Not Quite Spring Yet

The next morning Sidra woke before Sulien again, thankfully this time not because she was being stared at by Xanthe. She woke Sulien, who only protested a bit before they headed out into the cold. Falkreath took off to go find some food, or at least that is what Sulien said the hawk was off to do.

There was something different in the air of Snowhaven, Sidra noticed, as the pair approached the lodge. Voyeur was standing by one of the fire’s outside of the lodge, looking a bit worse off this morning but still pensive. His dragon was perched on his back this time, wings slightly spread to catch the morning sun.

“Something feels different,” Sidra commented as they approached, and the older stallion nodded.

“Imbolc,” he replied.

Sidra shared a surprised look with Sulien. It hadn’t been long after the Solstice they left; neither of them realized they had been gone long enough for it to be Imbolc.

“I didn’t realize it was that close to spring,” Sulien said and Sidra nodded her agreement.

Voyeur gave a snort of amusement. “Well when it's this cold and snowy all year round….”

Sidra chuckled and nodded. He wasn’t wrong, after all.

Quickly pulled into the festivities, Sidra and Sulien assisted as they could. Food was being prepared, and while Sulien wasn’t the worst at cooking, Sidra was a disaster. So the young mare ended up doing more errand running than anything else, delivering messages and checking progress on several amusements as Eira oversaw them.

Voyeur wasn’t let anywhere near the cooking, especially after yesterday, so he mainly helped Varune, Aster, and Ranvir erect large poles with ribbons flowing from them around the main square.

Sulien stuck with Quiterie and Lullaby, helping them set up tables and food, and Sidra found herself being followed around by Xanthe as she ran back and forth between the two groups.

Eira oversaw it all like a general, making sure everything ran smoothly and got done on time. While she was not a large and imposing figure, Eira certainly knew how to give orders and get things moving, so Sidra found herself watching Eira, how she used her voice and her body language, how she seemed to know everyone's strengths.

It gave the young mare insight, and Sidra found herself hoping to some day have that sort of presence.

Preparations were complete around midday, and the bonfires were lit. Food was passed around, and there was a lot of laughter to be had. Voyeur shared stories of far off lands, and Eira shared her own stories of questing and jousting. Sulien shared stories of traveling with Ausrune and his misfortune, and Lullaby shared some tales of her time serving the detities. Looking around at the group she was with, Sidra began to realize just how small her world view had been her whole life. She knew her mothers land, and the mountains, and now she knew some of the desert. But these Quirlicorns…. They had epic tales of the land, of meeting the detities, of so many more things than Sidra could have dreamed.

So Sidra remained quiet while tales were shared around the fire, and listened as best she could.

It was after the second feast that Xanthe began to get restless. “Let’s play a game!” she said excitedly.

The adults shared a look, but Eira smiled and nodded.

“What did you have in mind, little one?” Eira asked.

Contrary to the celebration of spring, more snowflakes had begun to fall from the sky. Xanthe looked up and made a ‘hmmm’ noise as she thought.

“Let’s have a snowball fight!” Xanthe exclaimed, and Sidra nearly groaned. After the huge fight on the Solstice, she was a bit put out from snowball fights.

But the others were nodding, and Sidra found herself roped into the fight.

“Half hour to prepare…. Then we fight!” Eira called out.

Somehow Sidra and Sulien ended up teaming up with Voyeur. Perhaps it was because they all were outsiders, or just the luck of the draw. The strange stallion and his dragon joined Sidra and Sulien in the preparation of their fort.

Sidra and Sulien wove their magic once more, building a sturdy fort, and Voyeur watched in awe as they worked together. Once finished, they took position behind, gesturing for Voyeur to join.

Voyeur ducked behind the fort wall, and glanced out to the open field. There were a few other forts erected, and he glanced at them before turning to Sidra and Sulien.

“So what next?” Voyeur questioned.

Sulien glanced out at the other forts and used his horn to draw out a rough map in the snow at his feet.

“We are here, and there are forts here, here, here and here,” Sulien said, gesturing to each.

“Falkreath is scouting currently, getting a look at their defenses.”

Voyeur chuckled. “That Zoolingualism is a big help it seems,” he commented and Sulien nodded pensively.

“Our best bet might be to use our magics in ways they don’t expect,” Sulien murmured. “Sidra and I both have a lot in our arsenals, but not quite what is needed for a snow war unless we go on the offensive. We can melt or liquify the other forts, but keeping ours protected will be a chore.”

Voyeur snorted. “Leave that to me,” he replied, as his dragon perked up. A shimmer seemed to go down Voyeur’s spine as scales appeared over his body. “I will hold the fort.”

With nods, they figured out the last few bits of their plan, and broke apart. The call went out, and snowballs started flying.

