Parting
2. Parting
"Hey, Daddy, Mommy. Why can't Shia go outside? Why can't I talk to other people?"
Whenever she asked, the two of them would simply lower the corners of their brows in silent sadness.
People rarely visited this house on the outskirts of town, though travelers occasionally passed nearby on their way into the mountains. Whenever that happened, her parents would quickly close the curtains, lead Shia to the back room, and tell her:
"Shia, listen closely. You must never show yourself to anyone but us."
"What if I'm found?"
"You must be careful so that doesn't happen. But if you are found no matter what, remember that robe I gave you?"
"Daddy's big one?"
"Yes, that's the one. Whenever we aren't with you, you must always wear that robe."
"Always?"
"At all times, Shia."
"Always? But it's so big and heavy..."
"Shia, this is a promise."
".........Okay."
As Shia nodded reluctantly, her mother gently stroked her head, and her father gave a firm nod. Promises were important. If she kept them, her mother would bake sweet treats—cookies with the nuts Shia loved. Moreover, as long as she kept her promise, the two of them would never make those sad faces.
And so, the questions of why she couldn't go outside, or why she couldn't interact with others, eventually stopped leaving her lips, born from a desire to never see them look that way again.
But as she grew older, she gradually understood the reason.
After all, both her father and mother said they couldn't see a thing at night without a lamp, and that they couldn't smell the scent of rain falling in the distance.
Furthermore, they had no claws useful for tearing things, nor sharp teeth capable of biting through food.
And the most decisive difference—the reason they insisted she wear the robe as a promise—was that neither of them had large ears or a tail.
...No, it was the opposite. It was because she had them that the robe was necessary.
Secretly, without her parents knowing, she had peeked at the people passing by, and indeed, not a single one of them had ears or a tail like hers.
She alone was different from everyone else.
Why?
—Long ago, when she was even smaller, she had asked them about her appearance and how it differed from theirs.
But Shia didn't remember the answer they gave her.
She only remembered that her mother had been crying, and her father had looked deeply pained.
Because of that, she locked the question deep inside her heart, vowing that she must never, ever ask it again.
The quiet, peaceful days of the three of them—Father, Mother, and Shia—passed slowly.
A gentle time, like the drowsiness of a cradle. But the flowing current of time never stops, nor does it ever turn back.
Beside her father, who lay on the bed with his eyes closed and a face far paler than usual, Shia looked up at her mother, whose eyes were rimmed with red.
"Mommy? Is Daddy going to sleep forever?"
"No, Shia. Daddy isn't sleeping; he has passed away."
"Passed away?"
"Yes... we can't see him anymore."
"But Daddy is right here."
"You're right, but he will never open his eyes again, and we can no longer speak with him. And in a little while, we must bury his body in the earth."
"What?! If you do that, I won't be able to see Daddy!"
"Yes, that's right, Shia. That is what it means to die. Daddy... has passed away."
"...But!"
Her mother pulled Shia into a tight embrace.
"Shia, Shia, everyone passes away eventually. It is only natural; it is something no one can overturn."
"But, but...!"
"You, and I... yes, even I..."
"Mommy too...?! I don't want that! No! Absolutely not!"
".........Shia..."
As if to soothe the shaking girl, the strength of the embrace tightened. A trembling voice whispered, "...I'm sorry."
"......I'm sorry......"
Her mother's voice, heard once more, was still trembling. But Shia could not understand the meaning of that apology.
Then, her father was buried in the earth.
Wearing her robe pulled deep over her head, Shia watched alone from a distance as the gathered people offered white flowers.
The outside world she saw for the first time was stained grey by a fine rain, and the faint scent of flowers reaching her smelled lonely and sad.
After that, her mother began to take Shia outside more often. Of course, she remained covered by the robe.
She learned how to buy things and where the shops were. They even went to the harbor where the ships docked.
As Shia's eyes widened at the sight of the vast ocean, her mother told her that there were many countries beyond those waters. And then.
"If... if something should ever happen to me... go to the people in this house and—"
"What do you mean, 'something'? Nothing's going to happen to you, right, Mom?"
"That's right, nothing will. But just in case."
"..................I don't want to hear it."
"...I suppose it can't be helped. We'll save it for next time, then."
Going outside was fun, but every time she was taught something new, it felt as if they were making preparations for the future, and the thought made Shia's heart grow heavy.
"Mom... Mom, you aren't going anywhere, right?"
"Yes, Shia. I will always be by your side."
"Promise?"
"......Yes."
Promises were important. And yet.
Beside her mother's cold body, Shia let out a raspy whisper.
"...You liar, Mom..."
In the end, her mother also passed away, leaving Shia behind.
Even though she said she wouldn't go anywhere, that she would stay by her side.
As her back grew smaller day by day, and with Shia unable to do anything for her, her mother spent more and more time in bed. Quietly, quietly, as if falling asleep. Her closed eyes never opened again.
There was no answer when she called. She wouldn't wake up no matter how much Shia screamed and cried.
That was what it meant to die. A parting that inevitably comes for everyone, even for the people you love and cherish most.
She stayed by her mother's side, listening to the sound of the fine rain that had been falling for days. However, Shia's nose was very keen. Thus, she was sensitive to the scent.
The smell of decay.
The smell of her mother's body slowly wasting away.
(…I don't want to leave her side…)
But she had to leave.
And she knew what she had to do. Just as she had with her father, she had to bury her mother in the earth.
"......Mom... Dad..."
Those voices only echoed in the quiet room.
Shia had become all alone.
After staying close to her mother's body for about three days, Shia finally took action.
Under the cover of the night's darkness, she headed to the place where her father was buried—a place called a grave—and began to dig a hole.
If her mother was to be buried, it would be better if she were with her father. So, she dug with all her might.
But no matter how sharp her claws were, it was simply impossible to finish in a single day. Moreover, the surroundings were already beginning to brighten. Thus, she gave up for the day and returned home, curling up beside her mother to fall asleep.
A modest knocking sound woke Shia from her slumber.
Sensing the presence of people in front of the house, she stiffened, but the door was locked. Shia's ears picked up the conversation.
"What should we do? Break the lock?"
"The wife did say she hasn't seen anyone here lately, but... I only came today to tell them that the grave had been disturbed."
"Then let's take it back for now."
"Yeah, let's talk to the others as well."
The presence of the people vanished, and Shia breathed a sigh of relief. But those words—the "grave" they mentioned—were likely referring to her father's. But... disturbed? Shia had no memory of doing such a thing.
What did that mean?
While she was brooding over this, the presence of people approached once again, and this time, the door to the house was forced open.
Being awake this time, Shia immediately hid herself in the back room and listened intently. It was easy to pick up sounds from inside the house.
But from then on, it became very noisy.
The voices of the people who found her mother, and then even more people joining them. People came and went in a constant stream. It finally became quiet around midnight, when the moon, blurred by the rain, had risen to the highest point in the sky.
Shia crawled out from her hiding place and went to her mother, curling up beside her, who had been dressed in pure white clothes.
The chaotic tangle of human emotions and scents had left Shia feeling utterly drained, but simply lying here like this allowed that tension to slowly melt away.
She had been listening to everyone's talk. It seemed her mother would be placed in the grave tomorrow.
Contrary to her own wishes, it wasn't in the same spot as her father, but beside him; however, as long as the two of them could be next to each other, it wasn't a problem.
And so, this was the last time she could be with her mother. The final night.
"...Mom."
Naturally, there was no answer to her whispered voice. Still, she repeated it softly. When she closed her eyes, she felt as if she could hear a voice that should have been silent.
Shia, my sweet child, I love you, always.
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