Author's Note: Sorry about the long wait, but thanks for bearing with me. Anyways... as you can see, here's the next chapter! I can't believe how short they are around this part... so again, due to that, I've put two chapters up again. I hope you enjoy!
He came awake sharply.
Glancing the window in the corner of his eye, he saw the sky was stained with the red light of dawn. It was very early yet.
His eyes dropped to the place beside him, and his hand stretched out, open and empty.
He shot up. Horo…
The thoughts came back in one painful wave.
He has to leave early tomorrow…
The last time you'll see him…
Gone for good…Eyes span to the floor to see the bags that had been there the previous night had gone, along with Horo himself.
He sank to his knees on the wooden floor, heart pulsating with disbelief. Last night… last night he had had everything – today, he was left with nothing. He had almost hoped that what occurred between the two of them that night had been enough to make Horo stay. What he had forgotten was that tribal customs do not make way for trivial things such as love.
Although Ren had known for a while now that this was coming, it seemed somewhat worse now than what he had originally prepared himself for. Having lost all hope of telling Horo how he felt, Ren knew what faced him was denial, shame and sorrow. As terrible as it may have seemed, Ren had almost grown used to this idea. He was just too aware of the fact that he was going to have to live with those feelings; wasn't it much easier just to accept and try to overcome them? But now, Ren was caught off-guard – finding out Horo's true feelings made things so much harder on him. The emotions he was experiencing now were so much more painful… an intense longing burned bright in his soul, a thousand more questions were on the tip of his tongue, and his body just seemed to ache with sorrow.
The previous night seemed like a memory from forever ago, though Ren could still feel Horo close to him. Instinctively, Ren glanced up to the bed upon which they had both slept.
He noticed something that he must have missed in his despair. Standing up to examine it, he saw that it was small, and made from wood. An Ikupasui…
He took it in his hand, a small smile crossing his face despite himself. He sat down on the floor once again, eyes fixed on the beautiful marks in the wood. He knew this one was newer than the ones he had seen before – the carvings looked fresher, and… different. He could make out characters from the Ainu language, though he could not understand them. And in the centre of the Ikupasui was a carefully carved heart design. That seemed to say everything to Ren – he knew what the Ikupasui symbolized, even if he could not speak in tribal tongues.
Ren clutched the charm to his heart, thinking of the love that had left him, but had forever left an indelible mark in his soul.