[Dante]

He felt excited as he made his way down the street. This was going to be his first opportunity to spend a little time with Euphenia, after all. Quite frankly, he was a bit surprised that he had mustered up the ability to speak to her the last time they met. Yet, surprisingly, he managed just fine. His words did seem a little clumsy, though. But, that was from his perspective, so who knew how bad it sounded to her?
It couldn't have been too bad, since she didn't slap him, or try to find a way out of the conversation.. Come on, Dante. Let's stop thinking about this. We're not an adolescent child anymore.

He was almost there. He knew he was running late, which was a horrible habit of his. He picked up his pace, opened his journal, and made a quick entry regarding her invitation to meet for a trip into the grotto. He then closed his journal and held it to his side. He was feeling more than a little nervous, as Phen had mentioned something about possibly meeting a friend of hers. He couldn't help but wonder if it would be the 'best friend' test that he had heard so many nightmarish rumors of. He could only hope that it wasn't going to be the case.

Ah, finally, he thought as he spotted Euphenia's wings just a little ways off near a bench. It's a good thing she's easily noticed. He chuckled softly and continued walking toward her, hoping that everything would go smoothly, and maybe, just maybe, he wouldn't make a fool of himself in front of her friend.. Where is her friend..? He then noticed that her friend wasn't the 'type' of friend that he was expecting. He had naturally assumed that her friend would be female. He found that he was sorely mistaken. What kind of 'friend' is he, I wonder.. He couldn't help but feel a tiny bit of jealousy before he cleared his thoughts and pushed it away. He wouldn't be able to explain those types of feelings or reactions to either one of them. Besides, it's not like he and Euphenia were a couple or anything.

He moved closer and closer, stopping at a safe distance of about ten feet away, and gave a call of her name, "Euphenia!" He waved his free hand in the air, still treating the journal as if it were a living being. Would be a shame to ruin that nice cover that Xanth gave to me, he thought. He then took in a deep breath, calmed his nerves, and waited patiently for her response to his calling.

[Euphenia]

"I've never understood that phrase," Euphenia thought aloud as she scanned the horizon for signs of Dante's arrival, her wings half aloft and hovering, "It might apply to me, since I have wings and all, but what about women who are wingless? Wouldn't they be offended being compared to a baby bird?"

She'd been considering getting up on the bench to get a better vantage point, but then Kiel stretched out over it like a cat soaking up sunlight. Phen's lips quirked into a tiny smirk as she imagined a random stranger strolling up and trying to pet Kiel's belly. Would he bite and claw like some cats she'd seen, or struggle to get that sword of his out of its scabbard from a prone position? "He's not a she, anyway, Kiel. Sorry to disappoint. I'm not one to set folk up on dates, anyway. Besides, I think your boyfriend would have a thing or two to say about that, and you make him sound so scary." Phen shivered melodramatically for Kiel's benefit.

"So maybe you can put your 'hat smarts' to work on finding me a hat," she challenged the reclining 'vari, "Then you won't have to ward me off of yours all the time."

The nyad decided not to press about who the heck Laces was. If Kiel didn't want to explain, then it wasn't worth pursuing. She had to keep up with his most recent tangent, anyway. Canting her head, she listened to his opinion on Xanth's knowing just what to give them, then openly chuckled. "She's a goddess, Kiel. One of the immortals. What interest could she possibly have in our more private activities?" She spread out her hands for emphasis. "When you have an entire world at your fingertips, would you choose to narrow your vision down to a single pair of men coupling? Not very often, I'd wager."

"Oh!" Phen's frankness got cut off at the knees the moment she got a whiff of a familiar scent. In fact, her own knees quavered just a little bit. "Dante's nearby," she practically sighed, looking about for him with renewed intensity. "There he is!" she sang just as Dante called out her name. She had to restrain herself to keep from running over to the blue-steel haired 'vari, which was something that made her head spin. What was it about him that made her drop all of her barriers and want to be as close to him as possible?

"Over here, Dante!" she called as she waved to the man who made the gleaming of her eyes a thing of daydreams and long walks along the beach.

[Kiel]

Kiel was so unaware of what he was saying half the time, especially his more quirky speech patterns, that he had, like, no idea whatsoever what Phenny was talking about when she mentioned wingless women being compared to birds. He'd tried going over what he'd said in his head, but the conversation moved too fast for him to concentrate and then he'd just shrugged instead.

“Aw, dang, man.” He was kinda disappointed that his assumptions had been incorrect, but, like, Phenny was right. He had a boyfriend, you know? And, like, you know. Zeph was kinda mean about him flirting with other people, especially women for some reason. Not that the guy would ever find out since he was so busy. Like, dude, Kiel'd be glad when this Christmas thing was over so he could be all pouncey and glompy and clingy instead of trying to give the dude some space. It was torture, man, just sitting in the front behind the desk all day keeping his own company instead of pestering his boss whenever the shop was quiet.

“I totally will, man. Except, like, I dunno. If I spot any awesome hats, I'll be too tempted to get 'em for me, you know? Hahahaha.” he would, too. Even the girlier ones, and if he was shopping under the pretence of getting a hat for Phenny, he wouldn't get as many weird looks, right? But then he'd get all macho and be all "I'm not wearing this girly hat, man" in the mirror and end up giving it to her anyway.

“Like, woah, man, what's that smell?” It was kinda gross, man, and made his nose wrinkle a little bit as he looked around, trying to spot who Phenny was calling over while also searching for the source of the smell. When he spotted the guy, his eyes lit up. “I like his hair,” he commented to Phenny, then called out to Dante, “I like your hair, man! How'd you get it like that? Like, that's dyed, right? What colour is it? Where'd you get the dye, man?” His voice lowered again as he glanced at Phenny. “Hahahahaha, maybe I should dye mine or something, you know? Like, my dad'd go ape if I did but I dunno, man. It could be worth it just for that, hahahaha.”

