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Blessing of the Shrine

Elyu quickly tapped along the forest path as the rain dropped from the canopy of leaves above him and onto the dirt below. Normally he enjoyed the rain, the way it made the forest smell all nice and fresh, the way it nurtured the earth and cooled the days. But usually that would be from the comfort of a cabin or from below an umbrella, both of which he did not have available to him now. Summer was not the season for rains and Elyu had not expected a downpour to catch him on a short errand like this.

Alas, here he stood, trying to keep his hat in place to ward off any rain and hurrying to get back to his warm and dry home. That was when something caught his eye, just on the side of the path. A tiny little hut that seemed to have been blown over by the wind, or pushed aside by an animal. Around it laid scattered flowers and candy, dried fruits and an extinguished candle. It was a shrine, and one that -by nature or carelessness- had been defiled.

While the rain drove him homeward, this was the forest he had grown up in, and a forest he considered himself on good terms with. So, with the rain pouring down his hat, he came to a stop at the shrine. He could not see any footprints to indicate trampling, but he knew that in a forest inhabited by spirits that didn’t have to mean much. It could’ve been a wind calf that was frolicking in the incoming storm and rain, or a root serpent digging beneath it. So, not knowing whether it was with intent or not, he began to rebuild the delicate little hut. It reminded him of his youth, when he had built a shrine for his sleeping cabin outside the main court, for a protective deity to bless it and protect him in his sleep.

The construction was simple, interlocking wood pieces carved out to build a load-bearing structure, though he knew the odd trick to make it a bit more stable. It took him a couple of minutes to rebuild the shrine, while his cloak soaked up the rain and his hat began to droop. Finally, he placed the miniature altar into the shrine and the candle upon it. He knew that in this rain, there was no way for him to kindle a fire, but he tried his best to reconsecrate the shrine regardless. Plucking a leaf from a nearby tree and placing the offerings on top of it, he sat down to pray and offer the candy and dried fruits to the spirits of the forest.

Closing his eyes like this let Elyu calm down again and focus on the world around him. His prayer was an empty one, he didn’t feel it wise to call upon the spirits who may have been upset by the destruction of their shrine. In the emptiness in his thoughts, he felt the forest around him, heard the rain drop onto leaves, feel the texture of the mud below his feet and knees, heard the wind gently playing through the branches, the feeling of gentle warmth that each raindrop of this summer shower bestowed upon him, getting closer and closer to nature.

He didn’t know how much time had passed when he ended his prayer with a soft wish for peace upon the forest and its inhabitants, spirits and starkin alike. Opening his eyes, the first thing he noticed was that the candle in the shrine was lit, and softly flickering in the wind. The next thing he noticed was that he was not alone.

Next to him, a fuzzy little animal sat, fur white like snow and ears tipped in black fur, with red markings on its body. A fox spirit! Was it perhaps the deity of this shrine? Elyu had not met many spirits in his time, so he still felt a little nervous about its presence next to him. Two tails on the foxes’ rear told him it was a somewhat lesser power in this forest, perhaps befitting of the shrine he rebuilt. The fox had its eyes closed, meditating or communicating with other spirits, perhaps? It barely stood as tall as his seated hips, and that was only including the two massive ears atop its head. For the lack of a better term for such a mystical creature, he could only describe it as cute.

“It’s not fine to stare, you know,” a soft female voice spoke suddenly, the fox opening one eye and looking back at him, revealing the amethyst irises that laid below. Startled by the sudden voice, Elyu bowed down to the spirit, despite the mud that got on his cloak and sputtered a few apologies.

The voice chuckled, clearly belonging to the fox as it turned to him: “No worries, human child, I won’t take offence. Please, rise again.”

A bit uncertain Elyu got up again and looked the fox into the mysterious and swirlingly shimmering eyes, only now noticing that its fur was completely dry despite sitting the in the rain like he was. It tilted its head a little and smiled, talking in a soothing voice: “So you rebuilt my shrine? A noble act, especially in weather such as this.”

“I felt it was the right thing to do,” Elyu answered quietly, “I feel close to this forest.”

“I know,” the fox chuckled, “I have seen you before, you tread our paths often.”

“I am a humble messenger of the House L’omtihu, I commune with the House L’urnal frequently,” he responded truthfully.

“And do you have a name, Messenger of House L’omtihu?”

“I- uh,” he stuttered, “my name is Elyu, Houseless and of no one.”

The fox smiled again, this time a bit more holistically: “A fine name of a human with no standing or house. Though I wonder, if you serve faithfully and loyally, why has the house whose messages you bear not taken you in?”

