Snow had begun falling in the night and continued to so, smatterings of light flakes drifted down towards the ground. Though the fall had not been substantial, it had been persistent enough to create a fresh coat of white here and there where the evergreen trees and bare branches of other tall species could not block them from reaching the mountain's surfaces. It would have created a silent beauty in the eyes of one small alchemist had it not been for the bitter wind that pierced through the shelter of the trees to sweep the otherwise gentle snowflakes into a frenzy, blinding the youth momentarily with its vision of winter.
Fortunately, for the small alchemist, he was snug within a thick, white coat made of foxbear pelt and fur and protected within a taller man's shadow from the worst of it. If it were not for the stripes of black within his hair, he would likely vanish into the scenery and only the martial artist beside him would be noticeable upon this path.
Leon's steps teetered slightly, his aching hips causing a disparity in his walk and two arms reached around him, one supporting his waist while the other reaching to hold his outstretched hands. Seemingly ungrateful, he glared at the attentive man, after all, what he was suffering could at least in part be blamed upon this person. Jin Li simply raised an eyebrow in response, his eyes languid and brimming with satisfaction suggesting the small alchemist's provocation was too weak to cause a reaction... a negative one anyway. That other type of reaction, well it couldn't be helped.
"Leon!"
The voice was charming and pleasing to hear so wasn't one that could be labelled as discordant, interrupting the ambiguous aura lazily circling the two men. Leon's lips curved upward in a warm smile, while Jin Li admitted to himself that the person calling his small lover was not completely unwelcome. He was a bit unhappy that his lover stepped out of his arms though. But overall, it could be said that Maimai's timing was not bad.
The girl stepped out of the shelter of her domicile within the outer school grounds, wrapped up in a hooded fur coat, hands tucked into a matching muff. It could be seen that she had been prepared to meet with them as they passed. Another girl followed in her wake; her sister, who had made excuses to stay with her the night before. Merylin glanced up through her long, dark lashes at the man she had heard would likely be found in the outer alchemist school yesterday. Her heart quickened and there was a note of hidden satisfaction within its beats as she also recalled how unhappy that girl looked to hear that she'd be unable to follow and win a similar opportunity to cross paths with him.
Maimai was not unaware of her elder sister's intentions, just chose to ignore them. Jin Li could sort out the mess of bees and butterflies himself, she just planned to interact with his lover, her best friend.
"Leon! Congratulations!" She told him, gleefully. "You were amazing!"
Leon felt a little heat in his cheeks, despite the cold winter air. "N-no, no," he denied, bashfully. "I d-didn't do m-much."
"Of course you did!" Maimai chided him for his humbleness. "We don't get to see everything that happened, but I did see that you discovered some uncommon herbs and didn't you help find some treasures in that first cave? Did you find a lot? Were there anything different from the initial samples? The mirrors focus on the team leaders the most, so as spectators, we couldn't follow you and that boy, Troy, plus they change perspective to other teams. Much was missed!"
Before Leon could say anything, a rush of cold air brushed passed them, causing them to all shiver with the exception of Jin Li. His step into the realm of Body Tempering had already improved his ability to resist little things such as low temperatures a bit. Sure, he would still feel it if he were not wearing a coat, but this little 'breeze' at this moment was not effective at all.
"Are you returning to the Martial Arts school, senior?" Merylin asked, softly. Her presence had surprised Leon a little bit, but she was Maimai's sister. It wasn't out of place for them to be together, despite studying in slightly different areas of the Institute.
"En," Leon responded, lightly. "The j-judges will g-g-give their scores soon."
"May we accompany you then, senior?" Merylin asked, causing Leon to hesitate. The small alchemist really wanted to sigh, inwardly, then glare at Jin Li behind him. She may have addressed the question to himself, but he was not naive enough to believe that it was he she wan't to accompany. Maimai had reassured him that her sister had given up chasing his man, but it seemed that wasn't so. Before he could deny her sulkily, the girl added; "I also wished to congratulate senior. Also to learn about seniors experiences. My Teachers hinted to my fellow students and I that we may well be chosen to enter the Isles during the Interschool Exchange next year, so we were instructed to learn well."
Leon had to hesitate, then agree to her wishes, less he seem petty. He did notice Maimai roll her eyes heavenward, though.
They headed towards the Griffin's nests as a group. Leon's body still refused to cooperate fully with himself, thanks to the exertion of overexercise the previous evening. Apparently, reunification during bodily cleansing was insufficient, they also need to join to stave off colds while the main room was being reheated via the stove and also to reduce excess energy after their nap and evening meal. Leon had fallen unconscious and didn't even dream before being woken by kisses, a glass of water and a soft ice pill (which reduces fevers). As his body was this worn, he easily slipped on icy ground, tumbling into the small layer of snow, causing Jin Li to sneer.
"So clumsy," he drawled and picked his small alchemist off of the ground, before carrying him a ways. "Since you can't walk sensibly, this Lord will lower himself this one time."
Maimai covered her mouth, swallowing her gleeful giggles, but Merylin felt slightly alarmed, but uncertain of the reason. "Did you hurt your ankle, senior?" She asked, worriedly.
Embarrassed, Leon could only respond; "Something l-like that."
Merylin began to rummage in the beautifully embroidered purse upon her hip. "Please, senior should take this Blood Pill..."
"No need," Jin Li waved off her offer, not willing to relinquish the youth in his arms as he strode onward.
Merylin looked at her sister, feeling unsettled in her heart, but Maimai just shrugged. In the end, she could only join her sister to hurry forward and catch up to the young men in front.