I realize I never wrote about Goro...Welp, time to change that.
Bright, orange lights danced along the river, torches swaying idly in the wind, and a group of people sat amongst themselves, happily chattering, blessing one another, or avoiding Kye, who was screaming about white haired demons with emerald eyes that flew across the heavens.
Today, Matataki was honoring their fallen warrior, Fudoh. The day was dedicated to honoring his memory, as well as serving as a day of rest for most of the hard working people of the village.
A large, wooden statue was standing in the center of the village. Although it may appear otherwise, the statue was actually a living tree, sung into its shaped by the Tree spirit, Treant. Beautiful blossoms danced around the tree, as many of the villagers prayed in front of it, some leaving offerings to the great warrior.
Alone, in his treehouse, Goro sat, slowly sharpening his axe with a whetstone. As he sharpened his now familiar axe, he heard a loud cheer from the rest of Matataki village.
"Praise be to Fudoh, the legendary Hunter!"
He grit his teeth, the grip on the whetstone tightening to the point where the stone began to fracture and break. With a roar of anger, he threw the whetstone at the door, it smashing into fragments against the solid door.
Silence filled the room for a few seconds, as the unspoken anger of Goro seemed to heat the very room up, until a knocked filled the room, the door slowly creaking open.
"Hey Goro, we're having a feast and the mayor told me to come get you." Momo's voice spoke from the doorway. The door opened, revealing Momo, still wearing the fox pelt around her neck.
"I'm not going," Goro grunted, turning his back on her, grabbing a second whetstone at the same time.
"Goro, come on, there's a huge feast, and Gob made some mystery soup."
"Is that supposed to encourage me to go?" Goro scoffed, focusing on resharpening his axe. Momo tisked, tapping her foot.
"Goro, you can't stay in all day, especially not today where we celebrate your own father."
"He can go rot in hell!" Goro roared, slamming his axe to the floor. "I hate that damn bastard!"
"Goro! How could you say that? He was your father-"
"AND HE LET HIMSELF DIE TO A FREAKING SNAKE!" Goro roared, slamming his thick meaty fist into a table. "He didn't stay home with me, to raise me, to teach me better, to make the most of whatever goddamn time he had left."
"Goro-"
"HE HAD TO DIE A FREAKING HERO!" Goro roared, tears pouring down his eyes. "HE DIDN'T EVEN TRY TO STAY ALIVE FOR ME, HE HAD TO BE MISTER WARRIOR AND GO DIE A WARRIOR'S DEATH!" He spat the words out, even as his voice began to break, as tears began to flow more freely, the once, unmoveable Goro now tearing up.
"Goro..."
"He didn't even try to stay alive for me...Was I just a failure..?" He sobbed, placing his hands to his eyes. "Was I just so worthless, that death seemed more preferable?"
"He loved you Goro.." Momo said, patting the hunter's back. "He really did.."
"If he did...why did he leave me all alone?" He asked, his voice sounding so sad, so broken, that Momo's heart clenched. She looked at Goro, no longer the arrogant hunter, but a sad, broken child who lost his only family in the world.
"Why did he leave me all alone?" He asked, his voice a near whisper. Momo said nothing, for she didn't know the answer herself. She sighed, placing a hand on Goro's back.
"You're not alone Goro. A lot of people in Matataki care about you." At this, Goro scoffed, but Momo lightly slapped his head. "It's true! We all do care about you Goro."
Silence filled the room. Goro sniffled for a bit, before he wiped his eyes clean.
"Don't...don't tell anyone about this.." Goro said, his arrogance all but lost. "Please..."
"I won't...But only if you come to the feast." Momo grinned. Goro growled, but sighed.
"Fine, but I'm not eating any of Gob's crap! I still want to live you know!" Momo let out a laugh, before they left the room.
I'm vaguely wondering why I don't write about Goro more...He has one of the saddest stories in all of Dark Cloud, losing his father, which as far as we know, is his only family...It must be hell to live by yourself in a home full of memories...