THE JOURNEY OF REINA
Introduction + Chapter One

INTRODUCTION

 

In a realm far, far away, yet close to the mind’s imagination, a seaside town was known to exist. It was a deeply peculiar town. Strange in its joyous amalgamation of what is known as Japanese and Portuguese culture in our world. You could wander the narrow streets and the houses would strike you with a rustical charm only known from scrolls depicting ancient Kyoto. Yet, strikingly, their walls would hold Azulejos. They would appear with gaps and missing pieces; patiently resting on the walls. Their white marble still holding the natives’ myths with blue ink. Unfinished puzzles or stories that only those who have lived there long enough could tell. Stories that are paid respect to at the several shrines found all across the town. Bright red, wrapped in ceremonial paper and with statues of a cat deity resting on top. The people pray in front of them for minutes and sometimes even for hours on end. To the town’s right, by walking past the lively but tiny bars, often not even bigger than a small living room, and past dark-lit ateliers full of mysterious, hissing and glowing objects, one will eventually arrive at the town’s harbor. Voices overlap here constantly. The adults all try to make a good penny here, risking a raspy voice at the end of the evening to get their fish moved for a coin or two. The ships are constantly arriving and departing. Huge and loaded with mysteries of the surrounding sea. The children, however, often find themselves surrounding the more modest and smaller Moliceiro boats in order to look at all the colorful images painted on their surfaces. If one just stops to listen for a single brief moment, the wildest stories of adventure and love can be heard, taken into one’s own heart and be left with. Nothing in this town is silent. Everything and everyone has a story to tell. One must just look, listen and find it in one’s self. Now to the town’s left, all the paths lead out into the forest through several giant Torii. So strikingly red that they all seem to blind you from among all the surrounding green. Like a wildfire spreading in gentle, slender lines all across the forest up to the mountain’s edge without ever burning anything; only pointing the way back or out of town. It is said that during particular nights, when the moon is at its fullest, bells and whistles can be heard from these paths. The natives say that these belong to a wedding ceremony; that these sounds are the kitsune celebrating the marriage between two of their own, and that you should never interfere, or you will be struck by grave misfortune. They also believe that a particular strange but revered priest lives up there near the mountain in a small house and that all sorts of magical but strange places can be found near his home.

 

This is the place that has always been gently resting within the mind of many,

but is seldomly discovered by those who very well could,

if you are here, you might already know its name;

it might be already tucking at your heartstrings,

trying to bring its tune to life

 

… the town called:

 

ロウロウサ

(Rorosa)

 

It’s in this town, where we meet a particular little girl. Lovely and lively. Emotion and intelligence playing in her hazel eyes. The same eyes that narrow into perfectly shaped crescent moons that could very well bewitch any observer’s mind with feelings of warmth and comfort. Not to mention the charming little gap that reveals itself every time she smiles. Those who choose to tell of her, certainly carry this girl’s name in their mind and heart, just as they carry that town – the name of:

 

麗奈 (Reina)

 

Written with the kanji for gentleness and beauty, as well as the one for the red apple – a fruit associated with the rotation of fate and the inevitability of connection…

​

 

CHAPTER ONE

 

…

 

I hate the word fate.

 

Birth, encounters, partings, success and failure, fortunes and misfortunes in life.

As a child I always wondered:

 

If everything is already set in stone by fate,

then why are we even born?

 

There are those born wealthy,

Those born of beautiful mothers and fathers,

And those born into war, poverty or tragedy.

 

If everything is caused by fate, then God, if they exist, must be incredibly unfair and cruel.

Because, ever since that day, none of us children had a future.

 

We were born knowing that we would never amount to anything.

