Years later, Ren is a man now. He lives in the city, in an apartment with good Wi-Fi. But on his desk, next to a sleek computer, sits a clumsy wooden cat. Its paint is gone. Its tail is still too long.
She looked at him, and for the first time, the blade softened. “I am still here, aren’t I? Bravery isn’t the absence of the storm, Ren. Bravery is sitting in the dark and knowing you are the one who decides what happens next.” -Nana Natsume--
On his first morning, Ren found her on the engawa, the wooden veranda overlooking a garden that looked like a green explosion. She was not meditating. She was tearing a worn paperback in half. Years later, Ren is a man now
“Item two,” she whispered. “Take the wooden cat.” Its paint is gone