"Alright, short stuff, you ready?"
Tatsuya spun the wooden practice sword in his hand with all the flair of someone who'd definitely dropped it on his foot yesterday. Across from him, Meki stretched her arms like a cat, unimpressed.
"Don't call me short stuff," she said flatly, puffing out her cheeks, "I'm fun-sized."
"Fun-sized," Tatsuya echoed, grinning. "Like those candy bars no one actually wants at Morween?"
Morween is this world's version of Halloween. Almost like someone from earth came up with the name?!
The name comes from the Emperor of Durmach-Race, Morvak. The ruler of the Underealm.
The Durmach also called the cave dwellers life in the caves of the mountains and are the masters in earth magic. If seek to master earth magic that is the place to be.
Her eyes narrowed. "Take that back or I'll bury you in this forest."
Morween is her favorite holiday.
Her steel fans flashed as she pulled them from beneath her shirt. And that was the official start.
The two clashed, blades and fans ringing together in sharp, playful bursts. Meki moved like a darting flame, quick and untouchable, weaving through Tatsuya's swings with ease. Every time he thought he had her cornered, she slipped away like smoke, laughter trailing behind her.
"Seriously," he muttered between swings, sweat trickling down his forehead, "how does someone your size fight like this? You were in a dumpster when I found you. Did you practice in there or something?"
"Obviously," Meki replied, dead serious while flipping back onto a tree branch. "I fought off raccoons for my breakfast."
Tatsuya groaned. "…I'm never gonna win against that kind of training, am I?"
Before he could reset his stance, Meki crouched low. A mischievous grin spread across her face.
"Tatsuya—" she called.
He blinked. "What?"
Then she jumped.
It wasn't a graceful leap—it was a meteor. She launched herself from the tree with way too much force, crashing into him so hard he toppled backwards, air whooshing out of his lungs as they hit the ground in a heap.
The world spun. Tatsuya blinked up only to find Meki perched on top of him, fans crossed dramatically against his neck. Her triumphant smirk hovered inches from his face.
"Tee~hee, Tee~hee." she sang, eyes glittering. "I guess I win."
Before he could sputter out a comeback, she leaned down and kissed his cheek. Then, abandoning the deadly fans entirely, she wrapped her arms around him and buried her face against his chest.
Flat on the grass, staring up at the canopy above, Tatsuya felt his lips twitch into a smile. Warmth flooded through him, quiet and steady, like the mountain breeze rustling the leaves.
He let out a soft laugh. "…Yeah. You win."
Part 2
"Hey, it's starting to snow," he said, a little awe in his voice.
The first flakes drifted down, light and slow, melting on Tatsuya's sleeve as he blinked up at the sky.
Here in the Northern parts of Montisora it can snow all year through.
"Argh…" Tatsuya let out a small sigh, his neck still sore from there mock battle yesterday.
It hadn't snowed since they settled in together. Its been about a month since then and the year has entered Louistina.
"Yes, that's why I brought a hat," Meki replied matter-of-factly. With a quick flourish she pulled a knit winter hat from her bag and plopped it over her head. It had two little cat ears stitched on top, which perked upright like she was suddenly part feline.
Tatsuya stared. "…That's illegal. You're not allowed to be that smug and that cute at the same time."
She tugged the hat down snugly over her ears, ignoring his complaint. "Better than freezing like you. Your nosey is already red."
"It's called warrior's endurance," he muttered, rubbing at said nose.
The two set out into the forest, snow crunching beneath their boots as silence wrapped around the pines. Only, it wasn't silent for long, because Meki had entered her "hunting mode," which apparently meant stalking ahead with all the grace of a wildcat while Tatsuya trudged behind like a lost villager from a children's story.
"Shhh," she hissed, crouching low behind a log. "GuineaHare tracks."
Tatsuya crouched too, mimicking her movements, and promptly snapped a twig loud enough to scare off every animal in a three-mile radius.
Meki's head whipped around, her glare sharp enough to kill a bear.
"…Oops?" he whispered.
"You're hopeless," she sighed, then slipped forward, steel fans in hand.
Compared with Tatsuya she was in a league of her own as it came to hunting.
I wonder if all that time on the streets had taught her that?
