I am a very slow writer, so sorry for taking so long to update. This chapter isn't very exciting, which probably didn't help with me trying to write it. Also this kinda drifted away from the original concept in my head, so I guess we'll see how this goes and if I regret it.

The sun was shining on Hijikata's face when he woke up. He didn't open his eyes at first or attempt to get up. The warmth was too enticing for him to leave his blankets, so he just laid there for a few minutes. It felt like he had been hibernating and he was just coming out of a deep, long sleep. Normally he didn't linger about in bed, but this morning he lacked the willpower to shove aside the many layers of blankets to face the cold. He couldn't spend the whole day in bed, though, so with extreme reluctance he sat up to start his day.

He got ready, the few things he needed being some of the only things left unpacked still. He was ready to leave whenever he wanted to, it would only take a few minutes to finish packing the last of it. As he glanced at the small pack containing his meager amount of possessions, he felt himself making a decision. Today would be the day he left. He had stayed here long enough. He could move on.

...

"How could you do that, Gintoki?"

"Do what?"

"Just let him go!" This was the most exasperated Gintoki had seen Zura in a while. He was currently pacing in Gintoki's humble abode while his pet or familiar or whatever it was pecked at some breadcrumbs Gintoki had given it, knowing that it was best to try to keep it appeased. Gintoki had expected Zura's reaction, but he still thought the worry was misplaced.

"I erased his memory first," he pointed out, even knowing how useless it was.

Zura finally stopped pacing, but now he seemed even more concerned. "Gintoki…" The tone of voice made Gintoki look over to watch the duck. "No, don't look away. This is serious. What are you going to do if he remembers? He's not just going to let this go."

"If he does remember, then I'll deal with him. And I got rid of him already so stop worrying." Gintoki waved dismissively, hoping to end the conversation.

"You could've stopped him before he reached you. Why didn't you?"

Gintoki shrugged. "Got tired of waiting for him to get here. It was gonna happen eventually."

"Gintoki, you still remember what you promised me, right?"

Gintoki narrowed his eyes. He noticed Zura shiver and worked to rein his emotions in better before replying evenly, "Of course."

The look of relief that flashed across Zura's face was impossible not to notice. "Good." His small smile turned back into a frown. "But you know he's our enemy. He's going to go work for the government! And he could bring his friends with him next time. Once they start getting rid of the Bakufu's enemies, they might decide to come back for you."

"We both know I'd be fine so stop worrying, Zura. Why don't we talk about something else? Like where have you been for the past week anyway?"

Now it was Zura's turn to go on the defensive apparently, as he refused to meet Gintoki's eyes. "I was just wandering. Elizabeth wanted to do some sightseeing."

"You met with him." A simple, unaccusatory statement.

"Wh-, met with who?"

Gintoki sighed. "I can smell the smoke."

"I made some fires to keep warm while I was traveling-"

"I can recognize the scent… You smell like him."

There was a pause as Zura tried to decide what to say before finally giving up. "Okay, yes, I did meet with him. But I didn't mention you and he didn't ask about you."

"That's fine, it's no big deal," Gintoki said as he shrugged, making a show of the fact that he wasn't upset at all. A bit worried about nightmares tonight, but not upset. "You don't need to try to hide it from me. Or at least, if that's what you wanna do, you can make the effort to get rid of the smell first."

Zura visibly relaxed. "You're right," he said with a wry smile.

"Now that you're back, I've got a favor to ask you. Can you help disguise me? I'm sick of hanging around up here, I want to go visit the village. Talk to people who aren't you. I'm sure that I'll be able to keep my powers under control, and I don't have to worry about those idiot swordsmen anymore."

Gintoki prepared himself for an argument, but luckily one didn't happen. Zura seemed almost happy to hear his request. "Of course, Gintoki! I just need to gather a few things real quick, but it shouldn't take long."

Zura flew out the door, Elizabeth somehow managing to hitch a ride on the way out. Gintoki was glad the duck was gone; the few times he had been alone with it had disturbed him. It seemed far too intelligent of an animal and he swore it had spoken a few times. Whenever he'd tried to get Elizabeth to speak to him, though, the duck had stared blankly at him for a few seconds before acting like it was just a dumb animal. Gintoki knew that wasn't true, even if he also thought Zura was weird for treating it like a person.

With the two of them gone, Gintoki was alone once again. Like usual. Hopefully soon to no longer be the usual. This trip into town should help him return to acting like a normal person, able to live among others again. The Snow King would be able to be put to rest.

...

