After settling the unconscious woman in her bedroom and leaving the woman's children and dogs to watch over her, Andy quickly and quietly left the cottage. After all, she needed to store the snowmobile and sled back in the garage before the blizzard got worse and the snow buried it completely. Not to mention, she needed the time to get her bearings and reel in these feelings she's suddenly encountering from the woman and her two daughters.

During their trek back to the cottage, she had expected both of the girls to be riding on the sled with their mother, so it was a shock when one of them hopped on behind her. Like earlier when they were getting ready to ride down to the car, the emotions that came to surface again when the little arms wrapped themselves around her waist unsettled her. 'Foolishness. That's what this is.'

Andy continued to fiddle around in the garage, with her cottage being taken over, she wasn't in a rush to get back to the one place that she had felt comfortable and relaxed in less than an hour ago. Sadly, these people will be staying at the cottage for at least two days. If she's being honest with herself, it would most likely be longer than that, since they're expecting this blizzard to last another day, dumping at least a foot or two of snow on top of the already anticipated three feet. There was also the issue of waiting for the snowplows to come and plow the roads on this part of the mountain, which meant at least a week since her road is always the last to get cleared. She had never minded before, but now, she wishes this side of the mountain was one of the first ones. What is she going to do for a week? If not more? Andy shuddered at the thought.

XXXX

Walking into the warm cottage, she can hear excited voices from the girls and what seemed like quiet murmurs from a third voice. Curious, she walked towards the back of the cottage, to where her bedroom is. There sitting against the headboard was the girls' mother, now fully conscious and talking to her daughters. Her short white hair was swept to the side and sparkling blue eyes were looking at her daughters with love and affection. If Andy was a normal person, she'd say that the whole moment was heartwarming; but Andy's not a normal person, so she immediately turned back around and walked back towards her living room.

She went about fixing tea for herself and begrudgingly another hot tea and two hot chocolates for her guests. Glancing at the clock, she proceeded to prepare dinner for all of them.

XXXX

Miranda looked up from her daughters to see a retreating back. Ever since she'd been conscious, her daughters have filled her in on what had happened. How they had tried to wake her but couldn't so they decided to take matters into their own hands. They left Patricia, their St. Bernard, behind to guard her while they went for help. Her brave and courageous daughters. She's the adult in this equation, she's their mother. She should have gone for help with them, not let the stupid car knock her unconscious and let her daughters fend for themselves.

They spoke of their encounters with the woman that resides in this cottage. Their savior, though a bit strange and doesn't talk, was very helpful and friendly. The woman was not only cool for driving a snowmobile with a sled in the back, but she was also cool for letting them ride with her. Miranda couldn't help but chuckle at the last part from her precocious daughters.

A loud whistle went off from outside of the bedroom causing everyone in the room, dogs included, to look up, then Nala hopped off the bed and ran out the door. Patricia gave a curious bark, while Miranda and her daughters looked at each other then back towards the door, but there was no further feedback. Curiosity getting the best of them, they all slipped out of bed and headed out to where the whistle came from.

Coming to the end of the hall, they were treated to the lovely view of the cottage's open floor plan. To the left is a spacious living room with cathedral ceilings, exposed beams, Brazilian heart pine floors, and large bay windows on either side of the fireplace. On the right, is a large, fully furnished kitchen with an island dividing the space from the dining area, and once again the back of the mysterious brunette woman, owner of the cottage.

"Whoa!"

"This place looks so cool!"

XXXX

Andy whirled around at the sudden noise to find her three unexpected house guests standing in between the rooms. The two little girls were looking around the cottage with an 'awed' expression, while their mother, oh she was looking at her… The scrutinizing look is making her feel uncomfortable and uneasy. Not knowing how to deal with it, she continued with making the tea and hot chocolate she was in the middle of fixing. Pouring the drinks into the mugs she'd set out beforehand, Andy moved them, along with the cookies, over to the island for her guests to enjoy.

She made eye contact with the older woman briefly then looked down towards the drinks and snacks, a silent invitation. The older woman followed her eye motion and gave a slight nod before walking over to the kitchen island.

"Hello, I'm Miranda Priestly. Thank you for rescuing us from this snowstorm."

"Oh! Hot chocolate!" One of the red-headed girls exclaimed excitedly.

