"Which one looks better?"
Her eyes lifted to where Arwen stood in the middle of her overly large bedroom, holding up a dress on each hand, both of them finer than anything she owned. On her right hand was slim pale grey dress with a beautiful white collar, which was adorned in tiny little pearls. The one on her left hand was a knee-length ultramarine blue dress with a a-line skirt, the long sleeves ending in a collection of thin silver liens that almost look like bracelets.
"You're wearing a dress?" Elise was the one to answer from her place sitting on one of the beds, trying to paint her nails in a dark purple color that nearly looked black. She had already changed into pants and an elegant wine red cardigan over her plain yet elegant black shirt.
"I like both." She answered truthfully, laughing a little at Arwen's excitement about that night. She had already bathed and changed, not wearing anything particularly special. Mr. Peredhel had told them that it was not to be formal event, nonetheless she had chosen her favorite long sleeves sweater of a pale silvery blue.
"I think blue." Arwen's voice echoed through the room, speaking more to herself than any of the, already placing the grey dress back on the huge wardrobe.
"Do you have a scarf that goes with it?" Arwen's pale grey-blue eyes looked in her direction, smiling at her warmly. Sigrid's eyes drifted to her messy unpacked trunk lying on the floor, not believing that there would be anything inside there that might help.
"I have a plain black scarf that might work." She offered, trying to remember what it was she had packed. "The others I think are too bulky, and the colors would definitely not match."
It took her a couple of minutes to rumble through her clothes, pulling out sweaters, pants and an occasional stray sock until. "Aha!, here, will it do?"
She watched Arwen's stunning eyes fall on the little black scarf before a wide smile broke on her beautiful face, carefully taking it form her hands. "Yes! It's perfect. Thanks, Sig!...I forgot to pack any scareves…"
"You left them at my house." Elise chuckled from her place on the bed, her warm brown eyes narrowing teasingly at her friend who had momentarily ignored her. "Sigrid, come here!"
"For what?" She eyed the Ravenclaw girl suspiciously, crossing the bedroom towards the ample bed where she sat. she had never really hung out with Arwen or her friends back at Hogwarts, but the few hours that they had spent there at the twin's house had been surprisingly fun, and she decided she like Elise, even though he barely knew her.
"Hands out." The blond girl instructed patiently, a wide smile playing on her face which held a look that was a little too sheepish. It took her a second to realize what was happening, her eyes suddenly falling on the little brush dripping dark purple nail polish coming closer and closer to her fingers.
"No way!" She laughed, quickly retrieving her hands, listening to Arwen's laughter in the background. "I like them the way they are."
"Come on, Sig! It'll look nice." Elise insisted, much to Arwen's apparent amusement and her own chagrin.
"That color looks like you dipped your fingers in a badly made potion." She pointed out, eying the blackish purple shade suspiciously.
"I think it'll look beautiful on you." Arwen shared her opinion, examining herself in the full length mirror as she zipped up her bright blue dress, which she had thrown over black tights that perfectly matched the burrowed scarf.
"Have you even looked at the color?" She called out, watching as Arwen's head turned in her direction, narrowing her eyes at her.
"I picked it out!" Was Arwen's reply, gracefully gliding in their direction, and Sigrid felt the dip in the overly soft mattress as she sat down to their left.
"Hands out." Elise instructed again merrily, and contrary to what she would normally have done, she followed the instruction, laying her hands neatly over the towel the Ravenclaw girl had laid out over the comforter, as to not stain it.
"I can't believe I'm allowing you to do this." She chuckled, already imagining all the ways in which Eowyn would tease her if she could see her right now. She missed her friend, especially now that there was so many people around.
"Elise!" She exclaimed when the Ravenclaw girl slipped and accidentally painted half of her little finger dark purple.
"Sorry, sorry!" The blond girl laughed it off, quickly picking a piece of tissue and expertly cleaning her finger before fixing her mistake.
"You are too pale for that color, Sig." Arwen suddenly added, her eyes gleaming apologetically as she bit her lower lip, eyeing the dark shade on her nails, which contrasted a little too much with her overly pale skin.
"Take it off." She nearly demanded, even though she knew there was no way they would listen to her.
She could hear the echo of voices suddenly appearing downstairs, easily identifying the deep baritone of the twins' father seeming to be talking to someone else. There were footsteps shuffling around on the wooden floor, whoever it was had arrived heading towards the kitchen.