[Dante]

Dante's smile warmed as he stepped closer and looked to both Euphenia and her friend. He heard the comment about his hair, though it never really registered that it was addressed to him. "It's good to see you, Euphenia. I apologize for being so late."

He glanced over his shoulder and sighed, then returning his gaze back to Euphenia's eyes. "I happened upon a few interesting things that I needed to take note of.." He chuckled, cutting himself short. How could he have been so rude?

Shifting his attention to Kiel, Dante offered his hand for a customary handshake. "Hello, I'm Dante," he stated, still smiling, "It's a pleasure to meet you. However, would it be okay if we continue our conversation within the maze? I'd much like to make up for lost time, as I'm sure I've kept you two waiting long enough."

He was sure to maintain eye contact with both of them while speaking. After all, he didn't want to single anyone out, despite the desire he had deep within to focus entirely on Euphenia.

Perhaps getting to know this friend of hers will be beneficial. I could certainly use another friend. It's not like I have too many to begin with.

[Zephyr]

“RARGH!!!” Zephyr yelled as he unsheathed his great sword and deftly swung it, slicing clean through the snowball-throwing snowman's head. Quickly the warrior followed through and sliced once upwards and once downwards, detaching the snowman's arms in a few solid movements. “I've wanted to do that for centuries,” he said with a scoowl before absently kicking the clumps of snow off of his boots and proceeding through the maze.

The crystal structure was a different layout than previous years and Zephyr glared a bit as he got lost. Why does it change every damned year? he griped silently, barely keeping himself from clenching too tightly to the soft-leather-bound parcel that was in his free hand. After his fifteen minute excursion developed into an hour long befuddlement Zephyr finally found the throne room.

Zephyr bent and placed his gift on Xanth's throne with a solemn, but slight, bow of his head to show his respect. Inside the leather was an intricately formed silver dagger with a few moderately sized amethysts in the handle. The blade was sharp enough to draw blood, but it had so many excess detail that trying to use it for any actual purpose other than decoration would be pointless. Stilll, it had taken Zephyr far too long to create the piece so he was going to give it too her. Not like Xanth needed to protect herself anyways, and either way the weapon was rather beautiful if he did say so himself. Wrapped with the hilt of it was also a note that simply said “Thanks for the advice. Sorry about the snowman” with no name attached. If Xanth didn't already know it was from him she wasn't nearly as powerful as everyone thought she was.

Bending down, Zephyr grabbed a plainly wrapped, dark brown package and headed out. Time to get back to work on Kiel's gift. It was getting harder and harder to hide it, though, with how clingy the kid was being. Not that Zephyr really minded, but it did make the prospect of completing the boy's birthday present in time rather difficult.

• Piper's Boutique · DaFont · Mutsie · Aethereality · Kevin sorbo •

((OOC: GM of snowmen with permish))

[Xanth]

Xanth had been keeping an eye on her grotto, not because she did not trust her Children to follow the rules (although there were the occasional greed-mongers who attempted to take more than one gift at a time, only to find their shoes glued to the ice until they returned the excess) but because she did so enjoy the excitement that bubbled up out of the maze as Elysians young and old came to pay respects and wish her holiday cheer.

She was always pleasantly surprised when visitors left gifts of their own, especially when they made such effort. From Euphenia's sweet music, which had affected Xanth profoundly, to Zephyr's dagger, each brought warmth and an extra little blessing.

Xanth was especially glad for Zephyr's olive branch, for that was exactly what his gift was. They had had their differences and she had begun to think him completely lost after their last confrontation, but mayhap the bell had taught the lesson she had hoped after all. Ironically, Xanth thought it was not her but his new assistant who had brought him to this point, but she would not let her ego ruin the fact that he had at least made progress, no matter who was responsible.

She could not even blame him for his violence against the snowman she had set to guard the grotto. In her mischief, she did so enjoy watching Elysians pelted by packed snow, but she could imagine how aggravating constant battles could be and so she did not begrudge him his vengeance.

Nor would she stand for it silently, however, and the second Zephyr had left the grotto, she watched the snowman's resurrection from her temple with an impish smile. Snow clumped into balls, which then clumped into larger balls, which then took the shape familiar to any who passed through the quadrangle at this time of year. And one by one, the other snowmen split in two to clone themselves.

Zephyr was in for a lovely surprise the next time he visited her grotto.

[Lazuli]

On yet another festive day with not too different an atmosphere from last time, Lazuli found herself floating around Xanth's icy holiday palace again. Perhaps it was because of all the happy, sparkliness of the divinely renovated Quadrangle, but she couldn't quite keep herself away. She had also brought a gift for Xanth, which she had tucked carefully in a bag. "Merry holidays, everyone!" she trilled to passerby, all smiles and spirity as she stepped toward the maze. "Lovely hat!" she called to a boy she recognized from Xanth's Day.

This time, no snowball came to bar her path. Instead, she noticed that the snowman guarding the entrance had been reduced to clumps of snow and was already melting slightly. She cocked her head in confusion. A change in decoration? She shrugged. Maybe some joyful person had been too excited and gotten into a lively fight with the snowman. It could be rather annoying, she guessed.

She had barely taken another step when she noticed that the snow was moving. It slowly rebuilt itself, and suddenly where there had been no snowman there were now two... three...

Lazuli stared. "Oh, my," she said. "This is more serious than I thought." She immediately disappeared into the maze.

The layout seemed to have changed, and it took her a few extra minutes than last time to arrive at Xanth's throne. The piles of gifts seemed to have gotten larger. Reaching into her bag, she retrieved a detailed picture of the goddess that she had drawn using her new colored pencils. Although she had never seen Xanth before, she was at least able to sketch a likeliness based on all of her statues. "Thank you for the gift, Goddess!" she said. "I hope that you enjoy this in return."

She tucked the drawing somewhere that it would hopefully not receive any damage, and proceeded to take a circular box wrapped in pink and gold. She bowed a few times in gratitude and left to enjoy the festivities.

