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A snowflake fluttered in the air. It marked a new season, a colder season, and a season full of new memories. The little flakes swirled in the sky untold it eventually landed on a certain dragon's snout.
Raon gasped and ran inside the Henituse Manor.
“HYUNG! NOONA! IT'S SNOWINGGG!!”
Inside the manor, On was braiding some twine around a charm and Hong was scribbling something down in a journal. They both looked up. Raon dived in and skidded to a stop with a big smile on his face.
“Noona! Hyung! Look outside!!”
On turned her head and Hong peeked out the window. Despite the first snowflake only just hitting Raon’s snout a few moments ago, the ground was already covered in white. Hong pressed his face against the window in awe. The snow looked beautiful. Really nice for a playdate.. or maybe..
On spoke with a smile.
“I have an idea for Cale-nya and Choi Han..”
...
Cale yawned and rolled a little to the left on his bed. Ah yes, this was the life. Spending his mornings, noons, evenings, and nights rolling all day in bed. It was relaxing, he supposed. Something was missing. Cale rolled on his side, nearly bumping into the wall. Maybe he should go check up on the children? Cale hasn’t seen any of them since he woke up.
Cale adjusted his position and sat up. Yep, he should definitely check up on the children. Maybe even see how Choi Han’s doing..?
“CALE-NYA!!”
Hong opened the door and jumped into Cale’s lap as a cat.
“Hey Hong,” Cale asked as he petted the red cat, “where are your siblings?”
Hong stretched and grinned.
“Secret! But follow me!! I wanna show you something!”
Puzzled, Cale followed Hong anyway, curious as to what it was. Along the way, from hallway to hallway, Cale picked up a coat and some warmer clothes, seeing as how Hong was leading him outside.
The cold wind outside slapped Cale’s face and he shivered a little. If it weren’t for Vitality of the Heart, he’s sure he might’ve caught a cold very quickly. Cale scanned the snowy white field.
There were 2 barriers facing each other, maybe around 5 meters apart. On one end, there was On and Raon waving to Cale with Choi Han awkwardly standing there. Hong motioned to the other side of the barrier and Cale walked towards it, though hesitantly.
Raon flew over to Cale’s side and high-fived Hong before crashing into Cale.
“Humann!! This great and mighty dragon shall be fighting on your side!!”
Cale grunted but patted Raon nonetheless. Fighting? Snow? Barriers? Was this possibly.. A snowball fight?
Hong scurried over to Choi Han and On’s side, transforming into his human form once he got there. With his mana, Raon shot out a burst of blue light from his side.
“AAAAND START!!”
On quickly crafted snowballs and tossed them over to Hong, who flinged them over like a machine. On the other side of the field, Cale used the shield to block snowballs and covered for Raon while he sniped parts of the barrier opposite to them, chipping the walls away. It was methodical, almost.
Clank. A snowball banged against his shield and made a dull clang.
Cale certainly didn’t mind the sudden invitation for a snowball, but he was a bit confused as to why the children wanted him there. He’s sure they could’ve had fun without him too.
“Human!! Don’t push yourself!! I am strong, but you are weak, so I got this!”
-Crybaby: Sniffle, the little dragon is right Cale, don’t push yourself in this cold weather, sniffle!
-Super Rock: Actually these snowballs are pretty light so they won’t really do anything. Still, be careful Cale.
“Don’t worry, just a little bit of use like this won’t hurt me.”
Meanwhile, back on Hong’s, On’s and Choi Han’s side..
Choi Han decided to crouch next to On and make some more snowballs with her. He didn’t quite know what the children were planning, dragging both him and Cale-nim out here with them, but he decided to play along. Maybe he can even join in with Cale-nim?
Ba-dump.
..Maybe. Choi Han decidedly ignored the bubbly feeling rising inside of him when he thought of Cale and focused on making the snowballs. It was a little strange, and maybe even lovely when those bubbles popped up near Cale. Choi Han sighed and dropped his head. What was he going to do with himself, a knight in love with his employer?
