Chapter 222: Wintry Bliss
The following day nobody commented about how Evanna and Arawn sneaked back into the campsite an hour before first light. Some heard their silent return, such as Garrett, who seemed a little too tense t sleep deeply and Fiza, who had been on duty guarding the others while they slept. Now their little group walked through the first thin layers of snow covering the sloping countryside.
Evanna looked at everything wide-eyed while forcing herself to move quicker, dancing and skipping when the cold seeped into her bones too quickly. She was like a child, laughing and singing elven songs her mother taught her about wintry landscapes of snow. Arawn and Garrett exchanged knowing glances at the tale but did not comment on it. The princess was too much in a gleeful mood to pick and decipher this look. The men behind them huddled together while Fiza, in the most revealing clothing, seemed unfazed.
Evanna’s hood and mask covered her features, keeping some of the chill at bay, but besides the obvious threat of frostbite, the princess admired the frozen, treacherous beauty around her. Snowflakes, big and small, kissed her forehead, eyes and clothes, awakening her further and making her teeth chatter.
As though they marked their own journey, like a hand writing in a diary, their footprints wrote their story on a new, blank page. Everything was blanketed in snow, and although their footprints revealed the grass beneath, the white, frozen softness, Evanna knew by the evening they would be buried again, awaiting a new story to be told. Would it be as peaceful as theirs on this path or full of blood and gore?
The princess hoped this wintry landscape, quiet and still, would remain as it was. But if there was anything she had learned from this journey was that there were more stories, adventures, great and sad to be told, disrupting this tranquil yet deadly terrain.
At noon they stopped, faces slightly red from the cold and harsh weather. Their food of berries and bread and whiskey had been passed around, warming their throats and bellies. Evanna coughed from the bite of the fiery liquid, but she kept it down, enjoying the heat it instigated in her body. Not the taste, though.
Lunch had been quiet between the group, either saving their strength and energy or lost in their own thoughts. Evanna glanced at Ger a few times, wanting to converse with him, but anytime she tried to make eye contact with him, he ignored her. By the end of their small break, Axel had a small chat with her to give Ger some time.
Before they ventured further, though, Ronan picked Evanna’s spirits up by throwing a ball of snow at her. Evanna instantly created her own, and a snowball fight began between Ronan, Fiza, Garrett and Arawn. Though Arawn cheated by using his gift to create his own snow and released multiple snowballs in all directions. Evanna accidentally, not so accidentally, hit a ball of snow into Ger’s head.
Initially, he scowled and shook it off, releasing his bun, but his competitive side was urged forwards when Axel also threw a snowball at him. A mini snowball fight broke out between them all, filling the quiet picturesque snow fallen terrain to fill with laughter. Even Fiza and Garrett appeared closer, making Evanna share a glance with Arawn as the petite fae tackled the large elf to the ground stylishly and shoved snow into his face. Garrett, for the first time in the time Evanna had known him, burst into a mighty laugh, remaining on the ground.
Arawn then teased Garrett about his preference for feisty females over the ladies at court, earning a snowball to the face. Evanna eyed Fiza, who had already moved away from Garrett to do a sneak attack on Axel, scaring the giant into submission, holding his hands up and dropping his snowballs. Ronan, in the meantime, tried to sneak up on Evanna, but she turned at the last minute, aiming her snow at him.
Ronan surrendered but not before he grabbed her hand and pulled her to the ground. The princess could have easily moved out of the way, but she allowed herself to fall to the ground. "Alright, now move your arms and legs, beautiful. I want to see an angel." Ronan grinned at her before moving his arms and legs up and down rapidly.
Evanna frowned at him, wondering what he meant, until her friend hopped up and showed his masterpiece. "An angel?" Evanna couldn’t really see it, but she followed his instructions, eyes following each member of the group with a growing smile on her features. Everyone was beaming with light, enjoying each other’s company. Foes mere days before were becoming friends.