[Euphenia]

Phen could have giggled herself hoarse when the compliment Kiel lofted in Dante's direction sailed right over the latter's head. Why it was so humorous she later wouldn't be able to fathom, but right then it was absolutely hilarious! The colors of her eyes twinkled merrily up at Dante, his obliviousness keeping her lips partly open in a mirthful grin. Still, Kiel's question had gone unanswered, and she'd experienced enough ignored questions of her own to prompt the nyad to provide a response. "Dante's hair has always been like that. At least, that's what he told me when we first met."

She reluctantly tore her focus from the appealing shape of Dante's face to give Kiel's hair an appraising glance. "Streaks might not be a bad idea. I know a dryad who loves to streak her hair green and light blond during the spring, orange and red during the autumn, and with white and blue during the winter." Euphenia shrugged then adjusted her gossamer scarf to be more securely tucked under her coat, "You might want to be more subtle than that, because your hair is already beautiful in its own right. Maybe just play up its natural auburn and gold highlights? Then your dad won't go 'ape'. It'll be a change, but not one you can't live with if it doesn't turn out like you were expecting."

Of course, city folk might have a different means of dying their hair. Phen was only familiar with the more natural way of mixing berries, leaves, and roots to get the colors you wanted. At any rate, she'd addressed Kiel's inquiry, so she could go back to studying the angles of Dante's face without a single pang of guilt.

Ah, Dante was so charming, and his smile seemed as if it was all for her. Just being near him make her feel more confident, like she could start flying any second and maybe even latch onto him and Kiel to take them along. Phen's wings stretched out for a moment as if she were to attempt just that, but she reconsidered when common sense finally hammered through her daydream and rang the bell of reality. She couldn't fly, yet. Besides, Dante's suggestion that they talk while navigating the maze registered in that same moment, giving her something to do other than feel foolish for indulging in a flight of fancy. "Happy to oblige!" she said a bit louder than she'd intended. Maybe she was a bit nervous after all. Nervous enough for her to sidestep her usual caution and make the attempt to link arms with both Dante and Kiel. "Shall we?"

"Merry holidays to you, too!" she called over to Lazuli as the nyad passed, then did a double take. Had she seen that girl somewhere before? "Maybe somewhere in the city," she reasoned, leaving it at that. "See? We aren't the only ones who like your hat, Kiel."

[Kiel]

Kiel was starting to feel like a voyeur or something, for sers, man, and he looked from Phenny to Dante and back again, trying to decide if now would be a good time to make like a little brother and be all "K-I-S-S-I-N-G". Like, if he'd caught any of his siblings making eyes at someone like that, or even if he hadn't just met Phenny last week, he'd have totally danced around them, pouting his lips and making smooching sounds.

As it was, he couldn't resist telling them to “Like, dudes, get a room, sheesh.” It was like a law or something, you know? The teasing them part, not the getting a room part. Although that kinda was a law too, hahahaha.

He'd kinda lost interest in dying his hair but he grinned wryly at Phenny when she said his hair was beautiful already. “Naw, man, it's all brown and yucky, but, like, I never take my hat off so you can't tell, hahahaha.” There wasn't much point in him dying it, either, since, like, you know. Nobody'd ever really see it except Zeph, and Kiel kinda didn't think the big guy would care much, if he noticed at all.

“Like, I think I know that chick, man,” he acknowledged, waving frantically at Lazuli and grinning like a maniac. “And sure, okay, but, like, is it me or are there more snowmen now than there were last week? Like, I'm pretty sure they're ganging up on us, you know?” He wasn't one to be deterred by a little thing like a snow army, though. “I figure we gotta run at 'em and take 'em off guard, okay? On three - go!”

He really did need to remember to count.

Whipping out his katana just 'cause, like, he figured it'd scare off the snowmen, he chased across the street with it waving madly in the air and let loose a wail of a battle cry.

“Rarrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrwwww-argh!!!”

Snowballs pelted him from all sides and he totally forgot he was a Rutilus, ducking his head behind his arms and yelping as he ran pell mell for the maze's entrance. “Dude, man, watch out!”

[Dante]

Unable to resist the urge, Dante had his journal open and at the ready almost the moment Euphenia started swapping style suggestions with Kiel. A few quick scribblings later, with glances to take in Euphenia's face between, the whole conversation was summed up and recorded. What potential use idle chatter about the coloring of hair could have for the future was anyone's guess, but Dante wasn't the type to quibble.

He also wasn't one to take much notice of commentary about himself unless it came from either an extraordinary or unexpected source. As Euphenia classified as the first, at least by his reckoning, Dante pushed his glasses higher up his nose with a forefinger to hide a sudden rush of embarassment. He'd only just then realized that it was his hair that had started the whole thing. "Yes, I did say that," he belatedly confirmed, nodding slightly.

Then Kiel started in with the teasing. Dante flashed his teeth in what could pass for either a grimace or a grin, and was about to obey his knee-jerk reaction of a snappy retort when Phen surprised him by stepping closer and sliding her arm through the crook of his. The words of the other 'vari faded into background noise as Dante stared wide eyed down at the top of Euphenia's head then at the point where her hand was almost brushing where his shirt sleeve had ridden up to bare his wrist. Was it supposed to tingle that much when someone of the opposite gender got that close? Dante was so distracted that he forgot to jot down his thoughts on the matter.

Reality didn't come calling until Kiel's voice went up a few decibels, and Dante found himself staring in a new direction. Why had the guy just run off like that? "Did I miss something?" he thought out loud, wondering just how much time had passed between him realizing that Phen had almost touched him and Kiel's strange behaviour.

[Euphenia]

Phen hadn't thought to check the top of the maze's walls before heading in. Funny how the presence of Dante seemed to have messed up her priorities. Once Kiel pointed out the abundance of snowmen, though, her attention was snapped up. "There's so many of them!" she gasped, half wondering if the snowmen were feeling kinda crowded. There really wasn't a whole lot of room left up there, at least from Euphenia's perspective. "What could the Great Lady be planning?"