On glanced over and shook her head. Choi Han-nya was probably daydreaming about Cale-nya.. At this rate the plan might never work. Time for plan B.
“Hey Hong,” On whispered, “time for plan B!”
Hong nodded and dramatically flopped over in the snow.
“Oh no! I have been hit by a snowball! I cannot continue fighting! Who shall fight in my place! Oh no!”
Choi Han looked at the boy with a perplexed expression. On shifted uncomfortably and decided to point to the other side of the field.
“Uh—look! Cale-nya!”
Choi Han’s head snapped towards Cale so fast that On thought his neck might have broken. Though with that, Choi Han was successfully distracted and On and Hong could sneak out. Now, it was up to Raon. The plan was working!!
Earlier..
“Hey, are you guys thinking what I’m thinking? It’s a snowy day, perfect for a date..”
“With Choi Han..”
“And human!”
The children huddled up in a circle.
“So,” On started, “I can’t be the only one noticing the sparks flying between Cale-nya and Choi Han, right?”
Hong shook his head.
“No, it’s really, really obvious!”
Raon crossed his arms(arms?? Talons?? Dragon arms??) and huffed.
“Goldie Gramps even says that the tension is too much for him! It’s really too obvious!”
“And yet, neither of them have noticed,” On pointed out, frustrated.
At this, all of the children nodded. Cale would always try to check up on Choi Han and Choi Han would usually freeze up and try to act normal around Cale(while miserably failing). Cale’s and Choi Han’s crush on each other left even Alberu wondering how Cale was able to defeat the white radish while being this blind to love.
“Which is why we have to set them up..?” Hong announced in a slight unsure tone.
Raon fluttered his wings.
“Right, Strong Choi Han and the Weak Human are perfect! Choi Han can protect Human!”
“Exactly! Now do either of you have a plan?”
Hong hummed, thinking for a moment. “Maybe we somehow set up something where Choi Han-nya can protect Cale-nya? With snow too!”
Raon spoke up next, placing his paw(paw?? Talon?? What do ya’ll call a dragon hand) on his chin.
“But Human needs to exercise! He hasn't gone outside in forever!”
“Then just a snow fight?”
“A snow-ball fight!!”
Pride swelled within On. She had taught them well. A plan made within a minute! Perfect. Clapping her hands, On gathered her siblings attention.
“So what's the plan?”
“We'll lure them both into a fight, a snow ball fight, then we’ll leave them to have fun!”
“Great work you two! Okay, I can go set up the field for the snowball fight, so who will get who?”
“I call dibs on Cale-nya!” Hong piped up, already in his cat form.
“Aw man,” Raon pouted, but didn’t fight the decision.
On opened the door and grinned. It was time to get these two lovesick idiots together. “Let’s go!”
Raon noticed two cats sneaking away. That was his signal. He gestured to Cale to stand up before waving his talon, sending out a simple illusion spell. To Choi Han and only Choi Han, it should look like a snowball is heading straight toward Cale. Choi Han gripped a snowball in his grasp. A snowball was heading toward Cale-nim. Should he try to slice it? But what if he hurts Cale-nim? Then what if he countered the attack that somehow came out of nowhere?
..No time to think, he has to do something, now!
Whoosh. Choi Han’s snowball headed straight towards the illusion, fizzling it away. Then..
Smack. Cale stood up, only to be hit right in the face with a cold surprise. Choi Han stopped dead in his tracks. Maybe his heart did too. Did he just—-he hit Cale-nim? He.. Choi Han immediately jumped over the snow barrier to check on Cale. What if he had fainted?! What if..
Still standing, Cale wiped off the snow and.. barked out a laugh. A real one, not a practiced one he usually used for the nobles. Cale had been a little caught up in only defending with his shield that he supposed he sort of forgot that snowball fights were supposed to be fun and not war.
