Minutes were hard to keep track of here, especially in the dark, but it couldn't have been long before the knock sounded on the door. Even though Yue had told himself he was waiting for Touya to arrive, he still felt peculiarly guilty for having done so. Instead of standing and answering his door, though, he turned the guilt in on himself, adding it to the weight of the rest, and pulled his wings closer as though that would hide him.

He needed to talk to Touya. He knew that all too well; after he'd failed in his duty the night before, it was even more important that he fulfill it now. But still, again, he didn't want to. It was just so difficult to work up the energy to do anything, even to lift his head and speak. Instead he just rested his forehead against his knees, wings curved about himself to hide him in a wall of white feathers.