A/N: Welcome back friends to the thing that has devoured my brain. This week we have plot and also a little bit of angst.

FreeGrain: Right? It's fuckign cute. Gives me cavities. Thank you very much my friend!

WolfWhispers: I also. I like mixing it up all the time so there's a new petname every time, almost like Sucy's trying to decide which one she likes best. Thank you my friend!

Mekadeth: Heh yes, I know. What I had completely fuckign forgotten in my labyrinth of a brain, is something you reminded me of with your very helpful review. The rOD hAs A NaME. Shit man thanks a lot, I totally forgot that.

I hope you enjoy friends!

-oOo-

Sitting on her bed, staring blankly at herself within the reflection of Chariot's sword, Akko's mind was fogged in thought. She had been a guest in the castle for multiple weeks now, and the princess' hospitality had continued to baffle her. Every single day, the crown princess of Luna would arrive quietly in the squire's room with a soft smile, making herself comfortable next to the bed; either reading in silence or conversing with her patient.

It felt so wrong to Atsuko; becoming so comfortable with royalty. She should be groveling at such a holy figure's feet. Her lowly peasant blood and the voices within let their discontent grow larger and louder with each passing hour.

'You shouldn't be here.'

'You aren't worthy of Her presence.'

'You've overstayed your welcome.'

And then she would arrive, sharing that tiny warm smile, and the feelings would dissipate. The comfortable air would roll in, and together they would sit, like every day before, and Akko was happy.

As the days went by however, a different voice appeared, one that did not relent with the princess' approach. As the princess spoke to her of events in the castle, it was there; as they sat comfortably and enjoyed each other's company, it was there. This voice was not loud and demanding, but sat upon her heart silently, becoming a constant burden.

'The task is complete, you are healed. Isn't it time to be returning home?'

Knight Chariot would no doubt be waiting for her, waiting for her newly sharpened blade, perhaps with a few words praise and even more of impatience; the squire had certainly taken her sweet time. Her father and mother had only been told their daughter was injured, and that she was being treated, nothing else; they were guranteed to be worried beyond all doubt.

"Your Highness." She spoke up, breaking the companionable silence that had settled. The royal brought her nose out of her book, looking up under her eyebrows at her patient; an unspoken approval to continue. "I've been thinking-"

"Ooh, a dangerous thing." Sucy cut in, a teasing grin across her lips. "We can't have you doing that."

"Your Highness, please." Now was not the time for fun and games. "I've decided something." If Akko didn't spit it out right now, her heart told her she wouldn't ever be able to leave.

The princess' smile dropped, a slightly concerned expression growing in its place. The book was forgotten, placed down into her lap, giving the squire full attention.

Atsuko fidgeted, looking down at her hands, mustering up the courage to continue. "You have been very kind to me for weeks, you have healed my wounds and stayed by my side, and I am forever grateful for your hospitality." The conjunction wasn't needed, Her Highness's spine straightened, beginning to fiddle with a page of her book, waiting quietly for the rest.

"It's time for me to get back to Knight Chariot. I have finished my errand."

As soon as the words left her mouth, Akko regretted ever opening it. Princess Sucy closed her eyes, attempting and utterly failing to hide the sorrow filling her heart. It was something Akko never figured out: why one of such high blue blood valued her continued presence.

"Your-" Akko tried, but was cut off before she could continue. "No. I understand. You have a life to get back to." Her Highness looked at the squire with a sad smile, delicate hands bunching her gown tightly.

"I cannot keep you from your home and loved ones forever." She let out one tuff of a sardonic laugh. "No matter how much I may wish to." An uncomfortable silence hung over the pair, constricting Akko's throat tightly. She wanted to say something, anything, to scare off that disappointed sorrow to her eyes.

But she said nothing.

The royal suddenly stood, picking up her book and heading for the door. She stopped when her hand touched against the great pine. "I shall ready thee an escort; If thou art leaving us, I wish for it to be in comfort and good health." With a tight lipped smile, and a flutter of her silk dress, she was gone.

-oOo-

The snowstorm had let up when Atsuko left the castle, though grey clouds still dominated the skies. Claiomh Solais, sheathed within rugged rawhide, clinked against her hip; at the ready in case she was beset upon by anything foul on her journey.

