When Snow Falls

-Chapter 12-

It's what killed Eris.

I snapped my eyes open.

What just happened?

Dad's explanation told me why we didn't talk magic at home, but there was a whole new slew of questions to follow.

The biggest of which being "what else?"

Years before, Mom had taught me how to tell if some people were lying by body language. Some clench their fists, tap their foot, give a little hop, their nostrils flare--it could be anything.

I figured out that when my father scratched the back of his head, it meant he wasn't telling the whole truth.

So what else did he know?

I sat up and opened my mouth to call for the old man. I closed it quickly. The room was empty.

I stuck my head out the door and peeked down the hallway. No one walked down it.

How long has he been gone?

More like how long had I been gone?

I turned around to face the piano. Orange light from the dying sun shone through the window. I walked over to it and crouched down. White snow blanketed the grass and trees, covering over everything in sight. Long icicles hung from what looked to be a fountain.

It was pretty--beautiful even. If anyone was there before the Fiannu, they must have been crazy to leave.

"Clair?"

I didn't turn around. "Yes, Nutcracker?"

His wooden feet thunked the ground. "What are you doing?"

"Looking out a window."

"No, like, where have you been?" Something scratched together. I guess he crossed his arms. "It's been three hours since you left."

Three hours? How long was I sleeping/projecting/whatever?

"Sorry," I mumbled. "I lost track of time."

He sighed and walked closer to me. "What are you looking at?"

"The snow." I scooted over to my left. He bent down and glanced out the window. "Pretty, isn't it?"

Nutcracker backed up. "I don't like snow that much. It gets everywhere, is cold, and eventually turns dies and turns into slush."

"Everything dies, it's just what we make of it while it's alive that counts."

I turned away from the window and found Nutcracker tilting his head to the side.

"What?" I asked. "Something growing out of my nose?"

He snorted. "Yeah, a great big horn. It's all the way down to your mouth."

I punched his arm, which probably wasn't the cleverest idea I'd ever had, considering it hurt me more than him, but whatever. "Haha, Woodboy the Wonderkid."

We stepped out of the room. The glowing orbs that hung from the ceiling had dimmed down to a low glow.

Nutcracker laid his hand on my arm. "Your brother's alright," he said quietly.

All the nerves I hadn't realized were tangled relaxed. A smile flickered across my face. "That's good!" I started to speed walk down the hall. "Let's go see him!"

"Curly, wait up!"

Erk.

I paused, one foot hovering in midair. "Yeah?"