Anticipated Heartbreak

Kotori gave his reasoning and it made sense. He wanted to better himself so that he had more to offer when he came to ask for her paw. She couldn't blame him for it but it had all come too late. Their life together would have been great. It would have been easy. She trusted Kotori. If she thought about it deeply enough, she would say that she loved him. He'd saved her life. He'd put her safety before his own. It just wasn't fair.

After she kissed him and began crying into his spotted coat, Kotori moved to wrap a paw around her comfortingly. He spoke again and she shook her head gently. "It's not your fault," she assured him in soft, wavering tones. The snowy fae was trying to hold it together. She didn't want to make a scene. They were out in the open where others could see. Both of them had their reputations to uphold.

Ikigai drew out of his embrace, pushing her paws into the ground to sit up. One paw lifted and she wiped tears from red-rimmed eyes. "It's not your fault," she told him again, forcing a smile. "I don't blame you. It's just... a horrible twist of fate." Ikigai barely knew Poe. She didn't know what kind of man he was. She didn't know if he was violent, if he would hurt her, if he would care for her at all. She did know that Kotori would have been none of those things and it hurt her heart to think about it.

Kotori assured her that they could still see one another as friends and the young woman nodded. "Yes we can." The man told her to come to him if things fell through with her future husband. Iki released a sound that was a laugh mixed with a sob and she brought one delicate paw up to cover her mouth, trying to hide the emotion. "I don't know what could happen. And if anything did, I'm sure you'll have found someone else by then." The sad fae shook her crown, bringing mournful eyes to meet his blue orbs. "It might be easier if you just forgot about me, Kotori."

"Ikigai"