Ch. 7: A Protective Hand
After the roar of the monster, I moved out to draw its attention in order to protect the child…-.
And at the same time, the sound of a weapon clashing echoed with the monster’s groan.
OO: “Eh…?”
Ray: “Geez, this isn’t something for you to just throw your life away for you idiot.”
Monster: “Gishaaa…!!”
Ray: “Shut up, we’re talking here. Just hurry up and die.”
Ray’s frosty gaze pierced the monster as it cried in agony.
In the next instant, the trident in his hand struck the monster down.
OO: “…why?”
(Ray protected me…?)
As he stood there grumbling alone, Ray grimaced and looked back at me.
With a look of displeasure on his face, he came nearer and forcibly pulled on my hand.
Ch. 8: Hidden Kindness
I looked up to see Ray’s eyes were severe as they reflected the light of the setting sun…-.
His large, calloused hand roughly gripped my own.
Ray: “Even at the best of times, your lifespan is short, so why would you try and shorten it further? Even good-natured people have their limits.”
Contrary to the roughness of his hands, it seemed as if there was an indirect kindness hidden beneath the words he directed at me…-.
Within the anger he was harboring, I could sense that he had truly been worried about me.
(You’re good-natured too Ray.)
OO: “Haha.”
Ray: “Huh? Hey, what’s so funny?”
OO: “Thank you for worrying about me.”
I placed my hand over his, and Ray’s eyes widened.
Ray: “…I already told you, I did it to hurry and get this damn shackle off.”
He quickly brushed my hand away and let out a short huff.
Ray: “Whatever. Let’s hurry and get that brat back to town before there’s an uproar.”
His gaze shifted to the young boy, who started crying.
Child: “Ooow, I’m sorry…”
Ray: “Don’t cry, there’s nothing to cry about.”
The boy, still holding onto the flower he had grabbed, looked up at Ray and almost seemed to be gazing at him as you would an older brother…
He didn’t question it any further as Ray picked up the small boy in his burly arms…-.
…
……
The flower petals sparkled and swayed in the wind beneath the orange light…-.
As soon as we made it back to town, we took the boy back to his mother.
Child: “Mommy was mad, so I wanted to get you a flower to make you happy…”
Mother: “You foolish boy! There’s no point to that if I’d lost you.”
The mother cried, her expression of relief and concern rather than anger as she tightly hugged the boy.
As Ray watched the mother and child crying and holding each other, he seemed to smile in relief but…-.
(He looks so sad too…)
Ray’s past was blurred together in his earnest expression.
I thought of how his homeland was somewhere in the beautiful night sky, but there was no one there… and my heart ached.
Ray: “…let’s go.”
Ray turned his back on the parent and child and walked away.
OO: “Ray!”
Child: “Thanks mister! And lady!”
Without answering, Ray continued to walk off and just flicked his hand in response as if anything else would be too troublesome.
After bidding the two farewell, I ran to catch up with him.
Ray: “As I thought, there’s no reason for me to be with you.”
His abrupt words were horribly calm as he spoke, and I stopped breathing.
It was as if he was building up an unseen wall, and those words of rejection pierced though my heart.
Ch. 9: Reaching Out One's Hand
In the silence that responded to his words, the sun finished its decent…-.
(If I turn back now… we might never see each other again.)
I took a deep breath, calming my heart, not wanting to be hurt by his words any more than necessary.
Here and there, the lights started to come on and lit up the town in front of Ray as he continued to look straight ahead.
OO: “I’m the one who decides where I belong. To be honest, I thought you were scary in the beginning Ray. Even when you smiled, I could tell it wasn’t a real smile from the heart. It was like you had closed the door, and I didn’t think you would open it… as if you were saying that you wouldn’t let anyone else in. But before I knew it…”
————————
Ray: “… …you’re odd.”
Ray: “Even though originally it was fate that your group and I clashed…?”
Ray: “…let’s go.”
————————
(Though he was holding onto that sorrow and loneliness… I realized he was someone that would act for the sake of another.)
OO: “Just for an instant, I felt like you had opened that door. So… please, don’t go off on your own.”
The future from this point was one that I wanted to walk in step with him, together.
(So… I want to be the place that you can come home to.)
I reached my hand out to Ray, and I saw his eyes waver slightly amidst the evening glow and the night air.