Choi Han blinks. Cale-nim laughed? Does this mean that he’s okay? Choi Han breathed a sigh of relief. Still, he should apologiz–
Smack! A snow ball comes hurling right back, hitting him. On the other side is Cale, levitating the snowballs with his water ancient power and flashing a rare smile. Choi Han blinked again.
Smack, smack, smack!
Three more snowballs crashed into Choi Han. One stuck on his chin, making it look like Choi Han had a beard. Cale struggled to stifle a laugh and unconvincingly coughed instead. Choi Han took this as a sign that Cale-nim probably wanted to have a snowball fight. But he also took it as a sign that this.. Is.. war!!
(Somewhere along here, Raon also sneaks out to join On and Hong. Cale notices, but passes it off as the children just wandering off to find someplace new to relax.)
Grabbing a clump of snow and roughly shaping it into a circular-ish shape, Choi Han dodged the next incoming projectile by sliding and threw his snow-shape(can it really be called a ball if it was an oval-) at Cale’s leg. A small shining shield appeared and blocked it. Choi Han lifted himself up with his left arm and blocked an incoming snowball with his right.
Cale held up one arm, lifting about a dozen snowballs up and building a waist-high barrier around him. Choi Han narrowed his eyes. He needed a distraction.
Dragging his leg across the ground, a wave of white dust rained upon the two of them, blinding Cale. Choi Han locked his eyes on the position he saw Cale in last, gripped the snow, and threw it.
Sm-smack!
The snow dust settled down to reveal a hole, blown clean through the barrier and Cale shielding himself from the snowball with his arms. He was not expecting that. Cale took a step back, raising the icy snow around when he slipped.
‘Oh crap–! I have to use the Indestructible Shield!’
But before Cale had a bearing on his powers, something, or rather someone caught him, holding him by the legs and supporting him by his back. In short, a bridal/princess carry. Slowly turning his head to his savior, Cale was met face to face with who else but Choi Han?
Ba-dump. Ba-dump. Ba-dump.
Cale-nim was right in front of him, staring right back. The thought barely registered just as Choi Han’s heart decided to beat out of his chest. He had moved almost instinctively to save Cale. ‘Oh my god oh my god oh my god CALE-NIM IS RIGHT IN FRONT OF ME!!’
Cale on the other hand froze. What should he do? Record activated unconsciously and random flashbacks of somewhat related moments took over his vision. Cale blinked a couple of times, letting the memories fade away in wisps. Still in his vision, but less noticable. Back to staring at Choi Han. He felt his face heat up, but Cale wasn’t sure if that was from Record or if it was from seeing Choi Han.
“I-” Choi Han stammered out, “can let you down, C-Cale..nim..”
That last “nim” was whispered quietly. Choi Han crouched and carefully eased Cale-nim down.
Cale stepped down, trying to comprehend what had just happened. Right, he tripped, and Choi Han caught him(in a princess carry). Did he slip on snow, or..? Cale used Sky Eating Water to reveal what he was standing on. A giant frozen lake, spanning from the side of the mansion to the forest, laid there, nearly untouched. Ah, so that’s why he slipped.
‘Hmm.. maybe Choi Han and I can go ice-skating here sometime tomorrow or this week?’
Cale could probably make some skates or commission them from a blacksmith. It would make for a nice date idea. If Cale could figure out when and where to ask Choi Han out. If he fails? Then that’s that. He and Choi Han would just return to a regular knight-master relationship. For now though..
Cale picked up a snowball he had dropped earlier, this time with his hand. It was cold to the point where he could barely feel his fingers. Cale probably should’ve worn gloves.
“Cale-nim, do you want to take a break from the snowball fight?”
The person in question just nodded.
“Sure, why not?”
Cale-nim shaped a pile of snow into brick-shaped objects and assembled them into a small igloo. It was maybe small enough to fit one of the children in their animal form, but nothing more.
Choi Han followed suit, rolling a bit of snow into a big ball and rolling another one into a smaller sphere. He then placed the smaller ball on top of the bigger ball. It looked a bit crooked, but anyone from Earth could probably tell that it was shaping out to be a snowman. Choi Han poked three holes into the body, mimicking buttons. He then drew a slightly crooked smile onto the face.
