Bit by bit, Snow's cold heart did begin to thaw. He started looking forward to Heat's company, and he found himself relaxing his iron control as his brother began to understand him. The warmth he felt in Heat's presence was a new kind of feeling that bloomed from his heart, and he found himself craving that deliciously cozy sensation. It was like a comforting cup of cocoa after a hard day's work, and he even enjoyed simply sitting with Heat in front of a cozy fire, each of them doing their own activity.

Heat found that he enjoyed Snow's company, too. There were far fewer biting comments, and he found the warmth of his brother's humor refreshing. He told the funniest stories, and he seemed to have a joke for everything. But as Heat spent time with his twin, he saw much more of the shadow peeking through, and he realized the signs that Snow wasn't happy had always been there.

One evening, after a hard day, Heat found himself with a short temper, and he wanted his brother to cool him off, so he went to his own castle to find Snow carefully chipping away at a large stone.

"Heya, lava breath," Snow greeted absently. "Give me just a second…" He tapped the chisel ever so slightly, and a piece of the stone cracked and fell away.

Heat cringed. "Sorry about that," he said.

Snow blinked at him, setting aside the tools. "What for?"

"It broke," Heat said.

Snow laughed a little. "Oh, that's where it was supposed to break, silly. Don't worry. You didn't ruin anything."

Heat was rather disgruntled about being called silly. "Gee, thanks," he grumbled.

Snow looked up sharply as the room temperature plummeted. He pursed his lips. "What's going on, Heat?"

Heat shrugged. "Bad day," he muttered.

Snow looked alarmed and whistled at once. Cinder pushed open the door. "Yes, sir?"

"Go get Flurry. Tell him my brother needs to relax immediately."

Cinder hesitated, staring worriedly at the tense expression on Snow's face. "Is something wrong?"

"Now, Cinder," Snow said, his voice growing as hard as ice.

When Cinder bolted out the door, Snow came around the work table, a crease on his brow. He reached out to wrap his arms around Heat and squeezed him into the tightest hug. "Easy there, Heat," he murmured. "It'll be okay."

Heat was puzzled by the odd reaction. Snow acted like he was sad or something. Still, his brother was so warm and the hug did feel nice, so Heat simply hugged him back.

"You haven't hugged me in years," Snow sighed, resting his chin on Heat's head.

"I didn't know you enjoyed them so much," Heat admitted. "I thought they hurt you."

"I thought you just didn't like me," Snow said softly. He pulled back a little. "I really had no idea that I hurt you, Heat. You've got to believe me."

"I thought you were doing it maliciously," Heat said. "But I know better now. Warm is good."

"Warm is good," Snow agreed, smiling a little.

Flurry pushed open the door and hurried in with the rest of the ice servants in tow. The two brothers stepped back and Snow took control at once. He had the servants begin to make Heat's favorite dinner, and then he bustled around and waited on Heat himself. Heat only grew more confused by this. He just wanted to blow his top, but his brother seemed to be tiptoeing around him and didn't take the bait he offered.

After they'd been served dinner, Snow set out his food as the servants waited for any other instructions. The ice servants were particularly tense, which made their fiery counterparts wary and on edge. They still had no idea why Snow was acting like this.

"Want anything?" Snow asked.

"What's all this for, Snow?" Heat finally demanded.

Snow shivered as the temperature dropped again. "Easy, Heat," he soothed. "Just relax. Calm down."

"I don't want to calm down," Heat said stubbornly. "I want to explode!"

"I'm aware of that," Snow said evenly. "But what you want doesn't matter, Heat. You have to calm down."

"Or what?" Heat demanded, riling himself up.

Snow didn't take the bait. He stood very still, gazing at the wall behind Heat, his expression taking on an odd, dazed quality. "You would disappoint Mother very much," he intoned softly, speaking in the voice he often used for their mother. "And we mustn't disappoint Mother, dear. So you have to calm down, breathe out the anger, and smile. Do it for Mother, okay dear?"

Heat's anger morphed into cold horror as Flurry's careful words about why nothing was ever wrong were confirmed. Snow did not look normal as he quoted their mother, and the shadow was back, darker than ever. Heat knew what it was now. It was pain. His brother was in agony, but he hid it behind a lighthearted mask. Heat swallowed, and he walked over and grasped Snow's arms.

