Rating: PG Pairing: None Fuuma, Kazuki and Tokyo city do not belong to me. Kinuko does, as do the children This was written for the hourfic challenge on the CFFML
The day of Stars and Wishes
by Beth
mini-dictionary:
tanzaku - narrow colored strip of paper used in Tanabata decorations
sensei - teacher
gaijin - foreigner (literally something like 'nowhere-person')
The excited babble of children's voices filled the park. Instead of bouncing around the paths, the pre-schoolers gathered near their teacher, entranced by the way her fingers deftly drew ideograms along narrow strips of colored paper that they attempted to copy in clumsy hiragana on their own tanzaku.
Kinuko paused in her writing to stretch out her hands. She loved her little wards, even though they were sometimes bothersome enough to give her a headache... Still, no wonder. Their parents were never around, instead choosing to leave their offspring to her care. It made for a good living, and a good time, most days. Today they were especially quiet, and she felt proud that she could get them this interested in what was a part of their culture.
She noticed a figure emerging from a tree-lined alley - for a moment, she could have sworn the person had jumped down from one of the trees; she must have been more tired than she thought. She wasn't quite sure whether the newcomer was a boy or a girl, but she pinned his - her? - age at around seventeen.
"What are you doing?" the newcomer asked timidly.
"We're making Tanabata decorations!" little Mariko informed her proudly. "Kinuko-sensei is writing down our wishes, and we'll hang them on bamboo branches and put them in front of the kindergarten!"
The teenager smiled slightly, but still seemed puzzled. "What is Tanabata?"
"It's the Star Festival, Kazuki-chan," another voice said. This boy was a year or two older than "Kazuki", and his golden eyes combined with dark hair made Kinuko think of a predatory cat.
Well, Kinuko thought, that's one mystery solved. Kazuki's a girl's name...
"Hello, I'm Kamui," the boy said politely.
"I'm Saito Kinuko, caretaker of this lot of underage vermin," she laughed. "Kids, just don't tell your parents I said that! To answer your question, Kazuki-san, Tanabata is an old festival that came to Japan from China. Today it's an occasion to have fun and make pretty decorations, but it's a very old tradition that has a lot of stories associated with it."
"For example," 'Kamui' joined in, attracting the children's attention, "do you little guys know why it's called the Star Festival?"
He was answered with a collection of puzzled looks.
"Well, it all happened very long ago, back when the gods still walked the earth. The emperor of Heaven, Tentei, had a beautiful daughter. Her name was Orihime, and the news of her beauty and her skill in weaving were known in all lands. She was the chief weaver of the gods and provided them with all cloth. But she was not happy, for she did not love."
Kazuki looked like she was about to say something, but her friend shushed her.
Kinuko picked up the narrative she knew well. "Her father arranged a marriage for her with Kangyuu, a cowherd who lived across the great star river. Once they met, they fell in love and for a short time, were happy."
"But," 'Kamui' interjected, "Orihime neglected her weaving and her father was furious with her. To make her go back to her work, he banished Kangyuu back to the other side of the great river. The princess cried then, and her tears moved even the heart of the emperor. Tears... they are sometimes the most powerful weapon one can use.
"Finally Tentei relented, and allowed the lovers to meet on one night every year. On the seventh night of the seventh month the boatman of the river would come to ferry Orihime to her beloved. And so it is, and each year for a few hours the lovers are reunited."
"Do the gaijin know this story?" a small boy asked.
"Now, Shota-chan, you know it's not polite to call foreigners that!" Kinuko exclaimed.
"Yes, they do," 'Kamui' smiled. "They call Orihime Vega, and their name for Kangyuu is Altair. The boatman's boat is the moon, and can you tell me what the great star river is?"
"The Milky Way!" Kazuki grinned.
"Exactly. You remember now, Kazuki-chan?"
"Yes, we used to celebrate this... with father..."
One of the little girls still seemed confused by something. "But why do we write wishes today?"
"They used to be prayers to Orihime, Minako-chan," Kinuko explained. "She's a goddess after all."
"Don't you believe that some beings can grant wishes, little one?" the young man asked, playfully ruffling Minako's hair. "But they need to know what they are first. It's not like Orihime can spare the time to read it in your thoughts..."
"Can I write down my wish, too?" Kazuki asked her companion.
"If Kinuko-san doesn't mind?" He raised an eyebrow questioningly.
"Of course not!" she laughed. "Here, Kazuki-san, have a pen and some tanzaku."
"Thank you." Kazuki bowed politely and set down to work.
Kinuko noted that while the girl thought long on every character, once she'd decided her hand was sure and precise. She wondered what might have happened to cause the damage to this lovely girl's mind.
"Did you write down your wish?" 'Kamui' asked.
"Not yet," she grinned. "I guess I don't really have anything I could wish for..."
"But you do," he protested.
"Well, I guess want all my little pupils to grow up safely. I've already lost two to the earthquakes."
"You want them to live," he said.
"Yes."
Kazuki approached them, paper in hand.
"Here, tie this to our bamboo branch," Kinuko directed her.
The silver-haired girl did as she was told, then approached her golden-eyed companion. "Will you write down your wish too?"
"Please do," Kinuko urged him. She winked. "It's important to preserve old traditions!"
The young man considered this for a moment, then picked up a tanzaku.
After the two had said their goodbyes and left, Kinuko cursed her curiosity and found Kamui's strip among the others. She wasn't very surprised to find it was a piece of blank paper.
She remembered what he'd said to her before leaving.
"I suggest you take your group on a countryside trip next Monday, Kinuko-san. You want them to live, don't you?"
She shivered in the evening chill and collected her pupils, leading them out of the park and into the city, where it was bright and warm and familiar. And dangerous.
*FINIS*