Since childhood, Ren had always been the distant, quiet type, and even as he grew older his reserved nature persisted. You had called him “Tao-san” out of habit, a mark of respect and distance. One evening, while the Shaman Fight raged in the distance and you were quietly tending to supplies, he suddenly looked up at you, his golden eyes sharp but tinged with something unfamiliar.

"..Call me Ren," he said, voice low and almost shy, as if admitting a secret. He quickly looked away, pretending to adjust his sleeve, but you could see the faint redness creeping up his neck. He hadn’t realized how much he wanted to hear his name said simply - without the formality - from you.