Ice crunched beneath Akko's boots as she strode ahead, her ankle supported on all sides by thick leather to prevent any further twisting. Her Highness' powers had fully healed the squire's battered and broken body, even her ribs fused completely, deep breaths easy and clean.

'Her Highness...'

Princess Manbavaran had made herself quite rare since that morning, and her absence hung heavy on Akko's heart. The moments alone had allowed the squire to ruminate on Her Highness; coming to terms with just how comfortable they had become over the weeks.

As much as her peasant blood cried out in objection, Akko though of Princess Sucy as a friend, someone she could be herself around. The feelings may have been mutual, if Her Highness' sorrow was any indication.

But this wasn't her world, and no matter how much she wished to stay, there were family and friends awaiting her return; people who counted on her. It was never meant to be.

Horses were ready at the gate for her departure, just as the princess ordered, saddles fastened tight. Sir Yanson stood next to one of the creatures, shuffling through its saddlebag with a list in one hand, likely checking stock. His expression brightened when Akko made herself known, closing the bag and striding over.

"Ah Knight Kagari! Her Highness requested I accompany you on your trip; 'valuable cargo' is how she put it I recall." His smile was warm and friendly, trying his best to lighten the heavy mood around the castle. The princess' sadness seemed to be bringing down everyone else as well, and Akko's guilt felt even heavier in her chest.

"Thank you very much, Knight Yanson. It will be nice to have some company." She cringed internally at the sound of her own voice, hollow and quiet, painting her as insenscere. The ginger knight didn't seem to take it that way, quietly walking up to her and putting a hand on her head.

"She'll never forget you, kid. You really brought a lot of sunshine to that girl's life."

Akko looked up, nodding in understanding. "I won't forget her either." Truly it had been an amazing experience, one she would always cherish; a tale to tell the village kids.

Knight Yanson smiled at that, looking past the squire. "Well don't tell me that, tell her."

She whipped her head around, spinning on the ice in the process. Standing quietly behind her, donned in the familar brown fur cloak, was the Crown Princess of Luna. Sucy fidgeted in the snow, avoiding the squire's gaze, trying to hide behind her pink veil.

"It pleases me that thou shalt try to remember, thine memory skills lacking as they are." She weakly joked, trying a smile that crumpled after a few moments of eye contact.

The princess stepped foreward, taking one of Akko's gloved hands in both of her own. "Please take care of yourself, yeah? I worked pretty hard on you, don't put it to waste." She murmured, rubbing soothing circles as she had countless times over the weeks.

Feeling a surge of warmth and courage, Akko swapped their roles, taking Princess Sucy's delicate pale hand and bringing it up to her mouth, bowing her head in reverence. "By your orders, Your Highness." Three kisses were laid upon her knuckles in a chivalrous manner; the squire releasing a warm breath upon her cold skin.

Princess Sucy's smile was warm yet morose, a tiny blush upon her cheeks. "Return to us one day, Miss Kagari. Thou shalt always be a welcome guest."

Akko nodded, giving one last squeeze to the royal's hand before she took a step back, bowing low.

"It was an honour, Your Highness. May we meet again." Her Highness stood back, holding her hands to her chest, watching her friend turn her back.

"Shall we?" Sir Yanson inquired, situated on his steed with a patient smile. Climbing onto her horse, and giving one last smile towards the princess, Squire Kagari nodded, squeezing her heels against the great steed's sides and departing from the castle.

-oOo-

Neither of the knights particularly spoke on the journey, sometimes Sir Yanson would offer a drink or ask her about the town, and she would respond in kind; otherwise the ride was silent.

The trip was rather straightforward, simply follow the road from Castle Manbavaran, but it seemed fate would not be so kind. It had started snowing half way through the trip, and had only gotten worse from there.

Harsh wind scratched against her face, filling her hood with frost. It was getting colder, the path ahead fogged by snow; Akko slowly felt the icy claws creep into her flesh, filling her with dread.

"I don't like this." She spoke aloud, taking her eyes off of the road to look Sir Yanson in the eyes.

