This takes place a long time before the main story.


Little Yukiya was excited, even if he didn't show it. At ten years old, he and his family were on their way to a traveling circus. His father had come home the day before, happy to announce that it would be in town, and it would be perfect for Yukiya's birthday. He held his youngest brother on his lap as he rode on the wagon, and his other three siblings were bouncing around. The trip felt longer than it had actually been, but when it came to a stop, the little boy excitedly jumped out. He pushed down his anticipation and helped his family off, making his parents smile. As Yukiya, his mother, and his siblings went to find seat, his father went to buy treats and sweets.

After what felt like an eternity, the show started. He, along with the crowd, marvelled at the sights. There was man who breathed fire, a woman who could be only seen in mirrors, people who had claws and fangs but sang like birds, there was even a bearded woman. However, the act that really stuck with the boy was the snake charmer.

The snake itself was terrifying. Stretched out, it was at least the length of two houses, and its head was large enough for an adult to stand on. Its beautiful green scales and golden eyes were both entrancing and intimidating. However, it was not the snake alone that caught his interest. The charmer was a girl around his age! Her black hair was pulled into two braids, and she wore a shirt and shorts the same color as the snake's scales. She sang with a beautiful voice, which seemed to be what controlled the snake. The girl carefully sat down on the snakes head, and the crowd gasped as it slithered around, raising its head to look at the audience members. Suddenly, the older of Yukiya's sisters started shouting about it being his birthday. His face paled as his other siblings and parents started chanting it, and soon, other people added on. The girl and snake saw this and met the boy's eyes. Grinning, they made their way over.

"So it's you they're talking about?" she asked, just barely audible over the nearby people.

"Y-yeah..." he mumbled.

"Want to do something really, really fun?" she asked with an excited gleam in her eyes.

Yukiya gave an awkward nod, and the girl gave him a warm smile that made his heart skip a beat. She carefully stood up and offered her hand. Something about her made him nod and take it. With her help, he stood on the snake's head. He whispered an apology and its tail flicked. The boy tightly held on to the girl as they went around the circus tent. After the second or third lap, she helped him back to his seat. As he stepped off, she lightly touched her nose to his, making his cheeks go red. For the rest of the show, he watched the snake charmer.

After the show, the Reizen family stuck around to see the other acts. As they walked through, Yukiya swore he saw someone weaving in and out through the crowd. Suddenly, his father realized that Yukiya's oldest brother had wandered off in the crowd. They stepped away to get a better view of things, and his father went to find someone who worked there. His other siblings were too scared to leave their mother, and the little boy was worried about his brother. Without hesitation, he went around looking. He began to worry that he would get lost himself, when he suddenly heard a pair of familiar voices.

"There, now you're all better!" laughed a girl.

"Mm-hm..." mumbled a little boy.

Looking behind a small tent, Yukiya saw the snake charmer tying a bandage around his little brother's foot. The little boy was avoiding the girl's gaze, his cheeks bright red. Walking over, Yukiya called his brother's name. The little boy imediately leaped up and ran to his brother. The girl stood up straight, her ice-blue eyes filled with warmth. She walked over and patted the younger boy's head.

"Seems he tripped and when he looked up, you were all gone. He started wandering around and ended up in mine and my brother's tent. He caught us off guard But he's all good now, right big man?"

"Mm-hm."

"T... Thank you..." Yukiya mumbled.

The girl smiled and lightly bumped their noses again.

"It's a sign of affection!" she giggled, "I do it with my brother and my friends all the time."

"O-oh."

Suddenly, the two boys heard their father running up. As he began to scold his sons, Yukiya turned to glance at the girl. She had already stepped back into a tent, so the lighting wasn't all that great. All he saw was the shadows of the girl's face and two more pairs of eyes staring out before the flap closed. The boy stayed there, staring at where the girl had disappeared, until his father took his hand. Together, they met back up with the rest of the family.
As he watched the circus get farther and farther away as the wagon headed home, his mother asked if he was alright. When he told them about the girl, his parents exchanged knowing smiles. They grinned even more as they saw how dreamy his expression got when he described her smile. The fact that he kept talking about it the whole trip back meant something, since the boy was usually so quiet. Over the next few weeks, he'd get that same look, and his parents told their friends about the reason. It was so cute and sweet, they couldn't stop bringing it up. The women would laugh, saying how the little one was already growing up. The men grinned, telling him he was on his way to becoming a man. The little boy sighed, regretting he ever mentioned her to his parents.
It was a long time before they all stopped teasing him about his first crush.