Kagami Yasuharu woke up in his bed. He stretched to the sound of cheering kids, and adults laughing throughout the village. He stood up off his bed, slipping his sandals on and putting on his kimono. He slid open his door to see all the commotion. Once every year, the Kukuya village celebrates the bond of family. The Kukuya village is a very small village compared to the others in Japan, but they always make sure to celebrate these bonds. they believe that everyone should always cherish their family and spend time together, enjoying their presence.

Kagami on the other hand wasn't that big on family. "Kagami! Get your ass up and come help set up the lanterns!" A voice yelled to him from the street

"Yeah, dad! I'll be there in a bit." He walked over to his father who was trying to hang up a poorly made paper lantern.

"Here I got this," Kagami reached up and put the lantern on a hook with ease, being taller than his father.

"Finally you help out, now help me put the rest of them up." Kagami looked toward a pile of what looked like about 50 paper lanterns. He sighed and reluctantly agreed.

Kagami had never had quite the relationship people usually have with their parents. Ever since an incident in his youth, his mother had seemingly disappeared. His father had always seen him differently afterward. It seemed that he was more interested in his sheep than his own son.

Kagami was always an outcast. He was never really good at making friends, always too shy to start a conversation. There wasn't really anyone like him anyway.

=+=

Kagami latched the last lantern to a hook and stood back. He looked past the gate and saw the sun beginning to set. 'How long was I asleep for?' He thought to himself. As he was looking out, he heard someone walk up to him.

"Hey Kagami, could I talk with you for a bit?" He heard his father say. He turned his head and nodded. "Well... there's been a bit of a problem recently with the sheep out in the fields recently."

"Are they sick?" Kagami asked, a bit confused.

"No." His father said, "The herders are saying that their numbers are dropping every night and that an animal is killing them off." His father scratched his head and sighed. "And I was hoping maybe you could go and watch over them tonight?"

"You want me to skip the festival tonight to go and watch over some sheep?" Kagami asked in a disappointed tone.

"Well no, I mean yes but-"

"It's fine, I'll go. Not much I would do here in the first place." Kagami's father watched as he walked out of the gate, and into the field.

"Iwata! Come join us!" Kagami's father turned to the cheering families.

"I'll be there in a bit!" Iwata went into his home to get some drinks and food. As he gathered everything he stopped himself. There was a framed photo placed head down onto a table. He pulled it back up to see a photo of him, Kagami, and his wife. He couldn't recall how long ago this photo was taken, only that it was years ago. He smiled as he left the picture up, and headed back outside...