"How did you become so good at hunting?"
Her eyebrows twitched curling upwards as her face turned from a glare into a thinking face.
"My horns," she started. "They detect mana in the surrounding area, so I'll always know where to find you." She finished with a wink.
"—"
It happened in a blur—snow kicked up, a flash of silver, and before Tatsuya even realized what she'd done, Meki held up a fluffy GuineaHare by the ears, smirking. "Dinner."
Tatsuya's jaw dropped. "How?! I didn't even see it move!"
She only shrugged and tucked the hare into her pouch like it was the most natural thing in the world. By the time Tatsuya finally spotted another GuineaHare and leapt after it with all the enthusiasm of a starving man, the creature darted away in a puff of snow, leaving him face-first in the ground.
Behind him, Meki giggled. Not her usual sharp laugh, but something softer, warmer. "You're cute when you try."
Tatsuya spat out a mouthful of snow and groaned. "Cute doesn't catch dinner."
"No, but it makes me want to share mine with you," she said, leaning down to offer him a hand.
For a moment, as he took it and let her pull him up, the snow kept falling around them in quiet sheets, the forest still and calm. Tatsuya found himself smiling despite his failure. Hunting with Meki wasn't really about catching anything—it was about moments like this.
Tatsuya brushed the snow off his coat, still muttering about his failed GuineaHare ambush. But then—his eyes narrowed, a devilish idea forming.
"Meki," he said sweetly, "you've got a little something on your face."
"What?" She tilted her head, flustered.
That was his chance. With lightning speed Tatsuya scooped up a clump of snow and splat!—smushed it right into her face.
The world froze. Not the snow, not the forest, the world.
Slowly, Meki wiped the snow off her cheek, revealing the kind of smile that promised vengeance. "…You shouldn't have done that."
"Wait, let's talk ab—!"
Too late. She lunged, and suddenly Tatsuya was sprinting through the snow with Meki hot on his heels, laughing like a madwoman. Snowballs flew through the air, exploding against trees, bushes, and—occasionally—Tatsuya's back.
After a few frantic minutes, Tatsuya collapsed backward into a the pile of snow that had formed since they started hunting, gasping for breath, his arms spread wide like he'd just been slain in battle.
"Okay… okay, truce… I'm dead already…" he moved his arms and legs creating an snow angel.
And when he blinked open his eyes, words left him entirely.
The snow-covered trees had parted, and before him stretched a breathtaking view: an endless expanse of glittering blue, the sea stretching out to the horizon. The winter sun painted the waves silver, each crest shimmering like polished steel.
Beside him, Meki's expression softened, her earlier mischief giving way to something gentler.
She sat besides him in the snow.
"On the other side of that ocean lays the Kingdom of Khione, in the country of Borealia. The northern continent." She paused, eyes distant. "They say the ice never melts there… and the rivers never defrost."
Tatsuya sat up slowly, staring out at the vast expanse. The sight stirred something in him—wonder, maybe, or the ache of possibilities too big to name.
"…Sounds cold," he muttered finally.
Meki giggled. "Idiot. That's not the point."
He glanced at her, catching the way her breath formed little clouds in the air, her cat-eared hat bobbing as she smiled. His chest tightened in that annoying, stubborn way it always did around her.
"…Then let's go there someday," he said quietly. "You and me. Together."
For a while, neither of them spoke, just sitting shoulder to shoulder as the snow drifted down and the sea sparkled endlessly before them.
And in that peaceful stillness, Tatsuya thought—yeah. He could get used to losing to her forever.
Part 3
The crisp morning air nipped at Tatsuya's fingers as he tightened the straps on Stefan's saddle. The big Goat flicked his ears back, turning to give Tatsuya a long-suffering look that said, quite plainly: Really? We're doing this again?
"Don't give me that face," Tatsuya muttered, tugging at the reins. "It's just a trip to the village. You get to stretch your legs, I get to not freeze walking. Win-win."
Stefan snorted, clearly unconvinced.
Behind him, Meki emerged from the cabin, balancing a basket on her hip. "You're arguing with a Stefan again."
"I'm not arguing," Tatsuya said indignantly, "I'm negotiating."
"Uh-huh. And who usually wins these negotiations?"