Snow looked at him and smiled, but it was not a happy smile. "There you go, dear," he crooned softly, reaching up to pat Heat's cheek. "All the anger is gone now, right? Such a good boy. That's my happy Snow. Go play now. And be nice to your brother."

There was a soft noise, and Heat turned to see all of the servants staring in horror at Snow. Flurry looked the least surprised and the most worried. Cinder clutched at him, his eyes full of disbelief and fear. Heat turned back to his brother, unable to wrap his mind around what he'd just said. Snow looked unwell, and he wasn't lying, but Heat had to be sure.

"You're not joking?" he asked hoarsely. "Mother… Mother really said that to you?"

Snow simply shrugged, the strained smile still on his face. "I always was Mother's favorite, right hothead? And let me tell you, it's such an honor."

Heat was absolutely crushed by this realization. He knew Mother had done her best with twelve children born in one year, but she had never once told him to not feel angry. None of them had been told that as far as he knew, but he knew in his gut that Snow wasn't lying. Unsure of what else to do, Heat embraced him and squeezed him tightly. Snow didn't return it. He pushed Heat away very gently, and he peered at his brother.

"Don't touch me again, hothead," he pleaded, his expression raw. He looked ready to shatter. "Not tonight. I don't want to disappoint Mother."

"You're allowed to feel angry, Snow," Heat said, speaking past the lump in his throat. "You're allowed to be upset. You don't have to hold it in. You know that, right?"

"We mustn't disappoint Mother," Snow said, his eyes gleaming with unshed tears as he smiled that same, strained smile. He sat down and pulled his dinner over, speaking in a shaky voice full of false cheer. "So what is this, magma mouth? What's your favorite?"

Heat could sense that his brother was teetering on the very edge of something dangerous. He could push just a bit more and see it all, but somehow he didn't think that was a good idea. Not yet. So he settled down and took his own tray.

"Ah, just curry and rice," he said. "Careful. It's a bit spicy."

Snow tried it and his eyes lit up. The strained smile turned into a real one. "Ooh, this is delicious!" He took another bite. "Mm, you have good taste, lava brain."

"What's your favorite dinner?" Heat asked.

Snow flushed a little, but after a moment's hesitation, he decided to answer. "I've always liked roasted meat. Fresh and hot and falling off the bone." He smiled a little at the thought. "If you cook it all night and throughout the day, it becomes so tender."

Heat was surprised once again by the answer. He'd expected some kind of chilled soup or something, but roasted meat?

"Do you have some we could have tomorrow night?" Heat asked. "Because that sounds good."

Snow blinked and turned to ask Flurry but the question died on his lips. The servants were all meandering around, not looking at them, but they had obviously been listening to everything. Flurry glanced over at Snow and nodded when he realized his sire wasn't able to actually ask his question.

"We could, sir. We have plenty."

"Then I guess you'd better start the meat, Tundra," Snow said, looking away quickly.

Tundra bowed and hurried away with Ember. The others waited for more instructions as their sires ate in an awkward silence. Both Heat and Snow could tell they were curious about what had just happened. Heat could also tell Snow was unnerved by his own behavior, and Heat didn't know what to do with what he'd just learned. After a few minutes, Snow glanced at his brother to see that he was too pale again.

"Flurry, Heat needs snow," he said absently.

"Yes, sir," Flurry said dutifully. "And Snow needs Heat, too."

Snow flushed again. "Now, Flurry!" he snapped irritably.

"Right away, sir."

He left with Cinder, and the other servants grew uneasy as they shut the door behind them.

"He's got quite the tongue," Heat mused.

"He's got cheek," Snow grumbled, taking another bite. "He doesn't know when to back off. If he doesn't stop, he'll get hurt again."

Heat frowned. "Hurt again?" He leaned forward. "You didn't… didn't hurt him, did you?"

Snow tapped his fork on his plate. "Not on purpose," he said tightly.

"Oh. That's good, I suppose," Heat said. "What happened?"

"He pushed too far."

"And?"

Snow's face was set like a wall of ice. "I don't want to talk about it."

"Okay," Heat said. "Want to take a stroll with me? I think a little fresh night air will do you good."

Snow glanced over, wariness on his face. "You think so?"

