Snow-dusted

Ren slowly opened his eyes, blinking rapidly to clear the dream from his sight. He woke up in an unknown place. The curtains were drawn, so hardly any light filtered in. Only a strange, glowing red sphere next to him gave off warmth and cast an orange glow throughout the room. He was shirtless, his side bandaged. Though the bandage was soaked, he felt no pain. He looked around but couldn't find his hoodie anywhere.

The walls of the small wooden house were not of ordinary wood; they seemed to radiate some strange power. Pillows lay on the floor, serving as seats. A few strange-looking, unidentifiable objects were scattered around. He easily jumped to his feet and went to the wooden door. He pushed down the handle and opened it, a decision he instantly regretted. He had completely forgotten about the cold, and the chill bit into his bare chest.

Haku and Lily, both in large fur coats and hats, sat on tall chairs around a big fire. They were sipping something and laughing with the locals, who wore noticeably thinner furs. The girls were alive and well. That was enough to bring a smile to his face and melt his heart, which was about to freeze over.

Lily looked up unsuspectingly, and when she realized he was standing there, she poked Haku with her gloved hand. Their faces brightened, and their eyebrows shot up. They carefully set down their mugs and ran to the boy.

Ren's throat tightened at the sight of their faces. Unnoticed tears streamed down his cheeks as he embraced both.

"I... I'm so glad you're here!" he whispered in a cracked voice. The girls wiggled a little, but they also hugged him with relief.

"Oy, aren't you cold?" the oni asked, feeling his back.

"We can get you some warm clothes," Lily added.

The girls seemed to want to break free from his embrace, but Ren only burrowed deeper into their shoulders, intoxicated by their combined scent.

"Ren Segawa?"

Ren gently pushed the girls away, looking down at a short, gray-haired woman. Her eyes were slanted, and her nose was large. Her clothing was essentially just a cardigan, yet she showed no sign of shivering in the cold. The woman nodded, even though he hadn't answered.

"Ren Segawa, Hakuka, Lilith, follow me! We're going to talk."

She shuffled back into the same building Ren had just left and closed the door behind her. They got him dressed, then followed the old woman, who poured herself something hot inside and began to sip it. It was as if neither cold nor heat had any effect on her.

"I'll bet you have a lot of questions. However, for now, we have more urgent matters to attend to. For starters, we call ourselves the Snow-dusted. Unlike you," she glanced at the two girls, "we are not born with magical power. We have no magic. However, the animals, plants, and land in this place do. Here, every life is sacred." She gave Ren a meaningful look, indicating that she knew what had happened before he fainted. "As is yours. We saved you, but that doesn't mean your sin is forgiven."

"But it almost killed us!" Ren burst out, gesturing to them all.

The woman narrowed her already thin eyes until they melted into a line. Raising her voice. "And do you think this would have happened if you hadn't come here? Our ancestors were cast out. They settled down here, and they built that mountain with magic for centuries, to ensure no one could find us. This no longer serves a purpose! We have to guard the hole you made! You should take responsibility!"  She started counting on her fingers as a to-do list. "Help the climbing team, stand guard, repair the mountain..."

"Why would we do that?" Haku stood up cockily.

"So, are you not interested in the cause of Lilith's illness or Segawa's pain?"

Haku clenched her mouth, her sharp canine tooth protruding. Her body tensed as she looked at the ground. They all felt the same. They didn't want to be separated, not even for a minute after what had happened. 

Lily took and squeezed her hand, which made her look up again. Lily's face was warm, radiating a spring-like breeze of strength. Haku's red lips began to tremble as she threw herself into her arms, and Lily stroked her hair between her horns.

"As soon as you finish everything, I promise you can go back to wherever you came from. Together."

Ren was assigned to the climbing team, tasked with finding and collecting mountain plants for concoctions and food. The others in the team didn't look kindly at him as he put on his leather belt.

Mountain climbing seemed very dangerous in this world. The belt and gloves fastened to their waists were infused with some magic that allowed them to climb the mountain like a spider. But, according to rumors, many had already died doing it. The safety depended on the amount and type of magic used, which was still being tested. Everything depended on your luck, and how long the magic lasted was also random, so they had to get to the top as quickly as possible.

The others set off without him, not looking back to see if he was following. Ren sighed and stuck himself to the hard mountain face. He tried to hurry but also be careful enough to feel safe. He was the last, trudging behind while the others moved their limbs with practiced ease. There was no problem up to the halfway point of the mountain, but then he heard a scream that got closer and closer. Until a body passed him and fell into the snow, which made him flinch, but he hesitantly continued on his way. A few meters later, he stopped to shake his tired hands and watched the others above him, who were almost at the top. Someone slipped, but the person next to them caught their arm. It was as if Ren got some super sight, allowing him to see what was happening up close. The black-haired, young-looking boy clung to the older man's helping arm like a monkey, but they both began to slide down. The boy shouted something, and the older man, in response, slowly released his grip.

Ren saw in slow motion how the body headed towards him and passed by him. Something changed, as if something switched. Ren reached out with his right hand and caught the boy with the glove's magic. The magic squeezed into a line as the weight pulled them down. Ren clenched his teeth as he tried to hold on, but the magic began to falter, as if it were overloaded. In one last attempt, he focused all his strength into his right hand and threw the boy high up, hoping the others at the top would catch him. But with that, the magic from his left hand and belt disappeared, and now he was the one falling into the depths. He flailed in the air, hoping some spell would give him wings, but it didn't happen. Finally, the belt reactivated, and the mountain pulled him to it like a magnet. His body slammed against it, hitting his jaw and getting several scrapes.

Finishing at the top, he slid all the way down, his shoes hitting the ground with a loud thud. His jaw was still sore, and if he felt correctly, it was scraped too. The lifeless body of the girl who had fallen first was already covered, as people talked around her.

Ren was about to leave when a hand grabbed his shirt and shoved him against the nearest tree. He recognized the perpetrator: the boy he had saved. The teenager had wild, short black hair and a bruised, pale face. His dark eyes, wide and bloodshot from sorrow, burned with a desperate fury that matched his wild behavior. He pinned Ren against the rough bark, his body shaking with rage and despair.

"Why couldn't you save her?" he spat, pointing to the shroud. "Or why didn't you just let me die too? You seem to be good at that!"

Something inside Ren snapped. He tore the boy's hands from his shirt and, with a snarl, shoved him down into the snow by his neck. His eyes gleamed ominously, like a wild beast's. He wanted to lash out with the same words that had hurt him, but the tears in the boy's eyes under Ren held him in place. It wasn't hatred that shone in them, but a raw, devastating grief that mirrored his own. He slowly let go, the fight draining from his body.

"You should thank me for your shitty life," he said easily, not changing his expression. "I thought every life was sacred."