The soft slap of waves against the wooden boat rocked gently beneath her. Astra groaned, squinting against the bright light seeping through the mist. She shifted slightly, her back pressed against the corner of the boat, a pained grunt escaping her lips when something tickled her face.
"Mmmff—what now…" she muttered, rubbing at her cheek.
She blinked slowly, vision focusing and then smiled when she saw the little figure crouched in front of her.
"Xue?"
The boy tilted his head, blinking with that ever-curious look of his. Astra leaned forward and poked his soft cheek.
"Did you wake up already? I'm sorry—we played till dawn, didn't we? Completely forgot you had to sleep too…"
Xue blinked again and pointed silently at something.
She followed his finger… and groaned again. Her long black hair was sprawled messily all across the wooden floor of the boat, sticking to planks and fluttering with the breeze.
"Ugh… seriously?" She tried to gather the strands with her hands. "Why are you like this?" she scolded her own hair, fumbling to tame the mess into a decent shape. But her hands paused. Her frown deepened.
"…Where's my ribbon?"
She patted around. "Don't tell me I lost it again—ugh! That's the second one this week!"
Xue tilted his head again, then silently pointed across the boat.
Her eyes followed his finger.
Ryoma.
The moment their eyes met, Ryoma looked away in a flash, pretending to engage in some extremely serious conversation with Shion, who wasn't even listening.
Astra narrowed her eyes. "Why are you pointing at him, Xue?"
Before she could press further, a loud voice cut through the morning air.
"Astra! Are you still lying there like you're unconscious—BAHAHAHA!"
Seiya doubled over with laughter, drawing the attention of a few nearby passengers who cast him unimpressed side-eyes over the rims of their cups.
"Look at your hair!" he wheezed, barely able to breathe. "You look like a broomstick!"
Astra's expression went flat. She grabbed a loose lock of her hair and deadpanned,
"You talk like your hair doesn't look like it gets struck by lightning every single morning."
"Hey! Don't come at my hair," Seiya shot back, puffing his chest. "At least it doesn't sweep the floor for free when I walk!"
Xue giggled wide at that and Seiya kept laughing, still blissfully unaware of the annoyed glances around him. Astra, half amused and half done, sighed and began searching for her missing ribbon again.
After searching through every corner of the boat and rummaging through all the baskets, Astra finally let out a long, defeated sigh. Her shoulders slumped as she stood in the middle of the deck, lips pursed, eyes drifting toward one particular person sitting far too still.
She stared at him for a beat. "No choice now," she muttered to herself.
With slow steps, Astra pushed herself to her feet and began marching toward Ryoma. who, very conveniently, was still pretending he hadn't noticed her at all.
She came to a full stop right in front of him. Cleared her throat.
Ryoma didn't budge.
So she coughed. Loudly. Then again. And then again, each time more dramatic.
Ryoma finally turned his head, brows furrowed. Shion, who had been standing right beside him, instantly took the opportunity to roll his eyes and silently wriggle free from Ryoma's grip, dashing away.
Astra held out her palm, fingers wiggling. "Well… give me one. Fast."
Ryoma tilted his head and clicked his tongue, clearly unimpressed. "You lost it again?"
Astra hummed noncommittally, avoiding his eyes. "You're asking like I don't lose one every week."
Ryoma raised an eyebrow. "You're asking like I carry a new one with me every time."
"…Don't you?" Astra looked up at him, their eyes meeting briefly.
The moment lasted only a second before she quickly looked away, pretending to be very interested in the shape of the boat's railing.
Ryoma sighed and without another word, stepped behind her. She didn't need to look to know what he was doing, his fingers were already moving through her hair with practiced ease, gathering it up with care and beginning to braid.
"Try not to lose it again," he muttered, voice quiet. "And… don't sleep so recklessly."
Ryoma tied the red ribbon into the end of her braid, its delicate beads catching the light and shimmering like tiny embers. He paused for a moment, faintly smiling to himself, then gently placed the finished braid over her shoulder.
Astra turned slightly, eyeing the ribbon. "Just why don't you tell me where you find these kinds of designs? I'm obsessed with them. I don't even like anything else in my hair. If you just tell me where you get them, next time you won't have to go through all the trouble of searching again and again."
Ryoma glanced at her profile, her cheek lit by the soft glow. "It's not that easy to find… or to make," he replied, voice low. "Just think of it as something that took effort."