He didn't respond, but Akko could see muscles in the knight's forehead tense as he clenched his jaw. His horse was just as agitated, becoming increasingly opposed to continuing as time went on.

Within minutes the fog parted, revealing the snow covered roofs of Torinosu. The squire's eyes scanned the area with anxiety, frozen ears hearing nothing but the howling wind.

It was quiet. Far too quiet for a village in the middle of the day.

Mr. Hashimoto should be chopping firewood,

Akio and Haya should be playing in the snow.

Mrs. Daniels should be yelling at them.

Her suddenly arms whipped, goading her horse into a gallop. Her heart was beating hard in her ears, the dread in her heart growing to full blown panic.

'By the Nine... Please let me be wrong.'

The squire rode quickly into the village, frantically looking left and right for any signs of the townsfolk. There was only ice; large unnatural hunks of the stuff, sitting alone in the snow.

"Hello?" She called, feeling somthing inside her drop at the sound of her echoing voice. "Chariot!" She was shouting now, feeling the edges of her eyes sting.

"ANYONE!?"

Silence and a mocking whip of wind were the only answers.

"Please..." The squire keeled over, pressing her forehead against her horse. She had wasted too much time, something had happened while Chariot was unarmed, she should have left earlier, maybe-

A rustle from her right made the squire jump. "Hello?" She tried again, hopping off the horse into the snow.

Something shuffled around in the dark, a humanoid shape to be sure, limping from unknown injuries. Akko's face drained of blood when it stepped out into the light, stumbling backward into the snow.

It was the old woman that lived at the end of the street. Her skin was as white as the frost beneath their feet, black pits sank where her lovely green eyes used to be. Shards of ice grew from her neck and shoulder, causing her head to tilt in the opposite direction, and as the squire looked she could see more shards, clustered heavily around her hands and feet.

Akko was in shock. 'I don't- I just helped her with her groceries before I left. She was going to make stew.'

The frozen woman continued to stumble towards her, a frost covered hand outstretched. "Akko..." She wheezed, sounding like the very wind whipping around their heads. "It's so cold..."

Before the icy fingers could touch her face, a steel boot connected with the outstretched arm, breaking it off at the forearm like it was made of glass. "KAGARI! GET UP!" Knight Yanson's loud shouting shook the squire out of her daze.

She scrambled to her feet, nearly tripping over in her panic. "What happened to her?!" She cried, drawing her sword instinctively.

"I knew this winter was different. Everyone knew." He grumbled to himself, pulling his own weapon out of its sheath and pointing it at the reeling form in front of him.

"We should have- What could we have done?" The knight continued to mumble, kicking the woman in the stomach when she got too close.

More rustling brought Akko's sword tip behind her, pressing her back to the much broader one of Sir Yanson. One of the large ice blocks she had noticed earlier had stood up, clumps of ice and snow imitating limbs as it stomped through the snow towards her.

"Theres a uh.. golem behind us." She announced, holding her sword defensively. It was just one, about as tall as she was. "I can- I can take it. You worry about her." Truth be told, voices in her head screamed at her for assuming anything about her abilities, and she kind of agreed.

'You only barely survived the last fight because of the princess! You'll die without her help!'

'You've been in bed for weeks, you've almost certainly gotten rusty! What are you thinking!'

But Akko didn't really have very many options, and so readied her stance for the approaching creature. Its movements were slow but purposeful, an unnatural power behind each step. She was reminded of a bull, and the correlation sparked a connection in her mind.

She stepped forward, strafing around the golem as to get a better position. Her sword tipped downwards defensively, preparing for the strike, and when it came she sidestepped swiping upward across the ice. The creature had overcommitted to its strike and was open to a follow up, receiving another deep gash through its back.

Each slice was clean and effortless, Smith Albrechtsberger's claim was no hyperbole, Akko could cut through solid ice like parchment. Filled with adrenaline and confidence, Akko stepped back, returning to her defensive stance to await the next blow.

She didn't have to wait long, as the golem didn't seem to own a sense of exhaustion. Its swings were less aggressive this time, going for quicker horizontal punches than overhead slams.

'It's intelligent then...'

