By TheUnisieppari

The sacred mountain was surrounded by large forest where trees grew strong and wide. Their leaves blocked sun and moon, and only thing growing underneath their everlasting shade was moss, parasitic ivies and plethora of mushrooms with each having more peculiar cap than the other. Deep inside that forest, half way up the mountain, resided an old temple.

Leaving the small village resting at the base of the mountain behind Bisbis braved towards the ancient forest. Night has thrown its veil over the land but cleanly cut half moon casted its pale light to make the night little less dark and lonely. And Bisbis had her lantern. It hung from her mouth, making the dirt road ahead of her look golden.

Few hours earlier she had been enjoying a festival with the villagers when a vayron, who was supposed to deliver an offering of fire to the temple, had run into the midst of celebrating people and frantically yelled something about a ghost. They chastised him for not finishing his task but believed his words about a ghost. Strange things had been happening in the forest lately.

Bisbis had promised to take the task of bringing the lantern to the shrine. No adventurer could leave innocent people in trouble, and she wanted to see this alleged ghost.

 

It wasn’t possible to get lost in the forest on the way to the temple and Bisbis was grateful for that; Wellmaintained road lead straight to the red grand looking Torii gates which lined the staircase that snaked up the mountain. The Torii and staircase seemed endless. She was craning her neck to see the gilded writing on the top beam of the gate when, suddenly, she heard music. It was jovial and lighthearted, like someone was celebrating something. Bisbis spun towards the source of the sound. Eyes flickering from tree to tree and down the path where she had come she tried to see who was playing. But nothing was there, and the music grew softer and softer until she couldn’t hear it anymore.

Bisbis huffed and she smoothed her hackles. Had that been the ghost? Slowly she turned back towards the gates and started her way up.

 

A blue and red colored vayron sat down on the dirt path, their seven tails brushing against the soil, and silently watched how black silhouette walked away. They smiled and tilted their head.

 

World around her kept quiet aside her own padded feet against the weathered stone and gentle whispering of the flame inside the lantern. Around half way up, she assumed, the staircase took a hard turn because of a narrow cliff pass. Bisbis peeked past two pillars and looked down. The hill was steep but not straight drop. From this outlook she could see vista of the lower level of the mountain. Though, a field of pillowy treetops was all she could see but she knew that somewhere there where the first Torii gates. She looked up. More trees after the cliff side but she thought she could also see little bit of red peeking here and there. She tried to search for the temple roof or its gates when she saw a light. A small, blue light bounced between the tree trunks just above her. She perked her ears. The ghost?

Quick, before it would vanish, she started to run the stairs up. She rounded a corner and again the trees surrounded her from all sides. She thought she could see the blue flame just a bit further but before she got close enough it vanished. Bisbis skidded to the stop and looked around.

At first she thought her mind had played tricks on her but there- past the red pillars, in the forest. A blue wisps danced between two ancient trees, almost as if it was beckoning her. Soon there were more. They sparked to life one after another, making the shadows around them dance and filling her ears with mischievous whispers. Bisbis could feel her neck fur stand up from chills running down her spine. She had seen magic before but it hadn’t been like this. This was beautiful and mystifying.

Black vayron put the lantern at her feet and spoke: “Are you the ghost that spooked away last vayron? I warn you, spirits! I need to get to the temple and I won’t be impressed by your tomfoolery. Let me pass in peace!”

She waited.

One by one the wisps snuffed out, leaving curl of smoke behind. Shadows calmed down and voices died down. Bisbis waited a moment before smiling and puffing out her chest. Guess the spirits knew to leave her be.

A loud parade full of monsters and ghouls had appeared out of nowhere. They danced jovially down the stairs, playing flutes and what seemed like lutes, some singing in language Bisbis didn’t understand. Spooked by their appearance Bisbis had frozen in place. Some of the monsters looked like humans in odd clothes but they had no feet and they were floating, others had gruesome faces with large fangs and tusks and long hairy arms. There were household items with eyes and mouths, giant fluffy creatures with bulging eyes, and small pale ones that looked like barefooted human children wearing masks. Somewhere in the midst of cats walking on two legs Bisbis thought she had seen colorful, multitailed vayron. The parade passed neatly by either side of her, but Bisbis was too frightened to understand she wasn’t going to be spirited away. Only after the celebrating creatures had vanished behind the corner feeling returned to her legs. Darkness and quiet coming to rest back on earth she tried to calmed her heart.

