It's dark, and I want to keep sleeping, but a burning pain around my neck is screaming at me to wake up. Constricting, choking, strangling...

"Wake up, Maestra," it says.

"Wake up."

My body jolts reflexively, and my hands spring up, feeling for my neck: the place I previously remember my helpless body hanging from, suspended by a rope.

I'm immediately met with the view of a dark cave entering my silvery eyes. A small amount of light is leaking through the rather close exit, which is easily visible thanks to the straightforward path of the cave.

Just a moment ago, I was cornered and lynched in the middle of a forest.

This... isn't a forest.

What happened...?

Why can't I remember anything before... that happened? Is this amnesia?

Surely I wasn't a bad person to have that happen to me, right...? But I must have been killed for something, so just... what was it?

Why did this happen...?

I try to let out a dry laugh, but the sensation of the rope cutting off my breath and blood returns once more, choking out the sound before it can come to life.

...So I'm mute too, then?

Yeah. There's... no way I could have been a good person with this bad karma. Things like this just don't happen to good people. Coming back to life just to suffer once again?

What a joke.

I reach up to rub my neck, wanting to comfort it from its previous horrors, but I only feel cloth instead.

A scarf?

Startled by the unexpected clothing, I Iook down at the rest of my body.

A thin, ash-colored cloak is covering my skin, but that's all in terms of clothing. No underwear, no pants or anything, just a cloak and a scarf.

Strangely, they're both giving off a warm aura—in a literal sense. I can feel heat coming off the cloak on my skin, and as I grasp the scarf, I can feel my clenched fists soften by just a smidgen as they warm up.

Coincidentally, the cloak is the exact same color as my back-length hair. The two almost seem to blend with each other like they're one and the same.

The legs that peek out from under my cloak—my legs—are as thin as twigs. After thoroughly inspecting them, I'm noticing my arms aren't any better off... it looks like the bones could break with just a squeeze.

I suppose that being dead isn't too healthy for one's body, no?

My poor body condition isn't stopping at my arms either. There's a visible sink where my stomach should be, and even through the cloak I feel as though I can see my entire ribcage.

O-of course, that has nothing to do with my lacking chest.

As I continue to inspect my own body, the sound of my stomach growling interrupts my thoughts and reminds me of my current condition.

I'm feeling...really hungry all of a sudden.

I'm still sitting, so if I need to get food, I'll need to stand up, right?

I could also crawl, but a nagging feeling in the back of my head just tells me my already damaged dignity won't allow it.

Alright. Time to go.

As I put more weight on my legs, they begin to tremble under my pitiful body weight. Sweat leaks from my pores as my legs continue to strain themselves, eventually collapsing before managing to fully extend. My teeth clench in frustration as I sit on the cold, stone floor.

Is this really the limit of my strength...? This has to be some kind of bad dream, right? I understand that I'm weak, but such a level is just...

I scowl and try again. This time, I scoot towards the wall and use it to support myself as I stand. The jagged wall is easy to grasp onto, and lets me pull myself up, taking a significant burden off my legs.

Success, victory! Congratulations Maestra, you did it!

Now I just have to... walk...

This is just so fun, isn't it.

The air grows yet colder as I approach the exit. Icicles are stuck hanging off the roof, just barely in reach of my hands (which similarly have a certain substance called 'pebbles' stuck on them from my constant tripping, but that's not relevant).

A dense forest lays outside the cave. Pine trees seem to be scattered all over the place, and snow covers the ground, dusting the grass in a thin layer of white. The eldritch howl of wind echoes around through the trees, resonating in my ears.

I swallow my own saliva as my pale face twitches in nervousness.

If I'm going to be searching for food, I need something to defend myself with, right...? In case some wild animal, or some beast attacks...

I look up at the icicles hanging off the roof. All of them are fairly long, and... unusually sharp?

Well, I'm not one to argue when the situation is positive. I stand on my tiptoes and grasp one of the icicles, pulling as hard as I can.

...

The icicle didn't even budge at all.

Stupid icicle! Just break off! Die! I clench my fist, and with all of my strength, send it flying at the icicle.

It almost broke! My hand, that is.

What the hell...!? Icicles shouldn't be this strong! Even if I'm this weak, at least some of it should have broken off, right?

And my hand too! If I punched as hard as I could, it definitely should have broken, but it didn't. Does this mean I don't even have the strength to break my own hand, even with my fragile bones?

This is just unfair! I must have pissed off some god of cruel and unusual punishment.

A sigh escapes through my mouth, and I collapse towards the ground, letting my overworked legs rest for a bit. In my stupor, I absentmindedly pick up a small rock and throw it at the icicles.

