Totoko's eyes widened in shock as my blood-red hues calmly gazed back, a coy smile tugging at my lips while my fingers teased the hem of the veil, "Didn't think I'd use it?"

"I'd rather you use it in my presence," The priestess scoffed, quickly pulling out more ofuda and breaking their binds, "Easier than hunting you down."

My breath passed between my lips with a deathly chill, pursing them until a bristling gale formed, Totoko fleeing from the freezing sigh. It was difficult to track her movements in the warehouse and I had no intentions to aim anywhere near Jyushimatsu. The yokai living within me was certain that the inugami was still alive, merely unconscious from the talismans that kept his physical body comatose.

The winter winds outside responded to my presence, growing ever colder as frost began to creep into the warehouse, spreading along the crevices and joints closest to me before spreading out to other areas.

"You won't be able to survive, Totoko," I tried to plead with our childhood friend, feeling an overwhelming urge to let loose a blizzard within the building, "If you let us leave now, Nagoya won't lose decades of history."

Chanting was my only response, stepping aside as more ofuda sheets attempted to attach themselves to my body.

Colder.

The warehouse temperature plummeted into sub-freezing, the previously warm air chilling quickly while the moisture became trapped in particles that swelled into snowflakes. I could hear the wooden bookshelves creak and groan at the drop in ambient temperature, some of the thinner shelves snapping and allowing their load to topple to the floor.

Wind ripped through the doorways, screams of innocent bystanders growing as I moved back towards Jyushimatsu.

"I c-can't let you flee, traitor!" Totoko's voice betrayed her shuddering, taking a step out from one of the aisles behind me. I only looked at her from over a shoulder, my red hues focused on her determined expression, "I will be the one to f-fix your mistake!"

"You refused the brush, so you have nothing to do with this," I could see her fingertips growing blue with cold, tears freezing on her eyelashes. The yuki-onna begged to drain her dry; it took everything I had to not reach out and take Totoko's life.

The priestess tried to keep her grip on the ofuda sheets, failing to hide her fear when the sheets flew from her fingertips and tossed away by the constant wind blowing within the warehouse. I took the chance to pick up Jyushimatsu, careful to not touch the ofuda binding him, and turned back to Totoko who had fallen to her knees trembling with cold.

Without sparing her a glance, I walked by Totoko and out of the warehouse as the snow began to accumulate along the ground outside. Cradling Jyushimatsu in my arms gently, I urged the wind to carry us away from here, a northerly wind graciously picking me up and allowing me to ride it to the west.

My veil kept us hidden from mortal eyes as we passed a mountain range, feeling myself grow weaker as the sun began to set. The wind no longer cared about me, quickly dropping me towards the ground and throwing me onto a snowy field with abandon.

I held onto Jyushimatsu as long as I could, stifling a cry as we tumbled to a stop before sliding further down as the valley tapered from a cliff. Snow caked onto my clothes and bag from the roll, my hands clearing off what I could reach before a black stick caught my eye a few feet from us.

No...not a stick.

A fude brush, completely swallowed by darkness.

My brush.

I hesitantly reached out and picked it up, the wood handle feeling much more fragile than a day ago. Tears pricked at my eyes as the heavy realization that I could've become a yokai settled onto my mind, thanking every ounce of luck I had that the brush didn't break.

Fear began to settle on my shoulders as I gently placed the brush back into its hiding pouch, my hands trembling as I knelt on the snow.

I cried until I had nothing left, my body exhausted from both the transformations and the sudden travel. Night had fallen sometime before I regained my senses, feeling the cold air freeze the fresh tear tracks on my face.

Only then did I remember about Jyushimatsu, looking to find where he had fallen and quickly crawling over to him. I brushed off the snow from his body and carefully removed the ofuda, peeling the talismans off his skin and clothes before tearing them up.

His breathing deepened before his eyes opened, the ice blue hues staring up into the night sky before lowering down to my trembling form.

Jyushimatsu was quick to envelope me, ensuring that my cool body was close to his warmth, "I'm sorry."

"There's nothing...to be sorry for, Jyushimatsu."

"Yes, there is," His stern tone quieted any thought I had, "I should've been more on guard. I wouldn't have been sealed and you wouldn't have felt the need to use the brush."

"...then you know?" I pressed my face into his shoulder, slightly clenching onto his outer robes.

"I do."

I wasn't sure if I felt relief or worry at the confession.

Jyushimatsu didn't break the silence around us, continuing to hold me close as I slowly warmed up.

"I..." My throat wasn't ready to speak, forcing me to swallow some saliva, "I brought us as far west as I could...closer to home."

"I will carry you the rest of the way."

I could only hum in acknowledgement as he picked me up and began walking towards our childhood town.