It may be smarter than the average animal, but it was still far slower than she was, struggling to keep its vulnerable backside away from the squire's blade. With a quick dashback, she faked it out, slicing upward through its arm; lobbing it clean off.

With only one arm, the golem's vulnerable area grew twice as large, simply unable to turn fast enough to stop Akko from getting free slices. From there it snowballed out of control, and soon the golem sat armless in the snow, the entire top of its 'head' cleaved in twain.

A kick was the last thing Akko needed to reduce the golem to a simple block of ice, and it lay still.

Adrenaline coursing through her veins, Akko turned to see Knight Yanson fighting off four frozen villagers, with more golems on their way. She paled, shaking her head.

"We can't to this by ourselves. We need to run; find Knight Chariot." She declared, helping the ginger man kick away the villagers.

With one hand she slapped the side of her horse. "Get out of here! They'll know we need help!" The black steed didn't need to be told anything else, breaking out into a full gallop, sprinting out of the town loudly.

The distraction allowed the two knights to mount Sir Yanson's horse and escape the opposite way, towards Chariot's home. "She has to be there. Knight Chariot would never just abandon this town."

Claiomh Solais felt heavy on her hip, a guilt settling itself right beside thoughts of the princess. 'If only she had her sword...'

As soon as the house was in sight, Akko leaped off of the horse into the snow, scrambling towards the door. It was partly open, never a good sign, and the lack of fire within clear; filling the squire with absolute dread. "Chariot would never put out a fire in winter." She whispered, frantically looking around the living room.

Everything was exactly as it should be, frost and snow not withstanding. Her mug of tea was sitting right next to her favourite chair, still full and steaming like it had just been poured. Chariot's thick woolen blanket was bunched up on the floor in front of her chair, she had stood up quickly.

There was a letter sitting on the coffee table, wax seal broken, clearly having been read before being respectfully folded back up. The seal was familiar, something in the back of Akko's mind clicking at the sight.

'The Royal Seal...' Something she had seen countless times during her visit.

Gently picking it up, Akko skimmed over its contents, mumbling each word aloud.

"Dearest Chariot, Knight of the Realm. The Crown would like to inform thee... state of thine squire..." The letter was about her. A similar one must have been sent to her parents, albeit one with less respectful wording and less answers.

She read on, the letter detailed her fight with the mandrake and the extend of her injuries, as well as information on the state of Claiomh Solais.

"Squire Kagari fought valiantly... blah blah... her skill with..." It went on to praise her swordsmanship and bravery, possibly a bit too much for her liking. It sounded like someone gushing about the exploits of a great hero; something she was not. "Who-" She looked down at the bottom for a name, the identity of the letter's writer.

"Respecfully, Her Royal Highness Sucy Manbavaran.. Crown Princess.. of... Luna.." Atsuko felt her face warm; Her Highness spoke so highly of her in the letter, moreso than ever nescessary. For all of her teasing, the princess certainly thought more of her than Akko realized. She smiled, forgetting for a moment the dire situation.

"Akko!" Knight Yanson whispered harshly from the door. "Find anything? We need to move soon."

Right. The ice zombie things. The golems. Saving the town.

"Uh..." She took one last look around the living room, running up the stairs to check the top floor. "Nothing!" She whisper-yelled, though as she was leaving, a glance at the fireplace revealed all of the tools normally used to stoke the fire were missing.

She shook her head and focused on the town; there were more houses to check, people that might need saving.

'Momma... Papa... Chariot... by the Nine, please be safe.'

A/N: We plotbois now. There's a reason this winter is different to all the others, why it's so much longer, so much deadlier. And you're gonna have to wait and see what that it.

More of Akko's crippling inadequacy complex and not understanding how a princess could ever enjoy her peasant company. Come on Akko she's not just gonna tell you why. Use ur noggin. Also more chivalrous smooching, because I live for that old romance shit.

Also a letter Akko was never really meant to read, which is basically the princess gushing about how cool and heroic Akko was to Chariot. Because I mean a girl has to tell someone, and the only other person you can really talk to about anything is the subject of your gushing.

Anyway its time for me to slumber and dream about more gay sheit.

Hope you enjoyed! Tell me how it was!