az: Rereading this a lot many times... made me rethink what's so awesome about this shot. But so far I got some good response on lj... so I'll resign to that. XP.
Disclaimers where it's due
Returning the Faith
By honou-no-izumi alias Izzu
o
o
Waking up today had not been like the usual mornings that he had woken up to. For some reason he already felt uneasy the very moment he opened his eyes today. Takeru sighed. Perhaps it was because of the silly things he had been seeing Genta to be doing, just to get Ryunosuke's approval of him as a samurai.
Takeru shook his head. No. He should not be thinking superstitiously.
7.45AM
He walked in to find Mako, Kotoha and even Chiaki already present for calligraphy practice. Still, no sign of Ryunosuke could be seen.
He had asked about it first thing and Mako's explanations seemed valid, though it still bugged him. Ryunosuke was punctual to a fault; even a slightest bit of tardiness seemed unbelievable. Moreover, he could not shake this feeling of uneasiness.
However, he should be reasonable now; he should wait for him. Perhaps there was a reason for it...
7.59AM
Still no sign of Ryunosuke. Even the others started worrying and tried calling Ryunosuke's phone to no avail. This feeling he had could not have been any wrong. The moment the clock started chiming; Takeru immediately issued his orders...
xxx
The four of them reached the foot of the hill as they cautiously entered the place. Genta was nowhere to be found either so the two must be together. Nevertheless, that still did not explain the situation at hand, as they ventured into the forest.
He finally understood it though, the moment he saw the talismans placed at the base of one tree. Perhaps that was the reason Ryunosuke was unable to contact them.
No time to lose but to find them as Takeru lead the others further inside, with just his instincts to guide. Takeru immediately recollect the incident they had with Yamiororo. That time, Ryunosuke's arrival had been so close. He never felt more relieved to have him by his side. Ryunosuke had always been dependable, during times like this.
And he swore he would not let Ryunosuke get hurt as bad as during their confrontation with Ushirobushi. Not if he could help it!
Right now, he hope that he could keep his word about entrusting their lives to each other. He hoped that he would not be late.
At which point, the fears were baseless.
Takeru had apologized to Ryunosuke for not arriving sooner but he did not appear to have lost any faith in him. Takeru unconsciously let out a sigh of relief.
It was such a small gesture, an unspoken understanding; but Takeru was glad he managed to arrive there in time.