After he clicked his tongue, he shook off his hesitation, and his expression looked a little pained when…-.
Ray: “…you already wrenched it wide open.”
In the next instant, I was pulled into a strong embrace against his broad chest.
Ray: “You won’t listen even when I tell you not to come and you stick your neck into dangerous situations… you really are a troublesome woman.”
I couldn’t see his face, but the words that slipped out of him were shaking slightly…-.
Within his strong arms, I listened carefully to the happiness in his voice.
Ch. 10: The Footprints We Leave Behind
The faint moonlight from the night sky fell within the room at a small inn…-.
I had gone to Ray’s room to confirm what time we would be leaving the next day.
OO: “Then… see you tomorrow. Goodnight, Ray.”
I said my goodbyes and moved to go back to my own room, but Ray stood up from his seat without saying a word.
I thought he would just continue to stand like that in front of me when he slowly took my hand…-.
Ray: “…have you really thought about this?”
OO: “Ray?”
He looked down at me, his eyes serious.
Ray: “I lost my normal life… and filled every day with endless solitude. Have you really thought about what it would mean to accompany someone like me? Or were you telling me to not go off alone again out of some temporary form of sympathy?”
OO: “No! I…”
(How can I get my feelings across…? I want him to know my feelings are real…-.)
To do that, I grabbed his hand tightly and pulled down. He yielded and our eyes were now at the same height.
He was slightly surprised as his forehead bumped against mine.
OO: “I want to be the place you can come home to Ray.”
His eyes opened wide as I was able to put into words the precious feeling that had been born inside me.
His severe expression gradually softened, and a kind smile spread before my eyes.
(Ray…)
The second I saw the wariness leave his eyes, my chest gradually started to warm up.
I couldn’t look away from his expression…-.
Ray: “OO.”
It was the first time he’d said my name, and it was sweeter than I’d ever expected as it caused my heart to pound.
OO: “…yes.”
I responded politely without realizing it, and at the same time, he placed his hand on my head…-.
His hand was warm as it touched my hair, and I was sure that he understood my feelings.
Ray: “I still feel anger, like I’ll go mad when I think of my family, but… I want to try and believe you.”
He came a little closer, and Ray let out a little huff.
His voice sounded brighter than when we had first reunited, and there was a calm there like when I had seen him looking out at the sea.
Ray: “If you’re going to go that far, you’ll have to help me find a new reason to live.”
OO: “We’ll find it, together. I won’t let you go alone.”
(From now on… I’ll be by your side.)
I knew his painful past could not be erased, but we could find happiness in the future, together.
I nodded emphatically as if making a vow, and Ray’s large hand gently stroked my head.
(Originally, Ray was like this… with gentle hands that bring relief.)
Ray: “I don’t care if the world doesn’t see fit to grant my wish but… I will try to find trust in this world where you and the others live.”
OO: “I think wishes are things that can change form. What was your wish… when you were living on the island?”
(If I can make it come true, then the wish that Ray originally had when he was living a quiet, peaceful life… is one I want to grant.)
At my question, Ray thought for a moment in silence…
After a little time had passed, his eyes took on a look of nostalgia.
Ray: “As the chief of the Dragon Clan, I wanted my people to live in peace. And… someday, I wanted to live a quiet, ordinary life with someone who was important to me.”
I could feel the gentleness in his words, something I never could have imagined coming from him when we’d first met.
OO: “I can’t make all of your wishes come true… but I think you’ll be able to live together with someone important to you from now on.”
As we continued this journey of atonement together, as people with different origins and different lifespans, I knew there would be many obstacles.
(Even still, I wish from the bottom of my heart that this future is one that Ray and I will walk with our footprints side by side.)
I smiled, all of those feelings packed into the expression, and Ray smiled back as he thought of something.
Ray: “Hey. Say it again. Let me hear those words again.”
OO: “What words?”
I tilted my head, and Ray’s gaze was teasing as he seemed to be enjoying the current situation.
Ray: “Like I said, the words that you said to me when we met again.”
(When we met…-)
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Ray: “… …you’re odd.”
————————
Suddenly, his voice from back then echoed in my mind and I recalled the surprised expression on his face.
(Ah, so that’s it. That’s what he’s always wanted…)
OO: “Ray, welcome back.”
I wondered if I was right, and his expression shifted and softened….-.
Ray: “I’m home.”
(Ah… he’s smiling.)
