Snowstorm Serenade

Sumire knew she had nowhere to go but forward.

So close from the center of the blizzard, her talismans could barely warm her up. This was fine, she thought. As freezing air cut into her lungs and her tears froze before they could fall from her eyes, she thought, this was absolutely fine.

She left Natsuno in one of the houses that surrounded the shrine. The family had been kind enough to let him stay there after Sumire told them that they were yokai hunters trying to stop the blizzard. She left her coat with him, not because she didn’t trust that the kind-hearted family wouldn’t take care of him. But because—

Because…

She was too little back then, barely reaching her sister’s hip. Her grandfather was angry, really angry, at a stranger she’d never seen before. They were shouting; it was loud. Her name was brought up several times, but she didn’t understand then.