• Hello. My name is Seraphina. And this is my story.
    One night, sometime in the month of spring, I happened to look into the sky. I was searching. Not for a star, or a constellation, or an glider. I was looking for Master. This may seem strange, but to my family, it was quite normal. You see, I am the only one who hasn't ever met her parents. Why have I never seen my parents? Because they don't exist. Why are they non existent? No one knows. No one at all. They might be living. Or they might be dead. Or they might be dying as we speak, right now. Or perhaps they are living normal lives, not knowing anything about they're child. Wherever they are, they obviously don't care about me. Or maybe they don't even know. Or maybe, they had they're memories erased. Yes, that is the positive way of thinking. Sensei always said to think positive. "Never look to the past. Always look to the future, where happiness is almost always found." was his favorite saying. Yes, he said that a lot. Until the day the demon came. Then he said nothing at all.
    We were outside. Sensei and I always sat outside as the sun was setting and looked for stars. It helped to pass the time. Then one evening, a man walked up to Sensei. He was wearing a robe that had long sleeves that covered his hands and had a large hood that completely coered his face. The man spoke for a while and appeared to be making an offer. I was sitting on the roof at the time. It was my favorite spot. When I sat there, I could see all around. Our house was on a hill, so I could see the man coming before he even left the woods. I had far better sight and hearing than most people. I told Sensei and he told me to stay on the roof. After the man had finished speaking, Sensei shook his head. The man seemed to be infuriated by this and began to threaten Sensei. The man said something about bringing the wrath of all the world down on him. Sensei remained calm and replied with the fact that he had never argued with the world, and therefore the world would not, and could not, fight him.
    I was not surprised by this. I had been living here since I was almost three. I was ten at this time. All the time, I had always been with Sensei and I had never seen him become angry with anyone or anything. The man continued to threaten Sensei. When Sensei did not become, I would suppose angry or afraid, the man hunched up and began to grow in size till he was almost twice as tall as Sensei. The man removed his cloak and underneath, he was wearing a kimono of sorts, but the kimono had no sleeves and was cut short at the knee, probably to allow more leg movement. The man, no wait, not a man anymore, but a creature. Yes, the creature reached out to grab Sensei, but he leaped up into a tree. He turned to the roof where I was now standing, preparing to jump into the tree in which Sensei stood. But Sensei yelled at me, "Stay back! There's nothing you can do! Run to the village and stay there!".
    I was surprised by this. Sensei was known for his enduring nature, for his sometimes agitating ability to never give up. If he was telling me to run and take shelter in the temple, something was seriously wrong. Sensei leaped into another tree. I followed him. The demon followed me, destroying everything in it's path. When Sensei realized that I had followed him, he did not seem very pleased. Then the trees suddenly ended, and we were forced to run on foot by the river. The demon appeared happy with this change. It appeared to be a much easier form of travel than crashing through the woods. When we came within sight of the town, Sensei stopped running. I turned when I saw he was no longer by my side. He seemed to be deep in thought, a look of determination on his face. He said to me "Go. I must not allow the demon to come near the cloud village. If it shall save this place, then I will gladly die.". I was horrified by this. I had never seen Sensei looking so solemn, so...calm. I said, "Sensei! What are you doing? How can you be calm when you say you're gonna die?! You can't die!". "I have made my decision. I used to live in this village. This place saved my life. Now I will save it's life." "Sensei, you can't die! Where will I live? Who will I live with? How will I live without you?!".
    I was beginning to cry. I tried to stop the tears, knowing that once they started, they wouldn't stop for days. "You will survive. Join the school here in the cloud village. And I will always be with you. Always!" he said. "Now go! Go! Run to the cloud village!". "But, Sensei! I could never leave you to die alone! ". But suddenly, I was being lifted up and carried away, away from Sensei, away from my friend, away from my family. I watched helplessly as the demon reached Sensei. I turned my head and shut my eyes tight. I didn't really matter if I closed my eyes anyway. I wouldn't have been able to see through my own tears.