Morning came quietly.
Too quietly.
The Haven of Six, once filled with yelling, arguments, laughter, and Katsu somehow sleeping through all of it… felt hollow.
Shichiro sat alone at the kitchen table.
A cup rested between his hands.
Cold.
Untouched.
He stared into it anyway.
The memory of that voice still echoed in the back of his mind.
"Sleep tight, Shichiro."
His grip tightened slightly.
Footsteps approached.
Katsu walked into the kitchen scratching the back of his head, hair messy, eyes half-open. He opened the fridge.
Stared inside.
Closed it.
Opened it again.
Still empty.
"…Damn," he muttered.
Shichiro looked up slightly.
"…You too?"
Katsu paused.
For once, he didn't answer immediately.
Then.
"…Yeah."
Silence settled again.
Katsu leaned against the counter.
"…mine felt real."
Shichiro looked back down at the cup.
"…Yeah."
More footsteps.
Then,
"WHY IS THERE NOTHING TO EAT IN THIS HOUSE?!"
Kentarō stormed into the kitchen dramatically, holding an empty pan over his head like he was leading a rebellion.
"You guys are actually trying to starve me."
Katsu pointed lazily at him.
"You ate everything last night."
"That was trauma eating. It doesn't count."
For the first time that morning.
Shichiro smiled slightly.
Small.
Barely there.
But real.
Kentarō immediately pointed at him.
"HE SMILED."
"Shut up," Shichiro muttered.
"WAIT KATSU DID YOU SEE THAT? WRITE THIS DOWN."
"I'm not writing that down."
"You never support my dreams."
Outside.
Rokuro sat on the Haven steps alone.
Cold air surrounded him naturally.
Tiny crystals of frost formed near his shoes.
He stared ahead silently.
Not thinking.
Not relaxing.
Just…
there.
Ryosen stood near the doorway watching him quietly.
"…You haven't slept."
Rokuro didn't look back.
"Neither did you."
Ryosen smiled faintly.
"…Fair."
A long silence followed.
Then Ryosen asked quietly.
"…Do you remember everything?"
Rokuro's eyes narrowed slightly.
The fire.
The gods.
The choice.
The fear.
"…Yeah."
Ryosen looked down at his hands.
"…Me too."
Back inside.
Kentarō somehow managed to burn instant noodles.
"How do you even DO THAT?!" Katsu stared in disbelief.
"It was a tactical decision."
"There was no tactic involved."
"There was FIRE involved."
Shichiro laughed softly under his breath.
Then,
everything stopped.
For just a second.
The steam from the pot froze midair.
The sound vanished.
Silence.
Then time resumed instantly.
Nobody spoke.
Katsu stared at the floor.
"…My bad."
Shichiro noticed his hand trembling slightly.
But he didn't mention it.
None of them did.
Later that night.
The Haven was asleep.
Or pretending to be.
Shichiro stood alone on the roof, staring at the sky.
The stars looked colder now.
Footsteps landed behind him.
Fast.
Light.
Familiar.
Sokudo.
But,
for once,
he wasn't smiling.
His hands rested in his pockets as he looked over the city quietly.
"…You kids changed."
Shichiro stayed silent.
Sokudo glanced at him.
"…That's what happens when gods notice you."
The wind blew between them.
For the first time since they we're born.
Sokudo looked serious.
Actually serious.
"…So I'm giving you a choice."
Shichiro froze slightly.
That word again.
Choice.
Sokudo noticed immediately.
"…Relax. I'm not them."
A pause.
Then,
"Stay here…"
The city lights flickered below.
"…or disappear for awhile."
Shichiro slowly looked toward him.
"…Disappear?"
Sokudo nodded.
"…Train. Grow stronger. Figure yourselves out before the gods decide to look your way again."
Silence.
Then Sokudo looked up at the sky.
And for the first time.
Shichiro noticed something unsettling.
Sokudo looked…
worried.
"…Because next time," Sokudo said quietly,
"they won't ask nicely."