"…Stefan," Tatsuya admitted with a sigh.
Meki grinned, giving the goats a scratch behind the ear. "Good boy. Don't let him bully you."
"Traitor," Tatsuya grumbled.
—
The ride down the mountain path was peaceful, Stefan's hooves crunching through the thin layer of snow. The trees thinned as they descended, revealing smoke curling from chimneys in the little village below.
Tatsuya inhaled deeply. "Ahh, civilization. The sweet smell of not having to boil bark for tea."
"Whose fault was that again?" Meki asked innocently.
"Hey, in my defense, the bark looked like herbs!"
Meki snickered into her scarf. "The memory of you choking on it will keep me warm for years."
—
The village bustled with its usual rhythm: merchants hawking goods, kids chasing each other through the snow, and the delicious aroma of fresh bread drifting from the bakery.
Meki hopped off Stefan with the grace of a cat. Tatsuya followed, stumbling a little as his foot caught in the stirrup. A passing villager snorted, and Meki patted his shoulder sympathetically.
"It's okay. Not everyone can be as graceful as me."
"…I should've left you in that dumpster," Tatsuya muttered, earning himself a playful elbow to the ribs.
They wandered the market together, Meki stopping at a herbalist's stall. She leaned over the baskets of dried plants, eyes gleaming like a predator sizing up prey. "Parsley… thyme… oh, they even have snow-mint. Perfect for stew."
Tatsuya stared blankly at the bundles. "They all look the same."
"That's because you have the culinary eye of a rock," she said sweetly, tossing a bundle into their basket.
"Excuse me for not memorizing every leaf in the forest."
"Excused. But mocked endlessly."
As Meki haggled with the herbalist, Tatsuya found himself watching her—her easy confidence, the way her laughter slipped into conversations like it belonged. He felt that same warmth again, settling into his chest.
He looked up at the sky.
Herbs, dinner, snow on the mountain—life was perfect, and it was enough.
No cloud had been in sight all day, not even when it snowed earlier.
Part 4
The cabin door creaked shut behind them, the cold mountain air left outside as warmth settled in. Tatsuya rolled his shoulders, the basket of herbs thunking onto the table. Stefan snorted from the stable outside, probably grateful he wasn't invited to dinner.
"Alright," Tatsuya announced, puffing out his chest like a master chef about to unveil his secret art. "Tonight, we feast."
Meki raised an eyebrow, setting the freshly cleaned GuineaHare on the counter. "Feast? You mean 'try not to poison us.'"
"Details," he said quickly, grabbing the oil flask.
And then he poured.
And poured.
And poured.
The pan hissed violently, oil practically sloshing over the rim like a tidal wave.
"Tatsuya!" Meki shouted, eyes bulging. "Are you trying to deep-fry the entire cabin?!"
"It's called flavor—"
"It's called brain damage!" She smacked him on the shoulder with a wooden spoon, cheeks pink. "Ugh, honestly! You're hopeless! If you wanted me dead, you could've just let me starve in the dumpster!"
"Why do you keep bringing that up?!" Tatsuya whined, holding up his hands in defense.
She huffed, pouting like a sulky cat before jabbing the spoon at him. "Step aside! I'll fix it before you summon a fire spirit."
But just as she shooed him away from the stove, Meki leaned close, eyes sparkling mischievously. "Hey, Tatsuya."
"What?"
She pointed at his chest. "You've got something there."
He glanced down—"Where?"—and suddenly her finger flicked his nose. "Gotcha~."
Tatsuya blinked, caught between laughing and groaning. "Really? That's your big distraction?"
But then the smell hit him. Acrid, smoky, terrifyingly wrong.
"Meki…"
"…Yeah?"
"The pan."
Both their heads whipped around. The oil sizzled, flames licking up the side of the pot like a dragon about to hatch.
"AHHHHHH!" they yelled in unison.
Tatsuya grabbed the pan handle, Meki frantically dumped snow from her boots onto the counter, and between the two of them they smothered the flames just before the curtains caught.
Panting, hair disheveled, Tatsuya leaned against the wall. "Okay… okay. Crisis averted."
Meki crossed her arms, cheeks puffed, glaring at him with all the authority of a general. "Idiot. You almost burned down our house."
