Unsure

Author: Seth

"Make your choices, choose wisely and make them quickly, because uncertainty can cost you everything if you let it fester for too long."

Thousands of leaves fell in a slow dance, tossed about by the fickle winds curling about the forest. They weren’t the first. A think bed of the rotting vegetation already lay upon the ground, a constant reminder that fall was almost through, and that winter was fast approaching.

Leaning against the frame of a door leading into the courtyard of the Ginsenkei compound, a young boy scuffed his foot against the ground in uncharacteristic agitation, the multiple bracelets on his arms jingling with his nervous movements.

“Something on your mind, Gin?” Haru asked as he came up behind the brawler, mirroring his friend as he leaned against the opposite frame of the door.

Gin looked over at Haru, but didn’t answer immediately, instead choosing to look back at the falling leaves that papered the entire compound. Haru didn’t press his comrade; the nomad would answer in his own time.

“Just… thinking about my family…” The young boy touched a rough ring strung around his neck.

“I’m… unused to this.” He gestured vaguely at their surroundings. “My people rarely linger in one place during this time of year. We usually travel down to Pyros, where the frost doesn’t reach.” The rattling of the boy’s jewellery intensified as he shivered, even though the day was relatively temperate. Rubbing his shoulders, Gin shook his head and scuffed the floor slightly more agitatedly. “It’s probably something in the blood…” He mumbled.

Haru’s face softened as realization dawned upon him. “You want to go south,” the blonde juggler said, “just the same as your family already has.”

“Yes. No. I don’t know.” Gin stroked the crude ring. “My mind tells me that I should be here, that I should honour the agreement. My heart says otherwise, and my legs itch to follow the path that’s been ingrained into them after so many generations…”

“So which one are you going to listen to?” Haru asked as he joined Gin in gazing at the falling leaves.

“What, no words to try and keep me here?” The young nomad answered his companion’s question with one of his own.

Haru shook his head. “I already know you’ll make the right choice.”

“And how do you know that?” Gin lilted curiously.

“I know because it’ll be your choice. Not mine, not Souji’s, yours.” The purple eyed boy replied. “I’d be a poor friend if I didn’t respect whatever conclusion you came to.”

“But since you asked~” Haru continued in a playful voice, completely at odds with the weight of his words. “Even though you’re family’s probably in Pyros right now, you’ve also got one right here. You’re my brother, just as much as Ryuu is; remember that, ‘kay~?”

With those words, Haru gave his honorary brother a warm hug before patting him on the shoulder and walking back into the compound, a nameless tune on his lips.

Gin watched his friend disappear back into the depths of the base, and then returned to his original position, watching as the vestiges of fall tumbled to the ground, revealing the bony claws of an oncoming winter.

‘It’s odd, the itch is gone…’ He mused. ‘I’m afraid we’re going to have to wait a while before seeing each other again, Tsuyu.’ The brawler gently fingered the ring strung around his neck.