"Probably the snowball fight to end all snowball fights," Phen answered herself in her head, unconciously stepping into the warmth of Dante's body and resting her right cheek against his sleeve. She didn't freeze in place until Kiel said, "On three", mainly because she knew what was probably going to happen next.

"Let's go!" she cried the very moment that Kiel yelled "Go!", the winged nymph trying to tug Dante along as she took off like an arrow from a longbow, "Kiel needs us to back him up!"

"We're coming, Kiel!" Phen promised, releasing Dante to thrust her hands in front of her. "Hey, remember me?!" she shouted to the icy assembly, still running as she focused on the snow flying through the air. "Slow down, slow down, slow down," she mentally chanted, forcing her eyes to stay open and not narrow with the effort.

If she had the time, she might have tried something more creative, but Kiel hadn't left the nyad with many options. Putting on the speed and hoping that Dante could keep up, she followed the red eyed 'vari in his mad dash for the relative safety of the maze.

Maybe after the need to protect her friends was over, it would sink in that Kiel had treated her and Dante like a couple. Maybe.

(( GMing permission granted by Jon. ))

[Kiel]

Kiel had figured they'd have a tougher time getting in today since, like, you know. Snowy revenge and all that. But, like, he hadn't figured on it being this tough. “Dude, that's cold, man!” he yelped at a snowman who had just let fly with a volley that was now sinking down his spine under his shirt before ducking behind snow-covered fir tree. Like, he was pretty sure that tree had been a chiolen back when he'd come to pay his respects for Xanth Day, man.

Trying to shimmy his arm down his spine while mixing up a full-tilt run and a crab-walk, Kiel continued to wave his katana with his free hand, even though it totally hadn't scared any of those dang snowmen off. The result was a weird skip-hop-shimmy-trip-run-sidle pace that kinda made him feel nauseous and almost tripped him up, especially when he spun to run backwards just long enough to check if Phenny and her boyfriend were doing okay. He couldn't see Dante, but figured, like, the Zanaryan must be following 'cause what was the fun of staying behind, you know?

And Phenny, man. Dude, that chick was hot. Not, like, in a "Zeph's gonna kill me" kinda way - although, like, that too - but she was like some kind of warrior goddess or something, hahahaha. “You tell 'em, Phenny, man! Wah!”

He'd reached the entrance now and turned to face front just in time to see a snowman drop over the makeshift doorway, carrot-nose crooked and coal-face set in a wicked grin. It loosed three quick snowballs at Kiel, but he was, like, running too fast to stop, man. Remembering how he and Phenny'd slid into the wall last time, Kiel let his legs go out from under him and shielded his face, giggling like mad as he slid all the way under the snowman and into the maze. He'd barely stopped before he was up on his feet, gathering snow of his own to distract the iceman long enough for Phenny and Dante to make it in. “Hahahahaha, eat this, man! Hahahahaha!”

[Dante]

Once upon a time, there might have been an "epic" journal entry scrolled within the pages of a leatherbound tome. It would have detailed a massive force of men formed from snow, their missiles of icy coldness readied for the lobbing, and how three brave souls dared to storm the frozen fortress over which that mighty army stood guard ... or at least something similiar in quality.

Unfortunately, the historial document would never be written, as Dante's journal remained forlorn and partly forgotten. His mind was assuredly focused elsewhere. Euphenia apparently had that effect on him.

Particularly when she leaned into him like that. Dante wasn't sure what to do. His uncertainty showed in the tightening of his fingers upon his journal, and the unnecessary repeated adjusting of his glasses. He had to keep his hands busy somehow.

When Phen's body went rigid, an alarm went off inside Dante's head. "Euphenia ... Ack!?"

As surely as inkwells run empty too soon, Dante had not been prepared to be jerked forward like that. He barely managed to fumble his journal to safety, not able to bear the thought of the damage a spill into the snow would cause his treasure. His legs almost got tangled up in the sudden change of direction, but he managed to lurch along and sort of keep up with Euphenia, though he looked awkward and felt even more so.

"Maybe some discussion of tactics and strategy would be best for next time?" he yelled in the hopes that Kiel would hear Dante over his own hollared complaints. "Charging straight ahead without thinking ... what have I gotten myself into?" he muttered, then almost toppled into the snow face first when Phen suddenly let go of him.

With his arms pin-wheeling desperately, Dante stayed upright, but had to get moving again as Euphenia somehow got even faster. That woman could move! Reminding his eyes to not watch the interesting things going on under Phen's coat, Dante found himself surprised when the volleys of snowballs the snowmen had just launched in Phen's and his direction started to slow down. It was as if time itself had chosen to seclude the packed spheres of ice in their own little universe. They were moving, sure, but slowly enough that he could almost make out the individual snowflakes peeling off of the greater mass each second. What in the worlds could do that?

"A nyad, perhaps? Wait, Phen is a nyad, isn't she?" When he glanced Euphenia's way, he noticed the look of concentration dominating her features. Well, that answered that. His hand twitched, his instinct to record things that interested him almost conquering the need for speed. Once he was in that maze, he'd have a lot of writing to make up for.

Kiel's giggles reached Dante's ears as he sprinted up to the maze's entrance, and he witnessed the 'vari's defiant slide with a chuckle. Somehow it made sense that Kiel would attempt such a last minute manuever and have it work. Since the snowman partly blocking the entrance was being distracted, Dante made good on that distraction and hustled into the maze, beckoning for Phen to follow. "Come on, Euphenia! You're almost there!"

He briefly considered adding to Kiel's ammunition, then decided against it. There was too high a chance that his journal would get soiled in the process, and besides, Phen would make it just fine. Right?

