The sun had set over Japan. Damon sat on Natsuki's roof tiles, his legs dangling over the edge.
He was staring intensely at the nearest moon, watching it drift in the Earth's sky. He wondered "why does it always feel closer on Woewyn? I think it is closer."
Natsuki's window slid open, revealing the small balcony railing. She'd changed from her kimono into casual wear and rested her elbows on the cold metal, looking forward.
"It's beautiful, isn't it?" she asked softly.
"Yeah," Damon said, turning his head. He looked down from the roof. "Earth has its own beauties too."
He pushed off the roof and landed silently on the balcony floor. He simply held her waist, letting the familiar warmth seep into his palms.
She stared into him, her palms on his chest. Her purple eyes meeting his blue ones, clear and steady.
"I've got one more thing planned, just one." Damon said, his voice dropping low.
Natsuki sighed contentedly. "Thank you. I mean, the gifts are wonderful, but I'm happier at the proof that you thought and took time for me."
Damon smiled, a flash of genuine, unburdened happiness. He used his thumb to push a stray strand of hair behind her ear. "I told you before, Natsuki. Nothing comes before you."
They kissed. It was slow and deliberate—a quiet conversation that reaffirmed their beginning. When they parted, their foreheads were still touching, their breaths mingling in the cool night air.
"Still cute," a small, familiar voice said from below.
Damon froze. He snapped his head up just as Haruto straightened up from where he had been squatting, staring up at them from the balcony floor.
Why couldn't I sense his Ki? Damon thought, his heart jumping like a startled rabbit.
"Haruto, I told you to stop sneaking into my room!" Natsuki scolded, but there was a hint of amusement in her voice.
Haruto ignored her, grinning at Damon. "I like your sister better, Damon." He gave a short nod and sauntered out of the room. Damon watched the small but mighty boy disappear.
A small, geometric figure materialized, floating beside Natsuki. It was HOSHI-3, also Luma, a soft, geometric projection of shifting light.
"Greetings, Prince Damon," her gentle, warm voice chimed. "The tiny reactions in your body, especially the rapid increase in heart rate and adrenaline production, tell me you are experiencing fear related to Haruto. Why?"
"Huhn? I'm not afraid," Damon argued, waving his hand. "He just... materialized. It's surprising."
"Yes, you are. Science doesn't lie," Luma corrected smoothly.
"I'm not!"
"Your body vitals say you are," she concluded, utterly logical but playful.
Damon spent the next thirty seconds arguing with the floating AI about his perceived fear. Natsuki simply laughed softly, leaning against him.
"So, what is this final thing you've planned?" Natsuki asked, pulling him out of the ridiculous argument.
"Come with me." Damon swooped her up in his arms, holding her close to his chest, and stepped right off the balcony. They dropped down several stories.
"Are you okay?" he asked as they landed on some grass.
"Yes," she said, her voice slightly breathless. "Just a little surprised."
Damon set her down and walked with her for only a few minutes before they reached the perimeter of a large, brightly lit funfair. Every ride was humming, every light was on, but the gates were open. The grounds were empty save for a few maintenance lights.
Natsuki walked in, looking around the deserted amusement park. "What are we doing here at this time?"
Damon grinned, the mischief in his eyes making his blue hair highlights seem to glow. "I rented it for the night. We used to come here with Daiki on times like these."
Natsuki stopped and turned, hugging him tightly. It wasn't a playful hug; it was a profound, genuine thank you. She kissed both his cheeks.
They spent the next two hours in a blissful, private bubble. They rode the carousel, Damon laughing at the sheer absurdity of riding a painted horse when he could fly between moons.
He let her win every single ring toss and dart game, quietly using Wind Eterna to nudge the targets. Natsuki threw her head back, her laughter pure and bright enough to rival the fair's neon lights.
Luma floated beside Damon, observing. "Her facial muscle contortions indicate 98.4% genuine happiness, Prince Damon. A very optimal outcome."
Damon watched Natsuki ride the rocking pirate ship, her hair streaming behind her, his own expression one of quiet, complete contentment. "I know, Luma. And that's good."
When they had played enough, it started snowing—soft, thick flakes dusting the neon lights.
"Thankfully, I brought scarves," Damon said. He clicked the flat shard Tolrex gave him the day before school.
A mini dimension opened like a shimmering tear in the air. He thought of thick, warm scarves and sweaters, and they floated out, perfectly folded.
Natsuki didn't flinch. She just watched the sight, surprised by the casual magic.
"I guess now you don't need to share my locker anymore," she teased, pulling the warm sweater on.
Damon laughed, the memory of them squeezing his bulky gym bag into her tiny metal locker taunting him.
"I'm going to use my seniority now," Natsuki declared.
Damon raised an eyebrow. "Natsuki, it's just six days. In six days, I'll be your age."
"Well, until then." she said, tilting her head smugly. Then her expression softened. "Damon, I have a final request for the night."
"What might that be?"
She stepped toward him, holding his coat collar. "Carry me. Just us. Floating above everything."
Damon bowed with an exaggerated flourish. "Your wish is my command, my Lady."
She giggled—a deep, joyful sound that melted everything else away.
Damon scooped her up gently, his arms strong and safe around her. Light flared beneath his feet, and they rose—up over the funfair, past the rooftops, floating high into the silent, snowy night, suspended in the single perfect moment of quiet joy.
The night over Earth was clean. Cold. Quiet.