 

…

 

Reina’s eyes wandered over what she had just read, then her gaze lingered awhile on the little word on top of the page: Fate. She had been coming across this particular word a few times lately. It was even mentioned in her favorite book, Starlight, in which two friends defy the fate bestowed upon them by two stars, so that they could reunite in the end, after having been separated for a long time. She must have read that story countless of times and yet, she didn’t fully understand – or rather ... thought there was something about this mysterious word fate that she wasn’t quite grasping in its entirety. This book she had been reading only served to confuse her further. She even grew slightly agitated on the stool she had taken outside to sit on. So concerned was she with what the writer meant to tell her … why would anyone hate what is supposed to come to you? While she was still lost in her thoughts, the door right next to her suddenly slid open and from the house came a young and handsome woman of 29 years. Her hair was raven and collected in a bun, except for two thick hair strains which framed her face left and right. She was of petite stature, but clearly very athletic. She wore a black uniform consisting of a jacket, shorts, leggings with a harness on her right leg, sturdy combat boots and a military-style hat. However, despite her appearance, and the katana that she also carried attached to her waist, she was not affiliated with the military in any way – although no one in town really dared to pick a fight with her. She was a postwoman and she treated her job with the greatest respect and care. Now, this woman, was called Lisa and, despite not being blood-related in any way, to Reina, she was family. She was similar to an aunt, her role model and maybe even … her second mother figure. „You always have your nose buried seven inches deep in books, don’t you?“, Lisa said with a stern expression. Reina looked up to her, responding to her sternness with a defiant stare. As she looked at the little girl’s eyes, a smile began to widen across Lisa’s face. „You’re such an odd child. That is exactly why I love you so much“, accenting what she had just said with a heartfelt laugh, which Reina then joined with her own. „So … are you now ready to go to the plaza with me, Lisa?“, Reina asked once the both of them had finally stopped laughing; what she had read a few minutes ago now just a thought in the back of her mind. At that question, Lisa rolled up the right sleeve of her jacket to look at her watch: „Yeah, I think it is about time for us to leave. We want to be the early birds, right?“, she smirked. Reina nodded in agreement. She had been waiting for this day for awhile now. Her anticipation only growing with every passing night.

 

The day of the Rancho Of Spirits.

 

While both languidly made their way through the narrow streets of Rorosa, Reina recounted all the wondrous details about this strange but fascinating event that Lisa had already told her about on several occasions. She knew that magic would fill up the air of the town for the next seven days, that she would be able to see spirits and creatures never seen before by her all over the place, and that it would be fun and cheerful. Lisa did not a single time go into any further detail, only providing what she called „a shadow theater of the real thing“, but that was already enough to fill Reina’s head with imagination and the expectation of new possibilities. The only thing she knew for sure is that the Rancho would take place in the center of this town, where most of the streets lead to and originate from:

 

The round plaza with the old well in its middle.

 

Reina has always been fascinated by it. There was a mythical quality to that ancient well so neatly placed in the middle of a round shape. Like a circle within a bigger one. The iris in the middle of an eye. It whispered, she could tell, images and visions that the generations of mankind may have forgotten, but could always remember in its presence. As it drew nearer and nearer, that whisper only became more and more noticeable to Reina, but it remained gentle in her ear, even when they finally arrived at the plaza. Reina already wanted to approach the well, but Lisa kept her back by placing her hand on the girl’s shoulder and by shaking her head, saying: „We can’t yet. You have to contain your excitement for a bit longer.“ Reina pouted, crossing her arms. Lisa, knowing she was doing this to get a laugh out of her, smiled and then patted Reina’s head, messing up her hair. „Keep your eyes always on the street leading to the western Torii path, Reina. The priest always appears on that one.“ „The priest …? The one they say is living up in the mountains?“, Reina asked while tidying up her hair again. Lisa nodded. Reina’s chest suddenly lifted in sheer excitement but also nervousness. There was no bigger mystery in Rorosa than the solitary priest. The children in town all told the most unbelievable stories about the man from the mountain. Some would say he could summon dragons out of his sleeves. Others believed the bells and whistles from the forest would signal he is around and if you say „Priest, are you there?“ three times in a row towards the direction of the sounds, he would come and whisper you away. Just like that. He was frightening to think about, but he was also a source of wonder. And no adult ever badmouthed him, on the contrary, if they caught any children telling unflattering stories about him, they would almost always be reprimanded and reminded of the priest’s wisdom. There was only one adult in town who would not recognize the priest’s good qualities, but Reina didn’t want to think about that now, so instead she looked at the other streets leading to the plaza. Many townspeople had arrived by now and just like them, they all stood at the edges of the streets. No one was saying a word. No one dared to cross into the plaza. Not even the children. The anticipation was electric; could be felt in every fiber of the body. All eyes were set on the sole street that was left completely empty. They all hoped to see him soon; Reina knew. She could feel it in each and everyone around her and also felt the same as them. That’s when she noticed, somewhere far into that street, a small bit of fog had quietly collected itself. It shimmered in shades of white and grey. And as if time was holding its breath, something could be seen slowly materializing out of it … out of thin air, dancing and tumbling around within the fog… flowers seemed to peacefully bloom into existence, loosely hanging in those shades of white and grey. It went on like this for only a minute, just the flowers dancing in mid-air, but to Reina it felt like an eternity, until eventually, a small but imposing figure emerged from within the fog and dispersed all of it with their presence. It was then that the little girl realized that the flowers she had observed with such keen interest had actually been a pattern on the black hakui that this person was wearing. As Reina continued to observe their every movement – the small steps taken with great consideration and care, the red nagabakama gliding over the pavement, the equally red sode-kukuri running through the large sleeves of the hakui swaying in the wind … and the white fox mask with red accents firmly placed and hiding their face – it all came together as the picture of myths and serenity she had been told by the adults so many times; and she then knew, just like everyone present, that this could only be the priest…