Gintoki fidgeted with the gloves on his hands. It was the first time he had ever worn any, and they annoyed him. Zura had insisted he wear them though, and strongly suggested that he kept them on until he returned home. It would be for the best if no one got any direct contact with his skin to feel just how low his body temperature was. Zura had also provided him with plenty of warm clothing so he looked like someone adequately dressed for the weather, even though it was just needlessly heavy for him.

The disguise that Zura had provided him with had turned Gintoki's hair a dark shade of brown and his eyes a pale blue, pretty much the polar opposite of his usual coloring. Zura had refused to do anything about Gintoki's perm, though, so now Gintoki looked vaguely like a certain loud idiot. He had grinned when he first saw his reflection and briefly wondered how Tatsuma was doing.

The first small houses came into sight, and Gintoki fiddled with the unfamiliar clothes, restless with a mixture of excitement and nerves. A few of the houses he passed by were clearly abandoned, but a lot of them were still inhabited. Most people seemed to be inside currently as he only passed two people who stared at him for a few seconds before going back to what they were doing. Gintoki started to relax as he saw that things weren't as bad as he feared they would be. Presumably those who couldn't handle the cold had left and those who remained were the ones who had adapted to it.

Walking by one of the houses, Gintoki noticed something that seemed off and stopped to get a closer look. Snow was piled high on the roof to the point where it had collapsed in one spot. The house was clearly lit, meaning it had an occupant and wasn't abandoned. Gintoki couldn't just walk by, so he knocked on the door.

A little old lady answered it, squinting at Gintoki. "You're not my grandson. What do you want?"

Gintoki was taken aback by the brusqueness, but only hesitated for a second before responding, "Well I saw the sorry state of your roof and decided something needed to be done about it."

"My grandson was supposed to fix it, but he ran off somewhere after he dropped the supplies off. I can't pay to have someone do it, if that's what you're after."

"I can fix it for free."

The old lady was silent for a moment before shrugging and replying, "If you're offering. I'm starting to think my grandson is hopeless." She jerked her thumb behind her. "Everything you need should be around back. And as payment, you can spend the night here."

"Spend the night?"

"You're a traveler, aren't you? Which means you need a place to stay."

"I'm just passing through," Gintoki protested. "I won't be here that long."

"Don't underestimate the weather around here," the old lady said sternly. "The nights especially are unpredictable. A storm could come out of nowhere and kill you."

"I already have a place to stay tonight, so please, don't worry about me," Gintoki said, hoping that she wouldn't push anymore or ask about exactly where he was staying.

"Alright, but if you ever do need a place to stay, my door will be open." With that, the old lady closed the door, leaving Gintoki to it.

It felt odd to have someone trust him so easily, and even though he had just volunteered to do manual labor, he grinned. It was nice to feel useful for once. Repairing the roof wouldn't even be that bad: he'd not only done it before for his own house, but he'd even built his own house with some help from Zura.

The supplies were in a neat pile behind the house with a ladder leaning against a wall beside them. Gintoki grabbed the ladder, making sure it was stable before he climbed to the roof. Once he could get a good view of it, he summoned a strong gust of wind to clear the snow off of it since he didn't feel like wasting time getting rid of it in a less conspicuous way. He made sure to pretend to be surprised by it and nearly fell off the ladder, just in case anyone saw him. Then, with that done, he set to work.

He had to pull up some of the old roofing around where the new hole was before he could properly repair it. As he worked, he started to build up a sweat. He wished he could take off most of the clothes he was wearing as they just got in the way, but he could only imagine the fit Zura would have if he found out. So, he toiled on, trying to focus on just doing a good job. After all, the old lady was depending on him. Who knows if her grandson was ever going to show up and make himself useful.

Only a few people stopped by to see who he was and what he was up to. Once he explained he was a traveler who had offered to fix the old lady's roof, the spectators' curiosity seemed to get sufficiently sated and they left him alone. It was close to midday when he finished, still no sign of the grandson, and he put everything back where he found it before wondering what to do now. It didn't feel right to just leave, so he went and knocked on the door.

There was a slight delay before it was opened, and the old lady answered it with her sleeves rolled up, looking like she was in the middle of doing something. "Finished?" she asked, closing the door slightly as the wind had picked up.

"Yeah, I just wanted to let you know before I left."

"Don't go just yet, at least let me give you some tea to warm you up."

Gintoki paused in his turning. He considered refusing her offer, but he could tell she was determined. "Sure. Tea's good."

Inside, the house reminded him of his own, although it was slightly bigger and a lot cozier. He was led to the kitchen, and he saw that there were various ingredients laid out along with some bowls, measuring cups, and utensils. As Gintoki surveyed the table, he saw a book out and opened to a page with a picture of a cake on it.

