By the hour of nightfall, it seems the woods has gone quiet. Quieter than usual. The late winter hasn’t released a chill this brittle since three years ago. The unease he feels has to do with being driven far from home. He was sure of himself the last blood moon, confident. Relaxed. He was twenty-five and shiny eyed, welcoming of all transformations his elders promised.
Now he has no one. He hopes that it won’t be for too long.
“That’s the best that you can do?” he says. Gaku doesn’t care to sanitize his accent. It’s as perfect as it is, skewed and sharp. Immediately telling of his lack of place, blanketed by the forests of rural Seoul. He’s got dry oakwood logs under his arms. His forehead and temples have a slight sweaty glow to them, having scavenged for logs, later returning an ax that was in his ownership to the headmaster. “The bonfire,” Gaku lifts his chin, gesturing towards the feeble, light orange fumes. “It’s dying.”
He puts the logs down. “You have to put more wood, side by side. The hole was dug pretty deep to sustain the fire, but you have to add more dirt between the gaps. You see those gaps, right?” Gaku looks at them, extending an index finger to the wry ground. “C’mon, I’ll help you.”
Carefully adding more of the oakwood to the bonfire in parallels, he dusts his hands off. It’s calloused, like normal, with a thin veil of sawdust. “See, that wasn’t too bad, right?” He offers a lighthearted smile, looking over and around the other for coolers. “You said the other party was gonna bring beers for our hard work, right?”
Some time ago, Gaku’s mother retold the story of how she met his father. They were best suited for each other from a conjuring matchmaker of sorts; that their ways of living would bleed into compliance. His mother rationalized the long, lonely standing of devotion. Compartmentalized her desire into every outhouse and shed. So much to keep power in her wake. Political and dynastic stability, at the very root of protection. Unchanged and yet, stronger. A sacrifice she quietly sustained.
She’d go on to say that Gaku wouldn’t understand. He’s just a boy when she tells him about the fateful day of crossing paths with her husband. And that her eyes were void of any real feeling on that day. Something that’d she knew to put her soul behind her, and her principles first.
Gaku would ought to be subordinate to the same fate. He can’t envision it for himself, as all selfish and self-serving men are. He is his father’s son, after all. By blood, the two are the same. Unshaken by the things they want.
Lee Eunjae.
Gaku would bring her to northern Okinawa, where they’d see the ocean and mountains meet at dusk. She’d have a winsome opportunity to practice her sorcery. His mother, from her youth, could see herself in the woman. And that Gaku could take her away from here and give her the life she’d always wanted, and that he’d be the man to keep her body warm, always without tension. A part of him wanted to ask if she ever saw anything with her future involving him, a future that wouldn’t hurt. Anything without faithfully imploring on past lives and nameless universes. Except, he doesn’t. He succumbs to a certain defeat not much worthy than “what ifs” and futile reveries. It’s all he has.
“I got a rental,” he says. Gaku looks at Eunjae. They’re on the first floor of the hall, right as he promised of where he was gonna meet her.
“What? You thought I forgot?” he sneers. Something about her makes him smile. Nothing much has happened. It never has to when he’s with her. Gaku wants to say her name. It’s the only name he knows that makes his mouth tender and good.
hi all! super excited to get this show on the road, i’m anwar (s/they, twenty8, est) and i bring you fellow student witch, kaneyama gaku. i don’t plan on writing a traditional full-fledged bio so this’ll do for now. i’m also still acquiring a vibe for him so things may change. without a further ado, feel free to like and i’ll head your way to plot! ☆
history
tw / mass murders, fatphobia
kaneyama gaku, 29, witch
the son of a spiritual and magical priestess to shintoism (mother) miko/巫女 shrine maiden works too and a magical military general (father) who defends all of northern okinawa, japan. their marriage was fated as the two made a pact to consolidate power as the regional population of witches/wizards were declining by the numbers due to modernization, stigmas, national government, etc. gaku is the youngest of two other boys. it’s an agreeable family and household.
lemme preface this by mentioning the kaneyama name goes way back to the muromachi period (mid 1300s) during medieval japan as a former magical vassal turned military sect that dabbled heavily with witchcraft, more specifically with okinawan witchcraft. along the way you can expect massive conflicts on land as the years approach the sengoku period, (basically the warring states period, yes they absolutely did reheat china’s nachos) so does the kaneyama clan get involved in said bloody pursuits. the family were formerly Incredibly Blessed with sorcery and black magic but ofc that doesn’t last long when they ended up getting most of their powers relinquished and reduced by some angry folks up around the north (hokkaido, aomori, yamagata, etc). to be fair tho the north were doing the rest of jp a favor before entering the era of tokugawa, etc. so that’s that on a sparksnote rendition, u would have to ask gaku for the specifics i fear
so damn that’s a lot going on right. anyway lmao gaku’s growing up with not much going on for himself really because he’s living in his older brothers’ shadows. gaku’s pitied as a young boy for being in and out of hospitals due to his poor thyroid condition as it affects his autoimmune system. his parents don’t instill responsibility too much on him for being chronically unwell, all the while remaining overweight so he’s constantly looked over despite Still participating in combat training/archery/swordsmanship. in turn, his condition inhibits his abilities (geomantic strength) as they failed to properly manifest, so he largely focused on physical training to make up for it.