"You distracted me!" he shot back.
"You distracted yourself!"
Despite her scolding, her hands trembled a little as she put the pan safely aside. Then she glanced at him, eyes softer now, and sighed. "…Next time, let me cook."
Tatsuya chuckled, running a hand through his messy hair. "Yeah, fair. But hey… at least we didn't burn the place down."
Her lips twitched into a reluctant smile, and she nudged him with her shoulder. "…Barely."
And together, amidst the smell of slightly singed herbs and a very shaken GuineaHare stew, they laughed.
Meki sat cross-legged across from him at the small wooden table, spooning the broth with a look that hovered somewhere between satisfied and deeply suspicious.
"…Not bad," she admitted finally.
Tatsuya puffed his chest with pride. "See? Told you I could cook."
"Don't get ahead of yourself," she said quickly, poking the air with her spoon. "I can still taste the panic in it."
He groaned. "Panic is an ingredient now?"
"Only when you're the chef," she teased, hiding her smile behind the rim of her bowl.
The fire crackled warmly in the hearth, snow tapping softly against the windowpanes. By the time they set their spoons down, both of them leaned back with full stomachs and a sense of peace that only came at the end of a long, ridiculous day.
That's when Meki shifted, clearing her throat.
"…Hey, Tatsuya," she said, avoiding his eyes in that way she always did when she was about to do something not smug or sarcastic.
"Hm?"
She reached into her coat pocket and slid something across the table. A small parcel, wrapped in cloth, neat but not perfect—her clumsy fingers had clearly tied it in a hurry.
"I, uh… got this while we were in the village," she mumbled. "I wanted to get something special for you."
Tatsuya raised a brow, curiosity piqued. He unwrapped the cloth and froze.
It was a charm—an accessory of simple but elegant design, made of braided leather with a small polished stone dangling at the end. The kind that could be tied to the hilt of a sword. His katana.
"…Meki," he breathed.
She crossed her arms, cheeks pink. "It's practical, okay? Hunters use charms for luck. And since you keep swinging that thing like you're trying to chop firewood, you need all the help you can get."
He chuckled softly, fingers brushing over the charm's smooth surface. For a moment, words stuck in his throat. All he could do was stare at her—this girl who teased him endlessly, who drove him mad, who still thought to buy him something when she could've gotten anything else.
"Thanks," he said finally, his voice quieter than he expected. "I'll keep it with me. Always."
Meki tried to wave it off, but the way her eyes softened gave her away. She leaned her chin into her hand and muttered, "You'd better."
Part 5
The fire crackled in the hearth, shadows dancing across the cabin walls. Meki sat curled up in her chair, her cat-eared hat slipping over one eye, a faint shiver running through her shoulders.
Tatsuya frowned. "…Cold?"
She nodded slightly, pulling her blanket tighter.
"Alright, hold on. I'll grab more wood."
He slipped outside, the door shutting behind him with a muffled thud. The night air bit at his skin, sharper than before, but he didn't care. His boots crunched through the snow as he moved toward the stacked logs by the shed.
And for a moment, he paused.
The mountain stretched wide and endless under a canopy of stars, the snow reflecting their glow like scattered shards of glass. His breath puffed out in little clouds, and his lips curved before he could stop himself.
—This life.
Her laughter at dinner, her warmth at his side, the way she still managed to scold him like he was the biggest idiot alive. It was perfect, he hoped it was forever, he was happy.
He sprinted, boots slipping.
Of course, I should have known it! No clouds but there was still snowfall, how stupid can I be!
lungs burning as he bolted back into the cabin. He slammed the door open, breath ragged. "Meki! Avalanche! We have to—"
But before he could finish, she was already on her feet, fans in hand, expression deadly serious.
"I'll stop it."
"What?!" His voice cracked, panic flooding him.
She met his gaze, calm in the face of disaster. "If it hits the house, we're finished. But I can divert it. Trust me."
"No—you can't just—!" His heart hammered. Images flashed unbidden—her body buried under snow, her laughter silenced. The thought of losing her twisted something deep and ugly inside him. "Meki, you'll die!"
She stepped closer, gripping his arm, forcing him to look at her. Her orange eyes burned with conviction.
"Tatsuya. Trust me."