The old lady noticed his interest. "My great-granddaughter's birthday is tomorrow, and she wants a cake like all of her other friends. I've never made one before, so I'm worried…"

Gintoki's ears perked up. "I can help you with that. I've made a few cakes before."

The old lady raised an eyebrow. "You? Bake a cake?"

"What? I don't look like the type? Well, I love sweets so it's only natural that I'm good at making them."

"You're a strange man. I guess I can let you give it a try since you seem so dependable."

The old lady started to gather the things necessary to make tea while Gintoki took a closer look at the recipe. It was simple enough, and everything was already laid out for it. Before he started to cook, he removed his gloves and washed his hands. It would be suspicious if he kept them on, and he wasn't about to touch the old lady so there was nothing to worry about.

Gintoki was so focused on baking the cake that he was surprised when a cup of tea was being pressed into his hand. He managed to only make contact with the lacquer cup. He imagined it was probably pleasantly warm, but he'd never been good at sensing temperature. He took a small, tentative sip of it and offered his thanks. As soon as the old woman turned her back to him, he snuck a few heaping spoonfuls of sugar into it.

"I never did tell you my name, did I?" the old lady asked as she knelt by the dining table, taking a sip of her own cup of tea. "I'm Tsukuda Michiko."

"Sakata Gintoki." Only a handful of people were still alive who knew him by that name, and there weren't any stories floating around attached to it. No need for him to use a fake name.

"Thank you for all of your help, Sakata-san," Tsukuda said, bowing slightly.

Gintoki was unsure of how to respond, unused to someone sincerely thanking him for something. "Please just call me Gintoki."

Tsukuda smiled. "Then thank you, Gintoki-san."

This time Gintoki remained silent as he stirred the batter. It brought back warm, pleasant memories from his childhood. Baking birthday cakes together. He had taught him how to cook… Before his heart started to ache and he messed up and ruined everything, Gintoki stopped reminiscing. Instead, he focused all of his attention on pouring the batter into a pan. Once it was nice and even, he put the lid on it and carefully set it on the stove. There were already some pieces of charcoal glowing warmly in the fireplace so all Gintoki had to do was use some tongs to pick them up and set them on the lid. After double-checking the recipe, Gintoki set the appropriate time on a cheap plastic timer that was sitting next to a bowl. Tsukuda started a conversation with him, properly distracting him as he started making the icing.

She talked about her grandson, saying that he didn't really have the skill to repair roofs and that's probably why he had disappeared. He was probably asking his friends for help, not wanting to admit that he wouldn't actually be able to help her. Gintoki only had to make the occasional comment. Tsukuda did ask him a few things about himself, but after he remained incredibly vague, she took the hint and mostly just told him about various things in her life.

At one point she did ask him why he had decided to come through the village. Hadn't he heard the stories about it being perpetually winter here? Gintoki passed it off as him being curious. Then the conversation switched over to the topic of the Snow King. Tsukuda asked if he'd heard of him and he said he had.

"I hope you're not one of those suicidal fools who try to kill him. I know magic is viewed with suspicion since the war, but I don't think everyone who has magic necessarily misuses it. If the Snow King did have bad intentions, things would be a lot worse for us. It seems like he is content to simply be left alone. He doesn't deserve to die just because of something he was born with."

"Well you don't have to worry about me. I'm not going to go looking for any trouble." The timer went off, saving him from having to talk about the topic any longer. He carefully removed the coals before lifting the lid to make sure it was in fact cooked all the way. Pride welled up within him as he looked down at his beautiful creation. He barely remembered in time to not grab the pan with his bare hands, and instead used a thick cloth mitt to set it on the table. The cake needed to cool before he could ice it so he took the time to finish off his tea.

Tsukuda must have been paying close attention to him since she said, "Let me pour you some more tea." She stood up before Gintoki could respond. He held his cup out to her and she went to grab it. Too late he realized that her hand was going to brush up against his. A startled look crossed her face before it turned into one of concern. "Your hand is freezing cold. You need to be warmed up now, before your condition gets worse."

"No, no, don't worry about me, I'm fine," Gintoki reassured her, drawing his hands back towards himself. "My hands are always cold, they just must've gotten a bit colder than usual when I was outside."

"I am not letting you leave this house until I know you're not going to freeze to death." The sternness of Tsukuda's voice kept Gintoki from trying to argue with her. She poured him a fresh cup of tea, and when she handed it over to him, she stared suspiciously at his hands. "Make sure to let the tea warm you up, and go sit by the fire. I'll go find a blanket for you."

