A/N: Here's the next one! Huh... nothing much more to say I guess. XD. I think the next chapter will be up around the end of this week... Busy week ahead- well actually my weeks are always busy! XD. Lol. Well... thanks muchly to:
Fireblade K'Chona, robin reen, Stormy Phoenix, TheWildWind, d2queen, and Nightshade-013 for reviewing the last chapter! hugs the reviewers You make writing possible!

When I woke I found I was so numb I could barely move. My fingers felt frozen through and I feared of frostbite. What would the effect of losing several fingers be to a one toed Companion? But when I looked, my fingers were fine, if not whiter than usual and when I broke out of my little cave bright, angry sunlight blinded me temporarily and I heard the soft snort of a horse.

I froze and blinked rapidly before peering in the direction of the road. Gradually my vision cleared and I saw a bundled up farmer, standing beside a plow horse. The horse pulled no carriage or farm work, but a saddle was upon his back and a few saddle bags were slung across the front and back of the saddle. The horse was on the road, and the farmer was a little closer to me, looking shocked.

"Good morning," I said, rather stupidly, and pulled myself stiffly up out of the snow, brushing the thick white flakes off my clothing and stretching in my damp clothing. It was warmer than the day before, and the snow on the trees was falling off in large clumps.

"Sir?" the farmer inquired, softly, an air of suspicion around him.

"Sorry if I frightened you," I said lightly, "I got caught in the storm and didn't want to lose the road, so I made myself a little hole here with my pack."

With a sudden inner wince I realized my disguise wasn't up yet on the saddle and I quickly fuzzed the image of it and pulled it up onto my back, hoping it wasn't the blue saddle horn sticking up from the snow that had caught his attention.

Maybe it was and maybe it wasn't, but now he saw it was clearly a pack and he nodded before saying, "Well, lad, you look in need of a warm mug of cocoa. My harvest was good this fall, I can spare you a bite. You look frozen to death."

"I feel frozen to death," I answered with a cheerful grin, "Lead on to this cocoa you speak of."

"What's a young lad like you doing out in a place like this, anyway?" the farmer asked, leading me back over to the horse, whom I looked at with a smile. After so much walking, I had realized riding a horse to Haven would have taken me longer than walking, and cost me more as well.

Stumbling through the snow, I also saw it had snowed an amazing number of feet, and now that the air was clear I could also see that this man's home was only some fifty feet away from the side of the road where the tree line had stopped, which explained how he got out here at all through the snow- it wasn't a far walk.

But the horse was already steaming from the effort, and I didn't begrudge it its tiredness. The snow, on the road, was a good four feet deep and I was really floundering until I reached the path it had kicked out.

"I wouldn't have come out here myself," the farmer said, "But my daughter said she had a feeling I should look under this tree- and when Teryl gets a hunch she's usually right."

My ears pricked up at this, was it mere intuition or something more? Usually, I'd disregard such talk, after all, farmers tend to be a superstitious lot, but the name seemed to ring a bell inside me.

"I'm Yael. Most of this land as far as you can see is mine," the farmer said as we walked, following the plow horse back up to his house, and then inquired cautiously, "Now if you don't mind me asking… are you one of those witchy folks up from Haven? You got the hair for it, if you know what I mean."

I nodded with a smile, agreeing about the hair, and then quickly shook my head with a short laugh, "Yes, I know what you mean, but no I'm not one of them. My white comes from lack of pigment in the skin- I'm albino."

He nodded, glancing back to look over my face once more, and what he saw must have satisfied him for he nodded again and then nudged the horse a little faster. We were both silent the rest of the way, for which I was grateful. I never realized before how much I depended on mind to mind speech for emotional overtones. People just couldn't read me anymore… and it was so much harder to express things. Well, I did still have Mindspeech, but I couldn't very well say that now that I'd told him I didn't have Mage powers, and even thought such speaking doesn't technically count as Mage powers, most people blend them all together- besides, weren't the only people with such Gifts Heralds? It'd just be more of a hassle than it was worth.

Yael's home was small and quaint in a cozy sort of way. It was good and solid, made of rock rather than wood, and although I guessed it was probably at least three times as old as Yael it still looked to be in good condition, with thatch probably made just last fall sitting form beneath the snow.

He had me wait between the barn and house while he put Jack, the horse, into the barn. He didn't take long, and within five minutes he returned, smelling strongly of horse, a scent I'd stopped noticing as a Companion but now that I no longer smelled that way I actually noticed it when it reached my small and somewhat weaker nostrils.