Damon floated above the snow-lit roofs with Natsuki in his arms and fire at his legs, her back resting against his chest as he held her as he floated— horizontal in the air.
Below them, the world was small. Above them, the moon felt close enough to touch. Natsuki held onto him tightly with both hands, breath fogging the cold air. From afar it would seem like they lined up with the moon.
"Are we… actually flying?" she whispered.
"We are," Damon said gently. "Just relax. I've got you."
She swallowed hard, burying her face into his shoulder.
"Don't go too high, okay?"
"I won't."
He did anyway. Not on purpose—just out of habit. The stars sharpened. The clouds thinned. The air thinned with them.
"D-Damon… I can't—breathe—" Natsuki gasped, fingers clutching his shirt.
Damon cursed under his breath, instantly dropping altitude.
"Sorry! Sorry—my bad—deep breaths."
They descended fast and slow at the same time, guided by Damon's hand at her back. Natsuki inhaled deeply, then laughed softly against him. "That was terrifying."
"Then why does your voice sound like you liked it?"
"Shut up," she murmured.
They drifted over the quiet city, just two silhouettes held by starlight.
Natsuki looked up at him. "Damon… thank you for visiting me."
He opened his mouth to respond—and the world tore in half.
The Purge hit. No warning. No mercy. A violent pulse shot through Damon's chest—sharp enough to steal his breath and stop his words. His body arched as every vein lit up in blue fire. His eyes snapped wide—
"Na—tsu—"
He couldn't finish her name.
His heart seized with a brutal, explosive pulse, cutting him off at the end. His body convulsed. Light flickered under his skin like something was trying to claw its way out.
Natsuki's arms slipped. Her body fell.
"DAMON!!"
She plummeted through the air—hair whipping, scarf tearing from her neck.
Luma materialised and burst from the sky near Damon, a tiny glowing spirit struggling to stay steady in the wind.
"Velocity too high—too fast—! I-I'm too slow!!"
Natsuki fell past Damon's sight. Damon, choking on pain that felt like melted metal forcing itself into his veins, forced his shaking arms outward as he fell.
He tried using Wind. It burst out of him—ugly, unrefined, violent. But it hit her back. Not gently. Not perfectly. But enough. Her falling slowed from lethal to survivable.
"Natsu…" he forced, blood slipping from the corner of his mouth.
Luma wrapped around her like a shimmering bubble, creating a weak protective shield. The shield snapped as she fell and bounced. Another one formed. Then another.
And finally— Natsuki landed on soft snow, tumbling into a half-roll before the shield fizzled out entirely. She gasped, coughing, then instantly looked up—
"DAMON!"
Damon came crashing down farther but beside her—Not from impact, but from collapsing under his own body. He landed on his face, vomiting blood into the snow. His body writhed. Muscles tightening, then loosening in waves. Veins glowing under his skin like threads of burning electricity.
Natsuki crawled to him instantly, hands shaking. "Damon—Damon—look at me—!"
He forced a ragged breath. "Natsu…" he forced out. "Are you hurt?"
She shook her head rapidly, crying now, wiping her tears with the back of her sleeve. "I'm fine," she choked out. "Stop talking like that—!"
He coughed again, blood splattering the snow, staining her sleeves. "Luma—check her—" he forced out.
"Her vitals are stable," Luma said, voice trembling. "But you—Prince Damon—your internal energy is overloading—!"
Damon slammed a fist into the snow, groaning through clenched teeth. "Just a few minutes… it'll pass…"
Natsuki grabbed his shoulders, pulling him up so his head rested against her chest. "Don't lie to me," she whispered, voice breaking. "Please don't lie to me…"
Damon trembled in her arms, eyes squeezed shut, breath tearing itself out of him in painful bursts. His veins lit again, glowing bright blue-white under his skin.
Natsuki sobbed harder. "Why does your body look like that—what is happening to you—?!"
"The Purge," he breathed. "It's just… growth…" he breathed. "Hurts like hell…"
His voice cracked. A pulse hit him, tearing a raw groan from his throat.
"AGGHHK!"
He looked ashamed—actually ashamed—in the middle of agony.
"I'm—so—sorry…" he gasped.
"For what?!"
"For putting you… in danger…" He swallowed blood. "I didn't… think it would hit… now…"
Natsuki shut her eyes, tears falling onto his cheeks—landing onto one of the wounds at his jawline. A soft light sparked as the wound healed.
Natsuki froze and Damon blinked in confusion mid-pain, breath stuttering. "Natsu… your tears…"
"I don't care!" she cried, pulling him tighter. "Just stay with me—please—just breathe—"
Her tears kept falling—landing on his cheek, then his neck, then his shoulder. Each drop dulled the glow. Calmed the burning. Damon's body eased. Slowly. Slowly.
Until he could finally rest his forehead against her shoulder, breathing weakly but steadily. She held him like she could shield him from the universe itself.
His voice was hoarse. Small. Human. "I'm sorry," he whispered again.
She shook her head fiercely, burying her face into his hair. "I'm not leaving you," she whispered. "Not even if the sky tries to kill us both."
Damon exhaled a faint laugh—broken, exhausted, but real.
Later, when the worst of the Purge had passed, they found a bench. She asked him to lay down on her lap. He did, too tired to say he was fine. Soft hands threaded through his hair, calming him as he slowly gasped for air, then breathed.
She let out a breath. "Damon, please don't scare me like that. Ever."
Then, the moon watched as the Sun held the Dawn until the pain passed.