 

He had arrived.

 

It would start any minute now…

He was already standing in front of the well…

His right arm outstretched but his hand closed…

His large sleeves wide open, filling with air…

For a brief second, Reina thought she could see the dragons lurking inside…

The dragons she was told about so many times…

The hand slowly opening up … taking an eternity to bloom…

Then a sudden loud burst … a swath of color in an instant …

 

And then everything turned dark...

 

 

A gentle pat on her back and she could hear Lisa whispering into her ear: „It’s alright. You don’t need to fear anything here.“ Reina slowly opened her eyes; the darkness giving way to a mesmerizing arrangement full of light and color. The little girl couldn’t believe what she was seeing in front of her. Her hazel eyes widening with disbelief then narrowing with joy into crescent moons. The empty space above the plaza had been filled with countless of origami cranes. All different colors and patterns. Just flying, dancing through the air. Each and every one having seemingly sprouted from the priest’s palm. As she looked at them, filling her heart with soaring imagination, a single crane with a black pattern filled with starts, moons and suns, landed and rested on her shoulder, seemingly having found a place of great comfort. Lisa smiled at her then turned towards the well: „They are coming. Take a good look, because you wouldn’t want to miss that!“ Reina then too directed her gaze towards the well. Sounds could faintly be heard coming from deep within. As they grew louder and louder, Reina thought that it sounded like singing and maybe even instruments playing. And when it grew so loud that there could no longer be any mistaking them for anything but folkloric chants, a pair of pointy ears suddenly popped up from the well … and everything very abruptly grew silent again. The ears remained still for a brief moment, as if listening in to what was happening outside of the well, then shifted to the left, shifted to the right … slowly lifted up, revealing with them a pair of cat eyes, who narrowed with joy at the sight of all of us. Another loud burst; a sudden eruption of music; a stream of spirits and strange creatures now flooding out of the well. And at this sight, finally, all of the anticipation loosened, and the people cheered, crossed the lines into the plaza. Flooded in with an equal force to the flood from the well. The Rancho had finally started and the most curious sights could now be observed: People twirling and dancing while cat spirits played their folkloric songs on shamisen and Portuguese guitar. Flying heads filling the air with their raspy laughter while the children joyfully chased them around. The several Kappa spirits providing entertainment by manipulating water into gorgeous shapes and also ensuring relief by letting drops rain down on the people dancing in order to cool them down. And while the young played to their hearts’ content, the elderly all sat down with the fox spirits and the friendly O’uni witches in order to drink sake and tell their stories and past adventures. Among all of them was Reina … spinning around while her new origami friend did the same, laughing, marveling at everything she saw, at all the new things she was experiencing. She had never felt like this. She didn’t even know that she could feel this much joy and wondered if she would ever feel like this ever again. Tears streamed down her face. If she was supposed to be here on this day, how could anyone, how could she, ever hate the word fate? She thought … when suddenly … an all too familiar hand grabbed her by the shoulder and forced her out of her head. Out of her heart. Dragged her away from the spirits and people. From her origami friend. From Lisa. From that entire plaza…

