It took a long time to begin to fully comprehend Gundham Tanaka and his eloquent pattern of speech. It took months to completely gain his trust enough for him to even consider the idea of becoming an ally with her. It took a year for Sapphire, the ultimate ice skater, to eventually realize that she was infatuated with the self-proclaimed dark prince, but felt as though her chances of ever being with him were slim to none since she never seemed to have his feelings reciprocated. Gundham wasn't one to express feelings anyway, especially with people. Animals were the only living creatures that would have a chance at seeing his affectionate side unleashed, but there were times when Sapphire got to witness such adorable moments, beaming when he would allow her to help care for his beasts of darkness.
He was a matchless man, that much was obvious in his acts and words of unknown wisdom, but he wasn't as malicious as he loved to claim. Citizens always gave him strange looks, unwilling to try and understand him, but Sapphire had been intrigued by him from the first time saw him at the pond hidden in the forest. As she gazed into a mirror while fixing her hair, she reminisced about their first meetings.
She recognized him as a student from Hope's Peak, his ultimate talent known for breeding, but she knew not his true name. It was only a brief sighting, he was quick to disappear in the dense trees before she could ask his name, but she had seen a gentle smile on his face as he admired a hawk perched on his arm.
The second time she saw him in the same place, he had been feeding four adorable hamsters perched on his knees and shoulders. Her shyness had taken over her when the largest hamster eyed her and squeaked in alarm, turning all their attention to her. His eyes were fierce as he glared at her invasion. All she could manage was a single wave before darting away out of sheer embarrassment.
The third time was even more humiliating. She was racing through the forest in a bathing suit with intention to go swim in the lake when she crashed into him full force upon racing around the largest tree of the woodland. Her luck was horrendous, though she was aware it wasn't as bad as what the ultimate lucky student of Hope's Peak sometimes had to deal with. She also blamed her misfortune on her long bangs that shadowed her right eye, always telling herself she needed to cut them lest they hinder her vision. Still, the moment Sapphire pushed herself up from his chest, she was all too aware of the angry squeaking from the hamsters sitting around his head as he stared at her with a horrified expression of sheer malevolence and mortification. No matter how many times she apologized, Sapphire could only pray she would never encounter him again as she scrambled off and fled the area entirely.
Indeed, they didn't run into each other for many months until the snow began to sprinkle down from the skies, covering the land in a beautiful blanket of pure white. With the change of seasons, Sapphire had changed her hair from shoulder length to a pixie cut, though she failed to change her bangs yet again keeping them swept over her eye.
The lake would freeze over every winter, becoming her beloved habitation to practice her ice skating when she had free time. Sapphire would practice until she swore her feet were going to fall off, or until she had fallen too many times to count, scraping herself up and sometimes tearing her costume dress and tights. Her thoughts frequently drifted to her extraordinary confrontations with the pale-skinned male each time she returned to the lake, wondering if they would ever meet again by some chance. Paradoxically enough, chance was on her side only a few days later.
She had been skating when she heard whimpers from an animal; a fox with a broken and bloodied front paw stumbling over the ice. The poor creature was terrified and hungry based on its skinny frame, and though she was always told to avoid wild animals as a child, Sapphire couldn't bear to watch it suffer. It bit at her, yelping in terror and losing its balance more than once when she finally lowered herself to its level shushing it gently as she reached out for it slowly. The fox's beady eyes watched her cautiously, flinching as her fingers danced over its thick coat, but not retaliating. She had managed to guide it to the edge of the lake when he appeared like a ghost from the snow-covered forest. His heterochromatic eyes briefly looked at her blue ones distrustfully before he leaned over and lifted the fox carefully in his arms.
Where the fox probably would have bit her if she had tried such an action, the small beast's tail began to wag in his presence as if it recognized him. He was gentle with it, stroking its fur as he looked over the broken leg.
"Oh, cunning beast of the forest, what misfortune has fallen upon you this time?" He asked the creature. "You fail to heed my warnings yet again I see, bounding into the hazardous jaws of metal set by the fiends who long to capture your warmth. Was the cause of maltreatment performed by the hand this wicked woman of the ice?"
Sapphire shuddered at the glare he shot her, but found herself tongue-tied in his presence. He appeared to have a flash of recognition the longer he observed her, a mild frown creasing his lips along with a pale blush, clearly remembering their last unfortunate meeting. Her change in hair style must have thrown him off since he did not initially distinguish her. A few whimpers from the fox caught his attention, however, and he disregarded her quickly.
"So, it was not her?" He commented briskly, appearing to address the fox more than anything else. "Very well, I shall allow her to live. Come, let us return to our den so you can be treated."
She never got a word in before he stalked way yet again, but now she dared to hope that they would meet again so she could at least introduce herself, watching his long purple scarf sway in the chilled breeze before it faded from view. Sapphire didn't wish to maintain the awkward air between them despite barely knowing the other.
Luckily, he returned a few days later with the same fox, its paw wrapped with bandages, eyes glowing with gratitude as it pranced around the silent male. He acknowledged the skater briefly as she slid to the bank upon recognizing the two, the fox stopping in its tracks and tilting its head at her.
"Um, hello." Sapphire tried to introduce herself, taking careful steps forward so she would fall over her skates. "I was hoping- "
"You who dance on the ice," The withdrawn male spoke up, interrupting her. "Stop right there, and tell me your true name."
She blinked, pausing at the edge of the snow on his brash request, "My… true name? Well… my name is Sapphire Shimizu."
"The precious and rare gem that represents wisdom, royalty, Divine favor…" His eyes narrowed on her analytically, widening suddenly. "The very shade of your eyes! A name inspired by them, perhaps! So, you mean to tell me… that the Gods favor your presence, and recognize you as the wise Queen of the Ice? Unfathomable!"
Sapphire didn't get what he was saying if she had to be honest at the time, so his words required a moment of thought before she forced herself to speak so he couldn't leave without her knowing his name at least.
"Well… what's your true name?" She asked, hoping it wasn't considered a mockery to use his unique sentence structures.
In response, he began to chuckle, a smirk on his countenance, "You would like to know my true name? I welcome your courage, fiendish woman. Very well, I shall speak it only once, so listen well and do not forget it for as long as you live! I am the Supreme Overlord of Ice, Gundham Tanaka, served by the Four Dark Devas of Destruction!"
At his introduction, the four hamsters that Sapphire had seen before crawled from his scarf as if they knew they too would be presented. They briefly appeared to pose, a prideful air about each of them, before they returned to the respected places, chilled by the cold air.
"Pleased to finally meet you." Sapphire smiled, earning a disgruntled look from the ultimate breeder.
"Th-there is no pleasure in meeting the offspring of an angel and a devil!" He retaliated. "It won't be long before your sanity disintegrates in my terrifying presence!"
Sapphire didn't mean to giggle at him, but it crushed his entire demeanor, "You foul human! Do you not understand fear!?"
"I… do, but you're not scary." She admitted.
Gundham appeared even more shattered, mouth agape with disbelief. It didn't seem as if he would be able to speak for a while from her piercing words, but she found nothing wrong in them. She only continued to smile at him until he chose to leave, defeated. Sapphire was beyond certain it would not be the only time they would have conversation though.
She looked forward to each and every one to come.