The roasted wind-nut pastry was still warm in Kaito's hands, the sweetness lingering as he finished the last bite. Beside him, Yumi walked with her arms crossed, chewing her own snack with exaggerated indifference. The way she avoided looking at him made it obvious she was pretending not to enjoy it as much as she actually was.
Lantern light drifted across the plaza, casting soft gold over the crowd while music carried through the night air, blending with laughter and distant chatter. The entire village felt alive.
Kaito glanced down at her, a small smile tugging at his lips. "You didn't have to give me that, you know."
"I told you," Yumi muttered, still looking straight ahead, "I had two."
"Right."
"Don't make it weird."
"I'm not making it weird."
"You are, just by talking about it."
Kaito let out a quiet laugh. "You're the one who shoved it into my hand."
Yumi huffed, clearly unwilling to give him the satisfaction of a proper response. "Just eat and walk."
They moved deeper into the festival, weaving through the lively streets of the Wind Village. Children darted between stalls, clutching glowing toys formed from tiny currents of wind, while vendors called out cheerfully, offering sweets, roasted nuts, and pastries shaped like swirling gusts. Overhead, lanterns floated like drifting stars, their light swaying gently with the breeze.
Yumi suddenly slowed to a stop, her attention caught by something off to the side. "Oh."
Kaito followed her gaze and spotted a ring-toss stall. Thin wooden pegs stood in neat rows, each one holding a small wind charm that swayed softly in the air.
"Winner gets a wind fox charm," the vendor announced, lifting one for display.
Yumi stepped forward without hesitation. "I'll try."
Kaito folded his arms, watching her with mild amusement. "You're really into this tonight."
"I'm always into winning."
She picked up the rings and took her first shot. It missed cleanly. The second wasn't much better. On the third try, the ring clipped the peg but bounced away, landing uselessly on the table.
Yumi froze for a moment, as if refusing to accept what had just happened.
The vendor gave an awkward smile. "That was… close."
Kaito couldn't help it. He laughed. "Very impressive."
Yumi shot him a glare sharp enough to cut. "Don't start."
"Want me to give it a shot?"
She hesitated, then stepped aside with a small huff. "Fine."
Kaito picked up the remaining rings, his movements relaxed. He tossed the first one without much thought, and it slipped neatly over a peg as if it had been guided there.
The vendor blinked in surprise. "Well… we have a winner."
Yumi stared at the peg, then at Kaito. "That was luck."
"Obviously."
He picked up the small wind fox charm and handed it to her. The tiny figure spun gently in the air, its tail shaped like a curling gust.
Yumi looked at it for a second before quickly taking it. "…It's cute."
"Yeah, I figured."
"I'm only taking it because it's a festival prize," she added, almost too quickly.
"Of course you are."
They continued on, the crowd shifting around them as the night grew more lively. Music swelled in the distance, and somewhere nearby, someone cheered loudly over a game.
A little later, they stopped at a shooting stall where small, bird-shaped targets drifted lazily through the air.
"Three shots!" the vendor called out.
Kaito stepped forward and took aim, narrowing his eyes as he focused. His first throw missed. The second missed too. By the third, he tried to adjust, but the dart bounced harmlessly away.
Behind him, Yumi burst out laughing.
"That was awful."
Kaito glanced back at her. "Oh, really?"
Without waiting, she took the darts from him. Her first throw struck a target cleanly. The second followed just as smoothly.
By the third, she didn't even hesitate.
Another perfect hit.
The vendor clapped with a grin. "Three in a row!"
Kaito stared at her. "You've definitely practiced that."
Yumi tilted her head slightly, brushing her hair back with quiet confidence. "It's called skill."
"Looks like cheating to me."
"Sounds like jealousy."
They moved on again, drifting from one stall to the next, arguing, laughing, and competing over anything that caught their attention. At one booth, they found themselves trying a wind-balance game, each determined to outdo the other as the festival carried on around them.
At one stall, they found themselves trying to guess the weight of a floating lantern, each of them giving wildly different answers with absolute confidence. None of them were even close. Not long after that, they stumbled into a strange game that involved guiding a tiny current of wind through a narrow maze without letting it touch the walls. It sounded simple in theory, but the moment Kaito tried, the current scattered uncontrollably and crashed into the sides almost immediately.
Yumi clicked her tongue and blamed the maze design. Kaito argued that the wind itself was faulty. Neither of them improved on their second attempt.
By the time they started making their way back toward the central plaza, the festival lights had grown brighter, and the crowd had thickened.
"KAITO!"
The voice cut cleanly through the noise.
Kaito turned at once, scanning the crowd until he spotted two familiar figures approaching. Kazu waved enthusiastically as he pushed his way through, while Mei followed at a calmer pace, her expression as composed as ever.
The lantern light fell over them as they drew closer. Kazu's robe was tied a little looser than most, giving him a relaxed, almost careless appearance, while his short white hair shifted lightly with the breeze. Mei, on the other hand, looked as refined as always, her sleeves falling neatly at her sides as she walked with quiet elegance.
Kaito looked between them, then gave a small nod of approval. "You two look good today."
Kazu raised an eyebrow, clearly amused. "Oh?"
"I mean it," Kaito added. "You both look great."
Mei inclined her head politely. "Thank you, Kaito."
Kazu didn't respond right away. Instead, he stepped closer and looked Kaito over from head to toe, his expression shifting into something more thoughtful.
"…Huh."
Kaito frowned. "What?"
Kazu crossed his arms. "You actually look… noble today."
Mei nodded in agreement. "It suits you."
Kaito blinked, the compliment not landing the way they probably expected. His expression slowly shifted into confusion.
"…That's the second time someone's said that to me today."
There was a brief pause as the others processed that.