“Wait….” Bisbis realized. “The lantern…. Where- Where is the lantern? …those partying bastards, they took it!”

“Oh, wow, that is really not a way to talk about people celebrating.”

A voice right next to her caused her to spasm and trip over her own feet. Bisbis scrambled back up and saw a red fox grinning at her.

“Wha-“
“Do you hate fun? Are you one of those kinda people?” It asked, tilting its head so far to the side that the pointy ears flopped against each other.

“What, no-“

“Ah, you didn’t like their music, then! You know, just because you don’t share someone’s taste in tunes you can’t start name calling them. It’s like my grandmother always used to say: never-“

“Stop! Stop talking!” Bisbis barked, finally on her feet. “Who on earth are you?”

“I”, the fox twirled its paw and took a bow. “am a fox.”
Bisbis stared at the animal with open jaw. “Foxes do not talk. And that’s not-“
“How do you know that?”

“How do I know what?”
“That foxes don’t talk?”

“I-“
“Have you ever tried talking to a fox before, hm?”

“Well, no, but-“
“How would you know then do or do not they talk.” It grinned wide and booped vayron’s snout with its paw. Bisbis growled but the fox wasn’t affected. It sat down and wrapped its bushy tail around its paws.

“Why do you need that lantern anyway? Afraid of the dark?”

“No”, she huffed. “I needed it to make an offering at the temple.”
“A temple?”

“Yes! The one at the end of these stairs!”

“Oooh, you mean that temple! The one right over there.”

Bisbis followed red paw that pointed up the stairs.

“Yes, that temple…. Right over there…”

Where earlier had been more Torii gates and stone steps rose now tall main gates of a temple. Bisbis stared at the dark, decrepit walls and roof tiles and wondered how the gate was still standing.

The red fox bounded with light feet through the gate, humming a tune and bushy tail held high up like a cat’s. Bisbis followed it, looking around.
“This wasn’t here before….” She muttered to herself. Past the gate there was a stone paved inner courtyard but moss had taken over most of it. The fire bowl she was supposed to light stood middle of everything. Behind it was a short bridge that was missing part of the railing over a dried up pond. The temple itself stood on the other side of the bridge; it was in even worse state than the main gate. Scent of mold and rotting wood overpowered everything else.

While she was looking around, the fox sat down middle of the bridge.

“Is this supposed to be in this state?” Bisbis asked, feeling sorry for the abandoned place. It must have been amazing back when it had been taken care of.

“Are you asking that from a fox?” It asked cheekily back.

Bisbis was about to say something back but changed her mind and shook her head.

“Nevermind….” She turned towards the fire bowl. It needed wood. She could think about how to light it after that.

 

The fox followed from side lines how the vayron dragged logs almost as big as she into the fire bowl and finished everything by stuffing more than enough kindling material under them.

“Now to find flint from somewhere…”
“I don’t think your clumsy paws can handle flint-“
“Shush! I don’t have time to worry about that now.”
“- why not use this?”

Bisbis watched how the fox pulled her lantern out of thin air. She took it cautiously.
“…. What kinda fox are you?”

“A kind that likes to celebrate.” It said in almost endearing way.

Bisbis removed the hood from the lantern and held the flame near the kindling until it took.

 

Faster than it should have been possible the logs caught on fire, orange and yellow pillar rising high and licking the night sky with its dancing tendrils. Bisbis could feel – and see -  how the warmth from the fire brought everything back to life. Moss retreated back under the stones, bridge fixed itself and pond filled with water, colorful kois and wide lily pads appearing in it.

Torn paperwalls of the temple knit themselves back together and sliding door hopped back to their places as lights inside the building turned on and rooms were suddenly filled with sounds of music and celebrating people.

Bisbis couldn’t help but laugh a little from joy. She looked at the fox still next to her and instead of red coated mischievous canine she saw a blue and red colored vayron who smiled at her under their white, golden horned mask.

Word count: 1733

Bisbis 11274