"Kido!" Kano called out. "Kido, where are you? Konoha, please help me out."
"Ah... Okay." he said. "Princess Kido." he said slowly and softly.
"Geez! That's not helping." he said placing his hand on his forehead. "Kido!" he continued.
"Man, who is Kido?" they heard a voice say. The two stopped their horses and looked around to see who it was.
"Wh-Who are you?" Kano said.
"What? Me?" the voice said with a giggle. "I'm a forest sprirt. Often called by the name, Ene."
"Ene?" Konoha said in a calm voice without any face expression. "Where did I hear that name?"
"Oh! If it isn't the little palace servant, Konoha." the voice said in a sarcastic tone.
"He's not a little palace servant. He's my best friend!" Kano said. "And just- Who are you?"
"Geez! You don't have to be that strict! I'll come out." she said as the bushes rustled.
Konoha and Kano looked to their side where the bushes rustled until a girl with blue hair jumped out. This made Kano and Konoha give out a scream and to their horses as well. Unfortunately the horses went haywire and the two fell off. As they fell on the soft pillow of snow, the two horses ran back to the other way. Kano immediately turned his head to the girl laughing and stood up from the snow filled ground.
"What the heck! Why did you do that?" he said angrily. He wasn't the one to be known as angry but because of the situation, it happened.
"I-I'm so sorry! I just thought it was funny!" she said.
"Oh, now I remember." Konoha said as soon as he caught sight of the girl laughing. "Ene."
"Nice to see ya again, Konoha!" she said as she took a deep breath in after laughing so hard. "Sorry about that." she said.
Kano then noticed this girl didn't even have any feet. It like, disappeared as soon as her legs extended for it. She just floated in thin air like that.
"Ene, what did the Kisaragi witch tell you about troubling someone of royal blood?" Konoha said as he stood up from the ground and walked over to them.
Ene gasped and looked down on her feet seeing a part of it was slowly fading. "Y-You're of royal blood?" she said looking at Kano in shock.
"I guess not so much people know me, huh?" he said with a laugh. "By the way, why is that fading?" he said pointing at Ene's legs which in a part disappeared.
"Well, if you see I'm a spirit." *pouts "You know, those given a second chance to get their old lives back." she said with a smile. "You know, just like Konoha."
Kano turned to Konoha and looked at him with shock. Yes, he's read about those spirits after his adoptive parents had passed away. He stalked their book cases and found a book about supernatural stuff. He read about everything. Trolls, witches, even spirits. Like what Ene said, they're those who are given a second chance to get their old lives back, meaning they died.
"Konoha, you..." Kano said.
"I don't really remember." he said scratching his face. "All I know is that I should not mess with people of royal blood, or some parts of me will disappear. This is her second time messing around with someone of royal blood." he said.
"Who was the first?" Kano asked.
"Princess Kido, when we got her gloves." he said. "She kept on teasing her until Kido broke. She almost set off a winter like this but she was at luck that the Kisaragi witch was there. If she weren't then we would have such a hard time destroying another eternal winter.
Kano looked up the sky. Grey thin clouds filled it and only a little sunlight passing through. "Who is the Kisaragi witch?" Kano asked.
"Oh, just like Azami, she makes different spells but..." Ene said scratching her head. "Unlike Azami, she hides."
"Azami makes spells?" Kano said in shock.
"Wow! You really aren't aware of what's happening around you." she said getting closer to Kano. "I wonder why."
"Ene," Konoha spoke up. "Kuroha has broken loose."
"What?!" Ene screamed in shock. "I thought we kept him in the chamber."
"Yes, but he broke free. He was in the party and he took one of Princess Kido's gloves."
"Why didn't you do anything."
"I couldn't put any harm to him. If I did, I would die immediately myself."
"Why? What are you talking about?" Kano interrupted.
The two spirits looked up at Kano who was demanding for an explanation. Of course they had to tell him if they wanted their old lives back.
