Whispers of Hoku

The air on Hoku was thick with the promise of another warm day as you awoke. Sunlight, already strong, seeped through the wooden shutters of your window, a familiar sight. You had been awake for a while, wrestling with a vague, unsettling dream that left a dark mood clinging to you. You tried to shake it off, focusing on the thought of spending time with your beloved nephew, Omi, but even that didn't lift the weight.

Life on Hoku was... predictable. Comfortable, in a way, but also limiting. You knew the whispers, the sideways glances, the unspoken knowledge of your differentness. Sometimes, you fantasized about leaving it all behind, heading to the mainland, the dangerous, unruly place your birth parents came from. But you weren't that brave. And you owed your family, your real family, more than that.

With a sigh, you decided to start your day. An early start meant more time for your routines before heading into town to see your sister. You dressed carefully, scrutinizing your reflection, tugging at your skirt and adjusting your blouse. You had to look respectable. You were fine. You repeated the mantra to yourself as you stepped out the door, the familiar path stretching out before you.

It was the same route you always took, so familiar that anything out of the ordinary should have immediately grabbed your attention. But today, lost in a daydream of distant shores, you almost missed it. A splash of color beneath the shade of a cluster of palms, off to your right. You stopped, squinting. It looked like... a body.