"My parents are here!" Elise exclaimed, her deep brown eyes brightening up as she was able to identify the voices, fingers quickly closing the little bottle of nail polish, finally finished with her work.
"We should head downstairs." Arwen's fingers quickly combed through her perfect ebony waves- as if they needed any combing- quickly making her way towards the large wooden door.
Outside the room, the entire house smelled of ham and turkey and pie and a thousand other deserts and puddings, already making her mouth water in anticipation. Hundreds of candles had bene enchanted to float around the massive rooms downstairs, their flickering orange light giving out a cozy and welcoming area to the house. Somehow Arwen and Elise had managed to finished the task of decorating the living room that she Elladan and Elrohir had failed at, the room now beautifully adorned with hanging green garlands and a collection of red and golden ribbons. They had even managed to finish decorating the impressively tall Christmas trees, form which hung with and red striped candy canes. Christmas music was paying from a enchanted megaphone in one corner the room, the tune one she did not know yet soothing enough to make her insides feel warm and fuzzy.
Out of the corner of her eye she caught sight of a tall dark haired witch, who was wearing a little too much make up, and a somewhat short balding wizard chatting amicably with the twin's father in the kitchen. A young boy, probably about eight or nine suddenly dashed past her, her eyes catching sight of an unmistakable head of sandy blonde hair and large brown eyes. So that must be Elise's little brother.
"Wow, that's a dark color." Elrohir suddenly appeared at the living room's entrance, his silver eyes widening in mockery as he looked directly at her hands, making her feel a little too self conscious. She should never had allowed Elise to paint her nails.
"Shut up. It was Elise." She added quickly, crossing her hands across her chest in order to hide them from the mocking smirk of the younger twin, sitting down on the empty large couch.
The younger twin sat down next to her, looking incredibly handsome in his plain dark green seater and black pants, dark ebony hair falling loosely down his back. He helped himself to one of star shaped ginger cookies that were neatly lying on a plate over the large mahogany coffee table. In front of them, bright red and orange flames roared in the fireplace, dancing elegantly at the tune of the crackling wood. She heard a round of laughter coming from the nearby kitchen, Elrohir's silver eyes turning to look at her underneath a raised dark eyebrow.
"Whatever you do tonight, do not sit close to Mrs. Blackcove- Elise's mother." He chuckled, eyes throwing her a pointed look. "She has as huge nose that is somehow always sticking into somebody else's life, and before you know it she would already be pairing you with one of her many many nephews."
That made her laugh, even though she made a mental note to remember and avoid the tall witch, just as another round of loud laughter erupted from the kitchen.
"There you are!" Elrohir exclaimed, silver eyes sparkling in unison with his teasing grin as his identical copy walked into the room. Unlike his twins' joyful expression, Elladan's silver eyes carried a slightly sour tone to them, as if largely annoyed at something, throwing himself down unceremoniously to her right, moving aside some decorative pillows.
"What's the matter with you?" The younger twin inquired, playfully throwing a decorative pillow- the one with the huge Chrsitmas tree embroidered on it- in his brother's direction, the latter easily catching it in his hands.
However, before he could explain anything, Arwen and Elise walked into the room arm in arm, whispering something to each other. The dark haired girl's eyes flew up to glance at her elder brothers, a teasing mischievous gleam suddenly playing on her face as she approached the couch, grinning in their direction.
"Your best friend is here." Arwen's voice mocked, letting out light laugh that sounded more like a thousand tiny silver bells at the grim expression that crossed the twin's faces, walking away with friend and claiming the cushioned seats some space to their left.
She opened her mouth to ask what she meant but was interrupted by the sound of the massive front doors being opened in the distance, footsteps walking inside at the echo of Mr. Peredhel's welcoming greetings.
"Ah, I had bene hoping you would bring wine, Oropher." She could hear Mr. Peredhel's voice echoing from the doorway, a response she could not quite catch following. The witch and wizard who had been in the kitchen – Mr. and Mrs. Blackcove, suddenly appeared in the living room, the short wizard carrying an opened bottle of creamy eggnog.
"Hi sweetie." The witch, who she could now see did have a long pointy nose kissed her daughter's head – who looked nothing like her, thank Merlin- waving at Arwen and them before following her husband and sitting down on a tall table by one of the windows.