Gintoki did as he was told and went to go sit by the fire. He tried to keep himself from panicking, nearly choking as he took a big gulp of tea. A thin layer of frost began to form on the surface of the tea where his lips had touched it, and he nearly broke the cup as his grip tightened. Closing his eyes, he took a deep breath to calm down. It's not like she suspected him of being the Snow King, she just thought he had hypothermia. All he had to do was make his hands seem warmer and everything would be fine.

Tsukuda returned with a very large, very thick blanket which she draped across Gintoki's shoulders. The heaviness of it was comforting, and he thanked her for it. As Tsukuda went to go sit back down at the table, Gintoki did his best to pretend to be someone desperately trying to warm up. He kept as close to the fire as possible and savored the tea even though it wasn't sweetened. Tsukuda lectured him about the importance of taking the cold seriously around here, and he nodded periodically and promised to be more careful in the future.

Eventually, the moment of truth came. Tsukuda wanted to make sure he was warming up properly, so Gintoki thought happy thoughts filled with sweets while keeping the cold centered in his chest and feet, sending all the warmth he could muster into his hands. Grasping his hands, Tsukuda was silent at first. Then, she gave a curt nod.

"You should be fine now. But be more careful in the future."

"Yes, granny." Gintoki stood up and returned the blanket before heading back over to the table. The cake was done cooling, so he started to ice it. The sooner the cake was finished, the sooner he could leave and not have to worry about anymore close brushes with disaster. He definitely wasn't going to tell Zura anything about what had just happened. He didn't need Zura thinking he was right about the gloves and not just paranoid.

After some final little touch-ups here and there to make sure the frosting was spread perfectly evenly, Gintoki declared it was done. Tsukuda came over so she could get a better look at it while he helped himself to the leftover frosting.

"You really do know how to bake a cake," she said, not bothering to comment on the fact Gintoki was licking a spoon greedily.

"Yeah, yeah, I'm jealous of the shrimp that gets to eat this delicious culinary masterpiece. They better properly enjoy it."

"She will. You've helped me out so much, are you sure you don't want to stay the night?"

"I'm sure," Gintoki replied, finishing off the last of the frosting. "I have a friend who lives nearby."

"Well if you ever pass through the area again, feel free to stop by. I'll try to make sure I have something sweet for you."

"I definitely will, then." He at least hoped he would, and that next time he wouldn't almost accidentally reveal his identity. Gintoki grabbed his gloves and put them on, ready to be done with having to pretend to be normal. Tsukuda showed him to the door, thanking him again and wishing for him to be safe in his travels. Stepping outside, Gintoki turned around to say goodbye. "Take care, granny. I hope your grandson turns up soon."

"He will if he knows what's best for him."

Walking back through the village, Gintoki felt as though a weight had been lifted off his chest. He could interact with people without anything bad happening. The ground almost seemed slightly slushy, as though some of the snow was melting. Maybe he wouldn't have any nightmares tonight despite the unwanted memories that had come back after confirming who it was Zura had been visiting. Maybe his powers would truly be under control again.

...

"Toshiii!" Kondo was already running over to Hijikata after seeing him come in the door.

Before Hijikata had time to react, he was having the life squeezed out of him. He lightly patted Kondo on the back, reassuring the ridiculously overjoyed man. In stark contrast to Kondo's tears of joy, Hijikata could feel the most severe killing intent he had ever felt coming from Sougo, the little brat. He wouldn't be able to let his guard down anytime soon. Kondo remained oblivious as always even as Sougo's death glare intensified as the hug wore on. It was a relief when it ended, allowing Hijikata to refill his lungs with oxygen and also somewhat placating Sougo.

Kondo placed his hands on Hijikata's shoulders, staring intently at him, almost looking serious. "You're okay, right? Not injured?" He seemed to be looking for something in Hijikata's expression.

"Yeah, I'm fine. Nothing happened to me…?"

Kondo must have seen what he needed since his grin returned in full force. "Good, good! Now that we're all here, let's round everyone up and get started on today's drills. We can't let ourselves grow soft just 'cause we made it to the city. We need to show that we can be trusted to protect the people here."

Hijikata felt slightly guilty about making them wait for him to join them. But he was here now, at his new home. There was no reason for him to go back and be separated from them again.

I was reading the webcomic Demon's Mirror around the time when I thought up this story which is how I became more familiar with the original Snow Queen story. So the kissing thing is inspired by that, but I'm basically doing whatever I feel like for how Gintoki's powers work, not exactly like the story.