Now it's snowing again in my area so this arc is fitting.

Winter Wonderland: Part Nine

They made it to the farm safely. Scarlet let them all inside and they got comfortable at her kitchen table. She boils a kettle on the stove and everyone gets mugs and packets of powdered hot chocolate. As Scarlet went to change out of her school uniform, the kettle started screaming on the stove as it boiled.

Winter turned it off and poured some hot water in all their mugs. As it cools off, they slowly take sips from their steaming mugs.

"You look cute," Thorne says to Cress.

Cress perks up and blushes, especially when Thorne takes a picture of her. He leans forwards and kisses off the frothy moustache she didn't know she had. Cress giggles and she grabs a napkin to wipe the rest of it away.

"That's the closest moustache Thorne will ever have," Cinder comments, stirring around her mug.

Thorne's mouth drops in a dramatic offence, especially since nobody defends him. Not even Crescent Moon. It's not like he's seen Kai or even Jacin with facial hair and the most Wolf ever has is scruff or stubble.

Even when he sips his hot chocolate to try and get a frothy stache, it doesn't work and he's more ashamed. He gets a napkin to save himself.

Scarlet walks in now wearing her signature red hoodie and dark jeans. Her sleeves are rolled up to her elbows and she stops beside Wolf's seat. She puts a hand on his shoulder and uses her other one to take his mug and finish his hot chocolate.

She slams the mug on the table and everyone knows she means business.

"I'm warmed up and remember those sleds in someone's trunk," Scarlet says. "I know Wolf and I won last time but let's have another round."

"And what's at stake this time?"

"Losers have to dig out Thorne's snowplow."

Everyone's in.

-o-

Once all the hot chocolates were finished and the mugs were washed, they bundled up and went back into the snowy farmlands. They got their toboggans and followed Scarlet to the nearest hill. This wasn't the same environment as last time. This hill is bigger and has more snow on it from the storm. The more they climbed, the more they realized how steep it really was. They sank into the snow with every step, the snow going past their knees.

Cress's entire leg was submerged and she almost disappeared in the snow. Wolf carried Scarlet on his back. Cinder had to hold Thorne and Kai's hands (against her will for Thorne but he was desperate) so they wouldn't stumble. Winter, as expected, was completely fine. She was walking up the hill as if she was walking on a clear sidewalk on a sunny day.

It didn't surprise anyone when she reached the top first.

For the sake of fairness, they went with the same teams like last time. The Lunar Babes consisted of Cinder, Cress, and Winter. Wolflet had, obviously, Scarlet and Wolf. Lastly, the Two Snaccs were Kai and Captain Thorne. Just like last time and with every situation, the Captain title was necessary.

The rules this time was that nobody was allowed to interfere with anyone else's sled. The goal was just to drive straight down the hill.

"I think our strategy last time worked," Wolf mutters to his girlfriend. He rolls up his sweater's sleeves again after having left his jacket at the bottom of the hill like the first time.

Scarlet nods with a little hum. "Let's win this, babe."

Thorne and Kai look at each other. They lost badly last time, Captain Thorne was sitting in the back and Kai was taking the reins hoping that would change their luck. They look over at The Lunar Babes and they were talking in a suspicious hushed circle. All their faces are hidden underneath Winter's hair until they disperse.

After moments of deliberation, everyone gets on their sleds. From left to right are The Lunar Babes, Two Snaccs, and Wolflet. The drivers, Scarlet, Kai, and Cinder look at each other and nod.

At the count of three, they're heading downhill.

Since it's steeper and the snow is fresher, they're going down faster. Winter puts on her hood and shoves all her curls inside to prevent drag against the wind. Wolf notices and does it with Scarlet's curls as she concentrates on driving the sled.

"I can't tell if this is working," Wolf says.

"Pull the strings on my hood so the wind can't get inside," Scarlet responds.

Wolf leans forwards a little and holds the strings. He pulls them too tightly and Scarlet thrashes back when her eyes are covered with fabric. Wolf accidentally lets go of her and falls back into the snow.

Now alone on her sled, Scarlet's hood loosens and she shakes her head to get rid of her hood. Her curls fly back as she turns around for a second to see where Wolf went. When she doesn't see him, she figures he fell six feet under the snow. Scarlet knows he'll be fine. She has a race to win for them. Even if dead to frostbite, Wolf would never let her live it down if they lost.

When Scarlet turns back around, she notices that she's on an angle. It must've happened when she was blinded because she also picked up speed once Wolf's weight flew off. Scarlet glances and she's right in Thorne and Kai's path. Last time, she cleverly cut them off. This time, she narrowly misses them as she continues down the hill.

Thorne and Kai are about to curse at her when they hear a horrified scream coming from their sled that wasn't from either of them. They pause, continuing their journey downhill. Thorne glances behind him and sees Cress hugging him. Kai turns around because Thorne was so silent and his eyes widen when he sees her.

Cress grins at them, holding onto Thorne tightly.

"When the stars did you get there?" Kai asks as he turns back around to drive.

"I was here the whole time," Cress responds.

"You didn't notice her?"

"I thought that was you!" Thorne yells.

Kai groans. "How could I be hugging you from behind if I'm in front of you? Not to mention that you are holding me."

"I don't know." Thorne smiles warmly at the thought of his girlfriend right there, holding on to him for dear life. "Babe, I love you but this is against the rules."

"Rules said we couldn't interfere once we went down the hill," Cress responds. "I've been here the whole time."

Two Snaccs aren't sure why they never noticed her or her absence on The Lunar Babes' sled. They weren't even sure how they still managed to finish last even when Scarlet seemed to have veered off-course. Or, worst of all, how Wolf managed to get to the bottom of the hill before them when he was long gone after he fell off of his sled.

They cross the finish line with everyone laughing at them. This loss was even worse than last time.

"A win for The Lunar Babes!" Winter chants as she and Cinder help Cress up from the losing sled.

The Blackburns each take an arm and hoist Cress in the air. Cress brings her knees up to her chest as they carry her above Thorne and Kai's heads. Snow from her boots falls on their heads and shoulders.

"I hate this game," Kai says.

"I don't want to play anymore," Thorne adds.

"We should've had at least one Lunar on our team."

"We could've had Jacin."

"Jacin would bail on us to help Winter win."

"But would Jacin want to lose against Cinder?"

Kai bites his tongue. "He wouldn't."

"We got a plan for next time."

"After we dig out your snowplow."

Thorne groans. "Ah, spades."

Again, my blessed random name generator picked the winner.

Also, I'm so willing to write a Thorne, Kai, and Jacin team-up. Let me know what activity you'd be interested in.