Mai huffs, sweat dripping down her body. Her kimono fully drenched. She's on the verge of passing out but it's not like her father would let her. They were almost done with their training session. Mai stares at the tree in anger, swinging her sword against the bark of the tree, trying to cut it down.
The 12 year old girl had heart, Kofi Abara, her father pats her head. Smiling at the progress, a month ago she couldn't even pick up a sword without crying.
"You're so strong Mai, look at you!" She sheathes her sword, smiling brightly at her papa. "You'll be the strongest in the world, isn't that right? My little princess," he wraps his arms her, fake crying. She had been growing so fast, it hurt him in a sense but a part of Kofi was proud. Proud to be a father of this strong, beautiful girl.
"Eww papa, you stink," she hugged him back, holding her breath so she wouldn't smell his must. She was still eager to train, after all, it was him who taught her how to push herself beyond her limits. "When will we train in the mountains? You said we would take mama, sister Aya, and big brother Kaname?"
"No," Kofi's voice deepened, letting his little girl know he was serious, "there's dangerous things in that mountain, remember the story of the dragon—" his own daughter cut him off, impatient with him. She was beyond irritated at this silly myth of the dragon. Nothing but a superstition that others in the nearby village spouted.
"But those don't exist papa," the brown-skinned girl frowned, tired of her father repeating that childhood tale. "You promised we could train in the mountains months ago & that we'd defeat the dragon." She pouts, taking her curly hair out of a ponytail. The curls falling down in front of her face.
"Mai," he grabbed his daughter's shoulders, making her look at him in anger. He was fed up with her back talk, why couldn't she just accept the fact that he was telling the truth. "I said no, now let's go, we're going home."
She sighed, following behind her father with her jaw clenched. Her eyes looking at the mountain ahead of them. A certain fog surrounding it, almost captivating Mai, what could those mountains possibly be hiding?
She places her hands on her head, wondering why her father, a fierce and strong man was so scared of those mountains. After all, dragons don't exist.
They simply can't.
⊱ ──────ஓ๑♡๑ஓ ────── ⊰
"Mai, come eat! I made your favorite meal," Mai's mother called out, seeing her daughter sit on the couch, obviously wanting to be unbothered. Mai buries her head into her knees, still thinking about those damned mountains.
"Mhmmit pastes swo gooood," Aya, Mai's little sister stuffs her mouth with more food while their mom hit Aya on top of her head.
"What did I say about talking with food in your mouth Aya?" An irk mark appeared on their mom's forehead while Aya began to swallow her food all at once. Mai's brother, Kaname began to laugh at the site of Aya and their mom arguing.
"Mama, it's not nice to hit your kids. I heard that they say it's abuse," Aya stuck her tongue out at their mother who hit her on the head again. "Oww, papa!" Aya calls out to their father who walked out, clutching his chest in pain.
"Mama keeps hitting me!"
Their father smiled, his dreads swaying with every step. "Stop hurting my precious bean, that's mean pumpkin." His eyes traveled to Mai who continued to sulk in the corner of the room. "Are you still mad at me Mai?"
"What the hell did you do to piss Mai off again old man?" Kaname chuckles, feeling the tension in the air thicken between Mai and her father. In the past month alone they've been arguing back and forth, Mai wanted freedom while Kofi wanted to secure her safety.
He wanted her to be safe, away from those demons.
"Mai, sweetie, stop arguing with your father and come eat before your food gets cold."
"I'm not hungry," Mai lies, looking outside of the window as the sun began to set. "Just leave me alone already. Please?" She croaked out, she wasn't going to cry, this would be extremely stupid to cry over, it wasn't a valid reason to either.
"How could you be that mad at me? It's not that serious Mai & I'm not going to baby you anymore," Kofi turned towards her, walking towards Mai. "You're 12 years old, act like it. You're mad over traveling to a fucking mountain? Get over it."
Mai's mom softly places her hands on Kofi's shoulders, leaning towards his ear and whispering. "Stop, don't yell at her, you know she just loves to travel." He was tense, he too was running out of patience, this was their fifth verbal argument in this week alone.
"And you're scared of a 'monster' that doesn't exist," Mai stood up, walking towards her father. "I'm tired of listening to you, you're so strong, you shouldn't be scared of some silly myth. It makes you..." she glances away from him, wondering if she should say it.
"It makes you look like a coward."
Mai didn't know when it happened, it was so quick. She was just standing up still and now she's on the floor, clutching her cheek in pain. Aya and Kaname stood still, the echo making them wince in fear as well. Kofi had slapped his daughter with the back of his hand.
His ring marks painting her brown cheek.
"Kofi?!" Mai's mother shoves Kofi to the side, rushing to her daughters side. "Are you okay Mai? Talk to me?" Mai backs away from them, blood leaking outside of the cuts on her face. "How dare you hurt my baby?" Her mother's voice shakes while Kofi blankly stares at his hand.
"..."
Kofi couldn't speak at all, he didn't mean to hurt his daughter, he was just... just protecting his ego after all. This could be justified? Right?
"I'm leaving," Mai pushes herself up off the floor, grabbing her sword from the corner of the room. "Don't come looking for me."
"Mai Mai?" Aya whispered, the 7 year old had watched the entire thing unfold in front of her eyes, "please don't leave me Mai, please?" She had clung onto her sister's leg, pleading for Mai to stay.
"Goodbye... Aya," Mai bent down, removing Aya's hands from around her leg. Opening the sliding door, she doesn't turn back around as her mother calls out for her.
