A few weeks later, the day when the last snow melted finally came. Fu Yun looked at the dark ground with a satisfied expression, hurriedly grabbed the first bundle of his things, and rushed out of his hut to go and meet Yue Ji.

Even though the spirit had lived for a much longer time than he had, Yue Ji had still said that he should decide when it was time to start building the hut and move all of his things over. Now, he felt that it was about time. Yes, there were still some things to organize that he hadn’t been able to do throughout the winter but he didn’t think that it would take too long. At most, it should only be a few weeks until he could finally be with Yue Ji all the time.

When he arrived at the clearing, Yue Ji was waiting for him as always. Even Petal was awake for a change, excitedly fluttering around Yue Ji’s head and chattering about how there was finally no snow on the ground. Fu Yun smiled brightly, put down the bundle with his things, and walked over to pull Yue Ji into his arms. “Good morning.”

Yue Ji reached up and cupped his cheek, turned to the side, and kissed him lightly. “You seem to have brought more than usual.”

Fu Yun nodded and glanced at Petal who had now flown to inspect the bundle on the ground. “As Petal said: There is no snow left on the ground and there hasn’t been new snow in a while. I think it’s safe to start building our hut.”

“I see.” Yue Ji finally turned completely and wrapped his arms around Fu Yun’s neck. “Well, I am happy. I have been looking forward to this.”

“Mn.” Fu Yun inclined his head and rested his forehead against Yue Ji’s. “I still need to prepare some things. Building the hut will be easiest with the wood prepared by someone who understands more about it than me. I’ll go to the other side of the forest to ask about it and then rent a cart to bring it over here. Just put it to the side and then take it when we need it.

“After that, we can go to my village at night and grab the things we want to keep from the house. We’ll transport everything here, also put it to the side, and then I’ll return the cart back to the other side of the forest later in the day. It’ll be a hard two days but we’ll be prepared for everything that is to come and won’t risk running into too many people this way.

“Also, it’s cheaper.” He scratched his head, a bit embarrassed. He had been orphaned before he came of age and his father hadn’t left him much. Even though he did his part in the village and never had to go hungry unless the winter was too long and harsh for everyone to hold on, he didn’t have much money. Things like renting a cart were difficult. He might be able to trade for some prey but that also depended on whether the other person wanted to or not.

Yue Ji smiled. “What can I say? I am a spirit. I care little about these things. Anyway, don’t worry. In the spirit realm, even though we have the four seasons, the temperature can be different and can also be influenced by our energy. So you don’t need to hurry too much after you get the wood and your things from home. I’ll take care of things on that side. I can’t let you do everything alone, after all.”

Fu Yun laughed and kissed his cheek. “If I didn’t have you, what would I do?” He held him for a while and then sighed. “Well, I’d better get going or I won’t make it back before the sun goes down.” He glanced up at the sky that could be glimpsed between the branches. If he left now, there was no need to worry about the time but who knew what might happen on the way? It was better to leave early and return early.

Yue Ji nodded and then motioned to Petal. “Petal, you go with Fu Yun. Make sure you stay out of sight though.”

Petal nodded, fluttered her wings, and finally found a comfortable spot on Fu Yun’s head. “Let’s go!” She pointed straight ahead even though she wasn’t exactly sure which direction they were supposed to go.

Fu Yun just laughed though, gave Yue Ji another kiss, and then walked through the forest with Petal on his head. Being excited about what was to come, he walked faster than usual and made it to the other side of the forest earlier than expected. Of course, this only made his mood soar higher.

He knew that a new house couldn’t be built in a day. Especially not when the one who was supposed to build it didn’t have any experience. But even if the house turned out crooked after a long time working on it, it was alright. The important thing was that he could be with Yue Ji and just the higher temperatures alone would allow for that to happen from now on. Before the start of the next winter, he definitely would have finished a simple house, no matter what went wrong.

Fu Yun wasn’t very familiar with the villages and towns on the other side of the forest but he was someone who got along easily with others so he simply asked what he wanted to know and then went on his way. Soon, he found a carpenter who could help him prepare the wood he’d need.

Haggling over the price made him feel awkward but since this was for his future with Yue Ji, he still tried his best, lowering the price as much as he could without being shameless. He actually managed to borrow a cart from the carpenter as well that he’d have to return the day afterward.

Unfortunately, he couldn’t take all of it back this day as he had hoped but would have to wait at least another week until the wood was ready. Since it made little sense to bring his possessions to the clearing long before they could start building the hut, he didn’t take the cart yet either and instead returned to the clearing empty-handed.