 

…

 

Reina sat down on the little stool behind the fish stall, firmly crossing her arms and with tears of anger in her eyes. The man that dragged her away from the plaza taking position right next to her left side; stiff in his old and worn down suit, his arms folded behind his back, his frown ever constant on his face and the mustache over his lip giving him an air of desperate seriousness. This man was her father. A simple fish seller who was always preoccupied with putting up the appearance of a big businessman. But nobody thought of him as such and in fact, he was more known for his difficult character than anything else. Gruff and always treating other people with a haughty attitude. The townspeople have even come to pity her father’s existence. Lamenting his choices, his treatment of his self and that of others, but of course, Reina’s father did not care as long as he thought he was right. And therefore, they were here at the harbor now, while everybody was at the plaza with the creatures and the spirits. „Stop looking like that, Reina. In just a few minutes’ time, everybody will return from that ridiculous event and will want to buy fish for dinner. We need to be prepared, so wipe all that snot from your face this instant.“, her father said in a severe tone while only looking at her with a side-eye. „Here, dear. Use my tissue for that.“, said Reina’s mother, who had been sitting on a different stool next to her while breastfeeding her still unnamed infant brother. However, Reina refused the tissue and instead she let her gaze wander over the completely deserted harbor. Absolutely no one was there. Absolutely nothing could be heard from any of the boats or other stalls. Usually this was the liveliest and loudest place in Rorosa, but even this place found some unnaturally quiet peace on this specific day. They were alone. Reina sighed. A mistake. At this, her father immediately spun around on the spot and looked at her with a fiery, grave look in his eyes that instantly filled the little girl with dread. „Why don’t you go, make yourself useful and take out all the other boxes filled with fish from the pickup truck?“ Reina immediately stood up, refusal not even being an option, and left with shaky legs for the truck that was parked around the corner. She took a deep breath and as she was about to climb into its back, her mother with the baby in her arms appeared from the corner as well. She opened the truck’s door and carefully placed Reina’s brother into his baby seat, then climbed into the back as well. Both of them started carrying the boxes and placed them on the ground behind the truck. Despite how heavy all of them were, they tried to make as little noise as possible, because both knew that any loud thump would prove reason enough for Reina’s father to use even more harsh words. During all of this, Reina’s face had contorted into a painful grimace, silently crying to herself. Only a few moments ago, she was happy and feeling full of love, but now she remembered those words over and over again: I hate the word fate.

 

„Go.“

 

Her eyes widened. She turned around, unsure if she had imagined her mother’s voice or not. „Go, dear.“, her mother repeated with her back turned, her face unable to be looked at from where Reina stood. „Wherever it leads you.“ Her finger pointing upwards. Reina followed its trajectory until she saw it drawing circles above their heads … the little origami crane that had rested on her shoulder. That had danced with her. And once the hazel met with the stars on its paper body, it launched into the street nearby. Without second thought, Reina’s legs spun into motion in that same direction. While her mother silently smiled to herself, the little girl ran as hard as she could. Past the ateliers, past the empty bars, past the restaurants and food stalls. The narrow street turning into a whirlwind of unintelligible colors and the only thing clear to her eyes was the little crane in front of her. She eventually left town and reached the western Torii path, but kitsune or not, she did not think for a single second to stop, she only ran, turning herself into a blurred silhouette rushing up the path through the forest, always up towards the mountain, wherever her legs would carry her…

​

…wherever she might need to end up, wherever she decides to finally stop...

​

​

END OF CHAPTER ONE

​

BACK TO "CREATIVE WRITING"