A blanket of clouds covered the sky, but Yuuri already had all of the sunshine that he needed. Viktor was leaning on his shoulder, humming quietly. They were thinking up plans of escape together, as well as simply enjoying each other's company.

"Yuuri?" Viktor broke the silence softly.

"Yes, gekkou?" (Yuuri had decided to start calling him this, it meant "moonlight.")

"Tried to… Escape once. No good." Viktor sounded a bit rueful. Feeling a bit confident, Yuuri slipped an arm around his slim waist.

"Can you tell me what happened?" he pressed gently. Viktor laughed bitterly.

"I ran. Yurio helped. No get far, hair touched ground. Oni found I." Yuuri tried to keep his muscles from tensing in apprehension when he heard that. He didn't want Viktor to know how much this frightened him, because he didn't want him to worry as well.

"The oni could sense where you were when your hair touched the ground?" Suddenly, the task of rescuing Viktor seemed far more daunting. If the treasure demon could detect when metal touched the earth, then they would have to keep his braid up the entire journey.

Viktor nodded. "Yes." He then moved so that he was facing Yuuri, eyes bright. What was he doing? He suddenly reached for Yuuri's tachi, which was lying, sheathed, nearby on the boulder. Yuuri gasped.

"What are you-" Viktor drew it and positioned it under his hair, which he pulled taut. Panic rose like a tidal wave in Yuuri's chest. 'He's going to end up hurting himself, or-'

A loud noise that sounded like a knife being sharpened echoed through the clearing. Yuuri expected to see Viktor's beautiful hair hacked short, but… There was a clatter as the sword landed on the rock. And there was Viktor, tresses still completely intact. The razor-sharp blade hadn't even made a nick in the metal. Clear disappointment was etched onto Viktor's face, something Yuuri rarely saw. A single tear streaked down his cheek like a drop of starlight, and Yuuri wanted to cry too.

Gingerly, Yuuri grabbed the tachi's handle and sheathed it again. Viktor wrapped him in a tight embrace.

"Don't worry, gekkou. We'll think of something." Yuuri was already fitting the pieces in place. "I could bring my horse? We could wrap your braid in the saddle, and I can carry the rest. How does that sound?" He hoped that he was offering some comfort, but he was never sure. He felt like he was always bad at consoling people.

Viktor pulled away and nodded with a hopeful smile.

"Yurio help?" he suggested.

"How?" Yuuri inquired, confused. What would he do, hold some hair in his teeth?

Viktor laughed, and called something over to Yurio, who was sitting on the bank grooming himself. (The river was quiet that day.) The cat shot him a glare and then continued to lick his paw. "Yurio can…" Viktor gestured with his hands something small growing large.

"Explode?" Yuuri whispered, eyes wide in concern.

"No, no no." Viktor chuckled. "Change. To human." Yurio was a shapeshifter? "Will help," he assured.

Some relief washed over Yuuri, soothing his nerves a bit. This was starting to feel possible. They spent the rest of the day working out the details, and it seemed that everything was coming together smoothly.

Finally, the day had arrived. Yurio had arrived at Yuuri's doorstep. They met eyes, and Yuuri knew that it was time. The perfect opportunity. The forest was relatively clear of underbrush, the distance to the river was shorter than usual, and the water was narrow and low. He had ridden as fast as he could without getting ahead of Yurio (who had been sprinting). He'd been desperate to see Viktor again. For a long while now, his sleep had been restless as he thought of all of the things that could possibly go wrong. He had worried that the oni had overheard them planning, and had done something horrible to Viktor.

But no, there he was in all his glory, waving happily like always. Yuuri waved back and realized that he was beaming too. He guided his horse close to the bank.

"Stay, Chiyo." She obeyed, and he flung his geta and tabi aside so that he could start crossing the water. He stumbled over the rocky river bottom, practically running. Viktor stretched out his arms as Yuuri got closer, longing in his ocean-colored eyes. He leaned down and pulled Yuuri into a fierce embrace. Yuuri drank in his scent and then pushed him away gently, almost having to pry Viktor off.

"I'll carry you," he offered bashfully. Viktor gave a huge smile and clambered halfway down the rock before leaning into Yuuri's waiting arms. Yuuri adjusted his hold on Viktor so that he was more secure, and then headed towards the shore. Even though Viktor was taller than him, he was pretty light. His hair was extremely heavy, however, and Yuuri looped it around his upper arm while he pulled so that it wouldn't tug on Viktor's scalp. He gently set him down on dry land, careful to not let his braid touch the ground. He noticed that it was more intricately woven that day; five strands instead of three. It was gorgeous for something that was such a burden, shimmering innocently in the sun.

Viktor looked as if he could cry tears of joy. Yuuri couldn't blame him, finally being off of that rock after so long. He lifted his eyes and saw an oddly familiar-looking boy with long golden hair standing there, glaring off to the side. He was clothed in a long white tunic embroidered with scarlet trim and baggy royal-blue trousers. There were no shoes on his small feet.

"Yurio?" The boy looked over, irritated.

"What?" he demanded, scowling.

"Oh, nothing," Yuuri dismissed quickly, and began gathering up hair. Silently, Yurio joined him. Viktor took a considerable amount of hair in his arms, and Yuuri piled the braid onto Chiyo's kura saddle, wrapping the plait tightly around it so that it wouldn't slip. Yurio and Yuuri took the rest of it. Yuuri hadn't realized just how long it was until that point, and it amazed him. He wanted to see Viktor's hair when it was down; surely that would be a breathtaking sight. Rivers of silver flowing everywhere… There was such an abundance of hair that it almost looked like the three of them had robbed a store of their finest silk.

Before they began their journey, Viktor kissed Yuuri sweetly on the mouth. His lips were so soft, and warmed Yuuri from the tips on his toes to the top of his head. He felt as if he could melt.

"Luck," Viktor explained, grinning cheekily. Stunned and heart pounding, Yuuri smiled back. With worry twisting in his belly, he entered the misty forest.

Would they succeed in saving Viktor? Would the oni catch them? Above their heads, birds chirped cheerily and flitted back and forth. Pale lily-of-the-valley blossoms, their bell-shaped heads bowed, lined the path towards an uncertain future.