A pair of joyful voices drifted from the entrance hall, footsteps slowly marching to the living room, the twins' father suddenly laughing at something. Next to her, the twins looked as if Christmas had decided not to come that year, Elladan biting his lip as four figures suddenly appear through the wide opening that led to the living room. She fidgeted slightly on her place, eyes sweeping only once over the elegantly dressed three Lasgalens.
He had indeed come. Standing there just behind his father, with his long perfect silvery hair and icy blue eyes, his figure once again that familiar cold and distant aura. He was wearing a fine navy blue sweater, the collar of a pristine white dress shirt peeking out through it. There were no longer any bandages covering his left arm, looking as tall and regal ever, as if nothing had ever been wrong with him. Legolas was standing to his left, his bright blue eyes dancing around the room excitedly, lingering for a few seconds on the collection of candy canes hanging form the tree.
"Oropher, I don't know if you have met Rufina and Gary Blackcove." Mr. Peredhel's voice floated merrily through the room as he stepped inside it, making his way to the table where the witch and wizard were currently sitting, a king smile on his face. Thranduil's father followed him with ease, his elegant wine red robes trailing behind him, shaking hands with the other two people. "Their daughter is very good friends with Arwen. Rufina, Gary, this is Oropher Lasgalen, a good friend of mine."
"Pleased to meet you." The nosy witch smiled widely, showing her collection of pearly white teeth, her husband letting out a round of joyful laughter that reminded her a little too much of Santa Clause.
"Eggnog?" the balding wizard offered, seeming eager to pour the contents of his newly opened bottle to anyone who would accept, which the silver haired wizard politely declined, placing a few bottles of expensive looking wine on the table.
Mercifully none of the adults seemed to notice the uncomfortable turn that had taken over the couch and seats by the fire, where the younger ones were, seeming too jolly and comfortable in their own little gathering. Her eyes followed the elder Lasgalen brother as he crossed the crowded room, sitting down on one of the cushioned chairs as far from them as he possibly could without making it too obvious. Out of the corner of her eyes she could see the twins silver eyes glaring at him, Elrohir picking up another ginger cookie and shoving it inside his mouth.
"Hi!" Legolas waved merrily at them as he crossed the room after his brother, always content and at perfect ease wherever he was, so unlike his elder brother. They waved back at him, the twins even smiling, making it clear that whatever grudge they held was particularly directed at the elder of the Lasgalen brothers. A little to her left, she could hear Arwen and Elise laughing hysterically at someone one of them had said.
The twins' father had given a little flick of his wand, a line of elegant crystal glasses floating from the kitchen in their direction, and she could hear the sound of a bottle of wine being opened. "How are thing sat the Ministy?" she heard Mr. Blackcove initiating a conversation, her eyes settling momentarily on the dancing flames ahead.
"Ow! Rupert!" The little boy she had seen in the house before had suddenly thrown a heavy throw blanket right over his sister's head, laughing loudly about it before running in away, just in time as Elise rose to her feet in annoyance. The tune in the megaphone had changed, the long-nosed with suddenly starting to sing loudly along the lyrics of "A Love Potion Only For You" horridly off key, making Elladan chuckle in mockery.
"Come sit with us!" She didn't know from where she got the courage to ask, her eyes looking in the direction of the two Lasgalen's brothers, Legolas having been narrating something none stop to Thranduil. Elladan's elbow hit her hard on the ribs, making it unable for her to conceal a wince.
"Ow!" She hissed quietly to him, rubbing the spot where his elbow had landed. "Stop that!"
"What are you doing, Sig?!" The elder twin muttered lowly at her, his silver eyes widening in annoyance.
"Trying to be nice!" She whispered in return, their voice too low for anyone else except Elrohir to understand their words.
"Well, stop that!" The younger twin joined in the muttering. Out of the corner of her eyes she could see a pair of ice blue eyes coldly fixed in their direction, silent, unreadable, and she bit her lip as she instantly knew that even though he could not heat their words their muttering was overly obvious.
"Are you really not going to speak all night?" She whispered in a rush, getting annoyed with this behavior and stubbornness.
"Not if we can avoid it." Elladan muttered in return, shoving another ginger cookie in his mouth, seeming to be too stubbornly set on his words.
"Why would you want Lasgalen to sit with us anyway?" Elrohir whispered in the same low voice, his voice nearly dripping in venom as he pronounced the name, silver eyes studying her.