Ranvir and Quiterie had a fort together, positioned to their right. Using their magics, Sidra and Sulien went to work on melting it while Voyeur pelted snowballs to their left, covering their backs from Lullaby and Xanthe (who was a surprisingly good shot).

For the moment both Eira and Aster were distracted by Varune and Gwynn, who had taken up the offensive against them.

“We are gonna move out!” Sidra called, as Ranvir and Quiterie’s fort fell. “Hold the fort!”

Voyeur nodded, concentrating on firing snowballs back at Lullaby.

Sidra and Sulien made their way around, dipping and diving out of the way of snowballs. One fort was down, and Varune and Gwyneira’s was about to fall as well. It was a calculated move for the pair to go against Eira and Aster next, but a large crack startled them both. Looking from the ruins of the Markhor pair’s fort, Sidra and Sulien watched in surprise and slight shock as Eira, Aster and Lullaby teamed up. The sky darkened, and snow began to fall, a blizzard right over Voyeur. Ice magic danced on the air, as water rose up around him and froze, the blizzard dumping snow right on top of him.

Within seconds, the stallion was gone.

But this was a snowball fight, it wouldn’t be permanent. But the second crack had them pausing again, had everyone pausing. The force of magic being used had weakened the ground. A combination of them melting Ranvir and Quiterie’s fort downhill, and the added weight to their fort caused the snow to begin to slip.

“Voyeur!” Sidra called out, rushing back. Sulien grabbed her mane, yanking her away from the slipping snow as their fort crumbled and a frozen Voyeur was swept away downhill.

“Oh hell,” was Eira’s muttered words before the mare began picking her way down the slope, leading the others to find Voyeur. Eira watched the snow carefully, picking the path that was safest, even though it involved a lot of going out of their way.

It was an hour until they got to the bottom of the avalanche, right by the edge of the ocean. A happy call greeted them and Sidra stifled a disbelieving laugh as she saw a hippocampus bobbing in and out of the water around a floating ice cube with Voyeur inside.

“Well. Voyeur certainly isn’t having a good time here,” Sulien murmured and Sidra shook her head in agreement.

Between Eira’s water magic, hippocampus familiar, and mermaid guardian, fishing Voyeur out of the water wasn’t a huge deal. Thawing him however, took a bit longer. They kept him on the beach and Sidra and Sulien used their fire magic to slowly warm and melt the ice. Varune, Ranvir and Aster spent the time gathering driftwood, creating a large pile ready for a bonfire when Voyeur was un-frozen.

Gwynn and Quiterie spent the time trying to keep Xanthe away from the water and the hippocampus within, and Eira sent Lullaby back to the lodge for some warm broth.

When Voyeur finally unthawed, it was with a string of curses. His dragon let out a hiss as well, and went straight for the fire as Voyeur’s knees buckled and he fell.

“That was. Bad,” Voyeur stated, panting. A veil of fire floated around him courtesy of Sidra and Sulien as the bonfire was lit and they all moved closer to it.

“What a way to start spring,” Sulien commented and Sidra laughed.

“What a way indeed,” she replied.

In the lodge much later that night, Sidra and Sulien laid by the fire, their familiars resting with them. Voyeur, who was finally feeling warm, joined them.

“Where do you go next?” Sidra asked, and Voyeur shrugged.

“Away from this cursed island?” Voyeur said with a bit of a frown. “Probably south, to the plains. Perhaps to visit Sirona on her land,” Voyeur mused. “Maybe she can help heal these chemical burns too.”

Sidra and Sulien shared a look. “We were thinking of going to the plains next as well, would you like to travel with us?” Sidra asked.

Voyeur looked up surprised, and contemplated it. “I think I would like that,” he responded. “If nothing else, between the two of you and your magic we should make it there in one piece,” he added dryly.

Sidra and Sulien chuckled. The icy region hadn’t been great, but it definitely hadn’t been as awful as it was for Voyeur. They would have to see how the Plains stood up to their experiences so far. It had been easy sailing, and Sidra had a feeling that was about to come to an end.

The next morning, the residents of Snowhaven saw them off, familiars gathered around them. The boat they were given was larger than the one they rode in to get there, which made Sidra feel a bit safer, especially with Voyeur and his dragon joining them.

“Be safe!” Eira called out as Sidra used the wind to guide their boat away. “Come back and visit!”

Sidra smiled, and they shouted their goodbyes. The island faded into the distance after a while, and Sidra turned her attention to the path ahead. The ocean spread out around them, and Sidra shared a smile with Sulien as the sea wind whipped through their manes, salt in the air.

“Off to the plains, then,” Sidra said, and the two stallions nodded their agreement.