Flesh and Stone , Bark and Bone

        The first time that Austerious stepped into the grove, the forest welcomed him gladly. He dismounted his steed at the foot of the stone path that led to the center of the grove, and he walked past the open red gate that beckoned him inside. The stones were littered with cherry blossoms, and Austerious soon found out why. With every step he took, the afternoon breeze showered him with a rain of white and pink petals.

        Walking underneath the trees of the grove, Austerious’ eyes were brightened by the majestic blooms of pink and white that blanketed over him, a sea of swaying wreaths dancing above him like low clouds. By the time Austerious reached the center of the grove, he had already been enchanted by the magic of the forest; he could feel it, seeping through the trees, along with the warm sunlight that fell through between the branches. After a moment of silently breathing it all in, Austerious suspended his disbelief, and spoke to the trees, "I’ve heard you are trees of kindness, and that you have magic to dispense. Is this true?"

        The wind rustled the flowers, and a song came from the trees, "Of magic and kindness, we are indeed. And so can be your own seed. If you are not now ruled by greed, then please share with us your need."

        Austerious was taken aback at first, by the riddle-like words of the trees, but he responded, "My love has fallen ill with a curse. She has been turned to stone. And I would like my love returned to me. Can you break the curse?"

        "You can regain all that is dear", replied the trees, "Do not fear. Simply bring your love here."

        Austerious’ heart beat faster in his chest than the hooves of his steed on the grassland grounds, as he sped back to his mansion to relay the good news to his beloved. "My dear! It is true! The trees can help us! We must go to them tonight!"

        And that is how Austerious found himself at the foot of the cherry blossom path, at the entrance to the grove, for the second time. This time, he was accompanied by his beloved, Sakura. She was a woman of high poise who possessed great beauty. And she was not made of stone. They walked together past the open red gate, and down the stone path; but this time, no rain of petals fell; in fact, there was no breeze through the grove at all. When Austerious and Sakura reached the center of the grove, the moonlight was already shining through the cherry tree branches, making the blossoms seem brighter than they ever should be at night. But still, Austerious felt no magic.

        "Dear trees!", Austerious called out to the forest, "I have brought her. My cursed love is here. Please help break the curse."

        But there was no answer; no wind, no song, from the trees.

        "I don’t understand…", Austerious sulked, "The trees said they would help…"

        "Worry not, please", said Sakura, "Maybe the trees are asleep."

        "Then we shall try to wake them!", Austerious was aggravated.

        "No, please, let them rest", pleaded Sakura, "For they must have been using their magic all day… and like all of nature’s beautiful creatures, they must use their nights to sleep. Let's take a rest. We can wait here 'til morning."

        "Absolutely not!", Austerious barked, "I will take you home."

        "At least, let's rest a little", said Sakura, "I am too exhausted from the journey, to go back now. The hour is too late. I should first get some sleep."

        And no sooner had she said that, that Sakura curled up beside some roots, underneath the biggest tree, and settled herself for the night’s sleep. Austerious indulged, and joined her, but soon enough had to wake the young woman up, before the night could come to an end.

        "My dear, wake up", Austerious said, "For it is almost morning, and soon you will be under the sun. You must let me take you back to the mansion. Please."

        Sakura woke up, and with Austerious, reluctantly left the grove. On their way back home, Austerious made his displeasure known. He felt betrayed; he felt cheated. "The trees lied to me…", he muttered repeatedly, almost the whole way...

        As soon as Sakura was safe beneath the ceilings of the mansion, that blocked her from the sunlight, Austerious hopped right back on his horse and rode all morning to the grove of cherry blossom trees. He rode his horse past the open red gate and stomped across the stone path until he reached the trees.

        "Why didn't you help us!?", Austerious demanded.

        "Good morning, good sunlight!", the reply came soothingly, on the wind that sang through the trees, "We are not here during the night, and we did not quite see your plight."

        "She is all that I have, and she is cursed!", Austerious cried out, "She is turned to stone under the sunlight. We can only come during the night. Where do you go? Where are you at night?!"

        The trees still sang back, "Where we go, we cannot say; only that we go away. To save a life, there is one way… Bring your love during the day."

        "That is impossible! She is stone!", Austerious fumed, "You ask the impossible!"

        Austerious left the forest, maddeningly enraged. He returned to his mansion, sharpened his best axe, and brought his weapon back to the grove of cherry trees.

        This time, the forest was enveloped by a mist of fear. The red gate was closed, the stone path had been covered by fallen dead leaves, and all light of day had been blocked by the rising fog. The forest was eerie and menacing now, but the wind still blew between blossom-filled branches, and the trees still sang: "You will not even try... so prepare to say goodbye... for when your love will die..."

        Austerious raised his mighty axe, "You dare threaten me!?! You are nothing but trees!!!"