SNAP

...Really?

A crack spreads through the longest icicle. Breaking off, it promptly fell to the ground, taking all of the other icicles with it. Upon landing, they shatter into pieces of various sizes, scattering themselves across the ground. The icicle that initially broke off was the only one to remotely survive, only being broken in half.

I look towards the spectacle as my face grew pale.

T-they just... all fell at once...? If I was under that, I probably would have died instantly...

My body quivers slightly before I shake my head, dispelling my thoughts.

I look towards the icicle I broke off the ceiling. Considering how difficult it was to break off, its surprisingly thin and long; a bit more than half my height, or 3/4ths of a meter. Any normal icicle would have broken easily, which kind of disturbs me...

However, that's not what surprises me the most.

With the sunlight shining on the icicle, a myriad of colors were revealed, reflecting off the surface. It looks more like a crystal than it did a piece of ice, being almost completely transparent. If I didn't already know what it was, I might have mistaken it for a piece of glass.

It's really... quite beautiful, honestly.

I walk over and grab the icicle. The temperature chills my hand, but all ice is cold, so it's within expectations. The problem is that it weighs more than I was expecting, especially considering the state of my body. Even without it, I probably wouldn't be able to walk very long.

...Wait a moment. This is just the perfect length, isn't it?

Ahaha. I know exactly what to do with this...

With my new walking sti-... weapon on hand, I step out of the cave at long last.

The cold snow bites into my feet as I walk along the grass. Without shoes or socks, my soles take the full force of the frigid ground.

...My feet turned completely numb from the cold a while ago, perhaps about fifteen minutes? Now they're even starting to feel a little bit warm, which is probably a bad sign.

Although at this point, my feet don't hurt anymore, so I'm fine with it.

Wait. Aren't numbness and sensations of warmth signs of frost bite? And how long have I felt like this...?

Ah. That's bad, isn't it?

I instantly stumble over to the nearest tree and sit down, leaning against it.

Pulling my feet off of the snow, I quickly tear off the scarf around my neck and wrap it around my feet like a pair of stockings. The warmth from the scarf soaks into my feet,

Aah... sweet relief. Time to keep going.

The only problem is just, there's so much extra cloth between my feet now. I don't think it'll take very long before I-

THUD

-trip.

I drag my snow covered face out of the snow and brace myself on the icicle as I stand up.

This will definitely be annoying, but there's not much I can do about it. I'll just have to deal with it for now. Maybe later I'll make some legitimate socks somehow, but that's unlikely.

I look at the area around me. It seems as though I've just entered a bit of a clearing. There's a river just ahead past a few trees, but it's frozen, so it might as well not be there. More importantly, just in front of me are some berries! Little round berries, dotting the bush in red!

I grab some and pop them into my mouth. They're juicier than expected, almost seeming to explode in my mouth in a burst of liquid.

The flavor is passable. A bit sour for my tastes, but not bad at all. There's even a light bitterness that almost makes me feel lightheaded.

Wait, no. I really am feeling lightheaded.

In an instant my body loses its strength and drops to the ground like a puppet with its strings cut.

It's... paralyzed me?

Aha, this is bad, isn't it?

I lie on the ground, trying to keep my uncovered arms and legs off the snow. Fortunately, it seems like the effects of the poison are limited to paralysis, but that doesn't mean I'm safe. For all I know, some random animal could just come by and eat me.

...From now on, I'm going to wait until I'm back in the cave to eat the berries.

Although, lying here alone kind of has its own merits too...

Just relaxing, listening to the birds, thinking things through...

It's nice. Peaceful. Nos...talgic?

...Now that I think of it, something about this situation feels rather famil̸i̵a͠-...

A forbidding chill spreads through my body, centered on my neck. My body stiffens before giving off a single spasm, a momentary shudder. A gasp makes its way through my clenched teeth. I open the eyes I didn't even realize I had closed. Black dots line my vision, and everything seems blurry. Am I going blind...?

No, that's just my own tears. Just like a river, they continue to flow down my face, falling down into the snow.

With a newfound burst of energy guided by my instinct and panic, I dash back to the cave as fast as I can, the previous paralysis nothing more than a figment of my imagination.

As soon as I enter, I collapse back to the ground, my entire body aching and in pain. The energy rush I had suddenly vanishes, the paralysis rushing back as if it never left. The only solace I found in its return was that it numbed the pain coursing through my body.

...What... happened...?

In one moment I was just laying down, and the next...?

...My memories. As soon as I was about to recall just a little bit...

I felt the pain of death once again.

I hold back the nausea threatening me to vomit.

...

...I think I'll just... leave my memories alone for now.