Ene sighed. "Kuroha is a spirit of mass destruction." she said. "He's another Konoha who has gone mad. You see, while the Kisaragi witch was making the spirit Konoha, something went wrong and it made two of them, one being him and the other being dark. Unlike us normal spirits who disappear when we mess with royalties, he grows stronger and stronger until he becomes a tool for mass destruction." Ene said.
Kano's eyes widened as he heard Ene's statement. Mass destruction? If only he had known about this. If only Kido wasn't scared enough to hide her powers from him.
He was feeling like he was out of place.
"What could stop him?" he asked Ene, the same expression on his face.
"Love." Konoha answered.
"Love? I thought that would bring you back to your old lives."
"Well," Ene said. "He is the spirit gone wrong so of course his kind would go wrong as well. Konoha here is the main boy of the spirit while Kuroha is just a dark duplication."
Kano nodded as a sign that he had already understood. Everything was spiraling around his head already but the way Ene explained it was slowly clearing up is mind.
"Ene-san," Kano said. "Do you know where Kido went?" he said.
Ene shook her head, a little disappointed. "I'm sorry but I don't." she said.
Kano sighed.
"But," Ene spoke up. "I think I saw a a blizzard going on in the North Mountain. It seemed strong but it later stopped."
"That's Kido," Konoha said. "She must be alone."
"Well, what are we waiting for. Let's go there." Kano said.
He was about to walk when he was stopped by Ene who grabbed his arm. "Are you nuts? You'll freeze to death with clothes like that." she said. "Let's go to a trading post I've known for a while. We'll get you some warm winter clothes there."
They then walked for a short time and stopped by a trading post. Ene got in and so did Konoha and Kano. As they did, they met a girl with short light orange blonde hair. She was about the same height as Ene.
"Hi Ene! How can I help you." the girl asked in a lively way.
"Hi little sister! These guys here would want some stuff. You know like winter boots, and clothes, and scarfs." she said.
The blonde looked over Ene's shoulder and saw the two boys. Konoha looked straight while Kano was looking around.
"Hi Konoha!" she said as she waved to Konoha.
Konoha then waved back.
"You have the adopted prince with you?" she asked.
Ene nodded. "Princess Kido made this storm" Ene whispered.
"That explains it." Momo said searching through some things from under the table. "It's too bad mother is not here," she said setting two winter suites on the table. "She's somewhere else and wont be back until tomorrow."
"Well, the prince over here has a plan to go after her, the princess. You think that will work?"
The blonde raised both of her shoulders. "Beats me. It's too bad I don't know anything about magic. Onii-chan does but he's not around either."
"Oh yeah. I have been meaning to ask you, where is master?"
Momo raised her shoulders again.
"Umm," Kano interrupted. "Are you guys done?"
"For a prince who loves sarcasm you sure are impatient." Momo said with a laugh.
"How did you know that?" Kano said.
"Allow me to introduce myself." Momo said as she bowed. "I'm Kisaragi Momo, the Kisaragi Witch's second child and only daughter nice to meet you. If you want to ask me if I could stop this winter, I couldn't because I do not know any sort of magic. My older brother does though but he's not here." she said.
Kano nodded. "Well, sorry about the impatient me." he said as he scratched the back of his head. "I just really want to see Kido."
"Everyone wants to go see their true love..."
"Woah! Wait!" Kano said stopping Momo with a nervous smile. "She's not 'true love'. Well yes, I do love her but it's you know... As a sister." he said, nervous laughter coming right after.
"Oh. I'm sorry if I had mistaken things there." she said. "Anyway, here are your cloaks. You don't have to charge me of any sort." she said with a smile.
Kano and Konoha received the cloaks with a bow saying thanks. As soon as they had their cloaks thy immediately changed and set off to find Kido. Ene came along because she said she was bored at staying in her home in the forest.
Don't worry Kido. I'm coming for you.