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The wind howled through the trees, the dark clouds overhead swirling as if sensing the change in the air. Yuki had always felt different—like there was something inside him waiting to break free. He couldn't explain it, but sometimes his senses would heighten for no reason at all. He would hear the faintest whispers in the wind, see glimpses of shadows that seemed to move on their own, and, on occasion, his reflection in the mirror would seem… off.
At 16, Yuki just wanted to be normal. He wasn't like the kids at school—too quiet, too distant, always preferring to be alone. But when it came to family, there was nothing that set him apart. Or so he thought.
That was until the night he found himself standing in the middle of the forest, under a full moon that glowed far too brightly. Something had drawn him here—he didn't know what. But the air around him felt thick, charged with an energy he had never experienced before.
A sudden, sharp pain shot through his head, and he stumbled to his knees, gripping his skull as if it were about to split open. The forest seemed to close in on him, the trees whispering words he couldn't understand.
Then, a voice—a low, ethereal growl—cut through the haze.
"You're awakening."
Yuki gasped, his heart racing. He looked up, but there was nothing there. Just the moonlight, the wind, and the endless, haunting darkness of the woods.
"Who's there?" he called out, his voice barely above a whisper.
A figure appeared, stepping out of the shadows. It was a creature, tall and regal, with glowing eyes and fur that shimmered like the night sky. It looked like a fox, but its body was unnaturally long, and its tail… tails. Nine, to be exact.
"Look within, kitsune," the creature said, its voice like a cool breeze. "The truth has always been with you."
Before Yuki could respond, a sudden burst of light blinded him. The ground beneath him shook violently as if the world itself was splitting apart. He gasped as the air around him grew heavy, a strange power pulsing through his veins.
Then, in a flash, everything went still.
His reflection in a nearby pond showed a pair of glowing fox eyes staring back at him, the same strange, otherworldly glow that the creature had. And his reflection—his features—began to change.
"Impossible…" Yuki whispered, his voice barely audible.
And so it began. The awakening of the kitsune who didn't know what they were, but whose destiny was already set in motion.
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Chapter 1 (Continued): The Awakening
Yuki's eyes snapped open.
The first thing he noticed was the ceiling—plain, cracked slightly in the corner, and lit by the soft gray light of morning. He was in his bedroom. The forest, the voice, the glowing creature—it was gone.
He sat up quickly, heart pounding, breath shallow.
A dream? he thought, rubbing his forehead. No… it felt too real.
He looked around his room, half-expecting to find scorch marks on the floor or glowing eyes in the shadows. But everything was exactly as it always was—messy, small, and completely ordinary.
Still, the sensation lingered. The pain in his head had been real. And he could still feel something under his skin, like a quiet hum in his blood. Like something waiting.
Yuki got out of bed and moved to the mirror. For a moment, nothing seemed strange. His messy black hair, tired eyes, and pale skin—all the same. But then… for the briefest second, his reflection smirked at him before he did.
He blinked, stepped back. The reflection was normal again.
"Nope," he muttered, rubbing his eyes. "Definitely losing it."
Downstairs, the usual sounds of morning filled the house—his aunt clinking dishes in the kitchen, the hum of the kettle. Normal. Safe.
But Yuki couldn't shake the feeling that something had changed. That something had been unlocked inside him. He just didn't know what.
And deep in the forest, where the moon had shone too brightly the night before, something stirred.
Watching. Waiting.
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