"Yeah. We can talk about where you have to go in a few days."

"I'm going somewhere?" Snow asked. "That's news to me, hothead."

"The Ring of Fire," Heat said. "A volcano needs to erupt. If there's much more delay, Earthquake's going to come banging on my door and complain about the pressure. You need to help it along."

Snow paled. "Heat, I can barely regulate my temperature enough to stay in my own palace for half an hour. How am I supposed to erupt a volcano?"

"Practice," Heat said. "We start tomorrow, but tonight I'll show you where we'll work on your control. Done eating?"

Snow looked ruefully down at his empty plate. "Yes," he ground out.

"Then let's go."

Snow stood up and plodded after Heat as he went through the magma chamber to a back door. He pushed it open and the two brothers began to climb a steep path. Snow waited anxiously for a question, a comment, or worst of all, a joke, but Heat didn't say a word to him as they made their way to a stone door set in the side of a volcano.

"Give me your hand," Heat said.

Snow obeyed, flinching slightly at the chill. Heat pressed his hand against a smooth panel of rock. "What am I doing?"

"Make your hand as hot as you can."

Snow obeyed, focusing on stew and fireplaces again, but nothing happened. He was embarrassed that he couldn't do it. He pulled his hand back and looked away. Heat shook his head and pointed at the panel.

"Again."

"This is useless. We need to go to Mother," Snow said.

"No. Again," Heat said stubbornly. "Think hotter."

Snow pressed his hand against the panel and his mind scrambled for something hotter. The magma baths he sometimes took would qualify, surely. Trying to ignore the burning gaze of his brother, he imagined sinking into a boiling magma bath, and his skin warmed quickly. He was startled when the panel glowed red beneath his touch and the door opened.

"Hey! I did it!" Snow turned to grin at his brother.

"Knew you could, ice block," Heat said. "Come on."

He led Snow deep into the heart of the volcano to a platform. Heatwaves rippled the air, and Snow peered down to see a flow of magma a mile down.

"That's a long way to bring the magma up," Snow said nervously.

"It's as easy as that," Heat encouraged, snapping his fingers. "Just pull it up toward you and fling it into the air."

"Now?" Snow asked.

"No. Not now. Tomorrow. I shouldn't be too close."

Snow nodded and glanced at his brother. "You're too hot again, Heat. Come on. Let's go take a walk along the barrier."

Heat wiped his forehead and nodded. "You're not the only one still learning."

Snow paused and smiled at him. "Yeah. You're right, sulfur breath. Now let's go. I'm tired."

"Me, too," Heat said. "I can't wait to take a cold shower."

"I'm going to take a dip in the magma chamber," Snow said. "It's been a stressful day."

"I know," Heat said.

Snow's heart ached with love for his brother as Heat said nothing more about his odd behavior. He swallowed and wrapped his arm around Heat's shoulders. Heat glanced up at his brother's face and saw that same raw look from earlier. He said nothing as he wrapped his arm around Snow's middle and squeezed as tightly as he could. They headed back to the barrier and had a pleasant walk before turning in. Before Heat left, Snow stepped through the barrier into the biting cold and embraced him.

"Thank you," he whispered brokenly, gripping him as if his life depended on it. And then, in less than a second, he was heading back to Heat's palace. Heat stood and watched him go inside then pondered what he'd seen and learned today. He was so deep in thought that he didn't hear Flurry come over.

"Sir?"

Heat looked down. "How could Mother do that to him?" he rasped.

"I can't answer that, sir," Flurry said somberly. "I simply cannot fathom it. Now, I've prepared an ice bath for you. A quick dip should refresh you before bed. Then I have some hot cocoa for you."

Heat nodded, and he followed Flurry up to his brother's palace. His heart ached for his twin, and there was a burning ember of anger lodged inside. He also couldn't fathom how their mother could tell her own son to never feel angry. It boiled his blood. But for Snow's sake, he took a deep breath and tried to cool off. He didn't want Mother to think Snow was making a mess.

The anger did begin to cool, but it didn't go away. Instead, it suddenly turned cold, colder than anything Heat had ever felt in his life. Even a dip in ice water didn't compare. It tortured Heat to know that Snow could be hurt by cold just as much as he could. He vowed to himself that he would help Snow. He just had to figure out how.