:-) but of course it doesn’t stop there! it’s abe shinzo’s japan at the time so i imagine he doesn’t take witchcraft very well, especially ancient okinawan sorcery which is deemed as “other than”, “primitive” and “spiritually conjuring”. with jp being allies with most nations on the west, primarily the united states, the stationed military medics were gradually ordered to sterilize many of the remaining witches/wizards to 1) keep them weak and 2) keep them from repopulating. and THEN the americans decide to expand their military bases crossing over land that’s considered highly spiritual and sacred to the magical population?? oh it’s so over
i do think if the okinawans were practicing the national form of witchcraft that is acceptable to the west and the jp government, they wouldn’t be in the position that they’re in. but alas, the kaneyama fam with many others aren’t backing down on a fight when conflict ensues against the u.s. military, so *inserts battle sequences* 😭 whole house mad asf! now the locals are deemed as t*rrorists for defending their right to live, gaku damn near lost an eye mid-battle when his ability started to resurface ANNND he’s not even magically trained! girl what the hell
eventually bro gets captured by some g.i. from wisconsin or whatver and instead of sterilization, they give him another comfortable choice bc gaku is from an esteemed native family. otherwise if he was just any other witch with nothing to his name then yeah, he would’ve gotten the needle. so it’s either that, or assimilate by means of receiving an education for modern witchcraft, which is the world’s most practiced form.
gaku isn’t 100% selfless: the second-born son, his older brother dies in combat and the first born one gets forcibly shipped off to a school in hong kong, so he plays the long game. gets shipped off to rural seoul because he prioritizes his life and finds that maybe.. just Maybe, he could utilize this chance of “assimilation” to better his ability, himself, his family, and avenge his brother. after all, the karmic energy is in its fall from centuries ago has finally come to retrieve him, and will likely continue to do so. #saturnruled
is he simply seeking asylum in this boarding school for witches? or is he simply passing time? is he comfortable knowing he’s being hunted for sport if he even dreams about leaving rural seoul? well, gaku’s been here for about a single term (4-5 months?) now, if that doesn’t speak for itself then i don’t know what else will!
personality
a true introvert: doesn’t speak unless when spoken to, but this isn’t to be confused with being anti-social. gaku is normally rather pleasant, though he doesn’t let people know what’s really on his mind unless if comforted by the idea of closeness, trust, and loyalty.
he has a strong sense of self, is someone that one could rely on and presents himself willing of responsibility/duties. i imagine he has an air of familiarity reminiscent of people from small towns and villages. it’s not quite warmth, nor friendliness, but he is kind and courteous despite the initial coldness. he means well! and that is not indefinite unless if crossed!
what you see is normally what you get when it comes to him. straightforward, candid, dependable, yet still manages to be relenting as gaku could also read the room. honors code and Some traditions, as he’ll happily turn his back on them morally-speaking.
oddly enough? a real #nerd under all that tuff exterior. he’s a big ass history buff and is the type to sit right up in the front for courses like the history of magic, intro to transfiguration, etc. gaku’s ridiculously spiritual as well as superstitious. has a flair for occult knowledge, or at least wanting to gain such. he’s a worldly guy what can i say! #sagittariusmen #aquariusmoon #scorpioplacements
has a tendency to be cynical, short-tempered, and reactive when necessary (or.. not? hehe). but gaku does remain fiercely loyal to the friends and family that he wants to protect, which i think favors him in ways that makes him strangely empathetic. gaku’s compassionate at best.
i should end this by finally saying that he doesn’t have ambitions to become The Strongest or The Most Powerful Witch or whatever. as you can imagine, he clearly has No Knowledge of modern witchcraft, and his perspectives on such are drastically different from the way his version of magic is (culturally speaking). he retains his strong moral compass while remaining considerate of others, and only seeks to defend himself (and others) when necessary, so not at all afraid of confrontation. is he an aggressor? absolutely not. but a gentle giant? well yes!
anyways he’s literally rakko from chiikawa i’m not even joking
plots / connections
i just looove coming to the party empty handed but alas, i will be more than happy to plot and brainstorm when possible! but for obvious reasons: definitely searching for a familiar that doesn’t have to be aligned with my wanted connections on boundkrp. i’m open to anything and everything!
kianamaiart
blakekathryn
turnnoffyourmind
romaincrisis
andulkaphoto
origamiaround
vaporwave