I don't think he was expecting to see me. At least that's what I could tell from his face. It was during a hunt. The skies were starting to darken, but I had not caught anything that day. As the sun began to set and I was about to head back to my cave, a bright light came shining through the trees. I could smell light smoke and the scent of fish cooking. Someone had lit a fire and was making dinner. Maybe the owner of the fire would be kind enough to share their meal with me. So back into the jungle I went, walking closer and closer to the new camp.
Once I finally arrived, I found that this fire was at the entrance of another cave. But this one was different from my own. There was a magical air about it. The stone was made of a minty colored quartz that sparkled in the dimming sunlight. From outside, I could see gems lining the walls deeper in. I gazed at the cave in amazement. Was this the place I had been looking for before becoming stranded here? There was only one way to find out.
Carefully, I made my way inside, taking a make-shift torch with me. The only sound that could be heard was the crackling of the campfire outside. And the deeper in that I went even that slowly began to fade away, and I was left with my own soft footsteps. It seemed like I was never going to get to the end, like an endless void. This was magic, bent to protect whatever was here. And if it was this spell, my experience told me one thing. This place had a guardian and they would be returning any moment.
Normally, something like this wouldn't bother me. But Mina was not with me, so my chances of whoever it was letting me go free was not very high. So with that, I decided to turn back and return to my own cave. However, as I came to the entrance, I was knocked on to my back by a quick shadow. It roared as it turned from it's spot and began to charge again. No, I wasn't going to die. I didn't care what was attacking me. It was going down. I quickly got onto my feet and whipped out my bow, aiming an arrow at the head of my attacker.
I didn't fire though. My attacker and I stared at each other, wide eyed. I began to back away, pointing my bow to the ground. This was just too unreal. How could he be here. Standing right here in front of me. "Usagi... What are you-" I didn't wait for the rest of the sentence. Like a coward, I turned and ran away. My heart was racing, happy, yet in pain. I was realizing that I had been longing to see him this whole time, but I still couldn't let go that he left and never tried to keep in contact this whole time. As I came closer to my own cave, it began to rain and my boots slipped in the mud under my feet. Face first into the wet dirt I fell, my clothes absorbing the water and mud like a sponge. I was finally able to hear footsteps following me as they came to a stop. Kazuya stood over me, catching his breath. Our eyes met again and I could feel mine fill with tears.
He looked upon me sadly before picking my up from the ground bridal style. I kicked and squirmed, demanding he let me go. But he didn't. His grip tightened so I wouldn't fall. After a few moments, I finally gave up, stopping my fidgeting, and just let him hold onto me, shivering. My heart raced faster. I was still angry, I can't deny that. But I felt safe in those arms. All this time, this was what I wanted. To be by his side, to be near him. "Let's get you dried off." He mumbled, walking us back to his cave. As he walked, I was slowly rocked to sleep by his walking.
When I woke, I found that my clothes were changed. My wet ones were hanging by a fire inside Kazuya's cave. I now wore a simple white night gown. He had sent me on a pile of cushions. It was most likely the bed that was provided for him when he was given the task from the Queen. As I finished my last diary entry, the sound of footsteps echoed quietly around me. "You're awake." I looked up to see Kazuya entering the cave, holding a net filled with fish. "I hope you slept well. Oh and, uh, don't worry. I used magic to change your clothes, so I didn't see anything." He set down the net and sat down beside me, looking down. There was silence between us for a few moments before he spoke again. "So, um, how did you end up on this island? Treasure hunting again? I'm surprised Mina isn't with you. You two never seem to leave each others side." I simply nodded.
"I was shipwrecked during a storm at sea." I replied, "I don't know where Mina is. I don't even know if she's alive. We were separated during the storm."
"I see. I'm sorry about that. I'm sure she's fine though." He replied. And after that, I snapped. I don't know why, but I did.
"How do you know that?! For all we know, she drowned! She was unconscious when we were taken from each other. In fact, I almost drowned!" The anger began to build as it all came out. I was on my feet, staring at him with hateful eyes. "And you. This is where you've been the whole time? Why didn't you write, call, anything?! Do you know how confused I've been this whole time. You told me you were in love with me, and yet during no point in these past four years have you made contact. I mean, damn it Kazuya! Why? Why didn't you write? Tell me where you were? How you were?" I began to cry again. "It hurt. It made me think that you lied to me, Kazuya! I don't like to be lied to!" Finally, the ranting stopped and I stood there, sobbing like a child. I hated it. I hated feeling like this. It was silent again, Kazuya kept his eyes down.
"I'm sorry." He mumbled. "You're right. You should have gotten something these past years. I couldn't though. I wasn't allowed to say where I was. Her majesty feared that our letters would be intercepted and others would find out about what I am protecting. But that's no excuse for not trying at all." His eyes turned sad as he spoke. I felt horrible now. So that was why. He was forbidden to write to me because of his task. This was all just a misunderstanding. I sighed and sat back down next to him, setting my head on his shoulder. He looked at me, surprised.
"No, don't be." I told him. "I forgive you, Kazuya." Kazuya stared at me for a few moments, smiled lightly, and gently kissed my forehead.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
