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“Mama! Mama!!”
Her child’s distressed cries would be enough to draw her attention, but the thump and crash made Murasaki Tokoyami drop the stack of towels she was folding and race to the living room, heart hammering in her chest.
“Fumikage! I’m coming, Fumikage!”
“Mama!!”
The fear within the child’s voice was heart-breaking and fear-inducing. What had happened?? Fumikage had been playing in the living room, and seemed fine when she had left him to play while she did some laundry. But hearing his cries made the short distance from her and her husband’s room to the living room feel like an eternity, especially when her own maternal instincts screamed in alarm, wanting to protect her child.
“Fumikage!”
Her eyes were wide as she took in the scene before her. Her four-year-old son was seated on the ground, back against the wall as large tears fell down his cheeks. The decorative flower pot that had been placed on the dining room table had been knocked over, with dirt and shattered fragments of ceramic scattered on the ground. And floating in between the broken pot and her son was what could only be described as a strange, shadowy thing.
“Waaah! I’m sorry! I’m sorry!”
Mrs. Tokoyami gasped, it’s wails sending a shiver down her spine. Fear momentarily gripped her where she stood, eyes flicking between the shadowy thing and her son. W-What was that thing?? How did it get into their house?? Had it harmed Fumikage somehow?? Her son looked up at her as she arrived, tears in his eyes.
“Mama!!” His frightened cry was enough to snap her out of her shock.
“Fumikage! Come to me!” Her body moved on instinct, running to her son and scooping him up into her arms to hold him close. A quick inspection told her that Fumikage wasn’t harmed, but was very clearly distressed. With her son clinging to her and shielded in her arms, she turned to the being hovering before them.
At first glance, it looked like a shadow of some sort. Murasaki tried to discern just what it was, but the way it shifted and moved suggested that the creature was not physical in nature. Its head was bird-like in appearance, with a tuft of shadows atop its head like a crest and a curved, sharp-looking beak. Its body was long and thin, much like a snake’s, and it moved much like one. Murasaki’s eyes followed its long body, seeing how it tapered off and extended towards the trembling boy in her own arms. Looking closer, she could see how the shadow’s ‘tail’ extended from the middle of her son’s torso like a wispy rope.
The dark mass before them was devoid of identifiable details, and looked as though Fumikage’s very shadow had come to life and was hovering before them. The only expression she could discern from the being’s face was from its glowing yellow eyes, which were curved downward into a caricature of sadness.
“I’m sorry…” The shadowy creature sobbed. Strange, ephemeral tears fell from its glowing eyes. “I’m so sorry!”
‘A sentient Quirk..?’ She thought to herself in awe. In her arms, Fumikage let out a little whimper, burying his face into her chest. ‘It must have startled poor Fumikage when it manifested...’ Her hand came up to brush Fumikage’s head in comfort, her fingers stroking his new crest. He was of the age where children begin manifesting their Quirks, and with Murasaki’s unusual appearance the Tokoyamis had expected a drastic change in their infant son. When Fumikage’s nose had elongated into a beak and his head began sporting feathers, the Tokoyamis had merely assumed he took after his mother’s Bird Quirk. Neither of them had anticipated something like this manifesting in their son.
The shadowy figure looked at the mess of dirt, soiled leaves, and pottery shards on the ground. Though its face was more of an outline of vague shapes than a traditional face, Murasaki could see how it looked upon the mess with a sorrowful expression.
“I’m sorry I broke that… it was pretty.” it said sadly. It looked up at her suddenly, making Murasaki flinch back on instinct.
“Here, let me fix it!”
It soon turned back to the mess, a pair of shadowy ‘arms’ forming from its incorporeal body. It scooped up the fallen plant carefully, looking around for a place to put it.
“Uhm… er...”
Murasaki watched curiously as the shadow placed the plant back down carefully on the wooden floor before moving to the broken shards. It picked up two larger pieces and began to try and push them back together. When that didn’t work, it tried again with two different pieces.
“Um...”
The more the shadow tried to put the broken pottery pieces together, the more fretful it seemed to get. It sniffled loudly as more ephemeral tears began to drip down its face. She could even see the way its shadowy body trembled with muffled sobs. The fear she had felt slowly faded away, being replaced with pity. Murasaki’s heart ached for the little shadow, clearly so upset about the trouble it had caused and trying to fix its mistake. It reminded her of when Fumikage had accidentally broken one of his toys by playing too roughly with it, and how she had found him quietly crying as he held the broken fragments in his tiny hands, trying in vain to push the toy dragon’s broken tail back onto its body.
Such a sorrowful, remorseful countenance moved her heart, and made her lean forward towards the creature.
