The birds chirped merrily in the treetops, and the morning sun scattered warm light over the forest. I drowsily sat up and rubbed one of my eyes with a fist. I suppressed a yawn, trying to stay quiet so that I wouldn’t wake Berry, but when I looked up, I saw that he was already bright-eyed and alert.

“Good morning,” I said, surprised. These past few days, I’d always woken up before Berry. My gaze drifted over his chest. His dark and greyish skin was completely healed with nary a scar in sight. I suppose he didn’t need as much sleep now that he had fully recovered.

“...Good morning.” Berry crouched over the ground. He curved his back and hung his head low as if trying to make himself smaller, as he usually did. He always looked as if he was uncomfortable in his own skin. Berry placed a bowl with a mix of cut-up fruits and berries on the ground between us. “...Breakfast.”

He’d even made a fruit salad! I laughed, delighted at how quickly he’d decided to use my cooking lessons. “Thanks! It looks great. Let’s dig in.”

We ate breakfast at a sedate pace. The trees rustled from a slight breeze, and the sunspots flickered between the canopy. The fruit was sweet and ripe; the berries, tart. A trail of purple juice dripped down my fingers and trickled down palm, sliding toward my wrist. I raised my arm and licked it off before it could stain the sleeve of my shirt. When I glanced up, I found Berry staring at me. If things were like before, I wouldn’t have hesitated to lick the rest of my hand and fingers clean while throwing a sultry gaze at him. Now, though, I simply smiled and pulled out a handkerchief to wipe my hand.

“So, Berry. How are you feeling? How are your wounds?”

“All healed.”

“Thought so. Seems like this might be my last day here, then. Are you excited?”

I said it like a joke, but it was such an awkward question to ask. I cursed myself for asking it. Dumbass, even if you felt bitter, that didn’t mean you had to show it. Berry looked like he was about to reply, so I quickly changed the subject.

“But don’t think you’re rid of me just yet! There’s one more thing I want to teach you.” I stood up and brushed the dirt from my pants. “You should know of a clearing with open space and relatively flat, even ground, right? For this last lesson, we’ll need to go to a place like that.”

Berry watched me, his sharp eyes piercing. Whatever he looked for in my face, I was sure that he wouldn’t be able to find it; after a moment, he withdrew his gaze, nodded, and got up.

Berry led the way through the forest, and I followed him between the trees and shrubbery until we reached a glade filled with flowers. Row upon row of flowers lined the area, all of them different colors and species. This was nature’s very own cultivated garden. Berry carefully stepped onto the grass between the flowers, and I followed him to the center of the clearing.

“...Is this good?”

“Mhm. This is perfect!” I nodded while looking around. The ground was flat, and though rows of colorful flowers ringed us, there weren’t any beneath our feet. What a romantic place this was - perfect for what I would be teaching him today. I smiled up at Berry. “Have any ideas on what today’s lesson will be?”

Berry shook his head, his long hair swaying to and fro.

“Well, you’re about to find out. First, you’ll have to stand up straight. Make yourself as tall as you can be.”

Berry looked confused and reluctant, but after I nagged him, he finally complied. He raised his shoulders and straightened his back. His figure loomed over me. He must have been at least ten feet tall. The top of my head only reached the middle of his waist. It was easy to see how he could crush me, but I also couldn’t help but think about how wonderfully safe and nice it would feel to nestle up against him, wrapped up entirely in his arms.

I coughed to clear that delusion out of my head. “Alright. Next, you’ll need to take this hand and put it here, and hold this hand here…” I arranged his right hand and placed it on my back, then grasped his left hand with my own. I set my own left hand on his forearm. Though our size difference was comical, the position we were in was unmistakable. I smiled up at Berry’s confused face and said, “Today, you’ll be learning how to dance!”

“...?!”

“We don’t have music, but that’s alright. You just need to learn the steps and rhythm. Here, keep your hands steady; don’t pull away!”