        And Austerious brought down his blade on the roots of the biggest cherry blossom tree; he hacked until the tree had been completely uprooted from its ground... and when the tree fell... Austerious moved on to the next one, and chopped that one down too... And with splintered hands, he chopped the next one, and the next one... until all the cherry trees were felled from the grove, Austerious' hands were full of blood, the singing of the trees had stopped, and the only magic that was left in the forest were a few dead blossom petals in the air, still falling, as if the forest had been allowed to weep a rain of white and pink one last time...

        Over the next few days, Austerious managed to carry every fallen tree, from the forest, back to his mansion home; and he tried to replant them indoors, beneath the stone and vine canopy of the inner greenhouse gardens.

        When Sakura found the garden of dead trees inside her home, she wept for Austerious. "What have you done, you poor dear man? Can't you see that you have planted dead trees, dead hope! Can't you hear that they do not sing?! That their magic is gone! That the magic now is dark magic, the darkness in your heart!?"

        "The dark magic is the magic that has cursed you into stone every day!", Austerious rebutted, "You stroll outside the mansion in the mornings! And you become nothing to me when you are a statue in the outdoor gardens all day! You are cold! You are stone!"

        "And you cannot bear to look at me!", Sakura cried, "You never once visit me in the outer gardens, where I can enjoy the sun, even if I am stone... Do you not love me?"

        "I leveled a forest because I love you!"

        "But do you not love me in all my forms?"

        To this, Austerious fell silent, and he hung his head in shame.

        "Take me back to the grove", asked Sakura, "Take me back to that garden of magic where I can be happy to enjoy the sun!"

        And Sakura ran outside, under the sun, and turned to stone.

        Austerious visited the statue of his loved one, in the outer gardens, for the first time. He decided to finally accept it, and he took a moment to really look at the flesh and stone. He noticed the strength of the young woman, in the contours of the sculpture, the way the stone held her pose. He noticed the life in the monochrome eyes, the light that was still there, from the mere memory of this great lady. And when he touched the stone, he could still hear her voice. Sakura had her eyes closed, and Austerious noticed that she had frozen tears etched on her face, yet her smile still shone brightly towards the sun. And that's when he realized that he was crying too... and he remembered why he loved this woman. She was unbreakable. She was powerful. She was stone.

        "Oh, Sakura, you are my rock", Austerious wept, "I am sorry. I have been wrong. You are my love, even in stone."

        And so, Austerious carried the statue of Sakura all the way back to the dead grove. And that time, when he stepped into the grove... he had brought his love... For he had brought with him the sapling of a cherry tree, and he planted it where the biggest tree had been.

        As soon as the new tree was planted, the wind picked itself up into a breeze and nudged the cherry sapling; and the young tree started to sing: "The man has in the end done a good deed. He has brought his love within this seed. There is magic after all, indeed."

        And Austerious felt Sakura's touch, under the sun. Sakura held Austerious' face, which was filled with tears of apology and shame, and she said to him, "We forgive you, my love."

        "We??", questioned Austerious. And then he saw that the sapling had turned into a child; who shared Austerious' features, and had inherited Sakura's beauty.

        "The magic worked", Sakura explained, "I am no longer stone. But we owe the forest a price for what you did. The child, I will name Omuro, and we will be blessed together. But sadly, it is you who must be cursed."

        "I will pay the price", said Austerious.

        "Then you may visit us every day", said Sakura, "And care for us every night. That is your curse."

        And when the sun set that evening, and the moon rose at night, Sakura and the child turned into two very beautiful cherry trees. Sakura's slim branches bent down in the wind, to caress the Omuro tree, and also Austerious could touch her. Austerious ran his hand along the bark and bone, and he felt the love of his seed.

        "You can regain all that is dear”, sang the cherry blossom trees, “Simply bring your love here."

        And every day for the rest of his life, Austerious visited his family at the cherry blossom grove, helped replant the forest, and played games with the child, under the rain of white and pink. Until at night... when Sakura and Omuro once again became trees...

        The last time that Austerious stepped into the cherry grove, the forest welcomed him gladly. He dismounted his steed at the foot of the stone path that led to the center of the grove, and he limped past the open red gate that welcomed him back inside. The stones were wet and puddled, and raindrops adorned the man's gray hair as Austerious entered the forest solemnly.

        "Where do you go at night?", Austerious asked the trees one last time, this time very gently.

        "Where we go, we cannot say...", the trees sang, "But when it's time to go away, you no longer have to stay. A man could have been dark yesterday, but can be bright today. Come with us if you may. Your light will show the way."

        And with that, Austerious bid his farewells to his family, and he disappeared into a magic mist of raindew, evening dusk, and tears.

        Every day, Sakura and Omuro still play. And at night... they take root, they go quiet, and they settle down. But sometimes... when the moonlight is bright and the wind is loud, and the trees are restless... you can hear Sakura singing the song of Austerious to the smaller trees, trying to get the children to go to sleep.

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For Maithilee

by: Ruben Cintron
Kyoto, Japan
- April 2016 -