We Are All Drawn to What's Broken & Beautiful

Weathering the Winter Storm

After his outburst that had destroyed the dining table, Magnus had thought that his friends would have fled and never returned. Ragnor's face had said as much, so he was surprised to see them one day in the kitchen, unpacking sacks of food like they had never left.

He froze in the threshold, staring as Ragnor unloaded the milk, four full jugs of it onto the dining table. Catarina was at the stove, stirring what smelt like scrambled eggs in a pan.

"You're back." Catarina's dark head popped up at the sound of his voice and she smiled warmly at him, with none of the fear. Ragnor reacted with far more caution, his eyes still wary as he put away the milk.

An elbow to his side made him jump and he grumbled under his breath as Cat abandoned her station, walking over to wrap Magnus in a hug. The prince was still in a state of shock as the scent of her familiar perfume enveloped him.

"Just for a bit of a tidy and supplies, since you won't leave the compound." She said cheerily, as if they had not packed up their things and left just becauase Magnus had destroyed a table with magic.

Magnus blinked and Cat yelped when his hands sent gave her an electric shock, blue sparks fizzling out. He snatched his hands back, stuffing them into the pockets of his coat.

"I'm sorry!" He blurted out, when he saw the fear flash briefly in his friend's face. His hands clenched into fists in his pockets and he bit his lip nervously. "I haven't got much control over it yet."

Cat softened and patted his shoulder gingerly. "You'll get the hang of it." She said, glancing back at Ragnor who was watching them with an unreadable expression.

He turned back to the eggs, stirring them occasionally.

"Be careful, and practice often," Ragnor muttered and Magnus gave him a tiny smile. He still cared after all.

The days passed slowly and in the blink of an eye at the same time. Alec had been there in the castle for almost an entire season, and he had barely spoken to Magnus.

Even after the incident by the lake, Magnus did not seem to warm up to him. So Alec wandered the unexplored halls alone, on the days he did not feel like reading or swimming.

There were no horses in the stables, no animals on the residence at all. It was as if they had all been scared off. And as autumn fell into winter, the quiet around the castle became heavier, as if cloaked in the mystique the season carried.

Alec took to opening every door he could, meandering through rooms filled with strange artefacts.

That was how he found the rose.

It was encased in glass, etched with strange symbols. The bell jar was cloaked in frost, the rose itself perfect in its entirety.

Its petals were as red as blood, seeming to glow with their own soft light and the thorns on its stem were wickedly sharp. There were petals on the table, curled up, black and dead

The snow was falling outside the window of the room, and Alec could feel the chill in his bones. But it looked almost as if, there was snow, inside the bell jar as well.

The prince stared, open mouthed at the artifact standing in the center of the room, almost pulsing with life.

He took a step forward, and then another, eyes wide. His fingers closed on the wooden table and there was frost on that too. His breath misted in the air as he took in the beauty of the rose.

Tiny icicles clung to the petals, and a mini snow storm swirled inside the jar.

That should not be possible.