

I was curled on the couch, like any other night, watching my fave love comedy series when Craft came down the stairs. I hadn't even noticed he was home, since he always seems to be somewhere else. Out playing with his friends, the Weirdos, or at 'work'. Its really suspicious that he goes to work every afternoon, no matter the day, and yet Mom has never met his boss or gone to the shop he says he works at. Sophie thinks he goes slinking around dark alleys (though our town doesn't really have many of those) and killing people and the reason he's always so late is because he's burying the bodies. Mom just says that she trust him and Dad doesn't even know that Craft is gone most afternoons.

I looked up when I heard him, but only because the credits were now rolling onscreen. I was startled when I saw him, for obvious reasons. Craft was wearing a beautiful green kimono with faint designs of trees at the bottom edges. His hair was down except a strand he had tied with a beaded elastic. That was when I realised how much he had grown up. I mean, you don't usually notice this kind of stuff when you live with someone day to day, but tonight I realised that he wasn't the slightly chubby, always grinning brother who loved reading. He was a grown up, with a sculpted chin, slight nose, hair down to his but. He walked with confidence, his eyes were set. And somehow, he didn't seem girly. He was unquestionably manly.

I kinda felt as if I had lost someone, as well as had met a new side to my brother, whom I thought I knew every secret about. I watched as he slipped on his boots and walked out.

That was the split second I decided to follow him. Where was he going? Why was he dressed as if he was cosplaying? At this time of night? I had to know.

I jumped off the couch, pulled my fuzzy knee-high boots on, then my fuzzy coat. I rushed outside, following him around the house. I paused, worried, as I saw him walk calmly into the forest. To my surprise, as I glanced up at Mount Inverse, a dark beast hunched in the dark of the moon, I spotted at luminous gathering at what I supposed was the Shrine.

"What in the world?" I muttered. Then I heard some branches crack, as Craft got further and further into the forest. Stamping out the fear in my gut, I wrestled my courage from the deep hole it had dug itself in the past minute and followed him. Brambles caught on my coat, small branches whipped my face and my feet caught themselves in hidden roots. The forest was as black as ink, and try as I might, it was almost too dark to see even my hands.

All of a sudden, I got past the brambles. The ground was springy, and surprisingly soft. There was more room between the trees and I managed to get my first glimpse of Craft since I had followed him into the tree line. He stood beside a tall tree with lots of branches. It was only after hearing the ghost of his words that I realised he was talking. I looked up, expecting to see someone sitting on a branch, or an animal of some kind. There was nothing.

Craft was talking to... nothing?

Unless there was a ghost of some kind there. I shivered at the though and hurried after Craft, who had thanked the Thing he had spoken to and continued walking in a slightly different direction. His pace sped up and I started losing him. The distance between us kept on increasing, as did my worry, and I began to jog.

I suppose I should have called out to him, but I could barely breathe, let alone speak. My mouth was glued shut. Five minutes later, I lost sight of him. I continued walking under the trees, feeling numb.

I was now alone in the woods, on a mountain I had only ever seen from my window. Lost. There would be research parties and they would probably find me after three days of searching. The one who would fin me would be a total hottie who would fall in love with me, the second we would meet eyes.