Stories from a Wandering Tanuki Merchant: Visiting the Hot Springs

Word Count: 513

 

78 - Draw or write what your character does to recoup when they feel overwhelmed

 

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Kyanoko drank deep of the fresh air. It was cold and crisp. Usually, an area she would avoid, hating freezing temperatures and snow. But here were the hot springs she loved the most, especially on days when she needed to be alone and warm her bones. The hot springs where she was from were almost always in sacred areas and had rules, regulations, and other people. Here, the springs were nothing more than a retreat, and she could rent out her own personal space where she was free to do as she wished without any onlookers.

 

She was robed in a silk gown, tied off at the waist. In her hands was a board filled with nuts, dried meats, and aged cheeses that she bought from the business’s longue. Kyanoko chewed on a cashew as she leaned against her balcony, overlooking the scenery of her rented cabin. For miles upon miles, she could see nothing but uninterrupted wilderness as the steam rose in lazy columns from her spring.

 

Kyanoko closed her eyes and imagined herself running through the mountainside forest, on all fours as she was meant and longed to be. She ran boundlessly until her legs got tired, then she jumped and turned into a crane. She soared through the crisp sky until nightfall. And then she descended into a lake. Hitting the waters she sank, turned into a frog, and swam, catching stray bugs as they buzzed by.

 

And a shiver hit her. She opened her eyes. Back at the cabin. She missed being able to freely change form. Being unable to was like having her breathing hindered. She could survive, but it wasn’t living as freely and as unburdened as was deserved. It hurt, it always hurt. But here, it stung a little less.

 

Kyanoko descended down her balcony, down a flight of wooden stairs that quickly turned to stone steps. Those steps led into the spring, and once she was knee-deep and her robes threatened to be soaked in the hot water, she untied herself. She threw her robe aside and laid herself bare to the elements. She spread her arms wide and rose her chest to the sky.

 

She hated the cold. But she missed the way the wind used to be able to run freely through her fur. Kyanoko released a sigh- it was of relief but carried the weight of sorrow with it. She had often wondered if she would have left her home to wander the Paperverse if she knew it would rob her of her right to shapeshift. But the tanuki chased the thought away. Mulling over decisions already made invites depression. She was not here to be depressed.

 

Kyanoko waded deeper into the waters, across the spring, and sat on one of the flatstones made for relaxing. She was neck deep now. She closed her eyes, loving how well the warmth penetrated through her fur, skin, and muscles and reached deep into her bones. She leaned back, her eyes skyward, and watched as the first flakes of snow lazily fell from the sky.