[Euphenia]

PB · DaFont · Aethereality · rcr · Obsidian Dawn· Beyond Tonight · Dreams Time

It was working! Phen hadn't had much time lately to practice her elemental manipulation, so she was very pleased to see that her on the spot idea had proven worthwhile. Hopefully she'd spared Kiel at least a few snowballs, though he looked pretty well splattered by then, so she couldn't really tell. His encouragement of her rash display of bravery had the nyad beaming, though. "We'll catch up, Kiel, just keep running!" she yelled when the 'vari turned around, presumably to make sure Dante and her were alright.

"Dante? How could I forget about Dante!" she mentally reprimanded herself, trying to get a glimpse of him out of the corner of her eye. Phen breathed in deeply with relief when she realized he was keeping up just fine. She looked back in time to witness Kiel sliding under the snowman with a gleeful grin plastered on his face. "Watch out for the wall!" she warned, though she knew it wouldn't be in time to keep him from the up and coming potential collision.

Wait a minute ... She blinked. How in the worlds did Dante get ahead of her? She must have been diverting too much of her attention to maintaining the slowing down of the snowballs. Dante's hand flickered, gesturing for her to follow after him before he ducked into the maze and out of sight. It was his words that drove her to try Kiel's method of avoidance, and so she came into a slide, just as if she wanted to win the next Spring Games. "EeeeEEEeeee!" she squealed, her wings whipping up behind her to try and slow her down as she zoomed under the sneaky snowman. Thankfully her wingtips only barely clipped the snowman, else she might have ended up with the creature plopping onto her lap.

Euphenia kept sliding, but twisted into a spin aimed to get her to her feet, her wings tucking in at the last possible moment. Up she went, with a few inches between her and the wall for good measure. "Whew! That was close."

Unless Dante or Kiel tried to stop her, they each got a light bap on the arm with her little gloved fist. "That was invigorating! We must do it again sometime."

"Xanth is waiting. Let's go!" Phen sang before heading off at a humanoid's version of a trot, sometimes sliding across the icy floor of the maze with her arms and wings out to help coast her along. "I brought something special for Her, and ..." she paused when she entered the center of the maze, rendered speechless as always when she witnessed the sheer beauty of Xanth's throne and its surroundings.

"My Lady," she began when she'd recovered at least in part from her fit of wonderment, "I will soon be joined by two men who are wonderful in their unique qualities. I humbly ask for your blessing upon them, for they have brought much joy to my heart. Never have I felt so accepted unless in the presence of my family or you, Great Lady. My heart's song has strengthened, and for that you have my ever-lasting gratitude."

Phen had been walking towards the throne, and when she came to a stop a foot or so before it she held her key-less rosewood flute with both hands. "I promised you the rest of the song, my Lady, and you will have it."

Raising her flute to her lips, her fingers arraying themselves to cover its holes, Euphenia picked the music up from where she'd left off.

The snowflake had found a home. It was certain of it. It danced amongst the others, brushing other flakes here and there, leaving a part of itself behind to mark the memory. Slowly, however, it came to realize that the other flakes had taken no notice of it. It was being jostled along, forced to go wherever the wind took it, just like the other snowflakes. A moment of rebellion shook the snowflake to its icy foundation. It tried to find a way out. It spiraled, twisted, and even shook, but the wind was too strong. It was trapped.

The flake stayed in listless sadness for a time, almost succumbing to its new existence, when something new and different happened. Another flake, one that seemed strangely familiar, first touched the flake and then sought to bond itself to it. Startled, the snowflake tried to whirl away, but the other pursued. It became a sort of dance, with the strange snowflake winning the chase and fusing itself to the older forlorn one. Two more snowflakes joined in, then more. The original was confused, but got a glimpse of a puff of dark gray hovering overhead. Was that .. ? Its cloud! Its cloud was there! All of those snowflakes were from its cloud? More flakes came, till they were densely packed. The first was surrounded by its fellows, and felt safe. Safe at last.

Then came the fall.

The wind could no longer keep the heavy snow in motion, and the packed flakes tumbled down. Down, down, end over end. The impact of the snow hitting the hard ground was full of discord. When it was over, the first snowflake was looking up at the sky and wondering what had happened. It was entirely out of its element now, though it wasn't alone. The others were there, too, only many had been scattered. What was to come next?

The song drifted off with that question hovering in the air, and Euphenia tucked away her flute in its pocket. "I don't know the answer yet," she supplied before bowing before the throne.

Only after did she go to the pile of presents and take a box wrapped in silver, blue, and green. Smiling at the sight of its ornate matching bow, Phen walked over to the side of the grotto and waited for her friends to make their presentations to the goddess.

[Kiel]

It seemed somehow that visitors were off-limits once inside the maze. That or, like, you know. The snowman figured that taking on the three of them altogether was a bad idea, 'cause after dropping to the ground behind them and loosing another volley that it'd scooped out of its chest - “Like, dude! That's gross, man! I'm covered in snowman insides or something!” - it totally fled the scene and disappeared behind the maze's wall. “Probably lying in wait for us to come out so it can ambush us.” His voice was a stage-whisper as he playfully jerked forward at Phenny's touch, making out like her knock on his arm had sent him flying.

He didn't sound very concerned, but, like, what was to freak out about, you know? It was just snow and Phenny was right, man. He was totally invigorated. “Like, yeah! Hahahaha.” Or maybe "invigorated" was just another word for "totally wet and cold, man", but Kiel couldn't really tell the difference, or do away with the face-splitting grin on his face.

He didn't need a second urging from Phenny to “Let's go, go go!” and raced after her, giggling madly. Seeing how she skated, Kiel spent the rest of their short walk to the maze's centre trying to slide along himself, but his boots had a crazy awesome grip, man. He kept trying, though, so, like, by the time they reached the entry for the throne room, he could skate quite a distance.

Except, like, he hadn't learned how to stop yet, so he sailed right past the entry and fell on his butt a few feet down a fake tunnel.

