"Nothing stays the same… not even a god?"
Artemis murmured it softly, like she was asking Takumi, but even more like she was interrogating herself.
Takumi didn't rush her. He leaned in just enough for his voice to feel close, warm.
"Goddesses are still girls," he said. "Changing because you found something you like is normal. Tell me—what was Hestia-sama like back when you knew her?"
At the name Hestia, Artemis snapped out of her spiral. A small smile appeared as she dug up the memory.
"The Hestia I knew was lazy," Artemis said, amused. "And she hated hassle."
Takumi scratched his cheek, helplessly agreeing.
"Yeah… that part of her hasn't changed at all."
Artemis laughed, the sound lighter than it had any right to be after everything.
"And she used to hide in her temple all the time. Whenever I had free time, I'd go find her. She'd get so happy—like a puppy that finally found someone to play with."
Takumi nodded, instantly seeing it.
"I can picture it perfectly. Every time I come home, Hestia welcomes me the same way."
If you replaced Hestia's generous curves with a wagging tail, the energy would've matched almost too well.
Once Hestia became the topic, the conversation flowed easier. The two of them warmed up without realizing it.
"Hestia and I used to cry together, laugh together, share everything," Artemis said, her eyes soft. "I admired that gentle, caring side of her."
"If you see her again," Takumi said, "Hestia-sama will be thrilled. I'm sure of it."
"…Yeah," Artemis whispered, smiling like she could already imagine it. "I think she will."
Takumi, meanwhile, rubbed his face like he'd stepped into a trap of his own making.
"Honestly, it sounds like she didn't change that much… I'm talking in circles now."
Artemis shook her head. Her smile turned tender, almost a little wistful.
"No. I can hear it. She changed a lot—a lot. Back then she was isolated. Now she has you… and she has friends. And she used to say the same thing I did—she wanted to keep her chastity forever."
Artemis's gaze slid over him, growing sharper.
"But from what you've told me, Hestia doesn't hide her feelings at all anymore. And your whole body smells like her… strongly."
She leaned closer, close enough that Takumi could feel the heat of her breath.
"So tell me," Artemis asked, a hint of jealousy sneaking into her voice, "how far have you two gone?"
Takumi clicked his tongue, cornered, and answered in a low voice.
"…All the way."
Artemis's expression turned complicated in an instant—shock, disbelief, and something bright and hungry behind it.
"So she really changed that much…"
The air between them went strangely quiet, tight like a drawn bowstring.
Then Artemis suddenly asked, voice soft but direct.
"Can you tell me… what you did?"
Takumi blinked, genuinely thrown.
"Uh… Artemis-sama. What are you trying to do?"
Artemis's flawless face flushed a deep, embarrassed red. She lowered her head, voice barely above a whisper.
"I-I just want to understand how 'love' actually works."
Takumi's brows lifted. His hand reached out on instinct and gently took her slender fingers.
Artemis shivered at the contact, but she didn't pull away.
Under her uncertain gaze, Takumi smiled—slow, knowing.
"Goddess… real love isn't something you can understand just by talking about it," he murmured. "You have to feel it."
"Feel it…?"
Artemis's breathing grew heavier as his warmth wrapped around her hand and his body shifted closer. Her eyes went unfocused, drawn into the heat in Takumi's gaze.
And then Takumi leaned in and kissed her.
For a heartbeat, time froze.
Artemis's eyes flew wide, green irises flashing with pure shock.
But after a few seconds, that shock melted into watery shimmer, her lashes trembling as her expression softened into dazed surrender. Almost without thinking, her fingers slid between his and locked tight, ten to ten.
They didn't break apart until the edge of breath forced them to.
"Haah… so this is… 'love'?" Artemis whispered, voice unsteady. "It's… strange. I-I…"
Before she could think her way back into fear, Takumi kissed her again, cutting off the words and the doubts with the simple, undeniable truth of his mouth against hers.
Because right now, Takumi knew exactly what would ruin this.
Letting her overthink.
He lifted her in his arms and carried her into the tent.
Outside, clouds drifted over the sky and the full moon disappeared behind shadow—yet the moon goddess herself seemed to become that full moon, glowing in the dark, luminous and irresistible.
Tears sparkled at the corners of Artemis's eyes and slipped down her cheeks like starlight. Her thoughts tangled and broke apart, until her mind had room for only one thing: Takumi.
"Takumi-kun…" she whispered, like she was afraid of the change happening inside her.
His voice brushed her ear, low and coaxing.
"The moon waxes and wanes. Open your heart. Don't be afraid."
His fingers slid through her long blue hair, his arm firm around her narrow waist. Then, like he'd decided the world below didn't deserve to witness this first step, Takumi carried her upward.
It was Artemis's first time reaching that kind of height without her divinity—ten thousand meters up, cutting through thin cloud until they stood beneath the full moon's pale glow again.
Moonlight spilled down, crystalline and delicate, like nectar raining over the earth.
And under that light, Artemis felt it—felt herself crossing a line she'd spent eternity guarding.
"This is… real love…" Artemis breathed, voice trembling, tears of joy slipping free as she clung to the man in her arms.
The goddess who feared change had finally chosen it.
…
Back at the quiet camp, the fully dressed members of Artemis Familia trudged back in, disappointed and grumbling.
"I told you Takumi-san is a righteous hero!" Lante huffed. "He didn't come!"
She sounded proud, but the sulky edge ruined the performance.
Rethusa sighed too, visibly dejected.
"Yeah… when I went to look, Takumi-sama was already gone."
A few girls groaned.
"Ugh, I shouldn't have played it cool."
"Seriously—men like Takumi-sama don't just fall out of the sky every day. If someone else snatches him first, we'll regret it forever."
They were young, starved for romance by Familia rules, and Takumi had hit them like rain in a desert. Of course they couldn't sit still.
Lante suddenly paused, frowning as she stared toward the tents.
"Wait… where's Artemis-sama? Didn't she come back early?"
"Maybe she went to sleep?" Rethusa said, glancing at Artemis's tent.
But it was empty—no sign of her at all.
And right as their confusion peaked, Takumi emerged slowly from the forest, carrying Artemis in a princess hold.