Submission (#368) Approved

The light of a laughter

It was another day and he was taking one of his calligraphy classes. Geki had to receive different kinds of lessons at the temple where the monks were training him to be a messenger of the gods. The most important classes he attended were those in which he studied the Kagura dance, types and how to deal with spirits, as well as thousands of recitals, songs and sacred rituals. Then there were also the most basic ones that every kittom raised in the temple should master: reading, writing, history of Eyrie, calculus and a series of domestic tasks such as cooking, sewing, cleaning... Geki used to take those that needed more spiritual concentration during the dawn and during the dusk, which were the moments when more magic would be breathed in the air. On the other hand, while the sun was high, he would attend the most basic classes or try to improve his domestic skills.

That morning he had studied evil spirits for the first time in the previous class. Several illustrations depicted them as creatures made of shadow and miasma, usually in dark colors and disfigured forms. Right now Geki was practicing writing characters in black ink, which made his thoughts drift to the black markings on his father's fur. Geki's stomach twisted for a long time thinking that they might be marks related to evil, but he eventually remembered that they were part of the heritage of the herald of ink, his grandfather, and that black ink did not hide any evil per se. Furthermore, the marks of his father were harmonious, as was the skill of the strokes that Kanji had perfected after years and years of practice under the same roof under which his son now studied.

He spent about half of the morning focused on his tasks, and half thinking about his father and how he would have been taking the same classes as him when he has younger, the difference being that his father would not have been studying dances or rituals, but would have been training in ink and combat, learning all he could about the art of swords. Aside from taking classes, Geki was allowed a few hours of free time each day to devote to an art of his own choosing. Geki would sneak off to read more about spirits or to practice a little more with ink. He wasn't sure what hobby his father had taken up, because he said he didn't get a liking for the flute until a few years later.

Although the heavy rains had ceased at this time of year and the fog was no longer so thick, in Kyendi there was still this perennial layer of moss covering every corner. The monks were especially careful to keep the rocks that raised the temple away from the moisture, and although their efforts and achievements should be acknowledged, the part of the courtyard adjacent to the jungle was gradually being covered with a greenery that was moist to the touch. Geki walked towards one of the monks who was trying to stop the moss from advancing. This was one of the oldest monks in the temple, who had a very jovial and close relationship with Geki. "There's no way to get rid of it, master...?" Asked the little one. "Get rid of it! We are not the temple of fertility to take away life! If this is where the moss lives, it reproduces easily, so why pluck it." Geki didn't expect that answer, but that's why he loved this nin, he always provided another perspective on things. "Master, what was my father like when he was little?" There was a short laugh, "Your father? I'm still surprised that you're that fellow's son. Don't get me wrong, but at your age you're already much stronger of heart than he is now... You were saying? Ah, yes! Your father... well, the truth is that he didn't get the hang of discipline until he spent a few years here, and at first he was just making pranks and..." Geki suddenly interrupted Master, "Pranks?! My father?" "Himself!" exclaimed the master. "He was leading us to the path of bitterness, and as it slipped through our fingers we reported it to his progenitors. I don't know what they must have told him, but when he returned he took his education very seriously. He kept making the occasional pranks, but these were already good-hearted." "Are those kinds of pranks good, Master?" "Yes, of course, Geki. Making people laugh with a smile makes evil flee."

Geki would go back to his room shortly after he had finished his hour of meditation with the Master. The atmosphere had become more humid as night had approached and the floating islands and the tall mountains had become unseen in the distance as he had taken his last class of the day. It was now completely dark, and all that could be heard was the sound of water rushing down from the top of the waterfalls surrounding a nearby lake, which was half hidden by the overgrown vegetation and which the elnin who lived in the temple used as a common bath. Geki thought it would not be a bad idea to relax in the water after a long day, and headed there. He was glad to see that there was no one else in the water, probably because the elderly elnin preferred the bath inside the temple, which was guarded by a spirit of fire that the monks had made a pact with, and it maintained the temperature of the water much warmer. Still, Geki liked to bathe outside much more, the icy shock of submersion made him feel alive.

Geki took the opportunity to bathe, when he noticed that the large patch of ink had come off his coat without a trace. "Oh? Just like that...? So I'm mastering the art of bathing." He missed when his master had bathed him as a child in those same waters without complaining about the temperature. Now he had grown too big not to bathe himself... And then an idea shook his mind.

The morning after... "Master! Master! "Quick, tell me a joke, or evil will take possession of me!" The master turned quickly with confusion on his face after hearing such words from a jovial Geki heading towards him. "What the...?" The little elnin had painted his marks, which were pure white like the purest of spirits, with black ink. The truth is that he resembled his dad, but only physically.  After a few minutes of perplexity the master burst out laughing along Geki. "Quick, let's wash you up before your teachers find you... Although if you went near them they'd probably be scared that the ghost of your father's childhood was chasing them with a bucket of cold water..." Geki burst into laughter and tears as the master told him about his father's adventures.

After this, Geki continued to play a few pranks on the master for a little laugh, and the master could not be happier in the years to come. Only the senior monk had contact with Kanji, so Geki's father never found out that his son had that playful side, which the spirits like quite so often and which would have been so unpleasant for his family...