David
***January 6th, 2023.***

*It was the middle of winter in Borå- I mean Isakstad. As far as the eye could see, the Swedish landscape was covered in a thick, white blanket of snow. Despite the fact that the Sun hung so low in the sky, the snow reflected quite a lot of sunlight, giving the impression of a glowing surface. It was only 1:13 PM, but there were only a mere 2 hours left of sunlight, due to the high northern latitude of Isakstad.*

*Inside of a second floor dorm, inhabited by two people, a painfully shy Japanese girl and a relatively more outgoing, green-haired man of the same ethnicity. The girl, Nakanishi Yusuke, was waiting patiently for her friend, Mamoru Koyama, to change into warmer clothes. Just a few minutes ago, they both had agreed to go outside of the Cradle and play in the snow together for the very first time since they met. While it was a mostly safe activity, definitely fun but cold, Nakanishi couldn't help but worry about what could go wrong. What if Mamoru got buried? What if he gets hurt in some way? What if they get lost and separate? What if they get hit by a snowstorm?! These what-ifs have plagued her mind ever since they agreed to go.*

*However, her train of thought was derailed when she heard the sound of a door unlocking. Nakanishi sat up just in time to see Mamoru walk out of the bathroom, wearing clothes that looked very suited for the conditions outside. Nakanishi was a little less prepared; all she had was her gray coat with a skirt of the same fabric that flared about 10 centimeters outwards while extending down to her knees, and black sweatpants that covered her legs down to her ankles. She had no scarf, or mittens/gloves, or hat of her own. For some reason, she still has not learned any Swedish despite spending months in the Cradle, so she could not buy her own with the savings she had.*

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*Realizing it was already time to go, Nakanishi hopped out of bed and put her shoes on. They were still her standard-issue slip-on shoes that came with her highschool uniform before she was transferred to the Cradle. They were small, of course. They made clicky sounds whenever she stepped, which Nakanishi liked. When she felt like she was ready, she pulled her phone out of a drawer next to her bed, a black Samsung Galaxy A20, and opened her translator app. She typed into it for a few moments before facing the screen towards Mamoru. In the output box, displaying English instead of Japanese, it read:* [I am ready whenever you are, Koyama-San.]
Eugene
He's never really played in the snow. Sure, he has *Sometimes*, but never for *Long.* Always just a short snowball fight or two in a season. 

It's cold, very cold, but he's loaded up in jackets and scarves to defend against it.

Calling Mamoru "Outgoing" Only works when you compare him to someone like his roommate. He hurries out to meet up with her once he's changed. He finds himself being really excited- almost childishly excited- about this.

Seeing Nishi's lack of winter clothing causes him to worry a bit. *Maybe her ability gives her a lot of resistance. It's fine.*

This is one of those activities that can be enjoyed despite a language barrier.

But it's still good to have that app.

He grins, typing into his phone which was also at the ready:


[Ready when you are, Nishi.]
David
*Nakanishi put her phone down slightly so she could see the translated message that Mamoru had typed on his own phone. "[Ready when you are, Nishi.]" Nakanishi wasn't sure what it was, but having been given a nickname like that made her smile a little bit. A genuine smile. She nodded and placed her phone into her coat pocket for safekeeping. Her arms returned to a resting position, with her hands holding each other one-over-the-other just in front of her waist.*

*Nakanishi was ready. She thought there wasn't much she needed to play in the snow, thinking it was simply a matter of dressing warm enough to keep you from shivering when outside for long enough. The winter day in Isakstad was much colder than usual - her weather app reported a chilling -8 degrees Celsius. However, Nakanishi had never experienced temperatures that low compared to her more temperate home city of Koriyama. On cold days, she would bundle up in a few blankets and a plate of hot food to keep herself warm.*

*And now, she was willingly going out into the freezing cold. Nakanishi shivered at the thought of it, but what could be so bad about it when she's going to play with her current best friend (deepest apologies Uriel)? When Mamoru turned to the door and began walking out of the dorm, Nakanishi followed closely behind him until she exited the room, which permitted her the space to walk alongside him, and so that was what she did.*

*The view out of every window was a dull shade of gray. The sky was overcast, and the snow was, of course, still blanketing the ground. The Cradle was a little colder than room temperature, but her coat was able to keep her perfectly warm. Her shoes clicked along the hallways as she walked alongside Mamoru at a slightly sluggish pace. Each click echoed through the hallways a few times. A childish urge overcame Nakanishi - the urge to speak and hear her voice echo. She remembered what the English word "Echo" Sounded like from her past. Her parents spoke in a place where their voices echoed, and she copied them. She inhaled, cupped her hands over her mouth to form a "Megaphone", and...!*

「エ、エコ。」


*Her soft voice, lined with a very obvious Japanese accent, echoed only once, but that was enough to satisfy the girl, who smiled once more as she heard her voice reverberate through the hallway, just like her shoes were. She didn't seem to mind her stutter too much.*
Eugene
Moru debates pulling his hair up or not. He ends up just deciding to not do it, but he has the hair tye on his wrist just in case.

