To say the least, the early morning wouldn't have been unpleasant. The sun could have settled nicely on the corners of the neighbourhood houses and the clouds drifted across the blue yonder in lazy puffs, endearing her enthusiasm to continue her lovely early walk. Birds would be glorified shadows amongst the sunrise as they flew overhead and the songs of the new day would be the comforting silence of a still sleeping city. But then it wasn't, dawn had long since passed and it didn't go as pleasantly as he orignally thought. She'd stare at the mirror and brush the tangles out of the frothy, white silks on her head, gradually learning how to braid her long ponytail for who knows why. She'd dress herself in some short black pants and a matching sports bra to accomodate for the exercise that she was about to commit to.

The town was still and tranquil, as if no one dared to disturb the silence and one young woman would be found jogging in the streets of Baska. It wasn't a habit until vry recently, and her idle days have grown into someting more rigorous and strick, bidding her own laws and crafting straw dummies by hand. Her face was a new and foreign one, but the town wasn't to her, and the few civilians that wandered among the roads would stare at her as she passed by. But they did not stir from fear, rather, people liked to stare at odd, shiny things from afar, and she was no different. The woman didn't want to acknowledge whatever they found interesting on her features, be it her clothes or her expressionless face, and she simply busied himself with the morning jog.

Beneath the linings of her worn soles was the sound of scattering, most notably tiny mounds of pebble and dirt that filtered through the spaces in her steps. The harsh, frigid gales that blew across the land were undeniably cold, yet, her attire stated otherwise. It wasn't as if the she was bothered by the winter season and in fact, she loved the cold biting into her skin and now that she had just begun jogging along the path, her body was starting to break out into a fine dew of perspiration.

In the event that the demon encounters a soul with even the slightest memories of her, her reaction is almost always an awkward mix of confusion and awe, but mostly the latter; and it was only very recently that she'd decided to don a relaxed disposition when someone familiar stumble upon her. This should've been how it played out as soon as the dark haired female called out to her from across the road.

"Alisa."

Her tone consisted of a hint of surprise as she grabbed the towel wrapped around her neck and gently patted down the beads of perspiration that rolled down the features of her face. Though Snowflake's expression of astonishent was steadfast upon her paling face, her resolution to stay calm and collected never fled her mind. Her journeys were very rarely mundane as she was, at best, quite gifted in assuming a stroll whenever the times were most interesting. It was as if there had been a compass implanted into her head that always directed the Fiore-bound wizard to a fascinating venture in wait, and now, meeting an old ally of hers.

It has been months since their last enounter, which was back in Hargeon when the war between their own guild and the infamous Grimoire Heart began. The memories were most certainly dreadful – the death of their previous master and the destruction of their guild hall. Unwilling to reminisce those times, Snowflake immediately pushed her thoughts away but merely, focused on the present.

"What a plesant coincidence. I was wondering where all of you went after the meeting."

Her pace reduced momentarily and settled beside Alisa, so as to commit their morning workout together. It seemed the the two maidens apparently had the same thoughts to enjoy a jog in this lovely morning and fortunately enought, they had stumbled their way to each other. "What brings you to Baska?" She tossed her towel over her shoulder once again and with a much slower momentum, she began to walk – briefly taking a rest to have a small chat with her guild mate before they continued with their rigourous training. After all, it had been a long while since they've seen each other; there was a lot of catching up to do.

Silvery irises absently wander over the other female's body and admired her physique, despite how exhaused she appeared from the workout. There was only one that she knew who would look magnificent in a swimsuit and it was no other than the woman standing right across her, and she was not surprised by the fact. Healthy diet and morning exercises, such as these, would have assisted her in gaining a body that most women would be envious of. Certainly, the females in Blue Pegasus were gorgeous women, but, Alisa was one of the epitomes of feminity and beauty.

"I see," the snow haired maiden nodded in acknowledgement. Unlike her, Snowflake didn't remain in Hargeon after the event – more so, she couldn't wait to get out of the town. After being in Hargeon for so long, she was growing tired of seeing the same things everyday, and needed to travel somewhere else to contemplate upon her current title; the guild master, as well as to sort things out on her own, specifically settle things with the demon within her.

The situation has improved so far and Snowflake felt better than before, although there were still complicated matters that she had yet to solve. She decided to push her burdens away and simply, decided to enjoy the time with her guild mate, whom she has missed since they parted ways.

"Oh, yes. The carnival. It was a very interesting event."

Snowflake recalled her memories of playing some mini-games in the carnival and receiving some pumpkins for exchange, which she wondered what they were used for until she later found out by the end of the event. Although the games were short and simple, she had fun at the very least, and was able to release her stress through it.