“Hey now...” she said gently, making the shadow flinch and look up at her. With one hand still holding Fumikage, Murasaki extended her other hand towards the shadow. “It’s alright. Don’t be frightened.” She kept her movements slow, so as not to startle it. When it didn’t shrink away from her, she slowly reached forward to pat it in what she hoped was a comforting gesture.
The skin, if that’s what she could call it, was cool and smooth, and felt like nothing she had felt before. It was both solid and had give to it, like wet snow, yet it was dry and almost rubbery to the touch. When she ran her fingers along the shadowy ‘flesh’, it seemed to ripple strangely, and the cool, malleable nature of its body reminded her of running her fingers through smoke. It was strange, and bizarre indeed, but then again Murasaki had never considered what it would be like to pet a living shadow. That was what this being was, wasn’t it? A sentient shadow, bound to her son. Perhaps someone else would be horrified to discover such a frightening Quirk in their child; Murasaki had been frightened of the being herself after discovering it not too long ago. But as she petted the shadow, watching as its whole body trembled as it leaned into her hand and let out a shuddering sob, she found it hard for those feelings to linger for long.
“There, there… It’s alright, little one. You did not mean to break it, did you?” she asked. The creature sniffled loudly and shook his head, gently dropping the pottery fragments it held to the ground. Murasaki cooed and gently brought the creature closer, rubbing its head in the same comforting manner she had rubbed Fumikage’s just moments before.
“It’s okay, little one. Come now, let us dry those tears.” she crooned. She swiped one of its tears from its cheek with her thumb, watching curiously how the strange liquid gathered on her thumb for a moment before seemingly fading away under the light. The creature sniffled, but held still as Murasaki gently wiped its tears away, watching as they too gathered on her thumb before fading away as well.
She looked down at Fumikage, who was now watching the exchange with wide, curious eyes. He looked up at Murasaki, and she could only guess that he was wondering about the strange being before them.
“It’s alright, Fumikage. There is nothing to worry about.” She said gently. Though it had been quite a fright for the both of them, Murasaki could say with certainty that this timid little being probably meant no harm. Especially if it came from Fumikage himself, who was a quiet and gentle child.
“See?” She said, running her fingers through the being’s crest. “It’s not scary. It’s just a shadow that’s come to say hello.”
“Shadow..?” Fumikage asked. At Murasaki’s nod, he looked at the shadowy being, who looked back at the small child with wide, glowing eyes. Following his mother’s lead, reached out with his small hands to touch the shadow’s beak.
“...Dark shadow.” he said, staring at how his pale hand stood out against the shadowy skin.
“Dark shadow..?” The creature asked, tilting its head slightly. Murasaki smiled softly.
“Yes, it is a dark shadow, isn’t it?” she agreed. Fumikage continued to pat at the shadow’s beak, fear replaced with curiosity. “But see? It is friendly. It means you no harm.”
She watched the two as they interacted, curiously regarding each other. When Fumikage poked at the shadow’s body, he watched as its flesh coiled and twisted around his finger. The shadow bumped its beak into Fumikage’s hand in reply, making the small child giggle in delight. The creature seemed to no longer be crying, and was now focused on nudging the boy with either his beak or a shadowy hand, making him laugh. Murasaki gently scritched the top of the creature’s head, watching as its body seemed to ripple at the contact. Such a strange phenomenon to behold, and yet she didn’t feel repulsed or disturbed by it.
“I do not know how you came to be, little shadow.” she said, drawing the being’s attention. She offered it a smile. “But we shall unravel this odd, little mystery together.”
The shadow sniffled once more, rubbing his head into her hand like an affectionate cat. She cooed to the creature, and felt her heart swell with motherly affection as the creature finally seemed to calm down. It wasn’t trembling anymore, nor was its face contorted into a sorrowful expression. It blinked up at her with wide, glowing eyes, and even without pupils or proper facial features, Murasaki could see in the shadow’s face the same expression as her own son when she comforted him. The same innocence of seeking comfort and assurance that things would be okay.
It may look frightening and scary, but it was still a part of her son. There was no doubt about that.
“That’s it… no more tears, little one.” She crooned softly. “Everything will be alright.”
Yes, it was a strange mystery indeed, but Murasaki resolved to not be frightened by it. She would have to speak to her husband about this development, but if it truly was a part of her son’s Quirk, then she would treat it as such. For now, she held the two in her arms, watching as the shadow turned back to Fumikage, who had gone back to patting at its beak and petting its crest.
“Dark Shadow.” Fumikage said, his tiny hands gently gripping at the being’s ‘feathers’. “No crying. Okay?”
“Okay...”
Murasaki smiled. Yes, they would solve this little mystery together. As a family.