S-2878 • L3 Sintoluna • D13 Tramabe
"Sintoluna refines sky and tide.Tramabe weaves signal in high light.The word finds its exact tone.The path moves forward, fully shining."
Half a lunation had passed since our dinner.
My Witch drew her veils again—
yet allowed something freer to move between us.
Being near Maia felt as natural as breathing.
She still avoided speaking about herself.
And yet…
something subtle, indefinable, had changed between us.
A new balance.
Fragile. Present.
I had just finished collecting her blood samples.
"Do you want to drink with me?"
The words came straight from instinct.
Too late.
My heart skipped.
Was I even breathing?
I couldn't tell.
Maia tilted her head.
A sideways smile.
"Want to go to a bar?"
"I don't think so.
After that night… I feel uncomfortable in places like that.
I want something quieter. Calm.
Work has been… stressful."
I rubbed my forehead, exhaling slowly.
She leaned closer.
Those amber eyes traced me in that rhythm that was uniquely hers.
As if trying to decipher something even I couldn't understand.
"Trying to get me drunk?
Tsk. I expected everything—except that—from you."
I froze.
"N-no.
Of course not.
I just… ah, forget it."
I turned my face away, awkward.
Maia let out a soft laugh.
"Hey, let's go.
I prefer quiet places too."
She stretched her arms above her head,
like a lazy cat waking.
"Next waning moon. Ten o'clock.
Sound good?"
Maia said yes.
Just like that.
My stomach twisted in a strange way.
Fear?
Anticipation?
Something hidden danced behind a curtain—
right in front of me.