"Yes, the mission, I've heard of it. Chelvaric and I have even decided to take the mission. Have you found a partner for that one?"

Higher ranked quests were difficult to complete alone, and it was always better to have someone around, whether it was just for quests or to wait for time to pass by. The people she met mostly travelled to Baska for that reason, such as Seira and Alice and it wasn't necessarily a bad thing. They have a reason to travel to places – she didn't. "On a side note, anything interesting you have done here yet? Did you meet anyone?" It was an unexpected question that passed her lips, simply because she was curious of what her guild mate have been up to recently and it wasn't often that she would ask questions to anyone, only those who she deemed were close to her.

”Oh?” the woman pressed a finger against her chin, deep in thought. Snowflake had never paid much attention to people and certainly, not in the Pegasus Beach event since she was mostly blinded with winning all the rewards – not to mention – her horrible memory wouldn’t help her in this situation. ”Perhaps we might have faced her,” the woman frowned slightly as she began to recall her memories, but to no avail. The Pegasus Beach event had been one of the precious memories for her and despite having it celebrated right after the war and the death of their master, she found it rather enjoyable – though Finn seemed to be the only one who didn’t – she couldn’t blame him, after what happened.

”That’s a shame, I’d have invited you otherwise.”

The woman tossed her small towel over her shoulder once again and began her daily routine of workout once again, but in a much slower pace. Assuming that Alisa followed her lead, Snowflake spoke, ”I think we should go on quests together sometimes.” The thought had been on her mind for quite a while now, considering how it was herself who invited Alisa into their team and yet, they hadn’t even completed quests together. It was partly due to them losing contact of each other often, and most of the time, they were in separate places over the country for none of them were ones who liked to stick to a single location for so long.

As the two continued to jog through the streets of Baska, Snowflake finally came to notice that they have entered a more crowded area than they were at initially. Ogles and stares were directed in their direction, and people whispered among themselves as they passed by – some out of envy and some out of admiration for their beauty. Yet, the silver haired maiden didn’t want to acknowledge whatever they found interesting on her features, be it her uncanny glare or her peculiar choice of clothing in the chilly weather, and she simply busied herself with her daily morning routine of workout.

”Hm?”

The woman raised an eyebrow in response as she turned towards her fellow guild mate. The other female had suggested a very interesting challenge, and for the first time, Snowflake could be seen with a smug smile plastered across her pretty face. Her eyes glided across the street, only to fasten upon a group of cyclists who quickly threw the girls a curious glance before proceeding along the road. ”I’m up for the challenge,” she didn’t hesitate to give her reply and tossed a few loose strands of her translucent silver hair behind her ear.

Beads of sweat glistened on her forehead and her face would turn red due to the sunrays that shone upon the town of Baska. The sheen of sweat that lined her temple had become even more pronounced as the heat produced from her body clung tightly to her clothes, mimicking how several strands of blonde stuck to the corners of her face in a grubby fashion. They tangled over her slowly reddening complexion insistently, framing her features with the notion of exhaustion reaching her bones. Perhaps, it wasn’t the best idea to do the challenge for a couple of jewels from young boys albeit, she found the sport rather amusing.

Breath pale against the numbing air, Snowflake blinked thoughtfully as the frost patiently kissed her face, captivated by the soft, dusty illusions of light that sat heavy on her eyelashes. The woman stood still in her position while the young boys cycled ahead. Stormy orbs briefly calculated the distance between herself and their targets and despite of the growing interval, Snowflake was certain that she could catch up to them with slight ease – yet the woman made a mental note to herself not to be too aloof of her own capabilities, now that they had been tailored thanks to a significant growth in power in the prior months, an achievement that she quietly mulled over, time and time again.

Though, she knew better that her powers were none the greater against larger threats – not to mention, it would only mean that she would obtain more rivals due to her growing strength. Snowflake had been wanting to test her abilities, alongside her guildmate; one that she truly looked up to, ever since her own recruitment into the guild. The gap between them was almost incomparably large in the older days, albeit, the icy maiden had worked hard over the months to reduce the difference in their powers – slowly and surely.

Here she was – more enthusiastic than ever about their small, yet, meaningful competition. The woman gazed beyond her as she leaned onto her knees before pushing her feet forward, readying herself for the run.

”Are you ready?”

Snowflake turned to look at whom she would call one of her closest friends, only to give her a nod before Alisa suddenly announced the beginning of the game. The ebony haired beauty whizzed past her, leaving her stunned for a moment until she finally registered into her mind that the run had actually began.