Astra scoffed under her breath, not quite convinced. "Yeah, right. I don't believe that. I will find myself one day, But anyway thanks…"
Without giving him a chance to reply, she flipped her braid over her shoulder with a flick and spun on her heel, walking off toward the front of the boat.
Ryoma watched her go, the corner of his mouth twitching, then turned back to lean quietly against the railing, the shimmer of the ribbon catching the breeze behind her.
Astra wandered toward the edge of the boat, arms behind her head, finally feeling a little at peace now that her hair was properly tamed.
But just as she leaned against the railing, she felt a small tap-tap on her leg.
She looked down. Xue stood there with a dead serious expression, holding something behind his back.
"What is it now?" Astra asked, squinting at him suspiciously.
Xue slowly revealed… a fish. A flopping, very much alive, very much slippery fish.
Astra blinked. "Where did you get that?!"
Xue grinned mischievously and pointed to a bucket near the other end of the boat. Then he pointed to her stomach.
"…Are you asking if I'm hungry?"
He nodded.
"I'm not eating that!" she gasped.
Xue frowned, then tugged her hand, trying to place the fish in it.
"Absolutely not!" she yelped, stumbling backward. "I don't eat fish—especially not raw!"
At that precise moment, the slippery fish wriggled free from Xue's grip and slapped right into Astra's face before flopping onto the deck with a wet, dramatic thud.
She froze mouth open, eyes wide, completely stunned.
Xue stared up at her, equally frozen.
"…Did that fish just slap me?" Astra muttered, her voice flat with disbelief.
Xue nodded solemnly.
Astra blinked down at the water below, still processing, then slowly knelt to Xue's height, looking him in the eye with a long, unreadable stare.
From behind came Seirou's voice, "Astra, come here for a moment."
She turned her head, then ruffled Xue's hair gently. "You wait here, alright? And don't steal another one from that basket."
Xue nodded obediently and watched her walk off. Then, quietly, he wandered over to a basket and sat down, his small arms hugging his knees.
"Looks like she didn't like your gift that much," came a soft, teasing voice.
Xue looked up to see Kaen standing before him, arms crossed, expression unreadable but calm. The boy's smile had faded, eyes now cautious.
Kaen sighed and slowly knelt to his level, glancing around the boat. Everyone was busy in their own little world chatting, sleeping, or cleaning. The perfect moment.
Leaning in slightly, Kaen lowered his voice and whispered, "Xue… I know you're a demon."
The words hung in the air.
Xue's eyes widened in shock. His small shoulders tensed, and he quickly looked down, gripping the edge of the basket. His hands trembled ever so slightly.
Seeing that, Kaen gave a quiet chuckle and softened his tone. "Relax. We're not going to tell anyone. But in return… you have to tell me something."
Xue looked up again, hesitant. Then he nodded once.
Kaen tilted his head. "I should've asked you this earlier. Tell me… what kind of demon are you? No matter how hard we tried, we couldn't figure it out. There's no demonic aura, no traces at all. So… why are you here? Alone among humans? Hiding?"
Xue's gaze lowered again. Slowly, he lifted his hand and reached out. Kaen held out his palm without a word.
With glowing fingertips, Xue traced symbols across Kaen's skin each glowing character hovering briefly before fading.
Kaen watched, reading in stunned silence. As the last symbol faded, his eyes widened, breath catching in his throat.
"You're… a White Tiger demon?"
Xue nodded slowly.
Kaen looked at him, completely caught off guard for once. "That's… one of the Four Celestial Beasts. You're not just any ordinary demon."
Kaen leaned back slightly, his voice dropping to a hush. "You really carry the power of a White Tiger?"
Xue blinked, quiet as ever, his expression unreadable.
Kaen exhaled slowly, the weight of realization settling in. "Then… you're from that bloodline? The Xuě Lán Zú (Clan of Snow and Waves) Demon Clan. But that's impossible. They were completely wiped out thirteen years ago…"
His voice trailed off, disbelief flickering in his eyes. He leaned in again, eyes narrowing, "Seeing you're still a child… does that mean there are others? Survivors? Hidden somewhere?"
Xue's gaze dropped to his knees. After a long pause, he gave a small shake of his head.
Kaen's expression shifted. The spark of excitement faded into a quiet heaviness. "…Oh. I see."
The wind rustled softly around them. Xue pulled his knees up and rested his chin atop them. Kaen glanced at him again at this quiet little boy who carried the blood of a vanished clan.
"…So you really are alone," Kaen murmured, almost to himself.