It was totally a good thing, though, man, 'cause, like, he didn't have to worry about PhenPhen and Dante seeing the tears in his eyes, then. Nobody'd ever praised him like that, man. Sure, like, you know, his family, but, like, they were his family, man. It was kind of their job, you know? But nobody'd ever said anything nice like that, and when she followed it up with the rest of that song... onset of waterworks.

Kiel had made his way back to the throne room's entryway and stood in the doorway, hands limp at his sides as he stood there, blinking furiously. “Woah, man,” he said, his voice a bit hoarse. “Like, I wish Zeph coulda heard that, man.” He wasn't schooled well enough to explain why, it was just something he wanted to share with his boyfriend, you know? But it made his heart ache, too, and made him miss his family all over again. He was totally calling home as soon as he got out of here, you know?

Clearing his throat, Kiel shucked the melancholy like water off a duck's back and hopped further into the room, trying to mimic PhenPhen's arm-knock with a clap to Dante's back as he passed the dude in search of a present. Like, that smell was back, man. It'd never left, actually, now that he thought about it, and he was totally tempted to check the soles of his boots in case he'd stepped on something, but he'd been raised not to do that kind of thing in public. Especially in front of Xanth.

“Hey, hey, this one's pink, hahahahaha. I bet it's totally a girly present inside, right?” He was drawn to the package, though, and he liked girly colours anyway.

Tucking the gift under his arm, he offered Phenny the other, grinning at her. “Wanna make your bf jealous?” He winked at Dante. “Hahahaha, just, like, don't let Zeph us, okay?”

[Dante]

Cradling his journal to his chest protectively with one hand, Dante reached out with his other arm as if he could catch Phen as she zipped toward Kiel and him. That earned him the brush of feathers as Euphenia righted herself and a light punch to his extended arm after, but the grin that lit up Euphenia's face seemed reward enough, even if he didn't really do much to help.

Both of his eyebrows went straight up when Phen suggested they do that again, and Kiel agreed with a grin that made Dante inwardly groan. "Maybe if we plan ahead first ..." he suggested, though in his head he grumbled, "Do we really have to?"

"Do these two ever walk?" Dante found himself wondering as he scrambled to keep his companions in sight, not bothering to try out skating as Kiel did, mostly because he didn't want to risk losing his grip on his journal or his sense of balance.

His caution granted Dante the chance to witness Kiel's dive into the snow, and after a quick battle that his conscience soundly won, he went to check on the odd fellow. He approached, one hand raised and ready to clasp Kiel's shoulder while he asked over the other 'vari's health, but he paused when he spotted the gleam of moisture running down Kiel's cheek. Quietly, Dante backed up, hoping that as distracted as Kiel seemed that he would give no notice. Leaving the other man to deal with his emotions in peace, Dante turned to enter the center of the maze ... and stopped the moment Euphenia's song drifted that way.

His eyes fluttered closed, and Dante stood still, listening. Moisture built up behind his eyelids, but didn't escape. Breathing in deeply of the cold air, all of the tension from the rest of the day flowed from Dante upon his exhale. In place of it, a cloak of longing wrapped about his inner self. He wanted to write a letter to his parents. He wanted to know how they were doing, and if they were thinking of him in that very moment. He wanted to know what the future would bring for him and for ...

Dante shook his head, clearing away thoughts that he was sure didn't belong. The music was gone. He registered Kiel clapping him on the shoulder only after it happened, for once the music lost its hold on him Dante had opened his journal and started to write as if there were no tomorrow. He was so focused upon it that he didn't even realize that he walking over to Phen and coming to a stop beside her, still scribbling at record speed.

Kiel's teasing got through Dante's writing fit, though, and his head jerked up to stare incredulously at the other 'vari, his pen hovering in mid-sentence. "W-what? Oh. Oh no. We're just friends," he protested, pushing his glasses up his nose again and getting a smear of ink across his right cheek.

As if to bolster his proclaimation, Dante marched straight over to the pile of presents and claimed one at random, not even checking to see what it looked like. Tucking that under one arm, he secured his pen in the holster thoughtfully provided by his journal's cover and stuffed the whole ensemble into one of his jacket's deep pockets. Steeling himself for one of his rare moments of impulsiveness, Dante tried to link his arm with Euphenia's free one. "But, as such, I see no reason why we can't make it out of here." He offered a warm smile before adding, "Shall we be going?"

[Euphenia]

PB · DaFont · Aethereality · rcr · Obsidian Dawn· Beyond Tonight · Dreams Time

"Perhaps what's inside will match your hat," Phen pointed out with a smile, then taking the time to put away her own Xanthmas gift.

Arranging the collar of her coat to better keep out the chill, the nyad's fingers brushed the scarf she'd worn that day to continue to show Xanth just how grateful she was to have it. Her smile warmed as she touched the delicate seeming pendant that she'd also donned that morning, tucking it to be between her coat and her scarf to better protect it. She'd never liked wearing jewelry out in the open much, anyway. It drew too much attention.

"I should have been more careful earlier. They could have gotten damaged." Silently Phen vowed to find a safe and dry place for her gifts from Xanth just as soon as she got back to Haven.

"My what?" Phen asked as she almost automatically curled an arm about Kiel's offered one. Her bafflement coupled with her brain providing a hint at what her friend just might have meant summoned a dark pink blush that took over her cheeks till they almost glowed with the sudden infusion of color. "Oh, no no no. Dante and I are just friends."

Did she protest too much? It might not have mattered, since she and Dante's voices had overlapped one another with their denials. Blushing even more, Phen ducked her head, trying to cudgel her brain into giving up an idea on how to talk herself out of the corner Kiel had backed her and Dante into.

Oddly enough, Dante did so for her, and Euphenia's grateful smile lit up her whole face in a way her embarrassment never could. "Yes, let's go." she agreed, accepting Dante's arm before nudging both men with a touch of her coat covered hips, "Off to the Winter Games!"

