"Kiku, brother, look!" Meili exclaimed excitedly. "Winter came, it's snowing!" The young girl pointed to the window, with her brother's gaze following her extended finger. While winter may be a cold, dead season, it was always a joy to Meili to watch newly fallen snow. It was so white and pure, giving her a feeling of beauty.
"May we go outside later?" She begged with eager eyes, eyes that made Kiku smile.
"Later." He promised. Winter was such an enjoyable season.
The two of them walked down the white path, shoes making a soft crunching noise under their feet. There was still a small flurry descending, resting lightly in Meili's hair and shoulders for a few seconds before melting.
It was hard to keep her eyes open in the white, radiant world, and she often found her eyes straying to Kiku, which helped in keeping her eyes less painful. He never noticed; he was too busy making sure they didn't trip in the confusing brightness, holding her hand to keep balance.
Silence resounded around them, the world muted by the falling flakes. Heart slightly unsettled by it, Meili began to sing to herself quietly in an attempt to fill it. It was something of a wordless, humming tune, and she glanced over at her brother from time to time to see if he was bothered by it. Kiku didn't mind, of course. He had always loved hearing her voice.
Despite the girl's efforts, the sound did little to fill the muted world.
Nonetheless, she continued to sing, and before he knew it, Kiku found himself humming along with her. The tune repeated itself over and over, and while the garden was still muted, the two were filled with the sound, laughing and singing as they walked down the path hand in hand.
That night, after he had bid Meili good night, Kiku walked to his own room. He glanced into the corner of the room where his sheathed katana hung, long unused, on the wall.
She didn't have to know.
/AN/ My first submission. This was originally part of a much longer fanfiction that I tried writing- the only problem was that I got stuck halfway through it. I may post the rest if I ever finish it.
Thank you for reading~!
