Fourteen Moons

Chapter 4 - A Cold Encounter

A sharp cold penetrates my body, causing me to shiver. I curl up on the cushioned chair that rests under the window, wrapping my fur blanket tightly around me. Still cold. I stare out of the window and watch as large puffs of white fall from the sky. A thick, cold blanket of white expands over the ground, killing the vegetation by blocking out the sun.

"Revus, what is that?" I ask as I point at the window, turning to him.

"Snōō," Revus answers with his back turned, his focus on the food he is cooking.

I look back at the falling flakes. Snow. It's beautiful. I know he said the seasons change every week, and it's hard to believe that summer was only two weeks ago, but it's hard to deny the drastic change in weather. I sigh. I miss the heat already.

"Food is done soon," Revus calls out, "Go sit at the table."

"No," I retort as I rub my hands over my legs to heat them up, "It's too cold."

Revus turns his head, glancing back at me, and sighs, "It's not that cold." As he returns his focus to his task, he holds his left hand down at his side, "But, if you are cold, I make it warmer."

If you could, that'd be nice. My attention bounces between Revus and the window for almost a minute. He continues to stand there, cooking, while his left hand idly hangs at his side. Slowly, I start to feel the air in the room heat up. My body tingles as the warmth surrounds me. Is he? I direct my focus at Revus' hand and realize that his pants are waving slightly as if they are being blown in the wind.

I smile and mutter quietly, "Sleeps."

"If you are thankful, sit at the table," Revus states.

I slouch in the chair, burying myself in my blanket, and complain, "Hey Revus, we have lessons everyday. Can we take a break?"

Revus turns his head toward me, locks his sharp eyes onto me like a predator intensely focused on its prey, and curtly answers, "No. You need to learn."

"Please," I plead as I spring from the blanket, my hands clasped together, "No rest. I want a couple days- No, one day. Please."

Revus closes his eyes, his face softening as he sighs, "One day." He holds up one finger with his left hand, "One."

"Yes!" I exclaim as I smile brightly "Sleep you." Revus stops cooking, turns around to face me, and stares at me for a moment, eyebrows raised. "What?" I ask.

He sighs deeply, places a hand over his face, and asserts, "But you still review." He then refocuses on the food before him.

I freeze and stare at Revus. "Really?" I gripe in Zoic as I shrink back under my fluffy comfort, before grumbling in Sveltish, "You just couldn't let me have a single day to rest."

"Evetta," Revus snarls, "No Sveltish."

"Yeah, yeah," I groan.

"Food is done. Come eat," Revus announces, before turning around and carrying two plates of food to the dining table. He sets them down, takes his seat, and continues, "I'm sorry. It's not fair, but we..." Revus trails off, pondering for a moment, "We need to get you home."

"Get me home?" I ask as I force myself out of the chair, still wrapped in the blanket. I trudge over to the table and sit down, saying, "We are home."

As I do, Revus pierces the food with his fork and brings it to his mouth, but stops, "This home is not home. We need to go to Evetta's family." He points at me, "To your home." Revus then starts working his way through his plate, while I stare at mine solemnly.