"Mai! He's sorry, your father is sorry!" Their mother began to weep, cries staining the tatami mat below her. "Kofi, go apologize to her! You go apologize to our daughter!" As much as Kofi wanted to chase his daughter, he couldn't. His pride got in his way & his pride was the main thing that tore this family apart.
"She'll be back," Kaname muttered, picking up his little sister, Aya, and holding her in his arms as she cried. A look of disgust covers his face as he stares at his father. Although Kaname had whoopings and had been hit during his childhood. He never expected their father to lay a single finger on his daughters.
"Just be safe Mai."
⊱ ──────ஓ๑♡๑ஓ ────── ⊰
Mai pushes back the shrubbery, the wildlife had ran away from her loud groaning. "I'll show you that no dragon freaking lives here you old geezer! You hear me?!" She stands at the bottom of the mountain, ready to walk up the path.
Taking her first step onto the side of the mountain sent shivers down her spine. Gravity felt heavier, it was as if she was as twice as heavy. A blank look covers her eyes as the feeling of danger arises. She grabs onto the hilt of the sword.
"J-just what the hell is on this mountain," Mai's jaw almost dropped as the scenery changed from the dull, barren mountain to one filled with cherry blossom trees and flowers covering both sides of the pathway.
The sun began to hide behind the mountains, quickly setting as she continued to walk through this strange mountain. A bit confused with the set up. It was so beautiful.
'Why would papa want to hide this? Especially from us.'
"Who goes there?"
"It's just another brat who desires to destroy our peace, we'll just kill it."
Mai begins to back away, a bit, stumbling on a rock, she falls on her butt, gulping. A red and blue flash quickly surround her like an animal circling its prey.
"Homura," the blue dragon breathed, addressing the red colored dragon, a small flame escape its mouth, "it seems another human meddles in our domain. It's pretty."
"I'll burn her into a crisp," the red dragon spoke, the dragon's scarlet red eyes held a shimmer. His mouth opening wide to spew the hottest amount of fire from his very being.
Mai rolls out of the way, dodging most of the fire, one fourth of the fire scathes her lower arm. Mai hisses out in pain, grabbing her sword and pointing it out at the red dragon.
'Papa was right, he was right. And now I'm going to die.'
The red dragon, Homura, charges at the girl who quickly moved to the side as a reflex, she pulls on his whisker, burying her blade deep into its skin. It's scales flaked up as it twitched in aggravation.
"Stop it, Homura," the blue dragon cuts off the red one, getting directly in front of the young girls face. "State your name, pretty lady, I'm Kaminari." The blue dragon hums, trying to calm down panicked girl. They had never dealt with a child before.
"She's that brats daughter, another Abara."
"Another Abara?" The blue dragon breathes, its nostrils flaring up with anger. "What brings you here child?"
"I—I didn't think you were real," Mai cowers in fear, the red dragon had malicious intent. He wanted to kill her at this very instant but he couldn't. He couldn't harm her at all. Not with the blue dragon, Kaminari in the way, protecting her. "M-my name, my name is Mai."
"That's such a pretty name Mai, my name is Kaminari" the blue dragon smiles. "We don't get a lot of visitors and Homura's hostile towards humans. No one's landed a single scratch on him in ages and you stabbed him. Lucky you."
The red dragon growls in anger, seeing how friendly Kaminari was being to this human. Humans. They disgust Homura, humans are the reason why dragons are on the brink of extinction. Humans and demons are the reason why Kaminari and Homura are the last of their kind.
It's sickening.
"Go cut that aloe plant and rub some of it on your burn Mai," the soft, motherly voice from Kaminari provided some closure. Mai was hesitant, afraid of the red dragon who continued to stare at her, wanting to strike her down at this very moment. Kaminari glares at Homura, softly looking back at Mai.
"I promise I won't let Homura attack you."
"You swear?" Mai's dark brown eyes never left Homura's red ones. She was horrified, unable to look away although she wish she could have. The aloe plant was at least 30 yards away, that'd give Homura plenty of time to strike her down.
"I swear it," Kaminari softly nudges Mai with her head in the direction of the aloe plant. Quickly cutting off an angry Homura, Kaminari pushes against him.
"She's just a child, Homura." Kaminari growls, a bit annoyed that he still wanted to attack the little girl. Mai continued to walk towards the aloe plant, taking deep breaths with every step.
"I care nothing about that, she needs to die." Homura huffs, looking at the wretched girl place her fingers on the aloe plant, grabbing her sword, she quickly slices the plant with ease. "They're nothing but monsters. Whether that wench realizes it now or later, she'll learn to hate our kind Kaminari. They always do."
"The only reason she hurt you is because you hurt her first," Kaminari rebutted, seeing the girl apply aloe over the burn on her lower arm. "You're bound to her, you know? After she striked you your souls connected immediately. You have to train her now, it's the only way."
"I don't have to," Homura groans, a small amount of fire coming out of his mouth and nose as he stares at the girl intently. "If I kill her the sacred tie would vanish. She caught me by surprise, that's all."
It was true, no one had ever pulled his whiskers before. Nor did he have an interest in a sacred tie with a child.
"Give her a chance Homura." The blue dragon heads toward the little girl who continued to rub in the aloe. "Something about her makes me smile... she has potential." Kaminari spoke, her soul practically resonating with Mai's. It's something promising about her.
'She's not like the others.'
And this was the beginning of a beautiful journey.
Author's Note:
Fun fact I am now 19, I wrote this first chapter when I was 16. I just found it and wanted feedback, I could continue this story if enough people find some interest in it. <3