Pondering Snowflakes

[Elric Vlarintos]

It was winter once again, and winter meant snow. Elric was not the type of person to typically skip work, but there weren't any duties or orders. Of course, to Elric that was a worse fate than working near the heated forge and getting covered head-to-toe in soot. Free time meant that he had time to think, and time to think in a place such as this never was good. He had spent the better part of ten years not thinking about anything, but every time he saw snow he was forced to remember what he'd rather forget. As he casually watched flakes falling from the sky and onto the forest ground he knew that he was going back.

There were footprints in the snow and it was so very dark. Behind cloud cover the moon hardly provided any light, but he trudged on through the snow regardless. For the first time in his life he longed for the warmth of the fires which he despised so much. Feebly he moved the snow around him in order to make a primitive wind shelter and sat there shivering in the cold. Alone in the dark with strange noises in the woods. He shut his eyes for just a moment and never woke up.

At least, that's the way Elric wished the story went. Maybe he had romanticized the day in his mind. After all, it had been a very long time ago.

The chill started to seep into his bones and he pulled his jacket more tightly around his body. "Probably should head back," he muttered to himself. Silently and alone he began trudging back home through the frozen woods, not really paying much attention to the world around him.

[Piper Wren]

Despite the bitter chill of the day, Piper Wren had wrapped herself up in her winter clothes that Tristan had insisted on purchasing for her as soon as it began to turn cold. It had been a slightly embaressing experience but she was grateful for it as soon as she saw there was settled snow on the ground from her window in the South Wing. Piper walked carefully through the snow in the crimson woods which was currently looking like one of those cliche Christmas cards that were sold every year back home. Pretty none the less though...Piper glanced up, watching the snow drifting down from the sky, she couldnt resist childishly catching one on her tongue. No one was watching after all. She felt the tip of her nose going slightly pink from the cold but tried to ignore it as she trudged on.

It was then she spotted from the corner of her eye what looked to be a...walking snowman?! A good second look confirmed a shock of white hair that belonged to someone Piper recognised, maybe it was best not to tell him she thought he was a walking snowman, he might take it as an insult...

"Elric!"

Piper called out, approaching the familiar face and making sure not to step on any pesky frozen spots, falling over on her face wouldn't be at all fun...a fantastic way to end up with a sore backside and look like an idiot. She smiled, it had been a while since she had seen him...last time he had rescued her from that pyschopathic book in the library.

But hopefully he wouldn't bring that up, it was a little embaressing...

[Elric Vlarintos]

Elric was locked in the world of his own thoughts, but as he trudged through the snow it occurred to him that he never had gotten a really good set of winter clothes. Most days he just spent the miserable hours inside near a hot furnace anyways, so it hardly ever seemed to matter. But standing shin-deep in snow out in the middle of the sparse woods that did not do much to stop the wind from hitting you was enough to make someone reconsider the poor choice of wardrobe. If he ran he might keep warmer, but then he'd get back to civilization sooner. And no one wanted that.

"Elric!" he heard his name called. At first he jumped a little bit and then he lifted his face up from the ground only to see Piper. It had been a while since they had last seen each other. A chance meeting in the music room followed by another in the library were the only memories of her that he had, but she was a pleasant individual. A little green, yes, but pleasant.

Elric's face was marked with his usual stern glare, but he felt the sides of his lips turn slightly upwards. He pulled one of his arms from his body he waved to her so she knew that he heard her. The man picked up his pace a little bit to help close the distance between the two of them. She looked like she was warmly dressed, so he couldn't find much reason to scold her for that. "It's been a while," he said quietly, feeling as though silence was not an appropriate response to her greetings, though not really certain what else to say.

[Piper Wren]

"It's been a while,"

Same old Elric, a man of few words if he was feeling slightly unsure, better than babbling of course. Piper smiled at Elric, brushing snowflakes off her shoulders where they were settling before absently rubbing the tip of her nose as if that might return it to the fair colour the rest of her skin was...no such luck of course, it stayed pink. As she looked up at Elric, Piper noticed that he seemed lower in his mood than usual...maybe the weather brought back some memories? She remembered their conversation about how he came to Wonderland, although all of this was too pretty to be sad about...but what could she do?

