There are typically two kinds of people in the wake of a good snow storm passing through a region: those who prefer to be out, enjoying the sports and snow-related activities, and those who enjoy watching the snow from inside the comfort of a warm building.
Diana was solidly one of the second category. Snow was cold, heavy, and wet, a positive nuisance and hardly appealing. It was pretty enough to watch it fall outside her window, but anything more was entirely unappealing to the platinum-haired witch.
Sadly, her girlfriends didn't share her sentiment. Snow was cause for excited celebration, at least for Akko. From the moment they awoke that morning, there had been endless chatter about all the snow-related activities they would be doing with their day.
"C'mon, Diana! We don't want you to spend the day inside, all by yourself!" Akko whined, tugging at her wrist. "It'll be more fun if you're with us. You can help us make winged-snow familiars. Oh! And build snow-witches! We're even going to gather some clean snow and make snow cream!"
"No thank you. I prefer to keep myself from freezing to death. But don't let me stop you from having some fun."
"Sucy! Help me convince Diana to join us!" Akko changed tactics, bouncing from one girl to the other.
"Why does it matter? You're just going to complain when she uses magic to create the most perfect snow witch ever, and then you'll pout and it'll ruin the fun," Sucy deadpanned.
"I'm not like that!" Akko exclaimed, crossing her arms over her chest. "I know that Sucy is only coming with me so she can look for some rare snow-fungus or something."
"Actually, it's a toxin found in the coat of–"
"See what I mean? Nobody wants to do it just for the sake of having fun!" she huffed.
"Fine. We'll build your snow witches. Can we go now?" Sucy was already wearing her winter coat, hat, gloves, and boots by the time Akko focused on her.
"Ack! Where did I put my coat!?" Akko became a blur of activity, leaving Diana and Sucy to exchange weary, yet bemused glances over their girlfriend's behavior.
A couple short minutes later, the room was once again quiet, and Diana allowed herself to let out the breath she had been holding. As much as she enjoyed the time with Akko and Sucy, there was a lot to be said for the sound of silence.
She walked over to the window and peeked down at the courtyard. As expected, Akko was bouncing around like an exuberant puppy, and Sucy was standing aside watching– until she got hit in the chest with a snowball.
Diana couldn't help the giggle that rose in her throat as she watched the normally calm Sucy hurl a barrage of snowballs at Akko while the latter squealed, laughed and failed at dodging. Moments like this entertained her, even if she wasn't fully participating.
Akko fell flat on her back in the snow, with Sucy standing proudly over her. Diana couldn't hear what was being said, but judging by the flush on Akko's cheeks and the grin on Sucy's face, it must have been either funny or in some other way, entertaining.
She turned from the window with a sigh and a faint smile of her own. Life was never boring nor quiet, not with the other two girls around. It didn't matter what the time of year was. Akko ensured that they were constantly kept on their toes.
The cold seeping in around the window frame was enough to make Diana shiver and wish she had a warm drink in her hands. Perhaps a trip down to the kitchens for some hot cocoa was in order.
Diana slipped on a pair of comfortable shoes and pinned a cloak over her shoulders for warmth before venturing down the stone stairs to the kitchen. The students who greeted her didn't stop her because she made no move to pause her footsteps. When she had a goal in mind, she was hard-pressed to alter her course or plans without reason.
She sighed in relief when she reached the kitchens and the hot air radiating from the ovens carried over to her. It was almost too warm to stay for long, prompting her to act quickly in preparing not a cup, but an entire pot's worth of hot cocoa. She set up a tray with several sizable mugs, stirring spoons, and a bowl of marshmallows to add on top.
Once the water was boiling, she set the chocolate on the tray with the steaming pot and other dishes. Then it was back up the stairs with her prize while she ignored the quizzical or judgmental stares from her fellow witches. Some attitudes had changed since she had chosen to start dating Akko and Sucy. But Diana held her head high and pretended not to hear the whispers.
Her shoes made a quiet sound on the stairs, one that brought an odd bit of comfort in the otherwise dismal and silent halls. Few students roamed the academy at this time of the morning when they had a day off. Not when the shops or other, more pleasant indoor activities called their attention. Diana couldn't fault them for it. But one could only take so many trips through the same stores before getting bored. And who knew what kind of mischief Akko would lead them into were she left unattended.
The room was as she left it when she returned. Diana set down the tray on the desk and went back to the window. She did a double take when she gazed down at the courtyard. Countless figures created from snow littered the ground, all in various states of decoration. At a glance, it was easy to pick out the work of Sucy, and which ones Akko had built.
Akko had a flair for the traditional yet whimsical. Her 'snow witches' all boasted hats of one form or fashion, though 'hat' might be a bit of a generous term for the mass atop the witches' heads.
Sucy, on the other hand, chose the more dramatic look, using bits of foliage to create rather scary looking witches and ghouls.
Diana leaned closer to the glass, trying to find where the artists had ventured off to. She peered right and left, not catching any sign of the two girls.
"Boo!" Sucy and Akko's faces appeared at eye level, flying on Sucy's broom.
Diana screamed and fell backwards, landing hard on her backside while Akko dissolved into peals of laughter. She scowled as she brushed herself off and stood up, pushing the window open so her cackling girlfriends could enter.
"Oh, you should've seen your face! That was the best idea you've had all day, Sucy!"
"So it was your fault. I might've known," Diana sniffed. She busied herself pouring the steaming water into the mugs and slowly stirring in the chocolate. "How was your time in the snow?"
"Cold."
"Exhilarating!"
Akko sniffed in appreciation, walking over to peer over Diana's shoulder. "Cocoa! You're making us hot cocoa!?"
"Well since you can't be trusted to do it without destroying half the kitchens, it's only fair that she does it," Sucy pointed out. "Nobody likes burnt chocolate either."
"It was one time, okay!" She crossed her arms over her chest and huffed.
"One time… with cocoa. Let's not forget–"
"Suuuuuucccccy! You promised not to bring that up again!" Akko whined, lunging forward and covering her mouth with her hands. Only the threat of Sucy giving Akko's fingers a bite with her sharp teeth made the excitable witch pull back her hands with a pout.
"Have some cocoa, you two… it'll sweeten your mood." Diana handed out the mugs. "Marshmallows included."
"Awww, you're the best!"
"Thanks." Sucy inhaled the warm, chocolatey scent radiating from the cocoa.
"Did you gather the poisons that you needed, Sucy?" Diana asked, stirring her cup before taking a seat on the edge of her bed.
"No. The monsters all went into hiding the moment we made our appearance. I need to be stealthy, and well, someone makes that a bit challenging." Sucy deadpanned with a pointed look at their boisterous girlfriend.
Akko feigned innocence as she blew on her hot cocoa. "We still had fun, and that's what matters."
"I suppose that's one to keep her from experimenting on us with her poisons– I mean potions."
"If my girlfriends aren't willing to trust what I'm brewing, why would anyone else?" Sucy shrugged. "Face it. You help build my credibility as a potion master."
Diana smiled to herself as Akko passionately protested Sucy's observation. For all their differences, nothing brought them together quite like shared experiences– but a cup of hot cocoa on a snowy day didn't hurt either.