/jp/ - Otaku Culture

She'd switched the shirt for a turtleneck sweater exactly like my own, though it was black and matched her the colour of her shirt. With her overalls gone, she had opted for a skirt that came down to her calves, and as my eye followed her figure downward, she lifted the hem of the dress slightly to show that she was wearing tights, which I assumed went all the way up to her waist. Her shoes had been replaced with thick, heavy looking boots, the sort of thing that could hammer through the snow with ease. She turned and pulled her scarf from the door of the wardrobe, followed by the coat that she had worn in the past. "What do you think?" She asked me. I nodded and said that it looked very cosy and warm. Yamame nodded, then stepped close to me and snaked her arms around my hips. "Mhm. Feels that way too. Not as warm as staying in bed all day with you, though." I smiled unconsciously.

"Well..." Yamame sighed, letting go, then turning back and proceeding, this time, to the desk. She picked up a large package that had been sitting there and pulled the lip off to show it to me. "Her hood. Good?" It certainly looked good. Red, with fur lining on the inside and a fur trim on the outside, the sort of thing that would be perfect for the cold. "I made the trim detachable, see?" Yamame pointed it out and I saw that there was a thin strip of fabric with buttons that connected to the hood, so it could be pulled off when the weather got warmer. "Below there, there's a version without the fur on the inside for the Summer." I nodded, impressed but not really surprised by Yamame's skill anymore. My own clothing was a testament to her high quality.

Finally ready to go, we hopped down from the upper level and stepped outside. Yamame closed the door and off we went down the tunnels. Here, Yamame tried to needle the answers from me about what Kisami and I were up to, but I managed to remain silent even when she gave me her most pleading eyes. It was hard work, but I hoped that it would be worth it in the end. As we approached the surface end of the tunnel, I felt pleased because the light bouncing into the tunnel looked bright enough that the entrance hadn't been buried under the snow again. I was less pleased when the entrance itself came into view and I realised that the reason for that was because it was still snowing outside. Heavily, in fact. I looked over at Yamame, then threw my hand out to grab the back of her coat as she tried to spin around and march away. "Wh-, No! Let me go!" She cried, but I dived forward and wrapped my arms around her to stop her. "It's too cold! I don't want to walk through all that snow! You can’t do this to me!" She struggled in my arms, but clearly didn't have her heart in it because I was sure I couldn't compete with a youkai's strength. "Oh..." She groaned. "Okay." I nodded cheerfully and released her, reminding her that she was so wrapped up in clothing that she'd be complaining about being too hot before long. "I...Don't believe you." She muttered defiantly.

Now ready for a second attempt, we waded into the snow. Well, I waded and Yamame floated above the snow. I looked up at her, betrayed. "Look, I sympathise, but I'm not walking through all of this. I'll have to walk in the Bamboo Forest of the Lost, anyway." So, I muttered something under my breath about unfair advantages and carried in. Fortunately, the snow was more densely packed after getting some ways from the cave entrance, and progress sped up after that. There was little wind, too, so while the sky was completely full of snow and visibility was poor at best, it wasn't impossible and it could have been far worse, so I remained cheerful as I fought through in the direction of the village.

Yamame, however, was not cheerful. "It's so cold, and I already feel all wet from the snow, and - Urgh, it's getting in my hair and-" She yelped at this point. "Ah! It's going down my back! Oh, I hate this so much! I hate you. You did this to me! I just wanted to hide under my bed for the next three months, but no! My stupid human thinks that I need to go out in this miserable weather just to deliver this stupid hood! I hate you so much!" No, she didn't, I replied absently as I scooped up a pile of snow and formed a snowball, which I aimed at the small of her back. "Gyah! That was - Did you just throw the snow at me!?" I innocently replied in the negative. "You did! That’s so cruel! Don't lie to me, you little-" And it went on for hours.

At least, it felt like hours. At some point, I started tuning the ranting out somewhat, since there were only so many ways Yamame had found to express how much she hated me and how much she hated the snow. Finally, as we came into the village, I was forced to pull Yamame back down to the ground since it would be even more conspicuous than we already were if I walked through the village with a floating girl at my side.