Time Heals

Kuzui, in nimbus form, quickly flew from his last scheduled dream delivery towards a special place in the human realm. When he was younger, and much more naïve, Kuzui fell for a shrine caretaker. Her shrine was his current destination. He knew he had another day in the human realm, but he preferred not to leave Inamae for too long.

Soon he reached the path that led to this particular shrine, and so he landed and made sure he hadn’t lost the flowers he had bought just for this. He took his time heading up the steps, being the middle of the night he was certain he wouldn’t be disturbed. It didn’t take long to reach the top, both due to Kuzui’s athleticism and having walked these stairs countless times.

The shrine was the same as it had been all those years ago, still well maintained and clearly well loved by those who visited. The front was not his stop though, rather he went around the back where he would always meet his love. Only he knew she wouldn’t be there, no matter how much he wished she would be. He paused, and after a moment he sat on the ground on his knees. He set down the flowers in front of him, and whispered a few words.

“Oh my love, time has made your loss easier, but my heart will always ache for you. If only you were like me.”

Little did Kuzui know, he wasn’t quite as alone as he expected to be. Though lucky for him it wasn’t a human who had spotted and followed him here, but rather another Yumenari who he was familiar with.

“Oh Kuzui dear…” the voice trailed off and Kuzui’s head shot up in surprise.

“Kiyomi? What are you doing here??” Kuzui couldn’t hide his surprise, he hadn’t told Kiyomi he would be here tonight.

“I happened to be nearby when I saw you land. I had a feeling this is why you were here, seeing as Valentine’s is coming soon. Kuzui… I knew your heart still lingered here,” Kiyomi explained, and sat across from him. Kiyomi was the first Yumenari Kuzui has confided in about his lost love, so talking to her was much easier than others when it came to this.

“I do miss her dearly… I wish I had not fallen for a human, but I wouldn’t give the time we had for anything,” Kuzui confessed, having not even truly admitted to himself how much he still longed for that time.

“I know dear. Your first love always feels like the sweetest, so the loss always hits the hardest and sticks with you the longest,” Kuzui watched as Kiyomi paused, almost as though she was lost in thought.

“It’s gotten easier over time, I won’t deny that. And I do wish I could start to look at other Yumenari the same way I looked at her, but it feels like a betrayal to her almost…” Kuzui spilled these feelings, feeling safe enough to do so with Kiyomi.

“I never told you exactly why I was so caring towards you, and why I took you in so much when you were first healing from losing her,” Kiyomi began, and Kuzui nodded to tell her he was listening. She continued.

“I too, fell for a human. Mind you this was a long time ago, so they had even shorter life spans than now. But like your love, mine died far too soon. I was devastated for a long time, and the Divine Messengers, before they were the Hajime and Nanachi you know now, were the ones who helped me pick myself back up.”

“Kiyomi… I had no idea,” Kuzui trailed off, staring at the older Yumenari in shock.

“Of course you didn’t, I keep that to myself now. By my own choice at least. But the point of me sharing that is you can see right in front of you the proof that it does get better, and you can love others. She would never want to keep you from that and I believe we both know that. But she wouldn’t want you to rush it either. Time will heal your heart Kuzui, and I will be happy to be there with you as would several others,” Kiyomi leaned over and put a comforting hand on Kuzui’s shoulder.

“But… What if it takes another hundred years? Or what if I find myself looking for her in others? I don’t want anybody to feel like a replacement or like I don’t actually love them or-“

“You are so full of worries!” Kiyomi cut off Kuzui’s flood of words. “Keep those worries in mind, they’ll keep you from doing what you fear, but don’t you dare let them consume you. You’re a good Yumenari, kind, caring, and selfless. I don’t think you could hurt anybody even if you tried to. So just breathe, and know that you can take all the time you need. To heal, and to face those worries.”

“I… You’re right,” Kuzui held Kiyomi’s steady gaze, unable to read her emotions, but he knew that every word was said with care. “Thank you Kiyomi, you’re absolutely wonderful. I’m glad I can call somebody like you my friend.”

“Think nothing of it, I’m giving you exactly what I wish I had during my healing process. May I keep you company here until we return home?” Kiyomi asked, and Kuzui answered without hesitation.

“Absolutely, I’d love to have you with me here. Thank you.”