Berry stood as stiff as a board, seeming like he wanted to bolt at any second. “Why… do I need to…”

I laughed and tugged at his hand. “Because what’s more romantic than a beautiful dance between you and your love interest? Besides, I think it’ll be interesting for you to have this up your sleeve; if you’re ever in a situation where someone expects you to dance, you’ll be able to blow them away. Alright?” I tilted my head as I looked up at him. “Come on. It’s not that bad to dance with me, is it?”

“...” Berry mulled it over. He decided by straightening his posture and firming his grip on my hand and back. I grinned at him.

“Alright - so, the dance we’ll be doing is the waltz. It’s pretty simple. Step forward with your left foot… and I step back at the same time, like this. Now step forward with your right foot, a little bit to the right… perfect.”

I instructed Berry on each of the dance steps, letting him get a feel of how he should be moving and how I, his partner, would react to his steps. Berry’s strides were incredibly long while my legs were comparatively short, so it took him a while to get a grip on the right balance of his movement. There were times where he inched his foot forward so little that I couldn’t move back or I would pull away from him, and there were times where he stepped forward too much, pushing me back to the point where the only thing keeping my upright was his grip on me. Once he got the pattern of the movement, though, we were able to move smoothly in circles, our steps matching perfectly.

“Great! Next, let’s try to follow the rhythm. Waltz music has a beat of one-two-three. We want to perform our steps according to this rhythm. One, two, three. One, two, three.” Berry stepped forward and I stepped back. Berry took another step and I took another step back. Berry moved to turn, and I turned along with him. “One, two, three. You’ve got it. Your lead is perfect.”

We spun in circles, our feet sweeping across the grass. The sunlight shone over Berry’s hair and skin. My lips rose in a soft smile, and I found myself humming the tune of a waltz as we danced.

Dum da da, dum da da; one two three, one two three.

“Want to see a neat trick?” I asked. Just as Berry stepped back, pulling me forward to meet him, I let go of his forearm and twirled under his arm. Berry looked bewildered when he found me standing beside him, his left hand and my right still intertwined. Not missing the beat, I took another pace forward, turning slightly to the right. Berry seemed to catch on quickly; he also took another step forward, turning to meet me. His right hand once again settled on my back, while my left rested upon his forearm, bringing us back to our original position.

We seamlessly continued the dance steps and flowed in circles. I laughed, remembering the shock on Berry’s face.

“Not bad. You picked up fast. What do you think?”

“Let’s do it again.”

I looked up. Berry stared down at me, a wide smile on his face. The sun shimmered through the curtain of his hair, illuminating every contour and detail of Berry’s features. In this instance, no matter how inhuman and strange his face was, he looked utterly beautiful to me.

My heart pounded as I let go of his forearm and twirled.

One, two, three. One, two three.

Ba-dump, ba-dump, ba-dump.

We continued dancing until the sun was well into the sky.

It was time for lunch. I stared at Berry and wondered if I could make an excuse to stay until dinner. And after dinner, until tomorrow. And after tomorrow…

But this fantasy wouldn’t survive past today. Soon, the wheels of fate would begin to turn, and the world would begin changing - whether I was ready for it or not.

For the sake of everything I had been doing up until now, I had no choice but to be ready.

Thus, on that afternoon, I hitched my horse back to my carriage and said goodbye to Berry.

This might be the last time I ever saw him; I was reluctant to leave just like that. So, as I stood by my carriage, I found myself dithering and looking down at my feet for the first time in ages. The last time I had been so unsure of myself, I had been a child listening to the life my father and mother had decided for me.

There was something I wanted, but I didn’t know how to get it. This was something I couldn’t negotiate for. There was nothing I could trade to convince Berry give this to me. None of my experience as a trader would help me with this. As I wondered what I should do, a large hand landed upon my head. Berry softly stroked my hair.

“Klue... I’ll miss you.”

I stared down at the ground. Somehow, I couldn’t see clearly. A watery film had gathered over my eyes. It slowly dripped down over the dirt.

I reached out to grip one of Berry’s fingers.

“Berry… I want to hug you.”

“Okay.”

He agreed, as simple as that.

My arms were nearly too short to wrap around him. Berry hunched over, and he settled both of his warm hands over my back.

“Be safe, Klue.”

“You too, Berry.”