Haraken lay with his back to the open door, his head resting on his arm. Tamako had taken back her glasses, of course, as she had taken Kanna's and his own and not yet returned them. It didn't matter anymore. He had no more reason to chase after Kanna, no more pretext for which to study illegals, and without it all he felt hollow.
His mattress sank behind him. His breath hitched, though he refused to look back. That didn't stop Tamako from lowering a box about the size of his hand and tied off with a ribbon in front of him. She settled in where she sat.
"Go on," she urged when he failed to reach for it, "open it."
With a sigh, he pulled tentatively at the ribbon with his free hand. It was bound too tightly to give without proper effort, and he sat up to try again. Tamako curled an arm around him, leaning against him and resting her head on his, as he pulled the top off the box. He tipped its contents into his open palm.
"A beckoning cat?" he mulled, staring blankly at the glossy black figure with its upraised paw.
"This one is for good health," Tamako said, "or something like that."
Haraken frowned, a knot welling in his throat. "It looks like an illegal."
"I want it to remind you, if you go chasing illegals again for any reason, that you need to put your own well-being first."
Haraken curled his fingers around the figure and held it against his chest. Words lost somewhere on his tongue, he looked to Tamako. She kissed his forehead and stood quickly, leaving him in the ensuing silence.
It was several minutes more before he noticed the glasses she had left behind.