He likes being able to make Nishi smile. She's a sweet kid, and she gets so caught up in her own head when it comes to things. Plus it gives him a sense of *Importance,* Feeling at least somewhat responsible for keeping her happy. 

-8 Celcius is around 17 degrees F. Kentucky winters aren't as cold, but it's only like a 10-20 degree difference so he figures he probably won't die.

His coat *Mostly* Keeps out the chill, but it's probably not going to be enough. Oh well, it's not like he'll get sick.





Right?

Anyways, he also had the urge to say something that would echo. Who doesn't? He smiles. Echo and Ekō sound similar enough so he knows exactly what she was trying to do. He inhales, but can't bring himself to, so he just grins and gives a thumbs up. 

He wants to say it but that self consciousness- even though it's just Nakanishi- doesn't allow him to. He's happy she did.

He goes a bit ahead to open the door and hold it for them both.
David
*Nakanishi hoped she would be able to grow her hair long enough to put it into a low bun someday. She always thought that a bun would look cute on her. However, her jet black hair would never really make it past her neck due to her parents arranging periodic haircuts for her, if you could even call them that. They were more like trimmings, only cutting off a few centimeters at a time. She felt a tiny bit envious of Mamoru's long hair. She wondered if his parents never got haircuts for him, or he made the choice on his own to grow it out so much.*

*Anyways, when Mamoru held the door open for her, Nakanishi turned her body towards him and bowed for a couple of seconds as a non-vocal way of saying "Thank you" Before continuing out the door. Unfortunately, as soon as she took a few steps into the crunchy Swedish snow, a chilly gust of wind blew through the town. When the wind hit Nakanishi and Mamoru, a few shivers ran down her spine as she felt the frigid, dry air blow into her face. In an attempt to regain some of her warmth, Nakanishi began to do that one thing where you'd hug yourself in the winter to keep yourself warm - I don't know what it's called or how to explain it, but I think you know what I'm talking about, right? Anyway again, hugging herself barely worked, but it would satisfy her as she felt her body warm itself back up, just a little bit.*

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*Nakanishi had never experienced temperatures this cold before. Sure, sometimes it would go down to freezing in her home city of Koriyama, but it very rarely snowed, unlike Isakstad, where it was a seasonal occurrence. The air she now breathed made her lungs ache from a lack of moisture. Not a pleasant feeling at all, but one that Nakanishi could just ignore so that she and Mamoru could play in the snow. She turned back to him, making sure he was following her out of the building before she turned to the right to see the pedestrian gate. Nakanishi was starting to become nervous to go out of the gate with Mamoru, considering they both were Paranormals. However, Nakanishi would always be let out for a while so she could go find Muto-San, so what would be so bad about going with Mamoru? She turned back to Mamoru again as he walked up next to her, waiting for his confirmation that he was ready.*
Corina
Hey uh
Quick question
Todd
SOON. Sorry for taking so long w this writing long stuff is hard recently
Eugene
The truth is that Mamoru's parents never cared to try to cut it. And he's glad of that, but it really is just another instance of them ignoring him. Whatever.

He smiles at her little way of saying thank you, then going out himself and- *Oh my god that's cold.* He lets out a nervous laugh despite the chill. Ohhhh boy this better be fun. And he's sure it will be.

He leaves the gates with no issues at all. Mamoru doesn't feel nervous about their status at all. He never has. In fact, he goes out to town often when he doesn't feel like shit.

So he knows a good field they can play in- open, and safe most importantly.
David
*Nakanishi followed Mamoru to the gate silently. The white, powdery snow beneath them crunched satisfyingly under their shoes with each step they took. Footprints outlining the shapes and designs of their shoes and outsoles were left on the ground behind them. Nakanishi watched Mamoru pass through the gate with ease, using his ID card. Nakanishi took her own ID card out of her coat pocket and scanned it. The gate unlocked for her, and she was allowed to exit with him.*

*Now outside of the Cradle, the environment was already starting to feel noticeably colder, despite the air temperature having mostly remained the same. Nakanishi tried to preserve more of her own body heat by embracing herself a little tighter. Unfortunately, this didn't seem to help at all as Nakanishi had only partially dressed properly for the southern Swedish winter. Coat? Check. Long, somewhat insulating pants? Check. Socks? Check. Nakanishi did not have a scarf, mittens or gloves, a hat, or a thicker coat to insulate herself further, however. All that Nakanishi could hope for is that she would at least make it through an hour or more of playing time.*

*With every visit to Isakstad, Nakanishi always went into the inner city just so she could visit her beloved Muto-San, and that was it. Nakanishi didn't know of any good places within the city where they could play in the snow in peace without the fear of being judged, leaving her feeling a little worried about where they would play. She trusted Mamoru's judgement though, so she thought that he'd be able to find them a nice spot.*