やがて 晴れ渡る空 時を越えて ただ 横たわる広さに 気づいた
Soon the skies will clear. I can see how far it stretches above me.
It was dawn, the sun barely poking over the horizon making a beautiful array of violets and terracotta's. Everything was hued with vibrant light, and shadow. A ceremony was taking place, where at the town center, hundreds of cats were surrounding a plaza of stone. Up atop a couple of stairs was a mighty red rosette staring down at all the felines with both pride, and strength. His stance was of confidence.
He called out to the crowd in a booming voice. "Isamu, Yima, please arise." He seemed to be searching the crowd for the two, a slight concern almost grasping his eyes before returning to the previous stance.
Soon enough, two cats came out from the crowd. One of them was a brilliant golden, matching the sunrise in the distance, and the other was black, a sharp contrast to the other feline. The two were relatively the same size, the dark one maybe slightly taller, while the gold one seemingly more built in stature. They were both fully grown cats.
Marmalade, the red cat who stood way above them, announced the next words with pleasure. "These two have been on a long journey under my wing. Today, they take the final trial, and become Knights of Tsuki no Usahgi. I have no doubt in my heart that-"
During this whole speech, the golden cat, also known as Isamu, had been staring at the ground shaking. His face had twisted in discomfort, and his body language was quite the opposite of his friend Yima. At the point of Marmalade talking where he reached the final phrase before the challenges Isamu found a small amount of courage, and interrupted his father.
"I don't want to be a Knight." He bellowed. His body shifted dramatically when doing so, and fear slowly erupted on his face. Much of the crowd behind him began whispering amongst themselves about the situation, full of shock that a squire would do something at the last moment. "I... I..." He was hesitant to say the next thing he so desired, but the courage had left him.
Marmalade seemed to look down at him with disdain, but unbeknownst to Isamu, it was for far different reasons that the child held. This did, however, make the younger feline freeze and shuffle about nervously. He didn't know where to go from here, he just interjected into a very important moment. The moment his friend finally became a warrior like he always desired
Luckily, or unlucky, for Isamu, a large crash also invaded the space. Growling erupted from the distance, and the land began to crumble before the cats surrounding the square. Structures that surrounded the area were falling apart before them, and to protect everyone, it seemed Marmalade jumped into action. So did Yima.
Isamu was frozen. Frozen in fear. As a large creature bigger then any of them towered over the city, the small cat could only look up in complete horror as other scattered for there lives. You could hear Marmalade hissing above all the noise, his hackles raised as he faced the monster. The being looked a lot like a feline itself, but ten times larger then anything it surrounded. Its visage seemed faded like an illusion, but it was clear it was able to corrode the area around it.
Yima yelled back to his friend. "RUN Isamu." Yima knew his friend more then anyone, that being said, no form of yelling seemed to make the golden pelt move even a little. Yima couldn't afford to look back to make sure his friend was okay.
The creature bellowed incoherent noises, and Marmalade responded to them by launching underneath. Yima's eyes widened. "NO!" It was to late, Marmalade was already in the fray. Tears began to sweep down Isamu's face. It seemed like nothing could be done. In a moment however, the creature began to fade, and what lied beneath it were two felines in a scuffle. Two cats of the same size.
Marmalade was covered in wounds, but so was his opponent. The enemy had a hold of Marmalades glorious tail, and for that moment, Isamu was able to move. He launched forward alongside his father, calling Yima to join him. The three ganged up on the isolated pest, and took him down where he stood.
Other guards came in quick to help assist taking the enemy cat away, and it seemed Kiiro, the royal doctor, was there to assist in the injuries. It all went over rather quickly, and it seemed the three of them were helped to a safer location.
"I'm sorry father, I just can't. I just" Tears had still flowed down his face, but there seemed to be a calmness on his fathers.
Marmalade seemed calm. All covered in bandages in the soft feather bed made for him. He looked at his son, with a look that seemed not of anger, or hostility, but acceptance. "Shhh... It's okay Isamu. It's okay." He cooed softly as he watched his child go from panic, to eventually a calmer space.
It had taken a short while, but his patience came through. His son wiped his tears and looked to his family for guidance. "I don't know what to do."
"Do whatever makes you truly happy. I accept you for whoever you want to be."
連れて来たぬくもりを 空に返す
今 君を呼んでみる
不確かな世界 確かに君と
また歩き出す
Remembering the warmth of your hands,
I call your name.
In this uncertain world, you stood firm with me.
