Hello! This is toohottobetrue2 aka Aanchal Budhiraja and welcome to my post. Today, I'll be revealing my new book to all of you! This fantasy book was inspired by the Japanese legend/phenomenon called Kitsune no Yomeiri or "The Fox's Wedding" and born out of my love for writing East Asian Fantasies. If anyone is a fan of my humor books (or The Demon Babysitter) then you can expect lots of laughter, romance, and magic ❤ Are you excited?
SUNSHOWER: WEDDING OF THE FOXES
"As the rain falls from a blue sky, in the Hour of the Horse, the Great Fox King takes his bride."
When Hoshi visits the countryside on her vacation, she only expects to have a good time with her friends and enjoy the nature. But things escalate quickly when she is chosen to play the bride's part in the wedding procession in the Kitsune festival.
Unable to refuse, she wears the wedding gown, and the fox mask. When the groom-to-be bails out before the vows, panicked, she pulls a handsome man from the crowd to fill the part. As they exchange fake vows, she can't help but admire the realistic whiskers and tails he has. Good choice, isn't it?
Wrong.
Little does she know that under the mask of a man, she accidentally meets a real fox spirit, who now insists that they're married.
SNEAK PEEK OF FIRST CHAPTER:
"Yearning for a love that didn't exist,
her heart bled,
tears welled,
and dreams cocooned her lonely self.
Craving for the touch
she had never felt,
the bittersweet melody of her flute
touched others.
It was a song with no origin,
a tune from the depths of the forest,
full of love and sadness.
And she was a lost soul
in search of her home."
*****
It was a clear sky. The sunshine filtered through the canopy of the trees and shone inside the small room of the cottage. Dust particles swirled in the light, swayed with the summer wind, and danced with the music of her flute. Hoshi closed her eyes and breathed into the instrument, playing the familiar tune, drowning herself in the music. Her flute made wispy sounds that were both raw and broken, creating a heart-wrenching tune that lingered long inside her mind even after she stopped playing. It was a tune no one could recognise. A tune she hadn't composed, yet it was engraved inside her head, something she could never forget.
Instinctively, the words rang inside her mind.
The day when the bright sun shined,
and the rain fell,
the day when parents warned their children to stay at home,
and the day when the night wind howled in the deserted mountains.
It was today. The Kitsune Festival. Nothing more than an urban legend--she knew that--but it still left a bitter taste at the back of her tongue. An uneasiness in her stomach that she couldn't forgo. There was something, a secret perhaps, little sinister, little magical, but unbeknownst to her. It frustrated Hoshi and it showed in her music. What was it that bothered her so much on this day? What was it that her mother was so afraid of? However, she knew... it was today. The day her father left them. The thought brought her forgotten memories, or perhaps, memories she wished she could forget. Her tune turned aggressive, more restless, more vulnerable, and she poured out the bottled up feeling of her sleepless nights.
The sound built. Her eyes brimmed with tears, and she let them fall. Like with her music, she let go of all control and let instinct take lead. Music poured out of her soul, out of her body and found its release into the outer world through her flute. It pushed her boundaries, as each note toppled over each other, turning more frantic, and violent. She could feel the edge of something. Feel it nearing. Was it knowledge? Or satisfaction? Hoshi didn't know yet. She played on until she could break the resistance and achieve it.
In the midst of the crescendo, just as she reached the climax of her tune, a loud crashing noise startled her. She stopped.
The end note was sharp, destroying the melody with its abrupt pause, but there wasn't time to care. Shards of glasses rained down on her as the window shattered into a million pieces. Hoshi clutched the flute in her fist tightly and raised her arms to cover her face, noticing something dark flying towards her. A stone hit the wooden floor and rolled towards her feet. The noise settled down, but Hoshi remained still. Wide eyed and unable to breathe, she assessed the scene with alarm. Even before she thought of alerting her two friends, the door burst open, and they strode in.
"What the hell happened?"
Nothing left Hoshi's mouth. The two of them stared at her until she pointed her finger towards the window. Mimicking each other's look of concern, the girls ran towards the window, ignoring the broken glass, even when their feet were clad in thin house slippers, and looked outside. Hoshi stood up, a little shakily, but recovered enough to walk to the window as well. Standing a foot and a half taller than her friends, she looked past their heads, and asked, "Who is it?"
"I don't see anything except the trees, Hoshi-chan. What happened?" Misa Akiyama, her childhood friend, turned to look up at her and asked. A frown settled in the crease of her forehead when she saw Hoshi's ashen and tear streaked face up close. "Are you okay?"
"I was playing the flute--" she caught her tongue. They were on vacation, finally out of the busy city life and into the quiet countryside (ironically), and the girls had nagged her to let go of that flute after practicing months for the final college recital. She had tried to resist the temptation, but the clear sky and the breezy wind had undone her and she quickly forgot the promises. "It must be some village kids playing pranks. I'm alright, Misa-chan, Ari-chan, sorry for making you worry." Hoshi quickly made up the excuse and brushed her cotton dress with her hands.
Ari smiled and tilted her head such that her shoulder length hair bunched on one side, and then gave Hoshi a once over. She walked forward and dusted away the few pieces of glass from her friend's dress. "It's good that you're okay, Hoshi-chan, but I'll be confiscating that flute of yours until we go back."
"What?" A look of horror crossed Hoshi's face. Instinctively, she pulled her hand behind her back and locked eyes with the two of them. "Stop kidding."
Misa spoke up and her dark brown eyes glistened with mischief. "You made a promise. Pay the price for breaking it."
They knew it was precious to her. She never parted with it, not for anything. The desperation on Hoshi's face made them giggle but they hid it well. She pleaded, "Anything else other than this. Please? I swear you can use me as your servant for the whole day!" Hoshi stretched her the word 'whole' trying to make it more dramatic and appealing.
Misa and Ari glanced at each other and nodded conspiratorially. "What do you think, Ari-chan?"
"I swear I'll do anything. Let me keep the flute." Hoshi whined, unaware of the consequences of her own words. They were on a vacation. One they had been waiting for months and months. What could be more fun than pushing the most uptight student of their college--who hated attention--into the most sought after woman tonight? And the opportunity was as perfect as if it was fate...
"Hmm. If you can't give your flute, Hoshi-chan," Ari paused, "why don't you get married today?"
****
That's it with the sneak peek! Whaaaaaa------HOW WAS IT? I'm so excited and pumped to share a new story after a long time. Thank you Kelly for inviting me to the Wattpad Block Party again! I'm so happy and honored to be sharing this platform with all the amazing authors. Don't forget to enter the giveaway to win lots of dedications on my books!
Please give my new book lots of love and support. All votes and comments are really appreciated. Looking forward to hearing your thoughts! And best for the last:
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