There was smoke coming from the chimney, and although I really would have preferred a cozy stall with some nice warm mash, a home and a farm breakfast would work for me. Besides, I doubted they'd understand my request for the treatment of a horse and I didn't care to explain.

"Dash, Teryl, this is," Yael paused and glanced back at me as he brought me into the kitchen of the home and stamped off his boots.

"Daneric," I said, once more using my real name. Where was the harm?

"Daneric," he finished as he pulled off his cloak. I copied him, pulling off soaking boots and peeling off as many layers as possible and hanging them on the hooks, watching with a slight grin as they steamed in the warmth of the home.

When I was down to my long underwear and shirt I stopped, although I'd really prefer nakedness to clothing, and I turned to look at those I had been introduced to. Instead of a wife and daughter, as I expected, I found myself face to face with a dark haired, serious looking man and a young girl- about fifteen.

"Pleased to meet you," I said politely, forcing another smile upon my face as I held out my hand to Dash.

He gave me a grim smile and stiffly took my hand, shaking it before sitting down at the table where covered dishes hinted of a breakfast just waiting for Yael to be back from the snow to be eaten.

"And you," I nodded to Teryl, who stated at me curiously from distinct brown eyes before copying her- what? Brother? Uncle? Father? I supposed it was possible he was Shaych, although from my eye he didn't look it, but that was just stereotypes pulling through.

"You're the man in the snow," Teryl said as she sat down, tucking a strand of red hair about the same length of mine behind an ear. I noticed it had a slightly more blond tint to it than normal redheads had.

I shrugged at this comment and then followed Yael's waved hand and sat down across from Teryl and peered curiously at the dishes.

"Thanks to the Gods above," Yael murmured and the others copied, myself only bowing my head in silence.

"It should be Spring," Teryl commented, helping herself to a scoop of scrambled eggs from one dish, "But you're still locked in ice."

"Teryl?" Dash inquired in a deep accented voice, looking over at her beneath frowning black eyebrows.

"In his dreams," she said lightly and he nodded, something passing between them before he turned back to his own food.

I felt a chill run down my spine as I peered at the girl. She was ignoring me now and digging into her food, and after a while of this silence I finally dismissed it and forced myself to pay attention to the warm, good food at hand. But then she spoke again, sending shivers down my body.

"I've never seen an albino before," she said with a grin, looking back up at me, "Are they all searching for something?"

"Searching?" I echoed weakly.

"Don't be rude Teryl," Dash commented, not looking up from his food.

"Sorry," Teryl said, although the grin she aimed at me suggested otherwise.

I prayed the rest of the meal would pass without more comment from her- she just gave me the creepiest feeling, and I was in luck. By the time my stomach was full to the bursting with warm fresh eggs and hot cocoa, I'd managed to dismiss any forebodings I had felt previously.

The family, (?), stood up and Teryl cleared the dishes, working quickly with strong and agile hands, piling them on the wood counter for cleaning later, and Yael led us the second room, which clearly doubled as a sitting room and bedroom. There was a loft, which looked like it was probably belonging to Teryl, and a single bed which, by the cushions lining it, doubled as a sofa. I glanced at Dash- where did he sleep?

To the glance, he answered, "I'm a friend of the family." He seemed almost dull, but I had a sneaking suspicion there was more of him down hiding beneath a bland and slightly intimidating surface. The way he looked at Teryl and Yael suggested he cared deeply for both of them.

The three sat themselves around the room- Teryl got the fire in here burning a little brighter before curling up on the sofa beside Dash, and Yael sat himself in a worn old cushioned chair, warming his toes next to the fire. Dash sat still, gazing into the flames and Yael quickly buried himself in a book, and before I could edge my ways to sit in an old rocker, Teryl had pulled out some knitting and everyone was alone in this room full of people.

I felt uncomfortable. Did they expect me to stay or could I leave? Considering the weather outdoors… I doubted I would make it far today. Did they expect me to help out in exchange for their hospitality?

However, no one made a move to speak to me, so I settled myself with musing over the functioning group. Teryl was curled up so close to Dash I suspected she had a crush on him- she seemed to be watching him from the corner of her eye and it wasn't hard to see why. He was dark in a mysterious handsome sort of way and I recalled having sisters who would fall head of heels for that sort of man.

Yet as I sat, and rocked a little carefully, drying off and feeling delightfully warm and drowsy, I sensed an aura in this room that wasn't quite like that of a normal household- and it had nothing to do with the lack of a large family here. It was enough that I was almost enticed to stay, and figure out what it was that fascinated me- but I needed to get to Haven- and find my Chosen.

A/N: There! I hope you enjoyed reading this chapter as much as I enjoyed writing it!