His mouth went dry.
"Meki…"
Her lips curved into the faintest smile. "You're not alone anymore, remember? So let me fight too."
He wanted to argue. To chain her down, to scream no, to never let her out of his sight. But staring at her, at that unshakable resolve, something inside him broke—and gave way to trust.
His throat tightened. He nodded, barely able to speak. "…Come back to me."
"I will. I'll always be by your side."
She pressed a kiss against his cheek as she pushed past him into the snow, a lone figure bracing herself against the roaring white that threatened to swallow everything.
"How do you define love?" I can't remember but someone once asked me that. I know now how to answer that.
"I do not define love as an emotion. I define love as the decision of the will, to seek the highest good of another."
The cabin shook as the roar grew louder, a deafening thunder that swallowed the night. Snow billowed down the slope in a wave so vast it seemed like the mountain itself was collapsing.
Meki standing in a open clearing, tiny against the monstrous wall of white.
"Frozen bound." She said through grinning teeth. Her feet froze against the ground and the snow under her, securing her from slipping away.
The cold against her feet was just something she had to ignore. I'll go through the pain in order to protect my love…
She spread her arms, fans flashing in the moonlight. With a sharp snap, they unfolded, the steel ribs glinting like blades. The avalanche bore down on her, unstoppable, uncaring.
Her fans cut through the air with sweeping arcs, whipping up sudden gales that clashed against the flood of snow. The force was incredible—winds spiraled outward, diverting chunks of the avalanche to either side. Where the snow should have consumed her, the storm split, spraying into the forest instead.
Her petite body, so often the butt of his jokes, now carried the strength of a storm. Each swing of her fans carved invisible walls, holding back the mountain itself.
Pouring mana into the air and freezing the air around her, slowly faint sections of ice formed at the ground, crawling their way up and freezing everything in it's path.
The avalanche screamed in protest, the ground quaking as boulders of snow shattered against the barrier of her will.
It's okey, my I have enough mana to do this, I'm willing to use my Anima if necessary.
But then—
"—"
"Tell me, if you can freeze the world around you… why do you let the world inside you still burn?" she heard an elegant,
decidedly out-of-place voice.
Her voice evoked a sense of unconditional friendship with an unknown person.
It was a love mismatched, twisted, and far too great. This did nothing but
evoke fear.
A cold hand touched her shoulder. The touched evoked fear, a touch of dead was the best she could describe it.
"Did you really think you could escape the grasp so easily, Meki." Her voice was so playful and childlike, it was difficult to be afraid of her.
But her body screamed in fear to the point she wanted to die.
"You'be been a bad girl for trying to get away." She continued. "Awwww, I do have to scold Kaity, thought…."
"Something like this can go unpunished."
"As it goes for you."
"So I will remove all your memories."
The instant, the alluring voice tickled her ears, dragging her consciousness into darkness.
Her consciousness fell, like she was falling through the sky, as if she was
sinking into deep water.
The girls voice still lingering in her ears, "don't worry the avalanche won't kill you. Tee~~hee."
She didn't know what had happened.
The roaring winds she commanded flickered, thinned.
She staggered, fans drooping, her silhouette wavering against the oncoming storm. The avalanche surged again, the force of it ready to crush her the instant her defense failed.
And just like that—her movements ceased.
The white roar closed in.
Tatsuya sat inside the cabin prayer, he didn't know for what, safety? Protection? An happy ending?
But the avalanche raged forward consuming everything and soon the cabin and him.
Tatsuya couldn't do anything, he couldn't even win against an snowball.
It was futile he lost, Meki lost.
And is came all to a close.
The darkness behind his eyes was the last thing he would ever see together with the memory of beautiful girl who refused to leave him alone.
At least for Tatsuya it would be an painless death.
"—"
Part 6
The white lights of heaven never came.
The darkness behind his eyes still lingered at his vision.
But there was a voice, "so this is where you run of to, wouldn't have thought you'd love the snow so much you let it consume you."
He recognized the voice immediately and opened his eyes.
The familiar wooden floor welcomed his sight.
A pair of boots stood in front of him, someone was hovering over him.
Shielding him from the avalanche, he looked up and was met by a happy cheerful smile he know in love.