Grinning at her little joke, Phen felt much relieved as she tried to lead her friends out of the maze and into the promise of yet another round of dodging snowballs. There was nothing like a bit of humor and camaraderie to help one face another challenge at the "Winter Games".

[Xanth]

For the third week of Xanthmas, Xanth gave with seasonal cheer:

To Kiel, a stuffed dark pink dragon about the size of an imp. It's wearing a colourful handmade scarf and a goofy expression. Its wings are meant to be re-posable but tend to flop to one side.

To Euphenia, a Zanaryan flute (rare to Elysia). Made of an unfamiliar dark wood and highly decorated with Zanaryan symbols, it gives an exotic, mournful sound.

To Dante, a fat gold fountain pen with decorative swirls engraved along the barrel and nib. The ink cartridge inside will never be empty, and a gold dragon figure is entwined around the cap.

To Zephyr, a box that contains little more than a carrot (a snowman's nose, perhaps?) and a hand-written note that says simply "You are most welcome". When he gets home, however, Zephyr will find a new imp-proof safe under his desk. Xanth may have forgotten to provide the combination, though.

To Lazuli, a warm white winter coat that is lined with charcoal-coloured taravix fur. The front panels are covered in delicate white lace and the lower back is criss-crossed with white satin ribbons.

And to each, her warm blessings for the week so that they might find joy in the holiday season, and 10 KP.

[Euphenia]

PB · DaFont · Aethereality · rcr · Obsidian Dawn· Beyond Tonight · Dreams Time

Euphenia was running late, again.

What was worse was that the time she was expected for the upcoming social engagement, if it could be called that, had been of her own choosing. She'd allowed herself a grace period for dancing, running, bathing, and even the consuming of breakfast. How could such careful planning have gone awry?

"I just couldn't say no when Christi asked for help with Puddles," she sighed internally, thinking about the big dog and his fear of most people as she pounded down the sidewalk, "She's done so much for me, and he needs as much love as he can get. I wonder what frightened him so this morning? He's used to everyone in the shelter. The folk I know, anyway. Did we get a new volunteer? I'll have to ask Christi about it later."

It seemed like the citizens of New Alexandria were getting used to the presence of the winged nymph. Most stepped to the side when they saw her coming, and those who didn't were encouraged to do so by those who did. The few stubborn individuals who refused to budge were dodged easily enough, and of course Phen murmured her usual, "Pardon me. Excuse me. Thank you."

It wasn't till she got to the cobblestones of the Quadrangle did Euphenia stop to catch her breath. Ever since Kiel had shown concern for her because she was winded, though granted it had been a misplaced concern about her being chased rather than being in a hurry, Phen had started her morning runs. She ran a little further each day, and she'd already added another mile. Such training helped with the steadying of her breathing on that cold morning, though she didn't have her friends there to take notice.

"That's strange," Phen thought as she double checked the supplies she'd brought with her. Yes, everything was in its place. "Why do I miss them so much?"

Phen was used to wanting to be around her family. In many ways they sustained her. People outside her family couldn't be trusted, or so her mother had taught her from an early age. Yet she found herself wanting to trust Dante and Kiel. She was lonely without them, and more than a little nervous as she peered across the way to where the maze glittered in its snowmen bedecked glory. Even if they didn't volunteer to help with her "mission", she would have felt more confident with one of them near.

"They would only distract me," she reminded herself, though the thought didn't have much in the way of conviction, "I need to pay attention to everything. I must see, hear, feel, and know all." Such went the list of "focus points" her mother had Phen repeat to herself during old training exercises in an effort to expand her daughter's awareness. Euphenia chose not to remember how badly those exercises had ended and pressed onward.

Stepping into the snow, feeling the numbness try to seep past both her boots and thick socks, Euphenia pulled a thin sheet of tightly woven wool from the satchel she'd chosen to bring along that day. Draping the sheet over the rest of her clothing like a cloak, Euphenia made sure both the hood of her coat was hiding her face from view as well as some of the sheet. She'd even covered up her wings, which felt very strange indeed. When she was satisfactorily covered, she pinned the sheet into place to free up her hands.

She was certain she'd be really cold in about a minute, no matter how many layers she piled on. Still, she tugged up a borrowed homespun scarf to protect the lower half of her face. Then she readied herself, hoping and praying that her experimentation over the past week would hold up under pressure. "Come to me," she called to the top layer of the snow all around her, the nyad reminding her hands to not move and serve as her focus. She needed to master the ability to control her element without relying on such methods. "Cover me. Hide me. Slowly. Come slowly. Don't let them see. Come slowly."

-------------------- ~+~ --------------------

"I made it, my Lady," Phen proudly declared to the ice throne, having already shed her protective cocoon of snow, "Thanks to the bond you have so kindly allowed me."

Though her ploy had worked, she was shivering in her boots. "Brrr .... I need to warm up j-just a little before I give you your gift, my Lady."

Which took a couple of minutes, but she didn't wait for all of her to get thawed out. She only needed her arms and vocal chords to work right then, anyway. Sadly, the sheet had to come off. How was she going to present Xanth her gift if she couldn't strap on her instrument? Once the sheet was puddled behind the nyad, Euphenia carefully freed her mandolin from its case with a tenderness a mother might display for her baby, the case still stashed within her woolen satchel. "This song isn't long," she needlessly explained while she tuned her mandolin, "But it's yours."

The melody that followed was soft. At times it flowed like water over smooth stones, while at others it was more like butterflies exploring a field of flowers.

"From the Darkness

Came the Light.

From the Darkness,

Spun the Bright.

Creation made,

Created right.

None beheld,

But She the sight.

And we all circle 'round ...

And we all hear the sound ...

Butterfly, fly by me.

Butterfly, flying free.

Remember me, the lost one?

Remember me, your child?

Still She sings,

She calls to us.

Do you hear

Her cries?

See the Way?