"Because its Christmas, just be nice!" She hissed, gesturing with her hands. "And it's your house and you're being rude"
"Well, we didn't invite him." Elladan crossed his arms, and she knew she had lost the fight, letting out a frustrated sigh. Across the room Lasgalen's piercing ice blue eyes were looking at them coldly, that aloof smirk that made people hate him so much present on his face, not seeming at all surprised or offended by the lack of hospitality he was receiving. Another round of laughter came from the table hosting the adults, the balding wizard banging his fist against he table.
"Where did you get these fudge cauldrons, Elrond!" Mrs. Blackcove was saying in the background. "They are the best I have tried!"
"Elladan, Elrohir, Sigrid!" Mr. Peredhels' kind voice suddenly called to them, rising up from his seat at the table after adding something to Mr. Blackcove with a smile, one hand beckoning them to approach.
"Take this outside." He instructed, the three of them following him inside the large kitchen. Her eyes widened at the sight of the delicious food piling over the many counters, the appetizing smells filling her nostrils. An amused smile broke on her face as her eyes fell on an enchanted sugar dispenser which was making white powdered sugar snow over a large spongy cake.
The twins' father handed Elladan a silver tray filled with marshmallows and pieces of square chocolates, Elrohir a bag full of long wooden sticks and a bucket of chestnuts, and her a little golden tray filled with a pyramid of assorted little desserts that she could not quite figure out what they were, but one of them smelled of fire whiskey.
"And the two of you." His silver eyes looked at his identical sons sternly, making her suddenly had the feeling that he had called them away not to help but to talk with them, bringing her along in order not to be too obvious. "Do not be rude to our guests. I don't care if you don't get along. Interact!"
"Fine." The twins muttered begrudgingly in unison, the three of them following the tall wizard's figure once again back into the crowded living room, the loud conversations filling her ears once more.
"Yes! Finally!" Arwen chirped the second her eyes landed on the tray of marshmallows that her brother carried in his hands, quickly rising from her cushioned seat and hurrying to sit on the elegant carpet by the roaring flames expectantly. Elise had joined her in a second, pulling her long sandy blond hair in a high ponytail.
"I want one!" Elise's little brother exclaimed loudly, running around the couch and throwing himself on the carpet next to his sister and Arwen, seeming impatient to get his hands on the marshmallows and chocolates.
She watched as Elladan set the tray on the carpet next to them, his identical twin sitting down next to him and depositing the little bag with wooden sticks in a place where everyone could reach. Sigrid hurried to place the little tray on desserts neatly over the coffee table, grabbing a couple of cushions from the couch and joining the rest of them by the fireplace.
"Marshmallows!" Legolas' voice echoed through the room, seeming to have just seen what had been on the tray, his feet already rushing to where they were, smiling brightly. "Can I have one?"
"Sure! Come on!" Elrohir was the one to reply, silver eyes looking at the younger Lasgalen slightly amused, even though she could see he forced a smile – very very forced- in the direction of the older of the brothers, as if making and effort to follow his father's instructions- or not wanting his father to reprimand him anymore. Some distance behind her she could hear the clinking of glasses and another bottle of wine being opened.
"Let's go into the dining room. I think I have some more eggnog, Gary." She could hear Mr. Peredhel saying to his guests, the laughing adults stepping away of the room still carrying on their conversation, and she guessed that it was because whatever it was they would talk about, they would rather not have the "kids" around them.
"Come, Thran, there's marshmallows!" Legolas called behind his shoulder, his hand already reaching for one of the sticks and placing a little white marshmallow on the tip. Arwen and Elise were already sitting with their arms stretched, resting their impaled marshmallows over the crackling flames.
Her heart flipped a second as she watched the tall elegant figure of the elder Lasgalen brother slowly rising from his seat, gracefully making his way in their direction. His marbled face remained that perfectly calmed expression that was impossible to read through, eyes as silent and impenetrable as ever. He did not say anything, merely sitting down on the now empty couch directly behind them close enough to be part of the group yet not joining them on the carpet. Swallowing once, and eager to focus her mind on something else, Sigrid let her fingers reach for one of the long wooden sticks, placing a marshmallow on the tip.
"Careful with them, Sig, they pop." Elladan's teasing voice chimed from her direct right, silver eyes gleaming mischievously at her.
