The chill in the air seemed to increase by the hour, carrying the smell of something between fish and bread around the house. Maraja sat solemnly, clutching unto the wooly coat draped around her.
Wisteria wagered on in the next room, willing the family of her friend to let them stay till the dawn of the next day.
A shiver ran up her spine, her body fidgeting momentarily. "At this point, the cold might be the real problem." She murmured to herself.
Tedran open the door slightly, muttering a strange phrase, the room warming up as Maraja's toes curled, a cold breath escaping her lips.
Warmth began seeping into her body, as she turned back, in search of who had just spoken the strange language.
"Princess." Tedran's voice filled the small room, as he closed the space between them with a little more than two steps.
The glow in his eyes receded as he stood before the Nawi. "Is that better?" He asked.
She momentarily looked down at her palms which had stopped shaking. "Yes, thank you."
"My pleasure."
"Here." She scooted, offering him a spot next to her on the ice bench.
The Druid gave her a small smile as he accepted her offer.
"Do you think they'll let us...me stay?" She toyed with her fingers as she spoke. "If not, I'd happily leave. I truly want no more complications as is."
"But you just got here, Princess. The complications are yet to rear their heads." He smiled to himself.
A look of dread crossed over the Nawi's eyes, quickly disappearing as she took a deep breath. "So, what exactly did you say back there? Was that some kind of Druid magic?"
"Well…yes." He shrugged indifferently as he answered.
"So what's the difference between Elarans and Druids? I mean we all do magic, don't we? And what...what are these grooves in your skin? Do they hurt? Why are they blue? Is your..." she paused, heat creeping up her cheeks at his amused smile. "I'm sorry." With yet another sigh, she raked a hand through her dirty hair. "I'm just rambling on to run away from my problems I guess. You don't need to answer any of that."
"Hmm…" He grunted in thought, looking at her through the corner of his eye. "Elarans possess true, raw magic and it flows through them effortlessly like a river. Druids, however, aren't born with so much magic. We struggle to even light a candle with our natural level of magic. This caused the original Druids, our ancestors to find a way to amplify our magic, resulting in these…" he shifted his collar, exposing more skin and the grooves embedded in them.
"They don't hurt?" She questioned, eyes roaming his exposed neck curiously.
"Not at all, princess…not at all." He adjusted his collar.
"Mavis!" Mason stepped into the room where his sister was, sending a small smile her way. The Nawi stood immediately, at the sound of her brother's voice. "They let us stay…barely."
Plastering a smile, she followed her brother out to meet the owners of the home.
~~~
In the dead of the night, Maraja stirred restlessly on the tiny bed that was given to her. She sat up slightly, tied her now clean hair in a messy bun, and let out a heavy sigh.
The whooshing sound of cold air could be heard beyond the walls of the ice-cladded home. She rubbed her eyes groggily, sleep evading her desperate reach.
Wisteria, on the other hand, lay peacefully a few paces from her on a similar bed. There was a thud outside, causing the Nawi's brow to form a concerned crease, her hands clutching the fur-filled covers tighter.
Her ears twitched, as she tried to make out the sounds following the mysterious thud. The room being almost pitch black didn't help with her growing fear, as she shifted further into the bed.
A sense of unease washed over her as she realized she was alone with this unseen attacker, as Ria made no move at her side of the room.
Suddenly, there was a cold grip on her leg, a yelp escaping her trembling lips as she was dragged to the cold floor. With a heavy thud, she landed, the blanket skidding along with her.
The grip disappeared, simultaneously reappearing against her neck. "Ugh!" Her eyes became alight, the gold in them lighting up the room as she grew irritated at the slithering assailant. "Get off me!" With an aggressive shove, the cold hands came off her.
Just then, Tedran burst through the doors, his eyes glowing a misty blue, with a similar glowing book floating in front of him. He stretched a hand forward, brows furrowed in concentration as he spoke. "…fyomir nezemir!" his words floated across the room, lighting it up and exposing the attacker.
The empty-looking cloak stumbled backward at the sudden light as the pages of Tedran's book flipped through themselves. "…ralkam!" A barely visible force barreled for the cloaked figure.
It dodged nimbly, hissing as it melted into the wall, the sound of grinding ice filling the room. "What the hell?!" Mason cried out, rushing to his sister's side.
The Druid made a beeline for the runaway attacker, casting another spell as he too, melted through the wall in its pursuit.
~~~
I whirled around, handing out a confused glance at Ria's frozen form.
"Ria!" I rushed to her side, lightly shaking her. "Ah…" I recoiled at the frosts of ice that coated her.
Suddenly, I became acutely aware of the screaming outside, the hairs on my body standing in fear. "M…Mason, get Reef." My brother rushed out as I clutched the princess's frozen arms.
"Wisteria!" Reef, a friend of hers, rushed into the room after a few minutes. He knelt beside me, as both his hands hovered calmly over her body, the crusts melting away.
She scampered to her feet, eyes alight with alarm as she took in her surroundings. "Wh…what happened?" Her eyes darted to the windows, grasping at the wails of her people, her face twisting in panic as she rushed for the door.
We rushed after her, feet racing along the smooth ice, breath quick as we pushed through the doors of the house. My breath caught up as my eyes roamed the chaos around me.
Houses melted into puddles, their inhabitants wailing in pain as they ran out, shielding their heads from something I wasn't aware of. The ice beneath our feet bore pin-sized holes, and I looked up at the dark skies in confusion.
The air was thick with the smell of burning flesh and the sound of sizzling ice. The sky was a deep blue, with streaks of white and silver illuminating the night. I could see the outline of trees in the distance, their branches twisted and gnarled like the fingers of a witch.
As we ran, I stumbled over a pile of rubble, my hands scraping against the cold, rough surface. I could feel the heat-mingled aura emanating from the ground as I stood.
My feet became glued to the ground, my heartbeat quickening as I watched a single drop of rain travel from the skies, finding its way to my skin.
"Mavis, what are you doing?!" My brother's screams were drowned out as the strange droplet bounced on my skin, burning a smoking hole deep into my arm.
"Ahhhh!" I cried out in pain, heated blood pouring out of the injury. "What the hell is this?!"