"The moments of affection between the two of us weren't always out in the public making a scene by how we weaved in and out of the cherry blossom trees. Nor was it secluded from society entirely. Frankly said, we had a bit of a balance of both which made it easier for me to swallow at first. And while our elopes near Tohjo Falls and the Ice Path were memorable simply because of the trouble we got into, there's a certain charm to those quiet moments. Decades later I would forget that time Ho-Oh got his tongue stuck on ice when I dared him to try licking it, but I would never forget the night where we exchanged feathers for the second time. It was an action we only did three times in our lifetime. The first being when we met, then said our counterpart vows, and finally, the night when tragedy claimed the one I loved. When I think back to the second exchange I can still clearly remember the light from the bonfire he had lit illuminating our bodies as he burrowed a delicate feather into the soft surface of my head, my feather already lodged in the bridge of his neck. I remember how he let out his breathless chuckle when I nipped his cheek in thanks, and how he tucked himself in my embrace to keep warm. In all these years I could remember a lot of things, but I feel like that's the moment I want, and should remember the most."