Days and nights passed, Jyushimatsu remaining ever vigilant while I rested. The journey was uneventful, thankfully.

I could see the ruined town creep over the hill as the sun sat high in the wintery blue sky, my grip on Jyushimatsu's clothing tightening for a moment before I made it clear that I wanted to be set down.

The buildings that I grew up around -- homes and shops that once held friendly faces -- were left shattered, broken wooden splintered while heavy stone roofs were left to collapse onto the feeble wooden frames. Scorch marks of an old fire raging left some panels charred and burnt, paper banners eaten up by the flames.

My feet numbly carried me to the stationary store that I visited with my father, the once warm storefront now buried with snow that had drifted in through the broken doors and collapsed roof. I barely recognized the restaurant where my family planned my betrothal to the Matsuno children, the snow creating a serene snapshot over the destruction.

The Yowai house bore less damage than the rest of the town, but the evidence of a battle remained underneath the growing snow cover.

The Matsuno house was destroyed, flattened down to its foundation. I couldn't bring myself to look at the two graves that Ichimatsu and I had dug for his parents.

I began to wail as my family home, once standing proud in the middle of a grassy field with walls bordering the property line...was nowhere to be found. Not even the foundation remained.

Large claw marks gouged out the earth where the house used to stand, clear evidence of Jyushimatsu's rampage. The gouges had also destroyed the graves I had made for my parents, opening the dirt wide for easy access to the bodies underneath.

My legs no longer had the strength to carry me as I screamed as loudly as I could, hiding my face in my arms as they pressed into the snow-covered dirt. Tears ran hot down my cheeks before the winter cold chilled them, my grief never turning to anger towards Jyushimatsu.

The sky began to don its evening colors when I had the strength to sit back up, ignoring the cold nipping at my fingertips and toes. Numbly, I looked towards the small garden my mother tended to see some stubborn flowers trying to stand tall against the light snowfall, rising to my feet and solemnly walking over. With a gentle touch, I deftly plucked some of the white buds and whispered a prayer of guidance against their petals. My feet guided me to the open graves and I closed my eyes against the sight of the disturbed dirt, letting the flowers fall from my fingers into the hallowed place.

I offered a short prayer for peace to their souls, hoping that they wouldn't wander the earth in search of rest.

I took in as much air as my lungs would allow, straightening my posture before looking back towards Jyushimatsu, who did not move from where I grieved.

"You said that you didn't touch the storehouse."

"I did," He only nodded, his ice blue eyes looking anywhere else but at my feet. I presumed it was because of guilt.

"Let's go, then," I tucked my hands into the sleeves of my winter furs, pressing them against the warm skin and leading the way towards the back of my family's property. Jyushimatsu followed me as I retraced my steps from memory, relief washing over my nerves when the large storehouse stood untouched underneath the snow.

My heart fell as I spotted the thick metal lock keeping the sliding doors together, unsure if I remembered where the spare key was kept.

"May I?" Jyushimatsu motioned towards the lock, waiting for my approval that I gave absentmindedly. He stepped closer to the device and gripped it tightly in his left hand, suddenly wrenching it to the side as metal snapped loudly in the silence. I blinked in surprise when he showed me the shattered lock, half hanging from the doors while the other half was resting on his palm.

"Remind me to not betray you," I tried to joke, thanking him as I pushed the doors apart to reveal the interior, "There should be a wood stove around...Ah, over there."

I pointed towards the small heating element, Jyushimatsu following my silent instructions as he gathered some wood to burn. It wasn't large enough to cook anything on, but the heat it gave off would push back the cold weather outside.

I closed the doors while he tended to the fire, the heat instantly rolling through the storehouse and warming my toes while I tried to remember where I had found the brushes. One shelving unit stood out to me, an empty place on its higher displays.

The memory of a much younger me taking the ornate wooden chest tied shut with red rope surfaced in my head, one of my hands absentmindedly resting on the space.

My mind snapped back to the present, quickly looking at the contents of the shelving unit. My eyes widened in realization.

Everything was here.

Everything that I needed to make more brushes were right here!

I quickly took stock of what was present and compared it to the journal I had compiled my notes in, chewing on my bottom lip nervously when my finger trembled on the last ingredients.

Seven brushes had been used with mine left intact.

The storehouse only had enough materials to make six brushes...meaning that one of us would be left cursed.

Would I sacrifice one of the brothers to remain a yokai?

Would I save all six of them?

My brow furrowed with anxiety as my eyes glanced over to Jyushimatsu, still tending to the fire, before I looked back at the journal.

If I wanted to cure all seven of us, I would have to collect more horse hair and white oak...but the process would take two weeks.

My memory reminded me that I had no time left. One more use of my own brush and I was lost like the others, only a couple of more frights from Karamatsu before he stole my life.

I didn't know what to do.