Why had he wandered deeper into the forest that day? He shouldn’t have [[chased]] that white rabbit over the swirling brush.
He should’ve bowed his head and [[foraged]] with Pairo like he was supposed to.Curiosity killed the cat. That was an adage he should’ve kept closer to his chest.
Pairo was forced to snatch his hand and save him from falling to his death. But a child was never meant to shoulder the weight of two.
Together, they toppled over the edge.
Kurapika should’ve suffered for his carelessness. Instead, it was Pairo who was twisting in agony. He had two broken legs and a faceful of thorns.
From the bottom of the ravine, Kurapika shouted for help until eventually the villagers heard his cries and carried Pairo [[back to the village]].He should’ve filled their basket with herbs and berries and swirling sprouts. He should’ve walked hand-in-hand with his best friend [[back to the village]] and enjoyed a filling supper with his family.That day — when Pairo lost full use of his eyes and legs — never should’ve happened. But that was only the beginning of Kurapika’s bad decisions.
Around a year ago, he and Pairo encountered a traveler stranded in the forest.
He didn’t know it then, but he should’ve [[left her for dead]]. Or, at the very least, he should’ve filled her bottle with water from the river then pointed her on her way.
That should’ve been the end of it, but [[it wasn’t]].That broken-legged traveler, she turned out to be the same one who later stumbled upon the corpses of his clansmen.
This [[discovery]] lingered in his mouth more bitterly than the cough syrup his mother used to make for him from mashed herbs. It was too much of a coincidence to be innocent.
In retrospect, he wished with all his heart he’d never crossed paths with her. He should’ve relegated her mythical existence to a story he and Pairo could tell the young ones when they themselves were elders.The traveler’s broken leg reminded him of the accident at the ravine. So he and Pairo did more than assuage her thirst. They took her to a cave where she could recover in secrecy. They brought her food pilfered from their clan’s own stores.
In exchange, she gave them a book that opened a world beyond their village.
Together, they read about the adventures of a man called D. Hunter. Each new page told of the capture of beasts or the [[discovery]] of treasure.The traveler’s teachings were incendiary. Eventually, they led him to rebel against his clan’s traditions. He demanded to know why they had to stay hidden from society. When the chief elder warned him that breaking the rules would result in punishment for his family, his eyes gleamed red at the unfairness.
If his elders were to be believed, everyone in the outside world saw their scarlet eyes as a message from hell, or else wanted to trade them in the black market. In either case, bloodshed was the consequence.
At least it was a century ago. But history was bound to repeat itself, the elders lamented.
Despite their discouraging words, he was [[dreaming]] of leaving.
Why couldn’t he listen? Why couldn’t he [[be satisfied]] with his lot in life?Each night, he longed more and more for the adventures of hunters.
He learned the language of outsiders so that he could someday wander among them. He planned to find a doctor who could reverse Pairo’s condition.
After that was achieved, he and Pairo could travel around the world together and experience all its wonders for themselves. They could live [[happily ever after]].Here in this village in Lukso, he had a best friend, a family, and a community. Certainly, he bristled against authority and its rules. But at some point the torch would be passed down. Perhaps he himself would take it. From a home he and Pairo would build with their own hands, he would rewrite and revitalize the rules in their antiquated tomes.
Beyond the village, there was much less of a guarantee of a <i>[[happily ever after]].</i> According to the villagers, the outside world was a place filled with prejudice and persecution. For every corner turned, there could be a villain waiting to carve out their eyes or wave around a pitchfork.
The villagers told him and told him. But his fantasy had blown his head out of proportion. He believed he, more than anybody, knew best.Against his better judgment, he convinced the chief elder to let him take the exit exam long before he’d come of age.
The test consisted of three stages, three chances for him to fail. Why couldn’t he have failed?
He passed the first two parts without breaking a sweat. The third presented more of a challenge.
For the first time ever, the elders assigned him to an errand outside the village. With Pairo as his partner, he would mingle with the inhabitants of a neighboring town. He would speak their language, hear their music, smell their streets, and sample their delicacies.
Here, amidst all the newness assaulting his senses, he had to stay the picture of [[serenity]] to pass the test.
But he couldn’t follow such simple instructions. Instead, he let the fire in his belly spread and kindle his eyes [[scarlet]].So many times throughout their trip, he came close to succumbing to his emotions. Again and again, Pairo coaxed him back from the edge. But at some point, even his best efforts fell short.
Kurapika messed up too badly for Pairo to save him.
Why couldn’t Kurapika be more like his best friend? Why couldn’t he have let things go, mounted the piko, and ridden [[home]] with the secrecy of their clan intact?For someone with so short a fuse, he was always doomed to explode. Everyone cursed enough to be close by when the scarlet fury took over would suffer from the fallout.
The aftermath included not only three bodies but also the revelation of the clan’s secret he most needed to safeguard.
As forewarned by the elders, the witnesses who’d previously been welcoming turned on them the moment his eyes flashed red. In an instant, he and Pairo had gone from children worthy of protection to demons deserving of expulsion.
The townsmen pelted them with rocks on their way [[home]].He lied to the chief elder upon his return. Thus, the chief declared that he’d passed the test that would permit him to leave his clan and his home indefinitely.
Kurapika said nothing of the eyes who’d watched his own turn scarlet or of the blood he had to wash from his knuckles on the way back.
With this omission, he’d most likely signed all their death warrants. None of them would be spared from the tragedy that would soon befall them — not the elders, not his immediate family, not the villagers who tried to dissuade him from leaving, and not even Pairo who helped him get away with what he’d done.
None of them could see it coming. They were all smiles on the day of his departure.
As he waved farewell, Pairo reminded him to live for himself, above all.
The irony of Pairo’s last words haunted Kurapika later, for hadn’t he been living for himself this entire time? If he wasn’t born, they never would have died. And now, after his clan was gone, he would go on living. Selfishly. Unjustifiably.
The news hit <a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/48025183" target="_blank">six weeks</a> after he left Lukso.