"It has, I was starting to think you had dropped off the face of the world...Unhappy are we?"

It had been a while since Piper had seen him, perhaps he had been down in the furnaces more than usual? Who knows, Elric didn't seem like the type to be overly social or seek out the small gatherings that sometimes happened in the south wing. They had been more common since the weather turned, the more people in a room the warmer it tended to be...wait a second...her grey eyes fixed upon a snow covered branch just above Elric's head. This might be interesting and possibly stop him looking so...well...sad. The young woman briefly crouched down to grasp a handful of snow which she formed carefully in a ball, a slight smirk flickering at the corners of her lips.

Before throwing it above Elric's head at the snow covered branch...this was going to be interesting.

[Elric Vlarintos]

"Unhappy are we?" she asked. Unhappy wasn't really the word for it, but Elric wondered what the right word actually was. Whatever the word was, he didn't really have time to figure it out before she leaned over and started making a snowball. He raised his hand to protest, before he realized that she had thrown very high.

A feeling of relief flooded through his body, but that quickly dropped off into despair when it occurred to him to look up. Rapidly descending from the branches above his head was a sizable chunk of snow. He opened his mouth to say something, but would not finish--a recurring theme today. Instead he had a mouthful of snow and sank low to the ground under the weight of the damp and cold whiteness.

If Piper had been trying to get Elric's mind away from brooding she would find that she had been very succesful. Spitting out the snow he spread his arms out wide and gathered what was an unhealthy amount of snow into a tightly packed block before gripping it tightly with both hands and lifting up while standing. What now lay in his hands was a snowball as wide across as Elric was, and nearly as tall as it was wide. "My turn," he said with a sinister smile. Oh, how he was going to enjoy this.

[Piper Wren]

Piper couldn't help but giggle as the large amount of snow that her own snowball had dislodged landed heavily on Elric...that really did make him look like a walking snowman now! It also seemed to have stopped his brooding, but as she watched him pack a huge amount of snow into a rather large boulder...and that rather sinister grin he was wearing lead her to think that perhaps dumping a load of snow onto Elric hadn't been the brightest idea.

"My turn,"

Oh dear, not good! Piper knew where this was going and she wasn't going to just stand there and get knocked over by a snow boulder! The young woman turned on her heel and started sprinting away from Elric, dodging the trees and leaving clear footprints in her wake, this was not how she had planned it! Piper had thought Elric might just laugh and maybe snap out of his unease, he may have snapped out of his unease but it seemed that he was going to be amused for other reasons...she caught her foot on a tree root that was hidden beneath the layer of snow and Piper automatically threw her hands out in front of her to attempt to stop the fall.

"Come on! Play fair!"

She called over her shoulder as she struggled to get up, slipping on the snow as she struggled to her feet.

[Elric Vlarintos]

The look on Piper's face had been well worth constructing his monstrosity of nature. It was hardly a pretty snowball and was still bigger than what Elric would normally have thrown, but the intimidating factor was amusing. Just as he was about to toss it for the ineffectual ten feet that it might go when she darted off. Apparently he had frightened her a little more than intended.

Chasing her Elric noted that pursuit with such a large boulder in tow was really quite something. He might have been able to catch her if he wasn't carrying it. Part of him debated breaking it over his knee as he kept going to cut down on the weight. As he was about to do that he saw Piper trip. Vengeance with snow was suddenly the last thing on his mind as he approached her quickly to make sure she was okay.

"Come on! Play fair!"

Elric stopped for a moment, puzzled and then set down the large snowball. "I wouldn't actually hit you with something that big," he mumbled. Reaching down he offered Piper a hand that had gone pink with the cold of handling snow. "To be fair you did hit me with a lot of snow first."

[Piper Wren]

"I wouldn't actually hit you with something that big, To be fair you did hit me with a lot of snow first."

Piper grasped Elric's hand and got carefully to her feet, ending up on her backside again if she stepped on an icy spot wouldn't exactly be graceful would it? She had flushed slightly pink from sprinting and smiled awkwardly at Elric, he did have a point about her striking the first blow so to speak. Piper brushed excess snow off her coat before replying, she was the one who looked more like a snow-woman now.

"Well, you looked a lot less than happy...surprised just seemed better than miserable if you ask me."

