Work Text:
He was here again, the boy with the dark hair. Every Sunday, he was here. Hide knew; he was always here. So, every Sunday, when the short, dark haired boy came and sat in the clearing of the forest, he could see him.
Being the spirit of a forest like this one wasn’t really a very difficult job. There was a shrine just outside, and sometimes people would pray for things. Hide did his best to answer the prayers, and was always happy when the human’s asked for his help. Most of the people came to the small forest to ask for favors, or a sign or guidance of some sort. They were locals who’d grown up hearing stories about the miraculous forest spirit who granted people miracles if they left him offerings and requested his assistance.
This boy was…different, though. Every Sunday, he walked right past the shrine without a second glance, and with a purpose, moved to sit in the clearing. It had been many years for the human, and the forest spirit had watched the boy grow up. The first time the human had come, it’d been in tears and at a full run. He’d managed to make it to the clearing, and stayed there for the entire day, even after his tears had dried.
The next week, he’d come with a book. Hide was a little bit curious. Why would he come into his domain just to read? It wasn’t that he was complaining, though. As a child, the boy was cute, what with dark hair and childish cheeks. As the little kid aged, those cheeks and hair remained the same, although he did grow taller. Hide thought he was cute, for a human.
Hide hadn’t seen the human cry since that first day, but he never looked happy. His grey eyes seemed sad, and dull all the time. For the first time in years, the quiet and watchful forest spirit wanted to reach out, and try to connect with the human. However, it’d been over ten years and he’d never made his presence known.
But, the human was here again this Sunday, with a sketchpad in hand, instead of a book. Sometimes, Hide noted, he would sit and draw things that he saw. The human was a very good artist, capturing bunnies and deer realistically on paper. This Sunday, he came very early and left late. Hide found that he was happy to see the routine being followed another week-he’d grown to look forward to the visits paid by the boy.
The next, week, things were strange. The human didn’t come early. He was always here by noon, but when he did slink into the woods, it was past one. Every other time Hide had watched him come in, pardon the first time, he’d come in looking hollow. No sad, nor happy. Today, however, there were tears streaming down his face, and a red mark set on it.
Today, the human didn’t simply walk past the shrine without a second glance, unlike every other time for the past ten years. No, the boy, who was probably about 17, walked in slowly. He didn’t carry a book, or a sketchpad, which wasn’t too unusual. Sometimes, he just sat and listened or even slept. But something bothered the guardian of the small forest. The human looked a the shrine as he passed it, tears in his eyes. He looked like he’d consider asking something. He looked like he needed something, but he passed it still without requesting help.
Would it be proper to try and help someone who refused to ask? Hide would have to wait and see. The boy (well, he wasn’t a little boy anymore) walked straight into the clearing and sunk to his knees. The forest spirit watched the scene unfold anxiously, wishing desperately to go to the human and ask what was wrong. Still, though, he waited.
“Please, god…” The blacked hair male (?) whispered. It was the first noise he’d made in here in ten years. “Please, take me away from there.” His voice was quiet, and it shook. “There’s a spirit who lives here, right?” He asked. “I don’t want to be alive anymore.” The man cried louder. “I don’t want to be alive if I have to go back to that place. I don’t see the point.”
The boy he’d watched grow up wanted to…die? Hide couldn’t take it anymore. What should he do? Could he treat this as a prayer?
“I’m so lonely…” The human sobbed, “And tired and can’t anymore…” his tears fell to the ground like little crystals. “People said you grant miracles, right? Please, take me away from here. If you’re a kind spirit then…”
There was no way Hide would grant this wish. He couldn’t, wouldn’t take the life of such a creature. The human who brought food the rabbits and deer every week, who made sure not to step on flowers, and who drew such pretty pictures. So, Hide thought quickly, and came up with an idea.
The next crystalline tear that landed on the ground would do the favor of alerting the man of his presence. It landed with a soft ‘splat’ and from it, a small flower sprung up. The next one did the same. The guy was so shocked that his tears stopped falling. His head flew up and he looked around.
“W-whose there?” he called, his voice shaking. Hide laughed, and it rang throughout the clearing.
“Well, didn’t you call for me?” He jumped down from the branch he’d been siting on. “You’re a cruel human, aren’t you? Begging me to kill you?” When those grey eyes widened in fear, Hide laughed harder. “I’m the spirit of this forest. You can call me Hide.”
“T…this spirit of the forest…?” His eyes widened. “H-hide-san?” The spirit laughed.
“Just Hide? What about you? You’ve come in here every day for years, and I don’t even know your name!” Hide grinned brightly, hoping to at least distract his visitor for a little bit.
“K-Kaneki. Kaneki Ken.” Kaneki said, looking at the extraordinary spirit in something like awe. He had long blonde hair, (though it looked bleached-how did a spirit do that?) that reached his waist, and pale skin. Hide’s eyes were a warm, earthy brown, and from the top of his head bloomed a pair of antlers. He wore a brown and green kimono that dragged on the floor. The whole appearance was, overall, very elegant. Enchanting.
“Well, Kaneki,” Hide grinned. “Why don’t you come up with a real wish?”