Warrior's Mask

4. Fairytales?

Murasaki’s POV:

I stood outside the battlegrounds and watched the events unfold. My eyes stayed glued to the dragon wielder as he walked away from his friend, intent on becoming stronger, and I smiled to myself. He and Shin may not be the greatest of friends, but I don’t think that they’re the worst of enemies, either. They may never admit it out loud, but they care about each other, and will probably take that to their grave before telling anyone. I know it doesn’t seem like it - trust me, I REALLY know, I’ve had to deal with them for the past five years - but even someone like Sho Yoshimura, who the world has dubbed as heartless, is capable of showing compassion towards another human being. This world has just drummed into him that compassion is a weakness, and when he stopped showing it, he finally became a *true* monster, and they hated him.

But without one another, they have nothing to strive for, other than beating Yuji, and that’s every wielder’s dream. They’d be no different from the crowd. I watched Sho’s hair flicker, despite there being no wind and smiled to myself. He’s thinking about Shin, and it’s only been five minutes. Well, you can’t have Sho Yoshimura without Shin Hattori. Not anymore, anyway. Who would they be without each other? What would Wieldism be without one of the biggest known rivalries in its history? I don’t think anyone wants to find out. It’s like taking away the wonder boy’s miracles - there’s nothing left of it. Nothing even compares to what these kids have.

I took out my phone and looked at the home screen. It was a picture of Sho, Shin and me. Shin was seven, Sho was nine and I was twelve. We were all holding our prisms up at the camera, and we all seemed so happy. You wouldn’t have guessed that our worlds had been torn apart from our smiles. It’s scary what a smile can hide - even as children. The world chewed us up and spat us out, and because of that, we are who we are today. Shin is so busy trying to be the world's version of perfect in hope that they would forget about his nickname and actually treat him like a human being. Sho is angry at the world and gets annoyed at everyone and everything in it with such ease, never thinking about how he’s affecting other people. And I’m just an emotional wreck, intent on helping the people I care about. But I want to be something more. We all do.

I took a deep breath, taking my prism out of my pocket and staring at her. I just wanna let go, but I can seem to give her up; the root of all my problems. It was the one thing from my parents that I actually treasured. Not that they gave me much else to treasure, but oh well. I pocketed her again, slightly angry with myself. I should be able to let go with ease, but whenever I think I have, life comes and slaps me in the face and it’s ridiculous. I cannot catch a goddamn break. I don’t wanna do this anymore. I want my dragon to just leave me alone, so why won’t it? And why does it hurt so much whenever it comes back? Is it because she used to be my mothers? Yeah, I was never particularly close with her, but it was still my fault she died. I was a child, though, I didn’t know that was going to happen. Maybe this is for the best. I’m a monster, and I should be treated as such.

So, I guess I can understand Sho’s anger. He’s been raised to be the best, answerable to nobody but Yuji and his father. So when a boy with remarkable abilities shows up and turns his world around, he doesn’t know what to make of it other than let the one emotion that has never failed him take over: anger. I looked over at the boys, sadly. Another generation has fallen. Another group of children who have lost their way. I guess I failed the newest set of youth, who seemingly needed my help the most. A new generation has lost their way. Not much I can do other than see how things play out. I feel like the wonder boy is going to strike again, and that could mean disaster for all of us. But who knows what’s going through that tiny little head of his? He’s saved us once, and he might do it again. Or he could just be our downfall.

This generation may not go far, but they will go out with a bang, because what star falls unnoticed? They have a lot going for them. They might just change the very foundation of this world. Or it could end in shambles - Seiji isn’t the most reliable of people, even in times of need he tends to flake out. I sighed and started walking home, knowing the lengths the wonder boy will go to just to cause a scene. But at least things won’t be boring around here for the time being.

Let me ask you a question. Do you believe in fairytales? Because I do. That may be stupid, but I think I have a good reason to believe in them. Curious yet? I think fairy tales are more than true: not because they tell us that dragons exist, but because they tell us dragons can be beaten. What is past is prologue. That means you have to find out who YOU are and do it on purpose, and don't listen to those 'oh-so-great' people because behind every great fortune, there is a terrible crime. Yes, they may be part of the lost generation, and you may say they have no power here, they are just children, outcasts in society, but be that as it may. This generation will go out with a bang, and the wonder boy will not disappoint them because he knows that history has its eyes on him.

I rambled on a bit longer than I expected to, I’ll let you get back to the story at hand, but this is not a story about sunshine and rainbows, where the heroine falls for the hero and they live happily ever after. Happily ever afters are rare to come by in the real world. Instead, we’re just met with death and despair, as dark as that may seem. And if you don’t believe that, then you’re in the wrong section at the bookstore because this section very much believes that, alright? As much as we try to rewrite the stars, if it’s already foretold then let it be known as how it will be. Some children can’t escape their destiny.