CHAPTER 1 — THE DAY THE SKY BROUGHT YOU TO ME
The morning light in Momohana Town always looked like peach petals drifting in slow motion. A soft pink hue kissed the rooftops, the streetlamps, and even the sleepy faces of students biking to school. But for Aoi, this morning was anything but soft and peaceful.
Because a girl had just… fallen from the sky.
Actually fallen.
Aoi was on his way to school, munching a convenience store sandwich, when something bright and pink streaked downward like a shooting star gone off-course.
WHAM!
Aoi dropped his sandwich.
“…What the—?!”
A cloud of dust rose from the riverbank. Birds exploded out of the trees. His heart nearly jumped out of his uniform blazer.
He sprinted toward the crater.
There—lying in a small dent in the grass—was a girl around his age. Long hair the color of sunset, bright ribbons tangled in her bangs, a frilly dress that absolutely no normal high school student would wear. She blinked up at the sky, dazed.
Aoi leaned over her.
“Are—are you okay!? You fell like a meteor!”
She sat up slowly, rubbing her cheek.
“Meteor? No, no, I’m clearly too cute to be cosmic debris.”
Aoi blinked.
“Uh…”
The girl brushed off her dress, completely unfazed that she’d just face-planted from the heavens. She dusted her sleeves, straightened her ribbons, then flashed him a bright, starry smile.
“Hi! I’m Hikari. I’m… um… lost.”
“Lost from where!? The stratosphere!?”
She looked away, cheeks puffed slightly.
“Maybe.”
Aoi stared at her.
She wasn’t joking.
Her eyes shimmered—not like normal eyes. They had tiny star-shaped sparkles inside, like constellations shifting whenever she moved. And when she stood up, pink petals swirled around her feet, even though there wasn’t a single sakura tree nearby.
Aoi swallowed.
“Okay. So you’re… not from around here?”
Hikari nodded enthusiastically.
“I came from the Sky Garden. But something went wrong with the portal spell and—boom—I fell. I think my landing was at least 6/10 though! I didn’t break anything, right?”
She checked her arms, legs, and twirled like she was doing a magical girl transformation.
Aoi rubbed his forehead.
“This is too much for 7:20 AM…”
Then Hikari clasped her hands.
“Um… Aoi-kun?”
“Y-Yeah?”
“Can I stay with you for a while?”
Aoi nearly choked on air.
“WHAT—!? Why me!?”
“Because you’re the first human I’ve seen!” she said proudly.
“And I can’t stay outside. If other celestial spirits sense me alone, they’ll try to drag me back, and I haven’t finished my mission yet!”
“Mission?”
Hikari suddenly brightened like a lantern.
“Yes!” She pointed a finger dramatically at Aoi’s chest.
“I came here to find a human whose heart resonates with the sky.”
“…What does that even—”
“Aaaand I think it’s you!”
Aoi froze.
“ME!?”
“Yes! When you looked at me, I felt a thump in the air. Like your soul said ‘oh no she’s cute’.”
“I didn’t say that!!”
“You didn’t have to. Your face did.”
Aoi covered his cheeks, which were undeniably warm.
This girl was chaos wrapped in sparkles.
Then Hikari gasped.
“Oh! Before I forget—catch!”
She flicked her wrist, and a tiny sphere of shimmering blue light floated out, drifting toward Aoi like a glowing soap bubble. It hovered right in front of him.
Aoi backed up.
“What is that?”
“A Sky Seed! It reacts to the person I’m destined to pair with during my mission.”
“Pair with!?”
“Yep! It will only follow someone who’s connected to my fate.”
“Connected—!? W-Wait, hold on—!”
But the Sky Seed bumped gently into his forehead.
pop!
It disappeared in a burst of tiny stars.
Aoi froze.
Hikari’s eyes widened too.
“…Oh wow,” she whispered.
“That means…”
“No. Nope. We are not finishing that sentence.”
“That means,” she continued with dramatic sparkles behind her,
“Aoi-kun is my destined partner!”
Aoi stared at the sky, reconsidering all his life choices.
“I literally just wanted to go to school…”
“And now you’re part of an interdimensional celestial quest!” Hikari cheered.
Before Aoi could object, a gust of wind burst through the trees. Dark feathers scattered across the grass.
Hikari’s face paled.
“Oh no. They’re already here.”
“Who’s here!?”
From the edge of the forest, a tall shadow appeared—slender, winged, eyes glowing like moonlit frost.
Aoi’s heart dropped.
Hikari grabbed his hand, fingers warm, grip surprisingly strong.
“Aoi-kun, run!”
“Why!?”
“Because that’s a Night Warden! And it wants to take me back!”
Another gust of wind tore through the riverbank.
Aoi tightened his grip—he didn’t know what was happening, but Hikari’s trembling hand made it clear she was terrified.
“Okay,” he said, pulse racing.
“Just—don’t let go.”
Her eyes widened at that.
And for a brief moment—just one tiny moment—Hikari smiled softly.
“I won’t.”
Then they ran, petals and shadows swirling behind them as the chase began.