At this time, it was already late in the evening. Yue Ji was sitting on the trunk of the fallen tree, waiting for him and Petal to return. As soon as he heard footsteps, he got up and rushed over, only to stop blankly in his steps when he saw Fu Yun return just as he had left. “Did something happen?”

Fu Yun rubbed his head and laughed awkwardly. “You could say that.” He quickened his steps until he reached Yue Ji, kissing his cheek in greeting before he pulled him back to the trunk to sit down and tell him everything.

Yue Ji slowly nodded while listening. “This is just as well. We’ve waited for so long, we might as well wait another week. Also, the weather is going to get warmer the longer we wait which will make it easier to build the hut and live out here. There is really no rush.”

Fu Yun gave a hum, glad that Yue Ji was so understanding. He was still a bit bummed out that he’d have to wait until they could live together though. He had really been looking forward to it. “Well, I guess I could still show you my village already? We can use the opportunity one of these nights to sneak back and look around, then bring some things over already.”

Anyway, carting away his furniture would cause some noise so the others might wake up and come out to look. Thinking of it this way, it wasn’t too safe to have Yue Ji around at that time. Even if he was wearing a hood, as long as the others assumed that he was the ‘girl’ from the other side of the forest he had met, they’d want to have a look and not let them leave before they managed to sneak a glance or two. That really was too dangerous.

Yue Ji nodded, happy with his suggestion. “Let’s do that then. In fact, why not go tonight? You’re back this late anyway, we might as well go to your village together now.”

Fu Yun tensed up as soon as he heard this. He had been out all day which the others certainly would have noticed. There was a chance they’d stay up to see when he’d get back. After all, even though he had mentioned to them just the day before that there were many things left to organize for him before he could go and get married, they might still worry.

He wanted to reject the idea and first go to see how things looked in the village but then took a deep breath and calmed down. Anyway, hadn’t they said that they wanted Petal to be on the lookout for them to warn them if somebody was there? What could work in the early hours of the morning could also work at night. And if he had understood right what Yue Ji had told him in the last three months, then he could enter the spirit world at any time so he was not in danger.

Reminding himself that the risk that Yue Ji would be harmed was low or might not even exist at all, Fu Yun calmed down again and nodded. “Let’s do that. We should let Petal check whether somebody is in the village before we get there though. Otherwise, we might run into somebody and have trouble explaining.”

Yue Ji nodded and picked up Petal who had fallen asleep on Fu Yun’s head some time on his way back to the clearing. “I guess she’ll wake up by then. She’s been excited about going to the village for a while. In fact, I think she’s sneaked out to have a look already but she pretends she didn’t.”

Fu Yun laughed and got to his feet before pulling up Yue Ji as well. “That sounds like her.” He didn’t know how fairies usually behaved but Petal was mischievous. Not too much but enough to be noticeable. “Well, let’s go then. I really want you to see the village as well. Even though I’m willing to leave it behind, it’s still the place where I grew up.”

Yue Ji nodded and quietly followed him. He felt a bit bad when he thought of how he was making Fu Yun leave behind everything he had known but then, he couldn’t decide for him. Since Fu Yun was willing, he should just leave it at that. Anyway, there was only so much time they’d have.

He glanced up at the night sky above their heads. Some stars could be seen twinkling where the branches didn’t cover them, reminding him of a time long past. Back then, he hadn’t had much of a concept of time. Every day was just the same, flowing into each other only separated by the times the sky was dark and the times it was bright. He hadn’t realized what this difference between day and night meant so when they met and he slowly watched him grow old, it had been hard to accept.

He pulled himself out of his thoughts and turned to look at Fu Yun. He hadn’t asked because he didn’t really want to know but the hunter looked to be in his twenties. Not old for a human but he also knew that their lives weren’t long. It was a pity that no matter what he did, they could never have more time.

Fu Yun noticed his gaze and stopped, pulling him into his arms. “You’re not scared of the dark, are you?” They had met in the twilight hours of the day so he had never figured that this might be a problem but then, they had never been together when it was truly dark outside either. Now, Yue Ji suddenly looked at him like this, he couldn’t help but wonder if he had neglected to think of this.

Yue Ji chuckled and shook his head. “I grew up in this forest and I have lived for so long. Can I still be afraid of the dark?” He leaned against him, his cheek resting against Fu Yun’s chest, and closed his eyes, listening to his heartbeat.

He was not afraid of the dark but he was afraid of the day when he would once again be left alone no matter the time. Right now, even though they did not live together yet, he knew that Fu Yun would return the next day and that the waiting would soon come to an end.

But one day, that wouldn’t be the case. He’d be left alone on that clearing, unable to ever meet again. He was afraid of that day but this was a fear he did not want to burden Fu Yun with so he stayed quiet, burying those feelings deep in his heart.