It was the first time I’d seen Ray truly happy, and that expression was something that I would never, ever forget.
I was sure that the people who were important to Ray were watching over him from the night sky that went on forever outside the window.
END
Secret Story: A Wish Formed, a Link to the Future
The lights of the houses started to come on one by one, as if impatient for their owners to come home…-.
OO: “I’m glad the boy is safe.”
Ray: “Yeah.”
We exchanged meaningless chatter as we walked the path towards the inn.
(I originally thought good-natured humans were a handful but…)
In the beginning, I’d only accompanied her because I had no other option to get the shackle removed.
But before I knew it, I no longer felt irritated and her presence beside me became natural.
————————
OO: “So… please, don’t go off on your own.”
————————
I remembered the strong determination in her eyes as she looked directly at me and reached out her hand.
(…my friends all had their futures cruelly stolen from them. And yet, as the only living survivor, I should not be the only one to find happiness.)
I felt guilt towards my friends, and anger and bitterness towards the humans, and so I’d built a solid wall around my heart.
But she wrenched it wide open… and drew a picture of a future with us side by side.
(…I must be crazy, for not disliking the idea.)
When I held my hand out to her, what I truly wished and hoped for at that time had not been the destruction of the world…
I realized it was just to have an ordinary happiness and to exist, like her.
(When the Heavenly Blue Stone was destroyed and my dream of reviving my family shattered… I lost sight of where I should go. But…)
I knew the place where I now stood, and I knew that I had hated having to live off of this land.
(The reason I came to not simply hate this place was… because OO was there.)
If I shifted my attention to beside me, I could see her there somehow, frantically walking.
(Aah, so that’s it.)
As I slowed down slightly, I turned my eyes to the sky.
I couldn’t see my home up in the night sky, but I realized I was able to recall the smiling faces of my friends and family, which I hadn’t been able to do in a long time…-.
…
……
The moonlight spilled through the inn window, lighting up the room…-.
OO: “I want to be the place you can come home to Ray.”
(The place I can come home to…)
Her eyes were completely clear, and I suddenly remembered when we’d met again, and she’d said to me ‘welcome back.’
Those words were something I never thought I’d ever hear again in my entire life, not since the day I lost everyone.
(…how are you able to give me the thing I want the most?)
Though I had controlled myself, not letting myself want or hope for anything, I couldn’t lie about my real feelings anymore.
Ray: “OO.”
OO: “…yes.”
I was surprised that my own voice that came out so naturally could be so gentle.
OO’s look of delight was refreshing, and I gently placed my hand on her head.
Ray: “I still feel anger, like I’ll go mad when I think of my family, but… I want to try and believe you.”
(…is it alright for me to wish for a future where you and I walk together?)
Ray: “If you’re going to go that far, you’ll have to help me find a new reason to live.”
OO: “We’ll find it, together. I won’t let you go alone.”
Her voice felt like it was tightly wrapping around me and my heart stuttered.
It wasn’t that my internal conflict and feelings of guilt over being the only one to achieve happiness completely vanished, and I would never forget the others.
(But I… want to try living with this troublesome, meddling woman.)
Ray: “I don’t care if the world doesn’t see fit to grant my wish but… I will try to find trust in this world where you and the others live.”
OO: “I think wishes are things that can change form. What was your wish… when you were living on the island?”
I pulled on those memories of the past when I was surrounded by everyone I cared about.
I had thought I would go mad with pain just trying to remember them, but now it was mixed with just a little bit of longing.
(…I wonder if it’s because she’s beside me.)
Ray: “As the chief of the Dragon Clan, I wanted my people to live in peace. And… someday, I wanted to live a quiet, ordinary life with someone who was important to me.”
OO: “I can’t make all of your wishes come true… but I think you’ll be able to live together with someone important to you from now on.”
OO still talked so naturally about a future together.
(If that’s really your intent, I’ll never let go of your hand you know.)
Ray: “Hey. Say it again. Let me hear those words again.”
OO: “What words?”
I watched as she tilted her head, a little troubled, then her expression opened into a smile…-.
OO: “Ray, welcome back.”
Ray: “I’m home.”
The many years that I had spent with my friends and family were stacked together with the new memoires I made with her.
(…see ya later.)
The night was growing late.
Every day had been filled with darkness, but I felt like tomorrow would be bright.
END