The courier nodded glumly to Sah's point; the Festival wasn't for everyone, though he'd been raised to it in a way that made it as much simple tradition as therapeutic expression of mourning.
Neither Hotaru nor Flora was visible from his vantage, so he began to walk alongside one of the many meandering streams, glancing back once to see if Sah was following or taking his own path. It wasn't like there was any rush and they had personal lanterns to hang, but they also had the shared respects to pay for Halo's fallen soldiers and the awkward but important farewell to a boy - man? - that neither of them had ever met but who had meant so much to their close friend.
Boreal snorted softly and shook her head, opting to remain with Lily for the time being. If Sah chose another direction she could make sure the young men found each other again before it was time to leave.
And Tal, meanwhile, found a flowering tree, short but with broad branches bearing bright white blooms like fresh-fallen snow. He affixed his lanterns to its branches, lit them, and stood back, exhaling and jamming his hands in his pockets as he eyed them with a lump in his throat he wouldn't admit to.
Neither Hotaru nor Flora was visible from his vantage, so he began to walk alongside one of the many meandering streams, glancing back once to see if Sah was following or taking his own path. It wasn't like there was any rush and they had personal lanterns to hang, but they also had the shared respects to pay for Halo's fallen soldiers and the awkward but important farewell to a boy - man? - that neither of them had ever met but who had meant so much to their close friend.
Boreal snorted softly and shook her head, opting to remain with Lily for the time being. If Sah chose another direction she could make sure the young men found each other again before it was time to leave.
And Tal, meanwhile, found a flowering tree, short but with broad branches bearing bright white blooms like fresh-fallen snow. He affixed his lanterns to its branches, lit them, and stood back, exhaling and jamming his hands in his pockets as he eyed them with a lump in his throat he wouldn't admit to.
