#lightcreator

It was only then, with that gentle symphony of silken rustling, did he first notice. The muted melody of webs quietly creaking in soft protest in the dead of the night. An intruder….Stalking through the thick woods, the sea of boundless trees, catching upon web after web.

A young boy hidden. All alone, silently watching. The muted hush within the forest heavy. Swelling in a deathly still. Not a single sound breaking the weighty silence. Not even him…

Yes. The child lingering there, resting upon steady threads, might only be described as ethereal.

The yukata, bathed in pure white, patterns of spider webs, of crimson circles embroidered  within the threadbare fabric. Cast the same pale hues as his skin, the lavender undertones of silver, windswept, locks that fell before the boy’s face. Merely gazing at the jet black spiders lazily ghosting upon his  open palms. Feet porcelain pale, bare. Soft azure hues standing out sharply against crimson sclera

Radiant hues tumbling up then, at long last tearing his attention away from the spiders within his hands.

Perched high upon delicate threads. Barely visible, even with the bleak night sky painted in the luminescence from the full moon overhead. Bleeding everything in hues of soft silver. Absently peering at the slender figure wandering panicked through the heavy underbrush.

Crimson hues flickering then, gentle embers of curiosity ebbing through the boy’s otherwise impassive demeanor. The stoic facade bleeding away around the edges a bit as he took in the sight of the stranger coming closer still.

The realization giving sudden pause.

A human?

Wandering so far?

But what was it even doing here?? Taking note of those wide eyes etched with dull terror and frustration, of those muttered sighs that escaped it soaked in ire, it seemed as if it was lost.

That small frame huddled within the meager protection of the night, beneath that pallid moonlight. Delicate shoulders slouched so, slender arms wrapped so close, as if staving off the chill that he had not felt in so long.

Piece by piece of that crumbling facade peeling away. The mask sewn upon troubled features.

That fractious expression long since gone. Like drops of molten rain melting into nothing, leaving only a curious introspection painted upon pale features. Uncertain vulnerability peeking just beneath peeling layers of immutable clay. Those radiant eyes that flickered up looking more of a child lost, than a feral beast who ate human flesh.

And that was all he had ever been.

No more than a stubborn child in the always in the midst of a temper tantrum.  A miserable and pitiable creature born from a simple wish that, somewhere along the way, had gotten so horribly skewed.

Trapped within the wretched boundaries of this ‘family’ lost. Within himself. Those unshakable strands of bonds, of his own illusions. Sitting idly and spinning web after web of beautiful lies. Casting himself within his own demented dreaming. As well as anyone who dared to get too close.

Yet just like webs, dreams were so very easy to break. One touch could destroy everything…

Sooner or later. Everything had to end. Nothing within this world could last. The curtain had already fallen upon his make believe family crafted of empty dolls.....

A beat of silence then.

Azure hues, flickering up. Upon the steady melody of strange steps. Turning  then upon one bare heel, absently peering at the strange intruder. Catching absently upon a flash of deep yellow. A haori painted in colors of the sun...

The sword upon the intruder’s hip.