Elric didn't look miserable anymore, just...a bit pink from having the freezing cold snow dumped on him, she wasn't really sure what was on his mind before hand but with Elric sometimes it was better not to ask, she didn't want to bring up any bad memories, just as she wouldn't want anyone to quiz her about her history before she had ended up in Wonderland. Thankfully that hadn't been the case yet.

"Perhaps calling a truce on the snowballs? Although I did have good intentions behind it."

Perhaps Elric might see the funny side of it?

[Elric Vlarintos]

With Piper on her feet Elric looked at her to make sure she was standing right. Nothing looked broken. All that snow probably broke her fall anyways. Better to fall on soft, fluffy snow than a hard patch of ice any day.

"Well, you looked a lot less than happy...surprised just seemed better than miserable if you ask me."

Surprised seemed better than miserable? "I didn't mean to come off as miserable," he responded quietly. "I was just thinking about some things. That happens a lot during the winter." However, he was extremely grateful even for a little bit of company. Elric had not been the type to stay with large groups of people or socialize, and it had become more dangerous lately with the rumors flying around. It was odd how he could gauge the atmosphere of Wonderland by what orders he had to make in the workshop.

Though that was hardly a concern now. He lifted his leg up in the air and broke the rather large snow boulder with the heel of his foot. Picking up a smaller chunk that had broken off he tossed it playfully at Piper. "Truce," he said with a grin and shut eyes. "So we all know that I was out here brooding, but what were you up to? Avoiding aggressive books at the library again?"

[Piper Wren]

I was just thinking about some things. That happens a lot during the winter."

Of course, Piper remembered Elric's story about how he came to Wonderland, that had also been on a snowy day...probably a lot like this one and she suddenly felt bad for misunderstanding. She looked slightly awkward and tucked a lock of dark hair behind her ear, days like this probably weren't good for Elric. Maybe she ought to apoligise?

"Truce,"

Piper ended up with a faceful of snow which she brushed off quickly as the cold hit her face. good thing she wasn't talking or she would have gotten a mouthful of the stuff. It landed on her chest where she removed it from her coat, wiping her now damp face with her sleeve...She might have deserved that for dumping all that snow on Elric earlier, although she had to admit it had been worth getting a faceful of it just to see the look on his face when it had all been dislodged from the tree branch above him, absolutely priceless.

"Very funny..."

"So we all know that I was out here brooding, but what were you up to? Avoiding aggressive books at the library again?"

Elric just HAD to bring up the book didn't he? That was something that Piper would have rather forgotten about, being found trapped at the top of a bookcase in the library by a pyschopathic, snapping book was hardly what you might call...well...fun. And she was still rather embaressing and felt her cheeks flushing slightly, not from the cold this time. Elric might have rescued her from it but he wasn't quite gentlemanly enough to let her forget about it...

"Oh...erm...not this time..."

[Elric Vlarintos]

"Very funny..."

"I thought so," Elric said with the traces of a smile still on his face, though the humor was quickly lost. It looked like Piper at least understood the nature of what he had been thinking about, and it really was a terrible thing to brood on. Last thing he needed was someone else worrying about his problems. It was so long ago that Elric wasn't even certain why it even bothered him anymore. He most certainly considered himself a different person now.

However, it looks like changing the subject to the matter of books was not the best choice on his part. Poor Piper still seemed to be bothered by her run-in with the snappy book. "Nothing to be embarrassed about--most people deal with it at one point or another. I won't bring it up again if you don't want me to." He pulled his jacket closer to his skin, wiping his wet hands dry on the fabric while doing so. There wasn't very much he could talk about with someone and that made it very awkward when silence ensued. "Thanks for fixing my jacket, by the way."

Looking back on the path Elric shook his head quietly. "I have a little cider hidden around if you'd care for a drink."

[Piper Wren]

Nothing to be embarrassed about--most people deal with it at one point or another. I won't bring it up again if you don't want me to...Thanks for fixing my jacket, by the way."

Piper was glad he wasn't going to bring it up again, the whole situation had been extremely embaressing and she had avoided belted shut books in the library ever since that little incident. At the praise for fixing Elric's jacket, Piper averted her gaze downwards and awkwardly waved it off, she didn't take compliments very easily and found herself feeling embaressed whenever people decided to attempt to compliment her.

