Chapter Seventeen: Reality Comes Back:

My happiness died along with Kayako. She went into town just days before Christmas. She wanted to give our boys some presents. My wife never came back. At first, I thought it was the weather, making it hard for her to come home. It had been snowing heavily that winter in 1278. The cave was warm enough for five people, but so cramped. I did my best to keep Leo, Jim, and Aven fed and busy while we waited for Kayako to come back. I figured that it wouldn’t be too bad with her savvy through the harsh elements.

Days went by and she didn’t come home.

“Where did mama go?” Aven asked.

“Into town,” I told him. “She will be back soon.” I said it like I was forcing myself to believe it. The days passed and Kayako didn’t come home. When Christmas passed, I started to get worried.

“Boys,” I said. “We’re going to go find mama.” Leo, Jim, and Aven’s eyes all lit up. I got them dressed up and we started the search for Kayako. It took us about three days to walk into the nearest village. This would be my first time venturing out of the cave in the middle of nowhere. The boys were amazed at how much further we were going further away from our home. I had to try and call their attention back to keep them on track. Aven kept wandering off the most. Leo had to hold onto his hand as tightly as he could.

“Stop doing that,” he hissed under his breath. Aven lowered his head.

“Be easy on him,” I said. “He’s just a child.” I patted Leo on the head and I kept Jim by my side. The snow crunching under our feet provided a strange comfort.

When we reached the town, we spotted a crowd of people gathered around an alley. Three men in uniforms were trying to push them back.

“Get back, everyone!” one of them yelled.

“Papa, what’s going on?” Jim whispered. Already, a dark feeling turned in my stomach. I held onto my sons as I trembled.

“I don’t know…” I lied. I let go of my children and walked over to the crowd.

“Papa?” Leo asked.

“Stay right there, boys,” I said. I had to push my way through to see what was going on. Why didn’t I use my powers to find out? All of those years, I tried to live like a human with my family. Sure, I cheated with my powers when things got rough. But, I was really good at hiding my true nature from my wife and children. My sons might have had some idea, but I didn’t push the matter.

When I made it to the front of the crowd, my stomach dropped as I covered my mouth. My Kayako lay on the ground with eyes wide open. Blood mixed in with her hair and strained her clothes. Her face looked like it had been hit with a pie.

“No…” I murmured. I turned and looked at one of the men in the uniform.

“Excuse me,” I said. “Could you tell me what happened to my wife?” The man in the uniform narrowed his eyes at me.

“She your wife?” he asked.

“Yes. She was going into the village to buy presents for our sons over there,” I said, pointing to Leo, Jim, and Aven behind the crowd. The little boys were trying to see what was going on. I was surprised that they stayed right where they were. I hid my hands underneath my cloak.

“We came into this village to look for her when she didn’t come back,” I said. I looked down at the body. Kayako appeared not to see it coming. The man in the uniform shook his head.

“I’m so sorry, sir,” he said. “We don’t know anything yet.” The man patted me on the shoulder. My hands started to shake. They were never certain of if my Kayako was murdered or if it was an accident. But, I know what happened.

I couldn’t bring myself to tell my sons what happened to their mother. I tried to distract them by taking them around town. Despite my best, my oldest could tell that something was wrong.

“What’s wrong, papa?” Leo asked at the small restaurant where we were having dinner. “What happened to mama?” His brothers had their eyes on me. I lowered my eyes as I put down my chopsticks.

“I’m so sorry, boys,” I said. “But your mother… isn’t coming home.” All of my sons stared at me.

“What do you mean?” Aven asked.

“She passed away,” I said. My children sat quiet with big eyes. Leo and Jim had tears in their little eyes. Aven sat there as the words didn’t connect in his brain. I had to break down what I had heard around town, the meaning of death, and seeing Kayako’s body on the ground covered in blood. Aven finally broke down crying. Leo pulled him into his arms.

“Shhh, it’s okay,” he whispered. When did Leo get so brave?

“What’s going to happen to us now?” Jim asked. I looked down at my hands.

“I don’t know,” I said. But that was a lie. I could already see what was coming next. And sure enough once we made it back to our cave, Beelzebub was waiting for me. I froze when he laid eyes on me. My younger sons hid behind me while Leo held out his arm in an attempt to protect me. His bravery made me feel so ashamed of myself.

“What do you want?” I asked. Beelzebub took a step forward and bowed.

“My lord,” he said. “You have to return home. Our kingdom is slowly turning into chaos.” I backed up and shook my head.

“Never!” I hissed. Jim and Aven looked up at me, but I pushed them back.

“You have no choice, my lord,” Beelzebub insisted. “You are not made to live in this world. You have to realize your place and come home.” I held my children closer to me.

“But what about my boys?” I asked. “What will become of them?”

“They will be fine,” he said. “No harm shall come to them.” I still didn’t want to leave but hearing that made me feel so much better. I lowered my head.

“I understand,” I said. And that’s how it was. I ended up going back to hell and my sons were scattered throughout Asia. Beelzebub was right. No harm came to them. Their children would grow and run Asia like their kingdom. Still, I couldn’t forget about how happy I was with Kayako and our children up in the living world in living in exile.

Then, my dear Bayu came back into my life.