Beside him, Cale-nim was refining the shape of the igloo and starting on another one for the children. Choi Han thought he looked peaceful like that. Poking 2 more holes as eyes, he finally stepped back to see his masterpiece..not. Every feature looked warped and the poor snowman had no arms.
Plunk. A stick was stabbed into one side of the figure as an arm. Cale handed Choi Han another stick and gestured to the other side. The other stick was also quickly plunged into the snow. There. Now the snowman was slightly less sad.
Cale frowned. Choi Han’s snowman looked lonely. He started to gather snow with his ancient power, but stopped. Using gloves would be better actually. Cale stood up and walked towards the mansion, but Choi Han caught him by the hand.
“Cale-nim? Where are you going?”
“To get gloves. For the snow.”
Choi Han tilted his head, Cale could use his ancient power, right? Unless it was straining him?
“You are not going to use your ancient power?”
Cale glanced at his hands, then Choi Han’s snowman. “It seems wrong to use Sky Eating Water,” he explained, “what with building snowmen being a childhood memory of mine. It’s almost like a lazy way to keep that memory.”
Cale’s eyes glazed over for a few moments, engulfed in nostalgic flashes. Ah, Record was acting up again, huh? Choi Han took off a glove and held it out to Cale.
“Cale.. nim, you can have one of my gloves, they’re pretty warm.”
Cale, slightly dazed, willed the memories away and stared at the glove. He took it and wore it, nodding a word of thanks to Choi Han. “Thanks.”
Then he crouched back down and began building another snowman next to Choi Han’s. Choi Han gave his snowman eyebrows before helping Cale sculpt the body of a new snowman. It was a bit awkward, with each of them using one gloved hand, but they both made it work.
Cale rapidly built a head for the snowman and placed it on top of the body. Choi Han stuck small rocks he had found on the ground into the snowman’s now built face, making a smile. While grabbing sticks for the arms, he had a little thought. Maybe Choi Han wished that he was never employed as a knight. He inserted one stick into the body and soon followed suit with the other side. Maybe Choi Han wished that he had met Cale-nim as an ally, as an equal. Now? He glanced back at Cale-nim.
Ba-dump!
He had no chance as of now. Or perhaps he had no chance with Cale from the beginning..
Smack!
The cold yet familiar feeling of a snowball on Choi Han’s face woke him up from his thoughts. He looked up at Cale. He was holding a few snowballs in his arms, still smiling, and still here. Choi Han snatched a nearby leftover snowball from their little scuffle earlier. Why is he so worried about his chances with Cale when he hasn’t even tried?
Choi Han lightly threw the snowball at Cale. It splattered, maybe a little pathetically on Cale’s arm. Cale glanced at the mess and wrote two letters: C and H. Choi Han chuckled. They were his initials, yet also Cale’s. Yeah, Choi Han should shoot his shot. Definitely.
“S-say Cale-nim,” Choi Han started, already scolding himself internally for stuttering, “would you like to hang out again sometime? Just the two of us?”
The words spilled out in a messy yet sincere puddle in the back of Choi Han’s mind.
Silence for a second.
Choi Han started fidgeting with his fingers and counting the seconds before he was(maybe) rejected.
Cale smiled after a few more seconds. He fully let the remaining wisps of Record dissipate. Cale didn’t really want to see the past, or worry about the future. He just wanted to be in the present for once. In the present with Choi Han. Cale took Choi Han’s hand and tried to remember something he heard once in a book without Record.
“It’s a date.”
Choi Han wasn’t sure if he was dreaming at that moment. If it was, then he hoped that it’d last forever. Choi Han just needed to ask one thing.
“Then, can I call you Cale?”
Cale chuckled, “Why ask something so obvious?”
Choi Han and Cale both strolled alongside a pathway towards the mansion, chatting merrily and holding hands. Behind them, were their snowmen, also holding hands.