Elyu looked aside a bit, not sure how to explain his situation: “It is a test of my loyalty, I am to complete a hundred voyages to House L’urnal and a hundred voyages to house L’omtihu without using the same path twice. I was adopted as a child, I need to prove myself first.”

“A hundred voyages back and forth,” the fox asked in a surprised tone, “a fool’s errand, don’t you think?”

“It is all I have,” Elyu answered, “otherwise I have no way to become part of the house I serve.”

The fox hissed and shook its head: “Humans, I will never understand where your lack of kindness comes from, heavens know it doesn’t come from the stars. But say, you must be hungry, why don’t you pick some of the fruit and candy? It will give you strength.”

“T-those are offerings, I couldn’t,” Elyu replied, a bit unsure.

“They are offerings to me,” the fox answered, picking up a dried plum and handing it to him, “therefore I can bestow them unto you too. This one here in particular is filled with good hopes and wishes.”

Still a bit unsure, Elyu picked up the plum, thanking the fox before trying it. It did taste phenomenally well and its sweet note let a shiver run over his body, making it feel revitalised and strengthened. He quickly took another bite before eating it whole, watching the fox spirit do the same, somehow swallowing a whole plum in a single bite of its small maw. It looked up to him and grinned: “Told you they were good!”

“They really are,” Elyu answered, “thank you very much.”

“It is my pleasure,” the fox answered, “though I feel like your poor soul deserves more, is there anything I can do for you?”

Elyu was taken a bit aback, not sure what to say. He tried to think of something, anything, but he had no idea what he could possibly wish for that would not come off as ungrateful or demanding too much, his mortal knowledge just had no idea where those boundaries laid in the spirit world. Ultimately he just had to admit to himself that he would not find a good answer and so told the patiently waiting fox the truth: “I am sorry, but I could not know what to ask you for, but I am humbled by your offering.”

The fox chuckled again: “Oh, humans, you poor beings of limited imagination~ Oh well, if you can’t imagine anything, then the least I can do is to stop holding you up and let you return to your errand, however foolish it may be.”

“Thank you,” Elyu bowed again before getting up and standing on his two feet again, “it was a pleasure to have made your acquaintance.”

“The pleasure is all mine,” the fox answered, but quickly flashed a grin of playful mischief, “though I think that our encounter is not yet over.”

The fox suddenly grew, standing up on two legs, body shifting, paws forming into hands, fur receding and giving way to clothing that spread around the foxes body. Startled by the sudden transformation, Elyu fell backwards and landed in the mud again, as the shape of a foxlike woman stood over him, dressed in fine robe and carrying a large leaf like and umbrella. She giggled a heavenly giggle and reach her hand out to him, pulling his befuddled self back onto two feet. She covered her mouth for a soft chuckle and continued: “Wish or not, I am intrigued, therefore I shall follow you to House L’omtihu and meet your masters bestowing you with errands like this.”

Elyu was at a loss for words, he felt his entire wet body shudder in cold and wonder, his heart beating faster than it had when he was hurrying along this rainy path. The woman’s white hair complemented her amethyst eyes well, she looked as though she was cut from marble, sculpted to be the perfect image of beauty and grace, a sight only the spirit realm could bring forth. She smiled at the sight of his confused expression and flicked a finger his way: “But I think that if you are to return to your house, you should do so looking like you should.”

An inexplicable and sourceless warm wind blew over Elyu, driving under his clothes and covering his body, making his clothing puff up as it drove through and out of the fabric. Water was blown from his skin, washing off the mud from his hands and clothing before drying both, making him feel warm and comfortable, as though he had just spent a long hour in the warmth of the court bath. The fox stepped forward and held onto his arm, staying right by his side and holding the leaf above the two, the rain not touching them, and the ground in front of them always dry as they took a few first steps.

Feelings of disbelief and wonder raced through Elyu’s head, a storm of emotions, but were laid low and calmed when the spirit reached for his head and stroked his hair gently: “Calm, human child, lest you stumble over a root on this path you have not taken before~”

Elyu nodded and brought forth a quiet: “Thank you…”

The spirit smiled happily and answered: “Please, call me Freun oft de Wellerode, I’m sure once your voice comes back to you, there will be much to say and converse, I wouldn’t want to keep myself a stranger.”

She smiled again and held her soft, cool yet warm hands into Elyu’s hands as his heart fluttered again a little.

“Now onwards, Elyu, houseless and of no one, Messenger of House L’omtihu, bring me to your stead, for I wish to meet your masters.”

Elyu was a little unsure, but under that sentiment the two set off to the court of House L’omtihu, if nothing else, at least to spend a comfortable evening together.