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━━━ ⋅•⋅⊰∙∘☽༓☾∘∙⊱⋅•⋅ ━━━
"Show me again," Akaza demanded.
I obliged, gritting my teeth as I followed his breathing instructions.
After a few minutes of silence, I completed it with as much perfection as I could muster.
"Good," he huffed, uncrossing his arms from the stance he'd been in for the last few hours we'd been at this. "Now, I'm going to leave you to practice this on your own for a bit."
I opened my eyes, already frowning at his words. "What? You're leaving?"
Akaza nodded, looking away. "I have to do some hunting of my own tonight," he said, his words forcing my brows to rise.
He was going to hunt tonight?
"I thought you only hunted when—"
"You're going to stay here and practice concentration breathing, alright?" he interrupted.
I glared. "You don't have to be so rude about it, asshole."
Another grin he attempted to hide. His eyes flashed. "I won't be long, dear. Practice until I return."
The use of one of his nicknames forced me to pause, the sound of it bringing back a familiar warmth. Unfortunately, that single pause didn't allow me to think of a response for him. And thus, Akaza was gone, leaving me in the middle of the forest's clearing.
I grumbled you myself, cursing him under my breath. Damn him.
The clearing suddenly felt a lot bigger—more empty—without the powerful force of my companion. But I supposed it was still lovely, nonetheless. With the tall trees and dark wood, the multitude of flowers. However, like most things now, it didn't entirely feel complete. Not without Akaza.
I shook my head, grimacing at my own thoughts.
Had I really grown so attached to him?
Inhaling, I closed my eyes, beginning to focus on the breathing style he was teaching me. It struck me as a bit odd that he never taught me such a key tool of strength until now. I did so for minutes, tuning out the crickets and the soft whisper of the wind that brushed by every so often.
In... Out...
Why hadn't Akaza taught me any of this before? We never did much training aside from our usual regime. It was always sparring until the dawn kissed the horizon—our dance that never faltered. But this new method...