"They what?" She asked, suddenly skeptical about placing any of these on her mouth.
"On the fire." Elrohir finished, his grin matching his twins', placing not one but two marshmallows on his stick and inserting them in the fire. "We enchanted them. Some of them will pop, but we don't know which ones."
She was about to ask what he meant when A sudden pop! Echoed from the fire, followed by a small explosion of sparks from what had been a marshmallow and a loud squeal form Elise, who had dropped her stick in the fire in fright. Nearly every single of them erupted in laughter, Elise joining in once she realized what it was that had happened.
"Why am I not surprised?" Elise's voice commented in between chuckles, throwing the twins what wanted to be a glare but seeming too amused to be to be angry. Hesitantly, she placed her own marshmallow over the flames, wincing slightly as she expected a pop, but luckily for her it did not come, letting her relax once more.
"Will you not join?" Elladan's cold voice called over his shoulder, flaming silver looking up at the quietly sitting elder Lasgalen brother, the sound anything but welcoming. Thranduil's ice blue eyes lazily drifted in the direction of the elder twin, silent, distance, only shaking his head as a reply before turning away, clearly not interested in joining. She had to grad Elladan by the arm before he could stand up and throw a fist at the older Lasgalen brother, even though she herself wanted to yell at him for this obnoxious behavior of his, always so distant, disinterested. Could he not make an effort and fake?
"Let it go." She whispered quietly to the elder twin, making it clear with her eyes that she did not want a fight to break out. "Perhaps he doesn't like marshmallows." She tried with a shrug, waiting for the elder's twins sudden anger to slowly cool off. And yet, Elladan's silver eyes threw a look that let her know that her attempt to find an excuse to calm him down was poor.
And yet, something else had suddenly clicked inside her head as her eyes stared at the little white square roasting on the flames at the tip of her long wooden stick. The flames, the way they danced and shifted their oranges and reds and alluring waltz that flickered unpredictably. It was the fire. There was no way Thranduil would get any closer to the fire than he already was, unbeknownst to everyone else.
Pop!
She yelped in surprise, dropping her stick as a cloud of sparks erupted form her marshmallow, showering over them. Laughter follow immediately, accompanied by a squeal from Elise and Arwen, who had been as surprised as she was by the sudden explosion. She ventured a quick glance behind her back, her stomach tying into a knot as she caught a flash a fear cross Thranduil's icy blue eyes for a split second before it once again disappeared in that perfect mask of calmness, his body only ever so slightly tense.
She saw Elrohir stick one of the marshmallows in the fire for a few seconds, testing it with his finger at the edge of the long wooden stick to see how hot it was before sticking it out and throwing it at his sister. The marshmallow exploded with a pop! and a cloud of sparks at the collision, Arwen letting out a shriek in surprise, quickly rising to her feet before glaring fiercely at his brothers who were now laughing loudly.
"Stop that!" The dark-haired Ravenclaw yelled through a badly concealed chuckle, the sparks finally dying away until she was able to sit down properly.
"How did you know it was going to pop?" she asked the younger twin, who was laughing so much he could barely breathe.
"I didn't. I threw it waiting to see what happened and it did pop!" He was barely able to speak through his hysterics, and she could see Elise eyeing the tray of marshmallows suspiciously for a few seconds, as if trying to carefully decide which one to pick.
She was sticking yet another marshmallow on her stick when she caught sight of Elladan suddenly teasingly throwing one of the marshmallows from the tray in Thranduil's direction, the later immediately hurrying away in a move so quick that she had barely seen it, the marshmallow landing innocently on the couch's cushions, where it stayed. Both of the twins erupted in laughter once again at the elder Lasgalen's reaction, making her want to slap them both.
"It's only a marshmallow, Lasgalen!" Elrohir teased between rounds laughter. "Relax."
Ice blue eyes glared at the twin's so fiercely that she even felt herself cringe at the murderous gaze, and yet. And then, without another word he walked out of the room, her eyes staring at his back as he retreated.
"He's always so much fun." Elladan commented at the retreating Lasgalen in a voice low enough only for her and Elrohir to hear. "Can't take a joke."
"Where's he going?" She couldn't help herself from asking, her curiosity too great, part of her disappointed that he had left the room.
"Don't know, and don't care." Elrohir added, sticking another marshmallow in the fireplace.