Then all three of them burst into laughter.
Yumi tried to hold it back, pressing her lips together, but it didn't last long. Kaito let out a long sigh, dragging a hand down his face.
"I regret complimenting you two."
Kazu wiped at his eyes, still grinning. "Alright, alright. That's fair."
Mei covered her mouth lightly, her laughter softer but no less genuine.
Kazu's attention shifted, finally noticing the girl standing nearby. "Oh—hey."
"Hello," Mei added warmly.
Yumi straightened slightly, clearly caught off guard.
"This is my cousin," Kaito said.
"I know," Kazu replied casually, turning his attention fully toward her. "We've seen you around before."
Yumi glanced away. "…Yeah."
Mei smiled gently. "It looks like you're spending time together tonight."
Yumi immediately crossed her arms. "We're not 'spending time.' We just happened to walk in the same direction."
Kaito raised an eyebrow. "We've been together for an hour."
"Coincidence."
Kazu grinned. "Tsundere."
"I am not!"
Mei let out a quiet laugh. "You two seem close."
"We're not," Yumi insisted without missing a beat.
Kaito shrugged. "She gave me food earlier."
Yumi froze.
"YOU DIDN'T HAVE TO SAY THAT!"
Kazu laughed outright. "Oh wow."
Mei's smile widened as she covered her mouth again. "That's actually really sweet."
Yumi's face flushed bright red. "Can you all stop talking?!"
Kaito just grinned, clearly enjoying himself.
Kazu clapped his hands once, snapping the moment forward. "Alright, enough of that."
He pointed toward a row of festival stalls lined with various games.
"Let's settle this properly."
Kaito cracked his knuckles. "You're challenging me?"
"Obviously."
Mei sighed softly, though there was a hint of amusement in her voice. "Here we go again…"
Before anyone could say more, Yumi stepped forward. "I'm playing too."
Kazu smirked. "Good. Makes it more interesting."
He gestured dramatically toward the stalls ahead. "Four players. Festival games. Winner gets bragging rights."
Kaito's grin sharpened. "You're on."
What followed was complete chaos.
The four of them moved from stall to stall, barely slowing down, their laughter carrying through the crowded festival streets. Every game turned into a competition, every win into something to brag about, and every loss into an argument that somehow never ended.
At the ring toss, Kazu somehow came out on top, even though Kaito insisted the angles were unfair. At the archery stall, Mei surprised all of them by landing a perfect shot on her very first try, standing there afterward as if she didn't quite understand how she'd done it. The wind maze was Yumi's domain; she moved through it with ease, memorizing the shifting paths faster than anyone else could react. When it came to the balance platform, Kaito held out the longest, refusing to drop no matter how much the structure shifted beneath him.
They didn't stop there. Guessing games, reflex tests, moving targets, even a strange stall where they had to catch floating wind bubbles without bursting them, they tried everything. Every small victory was celebrated loudly, drawing attention from nearby stalls, while every loss was immediately challenged with exaggerated complaints and accusations. It didn't matter who won in the end. The fun was in the arguing.
By the time they finally gave in to exhaustion, they found a low stone bench near the lantern plaza and collapsed onto it, still catching their breath.
Kaito pointed straight at Kazu. "You only beat me because you cheated."
Kazu almost choked laughing. "I didn't cheat."
"You absolutely did."
"You just lost."
"The platform tilted."
"It didn't tilt."
"You leaned on it."
"That's called balance," Kazu shot back, still grinning.
Mei let out a soft laugh beside them, clearly entertained, while Yumi folded her arms with a satisfied expression.
"I clearly won the most games," she said.
Kaito turned to her immediately. "You only won the maze because you memorized the path."
"That's strategy."
"That's cheating."
"It's intelligence."
Kazu leaned back against the bench, glancing between them. "I think the real winner here is Mei."
All eyes shifted toward her.
Mei blinked, caught off guard. "I only played three games."
"And you won two of them," Kazu pointed out.
She smiled, a little shy under the attention. "Beginner's luck."
Kaito stretched his arms above his head, letting out a satisfied breath. "That was actually fun."
Before anyone could add to that, a calm voice approached from behind them.
"Lord Kaito."
They turned at the same time.
A young woman stood a short distance away, dressed neatly in the refined uniform of a personal attendant. Her posture was straight, her expression composed.
Sui.
She gave a polite bow. "Lady Yumi."
Yumi immediately straightened, her earlier casual attitude slipping into something more proper. "Sui?"
Sui offered a gentle smile. "The family is preparing for the second sacred event."
Her gaze shifted to Kaito. "Lord Toru has asked me to bring you back."
Then she acknowledged the others with another respectful bow. "Lord Kazu. Lady Mei. It is a pleasure to see you."
Kazu gave a relaxed wave. "Hey."
Mei returned the bow more formally.
Sui turned back to Kaito and Yumi. "We should return to the estate soon."
Kaito pushed himself to his feet. "Got it."
Yumi let out a small sigh. "Already?"
"The Divine Wind Prayer requires preparation," Sui explained.
Kaito glanced back at his friends, a small smile forming. "Well… I guess that's our cue."
Kazu stood as well, stretching lazily. "Yeah, yeah. Go handle your important family stuff."
Mei smiled warmly. "Have a good evening."
Yumi gave a small wave. "…Bye."
"Bye, Yumi," Mei replied gently.
Kaito walked off with Sui and Yumi, but after a few steps, he glanced back one more time. Kazu was already talking again, animated as ever, while Mei listened with that quiet, patient smile of hers.
Kaito watched them for a moment, something amused flickering in his expression.
They really do fit.
With that thought lingering in the back of his mind, he turned forward again, following the path leading back toward the estate.
The next sacred event of the Whispering Wind Festival was about to begin.