That was really sad. I find it really hard to write loss and grief, but you've done it so convincingly... Hikaru's attitude, behaviour, reactions all seem so natural and still tear a chunk out of my heart without the taste of cheese. Truly, Touya-sensei's advice is precious.

So very beautiful and relatable and in character.

The fact that Hikaru was doubting his love for his father, that he wanted to find his father in his go and couldn't, it was like a delicious angst-drama-angst sandwich. Poor Hikaru…he doesn't know how to deal with non-go related loss.

Oh gosh this made me cry so much! I love how well you portrayed Hikaru's grief. Thank you so much for sharing this with the rest of us!

this is so nice!

I cried. And I don't cry much.
This story turned out to be intensly personal for me because I understand Hikaru. My father died a couple of years ago and just like in the story we did not talk much or spend any time together. While I did not grieve the way Hikaru does I too asked myself if I loved my father and questioned my feeling because there were things in my life that hurt me much more than his death ever did.

I truely felt Hikaru's emotions seeping into me as I was reading this. I enjoy this oneshot very much. )

Depressing, but good. Shindo's reaction about loving go more than his father, Touya Meijin being the one to talk to him about it, the sympathy from others, the angst, the ending with the fan, ugh. Brilliant. :"

Grate, wonderful story! Thank you and all of those people who'd helped you along the way. Ja...

That was simply beautiful.

Nice story.

Wow, this... is really poignant... It's interesting tht he opened up to Touya Sr., though I can sort of see why... He was the only one not to ask a bunch of questions, merely to play and aska couple, and I like that the elder Touya figured out that Hikaru lost Sai earlier (well, he probably would... he knows a lot of stuff...) This is really good.

I really loved this story, and the others I read here. You have a way of writing the characters that really brings them to life; a seemingly effortless insight revealing things that seem obvious now that you've drawn the attention to them, but before that remained hidden. These are short pieces of fiction - I'm generally more of an epic reader - but somehow you manage to create in this compact form what takes most authors hundreds of pages; a true insight into characters, a fresh view into their motives, a dance of words that creates the perfect atmosphere and tells more than it says. You make things believable, commonplace, seemingly obvious, even when they are things I never thought of before. I really appreciate your way of writing - both the style of the writing and the mastery of the characters - and hope that you will grace us with more stories in the future. Seriously, thank you for writing and posting these stories.

Brilliant. I love how you portrayed Hikaru, his subtle but deep grief and his confusion over this sudden loss of his father. You intertwine go and his life together so well - as it should be. Kouyo's wisdom and experience really shines through in this fic too. A comforting kind of strength. I like this a lot!

What is it with you Hikaru no Go authors? This is the second time in less than a week that I'm compelled to write a *signed* review.

Quite simply, this story was wonderful - it made me cry. It was touching how Touya-sensei is wise enough to give Hikaru the space and the means to pick himself up after a fall, to show him himself through his game, and advise him that each loss is different.

Your characters are very clear and very human, and the story flows very naturally from it.

The prologue built up well, and everything starting from the scene in which Touya keeps Hikaru from running until the ending, was touching. Not my usual "aw" when I read a story, but instead, very poignant, very real, and I have to say it again because it's worth saying: very natural, flowing from the characters, like it just happened and you just recorded it. I almost had trouble reading because the tears were leaking.

Thank you for sharing your story. I'll definitely read it again.

I can't believe how deep this fic is. I enjoyed it immersely.