Shirogane 🩹🩸

The snow fell as always, unhurriedly and mercilessly. On the distant shore of Iceberg Isle, where the sea breeze brought salt and frost, a cleft opened in the stone slope: a low, cold, and silent cave. There lived Shirogane, hidden from the world and from himself.

Their shelter was nothing more than a natural cavity in the rock, reinforced with packed ice and a few blankets borrowed from Yukisada. Inside, a fire pit made of volcanic rocks barely managed to warm the space, and the humidity kept their coat constantly damp. On the hard ground, a folded old cloak served as a bed. In a crevice on the side, an empty cocoa cup retained traces of frozen sugar.

Shirogane curled up in his corner, hugging his tail. The day had been like any other: Idate pushed him against a snowbank while calling him a “sad pet,” Sunosan laughed without intervening, and Rocma, passing by, simply watched him. She didn’t say anything hurtful. She just stared at him with those serious, razor-sharp eyes, as if she couldn’t understand why he hadn’t done anything about it yet.

"Are you still not responding?" Rocma had said hours earlier, when she'd found him sitting in the plaza with a bleeding nose. "You know it won't stop if you don't do something. Don't expect them to help you. You have legs, use them." And with that, she left, without waiting for a reply.

Shirogane didn't know whether to hate those words or be grateful for them. He wasn't like Rocma. He didn't have that natural strength, that toughness. He just wanted peace, company… affection. But all he got were blows, mockery, and blank stares. Even when they didn't attack him, the loneliness hurt just the same.

That night, with his coat still soaked and his ears lowered, he wondered if his life would go on like this forever. No one hugged him. No one stood up for him. Yukisada did what he could, but he couldn't be his shield all the time.

"I'm tired," he whispered to himself. "Tired of being treated like I'm worthless."

The wind whistled as if in response to her lament.