"Why do you hate him so much?" She finally asked, all previous fun she had been having suddenly gone from her voice. She hated this, hated having to choose sides, hated not being able to be friends with Lasgalen without them reacting badly to it, hated that they despised each other so much!
"Why don't you?" Elladan asked, silver eyes narrowing at her suspiciously. "He's a Sl-"
"He's a Slytherin doesn't count!" She hissed in that same low voice, anticipating what he was about to say. "It looks like your parents get along!"
"He's always like this every time they come for Christmas dinner. The fast five years have been great because he did not come." Elladan muttered in return, rolling his silver eyes in the process. "Can never take any of our jokes, always getting angry at them. Thinks he's so special, overreacting at every tiny thing or prank as if we had attempted to actually kill him and it somehow always ended with us being reprimanded either by Ada or by his father, who is somehow always hovering over his precious son as if he were made of crystal. I have no interest in getting along with him."
"Well, its Christmas Eve! And five years ago you and Ro were nine! You both are fourteen now! So at least pretend?" She rose from her spot at the carpet, ignoring the strange look both of the twins were throwing her, making her way out of the room. She knew she would be questioned later but right now all she wanted was to clear her mind.
Suddenly so many things made sense inside her head, even though there were still a thousand new questions appearing. She knew the twin's jokes, and they somehow always ended in fiery sparks or clouds of smoke. It was no surprise that Thranduil would not react well to them, even though it seemed clear the twins didn't know.
She found him sitting outside by the steps of the porch, not seeming to be cold despite the fact that he was not wearing a coat and it was below freezing point outside. His head turned in her direction at the sound of her approaching footsteps, that teasing smile of his appearing on his face as a silent greeting. She reached his side in complete silence, lowering herself on the steps next to him, not knowing what to say.
The darkness outside was oddly comforting, the silent forest so lulling in contrast to the laughter and bright aura inside. The Pale moonlight reflected dimly over the lake's frozen surface, making the silver tones of his hair stand out. An owl hooted in a nearby tree, followed by the flapping of wings and the sudden swaying of branches.
"What happened to your hands, Bowman?" His melodic voice broke the silence, a raised eyebrow mocking her as his ice blue eyes landed on her nails. Oh, she was going to murder Elise!
"Elise painted them." She shrugged, making a mental note not to ever let that girl close to her whenever she was holding a bottle of nail polish.
"That's a….. dark color." He continued to mock her in that tone so familiar to her, making her narrow her eyes in return at his light chuckle.
"I was going to take it off." She explained, crossing her hands over her chest to shield herself form the freezing cold. "But Elise's parents showed up and we had to head down."
"Why did you leave your merry gathering?" His voice was laced in sarcasm as he spoke, making it clear that he had not considered the gathering fun in the slightest.
"Why did you?"
His eyes narrowed in her direction, but no explanation came, even though she did not need one, merely looking at the night forest ahead.
"I know you don't like the twins, but they are really nice and good friends once you know them." She tried, but based on the unyielding look on his ice blue eyes she knew the battle was lost even before she had started it.
"If you have come here to lecture me about how great the twins are, I'm not interested." He didn't look at her as he spoke, even though his voice was surprisingly not cold as he said those words.
"Can't you at least pretend to like each other?" She tried again, but she knew it was futile.
"Do you want me to go back there and sit in the carpet by the fire and wait for marshmallow to explode in showers of sparks at me, Bowman? Is that it?" Ice blues eyes turned to look in her direction underneath raised eyebrows, only making her frustration grow. "Sounds like a lot of fun. You know, I had been wondering when will I get to go again to St. Mungo's, I really can't wait. Perhaps thanks to the twins' fiery sparks it might be tonight!"
"You know that's not what I meant." She added with a sigh, dropping her eyes, her stomach twisting painfully at his words. She had never heard him mention the hospital out loud, let allow speak so casually about how much he frequented it, the edge of bitterness in his voice making her heart sink, even though she knew it was not directed at her. Something was off, she could tell by his sour mood for the past few days, but she did not dare ask. "You know they didn't mean any harm. They don't know."
"I know…" His voice lowered, eyes getting lost on the forest ahead, a long second of silence stretching between the two.
"I brought this." She suddenly remembered, retrieving a little bag of every flavor beans from her pockets, the one that her dad had given her in the small package the day before. She had taken it down to the living room with the intention of sharing it with the twins but had forgotten about it.