”Oh, frick,” she muttered under her breath and raced forwards to catch up to her guild mate. Her hair sailed behind her like a kite as she ran, the sun catching its ends turning it platinum. Sweat cascaded down her temples and neck and surprisingly, she was having fun – more than she actually expected for herself to be. Dust and pebbles collected around her shoes and within a few seconds, she had caught up to the cyclists who turned to look at the girls with confusion written across their features.

It had been months since Snowflake used her own maximum abilities – the adrenaline rushed through her body and her heart pounded against her chest, threatening to lunge out of her ribcage, yet, she enjoyed the exhilarating feeling of the challenge. Along their speedy run, they would encounter twists and turns in which the frosty maiden would extend a hand slightly to her side as she summoned a glyph, allowing her to alter her angle with such ease and without affecting her momentum. It almost felt as if she was ice-skating; the wind carried her so fast she could barely feel the ground beneath her. For a brief moment, the young woman found herself grinning for the first time – she didn’t expect herself to take so much pleasure in this little race.

Was this cheating?

It was then Snowflake caught Alisa summoning a pair of skates as she travelled faster and further away from her.

Most definitely not.

No rules were made for the race between the Pegasi and thus, each of them would use the moment to their own advantage for victory. The gap slightly increased for a brief moment, until Snowflake decided to use the same method to guarantee her win. As her right foot came into contact with the hard ground, her speed increased, almost coming off as a dash and her legs would push her further forward, closing the distance that had temporarily grown in the previous second. The gap narrowed, as Snowflake approached her trusted guild mate closer and closer, till she finally settled right by the side of the obsidian haired female. The furthest cyclist was barely a meter away from them, and now…

Who would obtain the victory?

It was honestly a hard match, with each one of them catching up to other’s tails – the victory was uncertain. Sweat cascaded down her temples and cheeks, her skin covered with a fine sheen of perspiration as her silver hair blew behind her, along with the rhythm of the cool breeze. Beneath the linings of her own worn soles was the sound of scattering, most notably tiny mounds of pebble, dirt and snow that filtered through the spaces in her steps. She ran, her feet kissing the land. Perhaps, back then, she would have balked at the idea of running so far and fast, and now, she relished the prospect. These feet were made to travel at speed and as light as the paws of a lioness.

The idea of the competition had long passed her mind and the only thought that remained was the sudden realisation of her growth in power compared to her younger days as a mage. To be on par with one of her most respected seniors had been her goal, and seeing the difference between herself and them reducing over time certainly gave her a boost in her confidence, although none of that would have happened if she hadn’t put in any efforts, bidding her own laws and crafting straw dummies by hand.

Soon, she’d realise that the game was finally over and considering how they’d sped past the cyclist at the same time with the same momentum made it impossible for them to decide the final winner. ”Indeed,” she took in large gasps of air, releasing puffs of white vapour as she breathed. The woman rested her hands on her waist after coming to a full stop and her heart continued to hammer against her chest like a drum. ”We should do this more often,” she commented, sharing a brief smile towards her fellow guild mate – as in frequent as it was – content with the outcome of the little game.

The frosty beauty wiped away the beads of perspiration on her forehead with the back of her hand, since it seemed like she had dropped her towel somewhere behind in the distance. She wouldn’t even be surprised if her sneakers slipped off in the midst of the competition, she was travelling at her maximum speed after all. Not being used to having her body pushed too far over the limits, her muscles were already beginning to ache, which only meant that the work-out session did certainly turn out good for her. The young woman began to stretch her legs, and perhaps, she might perform a bit of cardio exercise afterwards, until Alisa mentioned that she would be going swimming.

Entering the pool would be the best relief after having their bodies sweat as if they had bathed in a puddle of wetness. As much as she was willing to tag along and experience the blissful feeling of being underwater, she promised her lover for a brunch date and she certainly wasn’t going to turn up drenched in sweat. Clothes tightly clung to her body like a child to its mother, and were unrelenting in the harsh gales that blew across the undulating lands of Baska. ”I’d love to join you, but I have to meet up with Chelvaric,” she almost sounded regretful to announce her decision as she absently tossed a few strands of silver hair over her shoulder.

Her relationship with Chelvaric was not known to most people, not even her guildmates, apart from Alice; one of her close acquaintances. It wasn’t as though she intended to hide the fact from everyone she knew – more so, she never obtained the opportunity to made her relationship public, considering how rarely she meets her friends. ”It was really nice catching up with you, Alisa.” She placed her arms around the other female and gave her a brief hug before adding,”I hope we see each other again soon.”

She meant those words, and perhaps, it might not take them months for the two to cross paths once again, like Alisa mentioned before.

With that, the Pegasus mage departed in the opposite direction, first to retrieve her towel and then, to return back to her rented apartment to get herself ready for the date.