"It wasn't any trouble, it only got ripped because you got the book away from me, I just wanted to say thanks for your help."

"I have a little cider hidden around if you'd care for a drink."

The young woman smiled shyly at Elric, she remembered that her parents would drink cider when it was warmed up in the winter with spices in it. Around Christmas mainly, in the kind of sharp, cold weather like today. That sounded...nice, it was good to know that Elric wanted to actually sit and talk despite the memories that this season had brought back.

"I'd like that, where did you hide it?"

[Elric Vlarintos]

Elric reached up and scratched the back of his head. It seemed conversations with Piper were going to be awkward because they were both quiet people. It was unusual to feel like the talkative one. Then again, maybe he was just trying too hard to impress people when he met them. Did it really matter what they thought of him? Never thought so before.

Elric started off a little ways with a bit of a smile. "It's closer than you might think." Trudging through the snow he grumbled a little bit. His head was moving from side to side in order to figure out the location by landmark. Sometimes he swore that they moved on him just to pester him further, but he would also swear that those thoughts were the product of an overactive imagination conditioned by years of hard living here.

"Ah ha," he mumbled as he went to a tree with a peculiar knot in the trunk and began digging through the snow with his bare hands. It was cold, but Elric wasn't terribly concerned with the cold snow. What was really quite chilly was the green-colored glass he withdrew from the ground. Whatever was inside had been kept quite chilly and it looked partially frozen. Covering the hole up again he tucked it into his jacket. "You prefer to mull over yours warm or do you like it chilled?. Either way its the best part of autumn and winter, I say."

His voice communicated a very serious sentiment. Most children might have attributed Christmas or the like as their favorite part of winter. Then again, Elric was hardly a child anymore. He couldn't help but think it was amazing that he could find anything enjoyable about this season considering all of the stigma he attached to it.

[Piper Wren]

"It's closer than you might think."

Piper watched Elric dig through the snow, doing that without gloves couldnt exactly be pleasant...it didn't seem to really bother Elric, not much seemed to after all. It may have made some of their interactions slightly awkward due to Piper's shyness but maybe as they got to know eachother they would become more at ease with eachother's company.

"You prefer to mull over yours warm or do you like it chilled?. Either way its the best part of autumn and winter, I say."

In this kind of weather Piper preferred something warm to drink, especially because of her tendancy to feel the cold. She smiled at Elric and put her gloved hands in her coat pockets as she stepped closer to him.

"I prefer it warm, especially in this weather. I take it we need to head to the South Wing for that, starting a fire out here might be a little...difficult."

The atmosphere in the South Wing of late was making Piper slightly uneasy, she may have been a member of the Rebels but nothing had been said of any plans. Despite this she had a sense that the humans in Boogie Palace were like a fire, it takes a spark and then it quickly begins to grow and spread, taking all in it's path.

[Elric Vlarintos]

"I prefer it warm, especially in this weather. I take it we need to head to the South Wing for that, starting a fire out here might be a little...difficult."

For a brief moment Elric actually smiled. Not just a smirk and not just a grin, but there were teeth showing. It lasted hardly more than a couple seconds before vanishing, but it had definitely been there. Absentmindedly he reached up to feel his face, as though the feeling had been unusual and unfamiliar to his muscles. "We're in agreement, then," he said quietly. Warm really was the best way to take cider, any time of the year. However, she raised the horrific point of needing to bring it back to the South Wing.

He could potentially start a fire out here, but the problem lay mostly in finding the necessary tinder that could actually catch. It was quickly decided in his mind that he'd rather not bother with that. There was the potential of taking it back to the shop, which was plenty warm enough. However, that was a miserable place that made even Elric nervous. "Better get going, I guess. It's probably pretty cold and its just going to get chillier once it gets later." His eyes cast a glance at Piper, as though remarking on how bundled up she looked. It wasn't even into the bitterly cold part of the year yet.

Thinking about it he realized that his toes had gone numb a while ago and now his fingers were definitely chilled. It was probably best that he started heading back to the warmth of the buildings again. His feet dragged slowly through the snow so as not to pass too far ahead of Piper. He'd rather not make any conversation that the two were able to have more difficult than it had to be.