His ice blue eyes threw the bag of candy a suspicious glance before lifting up to meet her, that mocking smirk once again appearing on his face. "Those are disgusting, Bowman."
"Not all of them." She added, opening the little box carefully without spilling the beans. "Depends on your luck."
"I don't like candy." He reminded her, having no intention of taking any of the little beans from the bag.
"I don't like flying." She added quickly, watching as a silent chuckle left his lips.
"What kind of person doesn't like flying?" He shook his head again, eyeing her once more as if she was overly strange.
"What kind of person doesn't like candy?" She threw back at him, watching a smirk cross his face at her words.
"Your point?"
"You made me fly nearly against my will." She reminded him, not adding that she had to admit it had been one of the most fun nights of her life. "Now you have to try these."
"I have to?" He was mocking her now, one eyebrow raised high on his flawless face at her choice of words.
"Fine." She muttered, not about to let him test her patience. "I'll eat them all by myself."
"Go ahead." He shrugged, letting out a light musical laugh, looking as if he had no intention in even trying the little pieces of candy.
"Fine." She stated, picking out a random little bean and sticking it into her mouth.
"So?"
"French Toast." She announced victoriously, silently thanking Merlin that she had had good luck that time.
"Are you telling the truth?" His eyes were studying her suspiciously, as if almost expecting her to spit out the bean complaining of a horrible taste.
"Why would I lie about it?" She laughed.
"Because your taste in candy is questionable, Bowman." He said, her eyes immediately narrowing at what the was implying.
"Really?" She asked, unable to conceal her annoyance. "You're going to bring up that again?" Did he not have anything else to say than to make fun of her for that time months ago when she had picked out a badly tasting sugar quill.
"I didn't say it." He defended himself, even though she could see the mockery gleaming in his ice blue eyes.
"You thought about it." She pointed out instantly, closing the little box of beans a little too forcefully, making a few beans fly in every direction.
"You read minds now?" He faked surprise, even though she could see him stifling a teasing sarcastic laugh. "You must do so well in Divination."
"Why do you make it so complicated to talk to you?" She snapped at him, not able to believe they were back at mocking each other in this endless questioning.
"You get angry so easily." He chuckled, leaning back on the heels of his hands.
"You always to this." She hissed, at the end of her patience, too annoyed at his constant unnecessary teasing. "Can't you talk to me without needing to mock me? Just when I think you might actually be nice to be around."
She rose to her feet, eager to return to her friends and the cozy warm living room, but a hand suddenly curled over her right forearm, gently, stopping her from moving.
"Don't go." The unexpected request caught her by surprise, those endless icy blue eyes looking at her softly, all trace of mockery suddenly gone from them. Every single coherent thought was telling her to return inside the house to where the twins and Arwen were, to not sit here through another round of mockery and teasing that was about to follow. And yet, she sat down again, folding her hands over her knees.
"Why?" She asked him, her large brown eyes looking straight into his piercing ones, studying him closely yet reading nothing. "Why would I stay here and suffer through your mockery?"
And then he las leaning closer to her, her heart flipping widely inside her chest, her whole body paralyzing. She didn't know what to do but she could not move, his face suddenly so close to hers, he eyes drowning in icy blue that was suddenly warmer than the roaring fire. She could feel her breath hitching, his face so close she could feel the tip of his nose brushing against hers, and then his lips were on hers, her body frozen in place, a wild cloud of butterflies dancing inside her stomach, her heart hammering loudly inside her chest like a caged bird, and she didn't' know what she was doing, every single coherent thought erased from her head, everything around her seeming to momentarily stop and disappear….
Hi there! Here's chapter 20! :) :) I hope you enjoy this first part of the Chirstmas Eve dinner. Tis not over yet since they haven't actually eaten dinner haha!
Again I can't say thank you enough times to those of you who left comments on last chapter! It really means a lot to me to know you are excited about the story and that at least someone is reading it. So again thank you thank you! Rose61393, Eryniel Greenleaf, Goddessofwarriorcats, Josei and VanyaNoldo.
VanyaNoldo: don't panic! The chapter is there! I know sometimes it takes a while for the chapter to show up even after getting the email for it!
Eryniel Greenleaf: Not a long wait! Can I still have Chirstmas cookies? Pleeeeeease? If you don't give me Christmas cookies I will hurt Thranduil! Not to sound threatening or anything ;)
Love,
Elena