Dawn of a New Age

Prologue (Part II): Parallel Fates

Disclaimer(s): None of the image(s) used in this chapter belongs to me. The Pixiv or Twitter source(s) will be linked underneath each image if available or unless it is from an official source.

Title Source: https://www.pixiv.net/en/artworks/85989897

Word Count: 10.7k Words

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Japan - Sakura Forest

Rin couldn't quite comprehend what she could do in this situation as she kept her sparkling blue eyes on the man.

Around her, the forest remained lively and vibrant with life.

Birds chirped to welcome the early radiant rays while the pink petals of trees and grass blades swayed according to the gentle morning winds of Spring. Nocturnal predators returned to their homes after an uneventful evening of searching for food with satisfaction to their name or disappointment running through their minds.

However, the atmosphere near him felt completely different.

Perhaps once upon a time, the young man's clothes were brand-new and had a fashionable flair to them, but they now clung to him as nothing more than torn reminders of a past life he could only dream of returning.

His (H/C) hair was murky from his recent endeavors, and his face looked too weary for someone his age. The stranger's eyes had been closed when she arrived to reclaim her pet, but she had caught a glimpse of his (E/C) eyes that hid a great deal of guilt in them.

Rin wasn't ready to deal with this kind of situation today. And, although her pet fox was growling at him, she didn't necessarily think that he was a cruel person.

The young girl quickly retreats behind a tree rooted a fair distance away from him, nearly tripping for herself in the process.

"Oh, what do I do now, Higokumaru?" Rin looked right into her pet's amber eyes as the vulpine blinked once then twice before licking her cheek. 

"You're right..." She placed the fox on the grass and pumped herself up, "I should at least make sure that he's breathing before worrying!"

"(...That's not what I said.)" The fox yipped to themselves as they watched Rin quietly creep towards where (Y/N) was laying down.

Rin began to approach the unconscious man, chanting inside of her mind, "(I can do this! I can do this! I can do this!)"

Amid her self-hyping, (Y/N) had opened his eyes and slowly looked in her direction, surprising her greatly. The only thing her body did was to freeze under his gaze and panic. 

"(I can't do this! I can't do this!)" Rin screamed internally.

Their eyes met for the first time, timid blue and tired (E/C) staring into one another's souls. For a moment, Rin forgot about her shyness and found herself transfixed with the depth behind his eyes.

"Hello...?" (Y/N) awkwardly mumbled in a mundane tone as he sat up into a sitting position with his back against the tree.

Rin quickly remembered where she was, "Kyaaa! I'm sorry!"

The confused man watched her leave with her fox in her arms, screaming her maiden shriek until she was home. He sat there for a moment longer and enjoyed the gentle breeze that morning had brought with it. Grass whistled around him while the branches above danced to the steady rhythm of the soft gale.