It's open.

Go ahead,

Go inside.

And we all circle 'round ...

And we all hear the sound ...

Butterfly, fly by me.

Butterfly, flying free.

Remember me, the hopeful?

Remember me, your child?

Butterfly, fly by me.

Butterfly, flying free.

Remember me, devoted?

Remember me, your child?

Please remember me, your child."

Phen left the last note hovering for several seconds, long after her fingers had stilled upon her mandolin's strings. She bowed her head in reverent silence for a short while, then put her instrument away with the same care she'd taken in preparing it to be played. "I wish you all the best in the coming year, dear Lady. Thank you for being the guiding presence in my life, for my wonderful family ... and for the new friends whom I hope to learn to trust." She paused, her cheeks flushing faintly as she bent to gather up her wool sheet. "It's hard for me, to trust. I will try, but I can use all the help I can get."

One of the presents seemed to have tumbled from the great pile onto the sheet while Phen was performing. Taking it as a sign that such was the one meant for her, she picked it up along with the blanket. It was one of the larger boxes, though, so she had to shuffle the thing to be under an arm to keep the brown paper from getting too damp.

Wrapping herself back up, Euphenia willed the return of the snow about her, though she promised herself that once she left the Quadrangle she'd hotfoot it back to Haven and take a hot bath. She more or less bowed to the throne, then made to leave the grotto with a low in pitch yet upbeat snippet of song, "Happy holidays, Great Lady!"

-------------------- ~+~ --------------------

One can only wonder just what the snowmen had thought of the "snow woman" that had slogged her way into the maze that day. They witnessed the same phenomenon less than an hour later when the figure made her exit, though she was headed in a different direction.

[Kiel]

Kiel had kinda forgotten to pre-arrange a meeting with Phenny and her boyfriend since they parted company the last time. Well, like, they said they were "just friends" but, like, you know. They'd been mooning at each other from the very first second they'd seen each other and it was kinda obvious - to Kiel at least - that something was hokey about the whole "friends" thing.

He could kinda see why Laces had been freaking out all over him and Zeph, actually, but he'd never admit that to her of all people. She was still making little, like, hints and stuff when she texted him, driving him batty. If he admitted she'd been right, her head'd get so big they'd need a dragon just to lift it.

“Hahahahahahaha, I kill myself, man.” The posy of starflowers he was talking to didn't reply, but he'd have freaked if they had so it was all good. This time, he'd come prepared with more than just a gift for Xanth, too. Like, he wasn't sure if the stash of carrots would go down well with the snowmen, but he figured replacement noses would be just the thing, right? Like, they'd taken some abuse, you know? Bound to be a few injuries here and there, and he was pretty sure he'd seen one minus an eye so he'd brought a packet of big black buttons too. Probably should have, like, offered up a hat or something, too, but no way he was raiding his closet for that, man. They could just get their own damn hats, he wasn't going to let them steal his, thieving little -

“Hey, hey, wait, man, wait! I come in peace or something!” he yelped, waving his posy like a white flag of surrender as he fished in his knee pockets for the packet of buttons. A splat of snow to the face had him yelping again, and then he gave the culprit a thoroughly unamused look. “Like, dude, you couldn't hold it just for a second?! I've got a good mind not to give you this now, man, you totally don't deserve it, you know?” He tossed the packet anyway, and the snowman slapped it between his powdery hands with what Kiel would swear was delight or something.

Tucking the posy of starflowers (these not as fragile as the first bunch he'd brought) under one arm, he delved into his backpack for the plastic baggy of carrots and held them up. “We're cool, then, right? Like, I can go in without you pelting me, right? 'cause, like, you know, I gotta go straight to work after this, man, and my boss was totally not happy with the whole showing up to work with wet patches all over my clothes, you know?” Marty'd about had apoplexy or something, man. He'd gone all red and everything.

The snowmen didn't reply but Kiel figured they just couldn't talk. Like, it'd be kinda freaky if they could, you know? Moving around was one thing, he totally believed that was Xanth's doing, but, like, giving them voices or something? Just creepy, man.

But they did wave him through, and Kiel tossed the baggy to another snowman with a “Woohoo! Dude, guys, like, you're awesome, man. Keep up the good work!” And he scampered through to the entryway, carrying his posy of starflowers like a trophy.

Splat. Splat splat.

“What the hell, man!?” Staring for a second at the three snowballs splattered against the icy wall near his head as they slowly flomped to the ground, Kiel turned his head to find the snowmen watching him. “Dude, man. Like, I'm guessing that was a warning shot or something since, like, I didn't notice you guys having any trouble with your aim before. Hahahaha.” His chuckle was a little weak and unnerved, though, and he figured it was probably a totally awesome idea to get in and out as quick as he could.

So he did just that, skidding into the throne room at full speed and almost not stopping. “Hahahahaha. Like, dude, Xanth, you've got crazy taste in guards, man. But they're kinda cool, hahaahaha. Anyway, like, I heard this thing finishes tomorrow and I won't get chance to come back again so, like, I just wanted to say thanks and all, you know? It's been fun, man, for sers. And, like, that dragon thing was totally sweet, man, and I love my hat. Like, I'm still wearing it, see? Anyway, these flowers are, like, supposed to be for weddings and stuff, but I thought they were pretty. In a totally non-girly way,” he tacked on quickly, just as he was setting them on the ice throne. “So yeah. Like, thanks, man. For everything, you know? Except, like, if you could your way to giving me a dragon way sooner that'd totally be awesome, hahahahaha. And, like, a real one, not just a stuffed one, even though that was totally sweet, man. Hahahaha. Okay, I gotta go. Thanks, man.”

Touching his fingers to his temple in a vague salute, Kiel skidded over to the gift pile and yanked one off the top, then sped out of the maze on his way to work, wondering what She could possibly have given him this time around. 'Cause, like, you know.

A real dragon wouldn't fit in one of these boxes.