Marble Drops Temperature Fast

"Take my hand!" Hinata calls out to her. Mizuki directs her gaze back to Hinata, pure fear in her eyes. She holds her arm against her chest, reluctant to trust Hinata. Meanwhile, Hinata is hanging on to a rock structure with only one arm, the other outstretched towards Mizuki. Blood rushes to his face as he tries to hold himself up without falling.

Even then, he doesn't look like he's trying.

"I won't let you fall," he promises. Mizuki closes her eyes. She takes a deep breath. She doesn't look back.

Stepping up onto the marble, she grabs Hinata's hand and hoists herself up. She grapples onto a dent in the castle's architecture, learning how to find rougher, more curved parts in the palace structure to help herself up.

It takes her a ridiculous amount of strength to keep herself from falling. Mizuki tries her hardest to keep her eyes off the ground, pulling herself higher and higher to an open window. A sudden gust of the sea breeze blows her hoodie cover off her head, having her cling onto the marble for dear life.

Marble loses temperature quickly, especially at night. It's only a couple moments more till Mizuki's fingers will go numb. It feels like she's been climbing for eternity until Mizuki finally catches sight of a window. In her attempt to reach it faster, she tries to quicken her pace, only to make a misstep. She holds her breath, looking down accidentally. She freezes.

"H-Help," she splutters in a terrified voice. As she tries to help herself, she presses a hand too hard against the rock and it slips, denting her nails painfully. Mizuki squeezes her eyes shut. "Oh dear god, I'm going to die," she mutters to herself as she dangles a hundred metres off the ground.

"Hirashi!" Hinata calls out to her. Mizuki, vulnerable, struggles to look at him with the wind leaving her teary-eyed. It's so much darker up here and the moonlight doesn't help. She's scared. She's stuck. She wants to be safe again. Hinata bites his lips, contemplating what to do. Careful with his step, he climbs down, grabbing onto her wrist. "Let go."

Mizuki remains paralysed. She shakes her head, tears on the verge from slipping off her eyelids. "I can't."

"Let go, Hirashi, I'm not letting you kill yourself while I'm right here," Hinata tightens his grip around her wrist. Mizuki's heart throbs painfully loud in her ears. Praying for her life, she lets go, only to be pulled up by Hinata. "Hold on to my back, I'll carry you up if your arms are tired."

"What about you?" Mizuki huffs breathlessly, tightening her grip around a marble carving.

"Why the hell would you care about me when I'm asking about you? Both of us know you're not interested in me," Hinata scolds, gesturing towards his back.

Mizuki clambers towards him, slowly wrapping one arm around each shoulder before gaining the confidence to climb onto his back. Wrapping her legs around his waist, she turns her head away from his neck, embarrassed that she's in a position like this again.

"I'll get over my fear of heights," Mizuki trembles.

"Sure you will." Hinata starts climbing. No matter how hard the wind gets, he doesn't seem to be fazed. His hair is tied into a low ponytail that tucks away perfectly into his hood. The full moon has now risen to its peak in the sky, highlighting their silhouettes.

To avoid being sighted by guards, he swings to the side.

Mizuki's heart drops to her stomach. She closes her eyes. What kind of person have I entrusted my life to?

Before she knows it, amidst frantic praying, Hinata reaches a window. "Climb in first," he instructs and that sends Mizuki into a panic. Even so, she's reluctant to show it.

Piecing together whatever shattered pieces of confidence remains with her, she reaches for a curve up at the window that she can hold, tightening her legs around his torso in the process. He grimaces.

Mizuki pulls herself up, trying not to kick Hinata down while she climbs. When she finally manages to rest one knee against the window sill, she catches her breath, climbing inside. Hesitantly, she looks back down to Hinata, reaching out a shaky hand for him to take. "Move away, Snowball, you're going to make me fall," he cries out.

Mizuki shifts and Hinata climbs, pulling himself up into a squatting position on the open window sill. He stands, dusting his hands. "What are you staring at?" he questions in a hushed voice before hopping down to her level.

"What do you want me to do?" Mizuki questions, a faint tremble still evident in her voice. Hinata crosses his arm over his abdomen, reaching for the hilt of his sword. He walks with quiet, cautious steps towards the door, pressing his ear against it. He hears the clattering of a lock and then a guard huff, sliding to the ground.

The only light in the room comes from whatever little moonlight the billowing curtains allow, barely illuminating the carpeted ground. It strikes Mizuki as a display room, with mighty weapons hanging on the wall alongside the portraits of monarchs from generations before. In glass displays are sacred gems of the King's and artifacts from their history, another one separate from the rest positioned at the head of the room.

On a podium, there's a petite glass box covered in red silk, a faint glow emitting from it.

Mizuki moves swiftly forward, analysing the podium carefully. Hinata unveils it - lo and behold, it's one of the Befallen Pieces of Astra right in front of her eyes. She almost can't process that it's real, that it's something more than a myth. Hinata picks off the glass cage, turning to Mizuki. "Get it."

"Get it?!" Mizuki whisper-screams. "Can't only mages touch it? What'll happen to me if I get injured after touching it?"

"We don't have forever," Hinata warns with gritted teeth. It's at this point that yet another hooded figure appears at the window sill, silhouette framed by spring's full moon.