Disclaimer: Ōkami belongs to Clover Studio and Capcom. I own only my imagination, and I doubt anyone wants it either.
The sun rose once more, peeking through the silhouette of the moon.
There was something to be said about Kamui in the warm afterglow of the volcanic eruption and the return of the sun, and the word would be beautiful. The snow was ever present, sucking in their feet as they stood, but the frigid death that loomed behind them was gone. Tuskle had taken Lika after the little girl chanted the incantation, no doubt to return her to Kai's tearful hugs, while Samickle stared into the distance, where the Ark of Yamato had disappeared into the heavens.
Oki sighed.
"Don't act like you're the only one who's exhausted," Samickle said, a hint of humor in his words. "I feel like I could sleep through the day."
Oki wondered if he spoke only to break the awkwardness that settled after the ark was gone. Well, he supposed not. Samickle had never been one for small talks. Perhaps he was starting to, now. The thought was terrifying.
"So could I," Oki replied at last. "The battle with Lechku and Nechku is tiring, even with the help of Amaterasu."
It was exhausting both to his body and mind. His wounds ached but the thrill had kept him up—and now, with everything settling down, so did his thoughts and realizations. And they were heavy, the epiphanies. The newly found understanding.
He had been cruel.
He knew the consequences of his taking of the Kutone—he knew that it protected Kamui, even if he thought that it did not do it well enough, and he knew that the villagers were dying of cold, and Chief Kemu from his wounds. He knew, and he regretted it now, with the haze of blood thirst gone from his mind.
He regretted the fact that he did not care about that just a few moments prior.
"You know, I never thought I'd see the day this lake would melt," Samickle said. "It was so ingrained with the legend it felt strange to imagine it anything but frozen. The demons… I hope they disappeared along with the ark. Though I do suppose this all explained the name of the lake."
And Samickle, well. He was a different topic.
After Samickle was chosen as the chief, his thoughts warped. Samickle was not the one to sacrifice himself for Kemu. Samickle was not the one hurt for the good of the village. Why was he the one made the chief? He was the protector.
He was the one who wielded Kutone.
But he had not stayed with the villagers when they needed his help to survive the winter, and his act of selfishly fighting for his own peace of mind did not save the village either. His thoughts hindered the sword's silver glow. His failure to save Lika immediately endangered both the girl and Kamui.
Would things be all right if he had just stayed in the village and kept a careful eye on Lika? If he asked for permission to wield Kutone? If he ceased to chase glory and followed his lost conscience? Would things change for the better?
Oki had no way to know, but he knew that the thoughts would linger until the day he died.
"What's gotten into you?"
"Huh?"
"You've been spacing off for quite some time. If you're that tired, you should have said so, you know. There's no need to fall asleep on your feet." Again with the humor. It was starting to scare him. Samickle did not know how to joke, and this new development was nothing short of frightening.
But still, he nodded at Samickle's silent offer. His choice to wear summer clothing in the middle of the blizzard had not been the best idea he had, and not even the eruption warmed his skin from its numbed state. Even Samickle, in his full robe, seemed to be feeling the effects of the frigid storm. Although almost impossible to see, he was lightly trembling.
They left Laochi Lake, entrusting the sword to keep whatever evil away.
It was only upon the entrance of Wep'keer that Oki realized something: he no longer had a place in the village to call home. After taking Kutone, the villagers had basically disowned him, and although Samickle had accepted him back, he had no idea what they might have done to his home. And even if nothing happened, it would be some time before he could coax a fire to warm the room. He should head back to the outskirts, where he built his house, and stay there, at least until some sort of agreement was reached.
Samickle's voice stopped him. "Where are you going?"
Without realizing it, Oki had inched towards the direction of his house. Samickle stare was confused and really, how was he supposed to explain?
But Samickle proved to catch on quickly, as realization dawned on him and his stance straightened. "You don't need to go back to that house outside the village. You are welcome now, you're one of the tribe. And you can stay at my house for the time being—I owe it to Kai, but she stoked the fire there in my absence. Eruption or not, your place must be cold."
Oki hesitated. In one hand, he still remembered that he was not only a friend of Samickle, but also somewhat a rival. They had plenty of arguments and more than a few scuffles, and it wasn't like it was a secret that they competed for quite a lot of things. They both wanted to be the chief back then.
"I… All right."
"Hesitancy does not suit you, Oki," Samickle said, but he smiled as he led them back to his abode.
True to his word, the fire was up, though the lingering cold on the corners of the house suggested that it was recent. There was bowls of food, too, on the kotatsu, and Oki noted that it was enough for two—Kai anticipated his presence, and he did not know what to think of it. But Samickle didn't care, for he simply took off his boots and mask and made himself home, burying his legs under the thick quilt. Oki followed, manners subdued. His foot bumped onto a book and a scroll, but Samickle didn't seem to notice their presence under the kotatsu. Typical.
"Your house is rather cold," he finally said, taking his mask off. Samickle looked up, eyes rather blank, before he blinked and control returned.
"I simply haven't been home for quite some time. I'm sure that if left alone, this place would be colder than your house outside the village."
Oki raised an eyebrow. "But why?"
"I've been guarding the elder's house ever since he was injured. With all the demons prowling around, looking to end his life, I couldn't leave him for too long. Kai brought me food during that period, despite her worry for Lika. I owe her a lot."
"But…" Oki couldn't even fathom the thought. Outside, for so long? With that blizzard? He severely underestimated Samickle's abilities. And his stubbornness. Oki liked to think that they were interchangeable.
"Really, Oki," Samickle sighed. "Let's keep the conversations for later. I mean it when I said I was exhausted—your stupidity shattered the Affun Gate and I spent too much time trying to shut it. Now all I want to do is to sleep in a warm place, and nothing will keep me from doing so, not even your grating voice."
As if to prove his point, Samickle ate the last of his soup and stretched, joints popping. The yawn that escaped his lips triggered one from Oki, and something akin to a snort escaped Samickle's mouth. Oki finished his soup and piled their bowls, eyes starting to water.
With warmth starting to settle inside of him, he felt the weight crashing onto his shoulder, making him sag against the table. Samickle laughed, the sound heavy with sleep, and Oki barely managed to transform into a wolf before his eyelids closed. He heard rustles and light footsteps, but the solid, hot mass that settled beside him explained everything, and Oki snorted.
"Don't say a word," Samickle murmured, but he received no reply.
Oki fell asleep to the soft breaths of another.
A/N: Huge thanks to okamimythology. tumblr. com for providing in depth explanation to basically everything.
Lake Laochi: rayochi, meaning "rainbow".
I've been wanting to do a fic with these two- I simply love Samickle, enough to lurk around Pixiv and search the game's script for mentions of him. Yes, I am that desperate. But the latter act was the trigger of this fic. For one, it gave me slightly deeper understanding of him- a lot of people seemed to love or hate him based on his intro text, but the optional texts certainly cast him in better light. For one, I understood his aggressiveness in his intro scene: Wep'keer was not a safe place. Kemu was wounded, and they couldn't afford him being injured even more. His apprehension should be present.
And if you talk to him in non-required scenes, he's pretty amiable. He gives you advices and seemed to worry for your safety. He attempted to shut the gates when it was broken. Rude to newcomers or not, he loves the village, and they love him.
But oh well.
(Also, this is not beta'd yet.)
