Forever

One rainy day in Peru, when the sun should have been at its highest point, the average hustle and bustle of the small town continued as if there was no rain. Today was market day, which was when ships from other villages came to trade goods. Merchants were out yelling absurd items for outrageous prices, and the fruit market was booming with the new shipments.1

Peru was a desolate town sectioned off from the rest of the world by large, terrifying mountains. The houses were separated by acres of dry land that was barely used for farming and the houses themselves were small rickety wooden shelters that had no real floor. The city wasn't always this poor, though. Once, long ago, when the elders were the youth of Peru and the Neko people were treated as normal beings. That was the time where Peru was populous and carefree.2

The Neko people were like any other human, but they inherited the ears and tail of a certain animal. Some nekos even acquired the senses of whichever animal ancestor they had. Most of the Neko people took after cats, although various other sub-races included foxes and wolves. Once when the elders were younger, their chieftain ruled with a Neko leader. The two of them were as close as brothers, but the Neko chieftain attracted evil demons and lost spirits to the village at an alarming rate.3

And one day, a truly evil fox demon ripped Peru of its prosperity. The human chieftain blamed the Neko leader for Peru's misfortune and labeled all the Neko people as demons. When the Neko leader's wife tried to prove otherwise, the humans tied her to a wooden cross and burned her alive in front of her husband's eyes. Enraged by his wife's death, the Neko chieftain took his newborn daughter in his arms with beautiful care. Tears in his eyes, he handed her over to his closest human friends whom he knew he could trust to keep his daughter safe. He feared that if he placed his daughter in the hands of his Neko cabinet, she would be killed and he just couldn't live with that thought.4

With his emotions overflowing with grief, rage, and the motivation to prove nekos weren't demons, he went out to destroy the fox demon. He succeeded but he lost his life from the injuries he sustained. The human leader, however, refused to accept the fact that the demon was gone. The Neko leader's daughter, whose parting with her father would never be remembered, was sickly and near death at the time when the demon was destroyed.5

The demon, seeing its chance to revenge itself, quickly locked itself away inside of the Neko leader's daughter. Its overly powerful soul mixed with the baby's so that they shared one soul. The baby's health improved greatly, and the human elders deemed it a miracle. The demon's plan was to feed of the daughter's soul until it no longer existed. The demon would then have a disposable body for its own use and it could once again rein terror over countless countries.6

A clap of thunder as loud as a thousand demons roared through the sky and sent many people into buildings as the rain began to pour harder than before. It had always rained in Peru, and as long as the neko's daughter lived and aged, the rains would get harder and harsher every year.7

On one of the muddy roads, a single figure in a worn-out woolen smock ran down the path with its shoes getting stuck in the mud every so often. When the figure tripped and fell, a fox's tail twitched from beneath the smock and swayed sadly in the downpour. The figure was now on its hands and knees, and it apparently doubted it could make it home. A passerby, who had been walking with his face facing the sky, looked down on the Neko and walked over to help it up.8

"Do you need help?" he asked.9

The Neko looked up, her green eyes twinkling like summer grass bathed in sunlight. Her hood fell back as she looked up, and two fox ears stood straight up as they searched for dangerous sounds. The Neko's hair was shoulder-length and a fiery red and two ponytails were tied up with long black ribbons. She didn't speak, but held up a muddy hand to the human.10

"Alright." the man sighed. "Will you be able to make it back to where you live or do you want me to take you there?"11

The Neko blinked at the offer, knowing very well that most humans weren't so friendly. "I don't want to bother you. I'll get myself home."12

"Not without falling over repeatedly." The man said. "Do you even have a home?"13

His black eyes shone like obsidian stones and they held a mischief that was covered by his seemingly kind nature. The Neko really didn't like humans, but her ears told her to not trust this one. This one had a strong presence about it. She opened her mouth to object, but the human took her hand again and led her to the building just behind them.14

When they entered the building, the Neko immediately recognized it as the only Inn run by a Neko family. As the man who helped her up pulled her through the crowd of soaked individuals, she thought that he might be staying at the Inn. A sudden, sick thought crossed her mind but the Neko waved it from her thoughts quickly. They climbed the flight of stairs and rounded a few corners before finally reaching the man's room. He stopped and let go of the neko's hand only to hold out his other hand in a friendly manner.15

"My name is Dmi and I've been a traveler in and out of Peru for a while now. Will you tell me your name?" he asked, a smile tweaking his lips.16

The girl pouted, her ears flat and tail twitching in an upset manner, and stuck her hand out to meet his. Shaking it stiffly, she replied with a glimmer of mysterious relief in her eyes. "I'm Minkai."17

Dmi smiled widely and opened up the door to the room. Walking inside, he took off his raggedy coat and helped Minkai out of hers. He set a pan of water onto a small, shivering stove for tea and sat down at the sturdy wooden table. "You can sit down, you know." he said.18

Minkai sat down, looking around the room. She had seen the insides of this Inn before because she worked here in the sunny seasons. The walls were a strong wood, a kind that was intertwined with other planks to keep different fragrances ousting the bad smells in the inn. Although the Neko people were ridiculed in Peru, this was the only building where they were respected. The furniture was of the same mix of woods and looked very poor for the status of an Inn, but it kept the people who stayed there alive and warm.19

As her eyes pranced around the room, Dmi rested his head on his hands while staring at Minkai. When she finally looked over at him, he smiled. "I won't do anything bad to you, I just don't think that a fox should try and walk home in a foot of mud."20

She answered him with a stern glare and turned to stare out a small window. "When will it stop raining?" she asked, her ears alert.21

"If I said I never wanted them to stop, you'd probably up and leave thinking I was a sick-minded man. I'm not, and you should trust me only on that and my name, by the way. The rains should be away by twilight, so we have a few hours."22

"I'll leave before they let up, though." Minkai said, looking over at Dmi. "I just met you."23

"I know that. I might not have helped someone up like I did with you; I'm not that kind of person. But there just seems to be something about you that I feel I can trust." Dmi said, yawning widely and closing his eyes. "The rain makes me smile, and tired."24

"My conscience says I shouldn't trust you. What do you say to that?" Minkai asked impatiently.25

One obsidian eye opened slowly, and stared lazily at Minkai. For a split moment, she was startled at how perfect Dmi looked. His features were perfectly marbled, although his skin was pale, and his eyes were obviously so glass-like that he seemed as if he was only a doll.26

His voice was soft and filled with the grogginess one would have after just waking up. "I say that you leave me alone and let me sleep. You don't need to stay here any longer."27

Minkai put her face in her hands, looking away from Dmi's face. "Ooh..." she moaned silently to herself. "Why me?"28

The Neko and human sat in silence for an eternity, the sounds of thunder and flashes of lightening soothing Dmi into a sleepy state and frightening Minkai out of her skin. Dmi had moved himself over to the small couch located in the dark corner, telling Minkai she could sleep on the bed if the rain wouldn't let up soon. Minkai had answered by glaring at Dmi until he had to turn away from her piercing look.29

Hours passed and the rain continued to beat down. Dmi had long since entered a deep essence of sleep, and Minkai guessed that it was well past nightfall. She didn't think it would be a good idea to walk home in the dark with potential crazies ready to kill the first Neko they saw. But then again, it probably wasn't a good idea to stay with Dmi, either. In the end of her mental battle, Minkai curled herself up on the white sheets of the bed and closed her eyes, jumping every time the thunder roared. She finally drifted off into a fitful sleep and slept, undisturbed, until early the next morning.