"And cookies! Woohoo!" The second one cheered.

Andy, slightly amused with the girls reaction, watched as Miranda gave her girls a stern look and said, "Girls."

They gave their mom a sheepish look then looked over to Andy.

"Thanks for the hot chocolate."

"And thanks for the cookies."

Rolling her eyes, Miranda looked over to Andy and began to point at her girls. "These are my unruly daughters, Cassidy and Caroline."

Their big dog barked loudly, causing all four of them to look over. "Oh yes, and my wayward dog, Patricia," Miranda said.

Andy stood there and looked at them all for a brief second, then went to set a bowl of dog food down for Patricia. Nala, seeing another food bowl, stopped eating her own food and lifted her head to glance at it. Before she could even consider walking over to it, Andy gave her a stern look of 'Don't you even think about it' . She let out a small whine then went back to her food. Seeing that Nala isn't going to take Patricia's food, Andy walked back towards the stove to check on the stew she had simmering in the pot.

XXXX

Miranda watched the brunette stir the pot on the stove as she sipped the hot tea. Whatever she was stirring smelled delicious and it was making her hungry. Aside from the sudden hunger, her curiosity of their host is growing. The young woman looked familiar to her, she's not sure why or from where, but it's tickling the back of her mind. To make this whole situation more difficult and a tiny bit frustrating, it seems her daughters were correct in stating that the woman doesn't talk. While it wasn't hard to understand the woman when she motioned towards the drinks and snacks, it was disappointing that she didn't return the favor of introductions from her end.

Somehow knowing she won't get anything further from her host, Miranda used the time to glance around the open cottage and used her editor-in-chief's attention to details skills to learn more about this enigmatic woman by taking in her surroundings with a technical eye. Like when she's reviewing the Book, she surveyed the cottage. The decorations were simplistic with a homey feel to it, however, what caught her attention are the paintings and drawings hanging on the walls that she hadn't seen earlier since they are on the wall next to the hallway. Setting her mug down on the island, Miranda got up from the stool and walked over to get a better look at the artworks.

At first glance, Miranda can summarily perceive the four artworks are landscape paintings, however, upon looking at it thoroughly the second time, she noticed the paintings are of the same view of the mountains. She realized that each painting depicts one of the four seasons. The first one on the left shows the mountains, pine trees, and the barren branches of deciduous trees to be covered in white snow. The second one depicts the beginning of spring, with the snow melted away and replaced with rain, the barren trees sprouting green buds, like a new life has begun. The third, obviously summertime, with the lush green, beautiful clear blue sky, and the sun beaming down on the mountains and trees so fierce the viewer can feel the squelching heat. Autumn, for Miranda, is her most favorite season, with the wonderful smells and leaves transforming from green to various colors of yellow, orange, and red. However, the last painting on the wall portrays autumn in a bewitching way; instead of the daytime sunlight, the artist painted a large full moon with its bright moonbeam shedding light down to showcase the various autumn colors depicted along the mountains and the deciduous trees. The details in each painting were done meticulously and life like making her want to see the actual view itself to compare.

Continuing her assessment of the cottage, Miranda looked out the bay windows to the view she had just enjoyed in the four paintings mere seconds ago. The view, even with the blanket of snow covering and distorting everything, is just like the paintings, breathtaking and serene. Miranda moved on to examine the little decorations and knick knacks adorning the fireplace mantle. There weren't anything personal or intimate, like photographs of family and friends. On the wall above the fireplace, is another painting, but this one of a cottage in the middle of the mountains and trees. Miranda took a slow look around the painting and smirked when she located the inscription 'A.S.' on the mailbox, the initials of one of her favorite artists, Andy Sachs, same as the initial she managed to locate in the other four paintings she had just viewed.

'Hm… I wonder…'

As she walked towards the front wall of the cottage, Miranda noticed the open sketchbook sitting at the side table next to the armchair by the fire. The sketch was of a beautifully drawn waterfall surrounded by lush trees and bushes. It was drawn in a way that created an illusion of movement from the waterfall; as if you are actually watching the water falling into the pond below, with the sun gleaming down. Curiosity getting the best of her, she picked up the sketchbook and looked through it. Pages after pages, filled with beautifully drawn landscapes.

"You're Andy Sachs."