Amusement dances in my chest as Father Time splutters and stumbles over his words at Mother Nature's harsh glare. They just got to the part about visiting the Void and I will give it to Mother Nature.
She hasn't said a word since they started but I can tell she's getting more and more irritated the longer the story goes on. I quickly drop my gaze when we get to the part of returning to my house for me to cool off, feeling her piercing gaze on the top of my head as I sip my now too cool tea.
Maybe we shouldn't have waited to tell her. Maybe we should have visited her first and then Vita and Mortem.
I shrug to myself.
But then again, I probably won't have been given that yummy apple, so definitely worth it.
I hide my smile behind my mug as Father Time wraps up his explanation. The five of us sit in silence as Mother Nature processes all that we, well Father Time, told her.
"And you still have the fox back at the observatory?" Mother Nature asks softly, her eyes distant as she nurses her now cool tea.
Cato nods, lowering his own mug as a frown forms on his lips.
"Yes," Cato says quietly. "I did a little more investigating last night but I really didn't find more than I already knew. All of the hardware that was inside of her was handcrafted and any serial numbers that were once there have been shaved off. Most likely so whoever might have found her wouldn't be able to track anything back to them."
Mother Nature nods, drumming her fingers on the table, a dark look passing on her face as she collects her thoughts.
I lower my mug and glance at Cato, a thought occurring to me. It really was a shame we can't just ask the fox if she knew who did that horrible experiment on her. To know if she got a chance to see those horrible faces looking down at her before she knew no more. But, what if there was someone here who could possibly see her memories from her last moments. Someone who has an interest in preserving the memories of those long past?
"Cato," I start slowly, unsure how my suggestion might be taken. "You collect memories of almost every being alive on Earth right?"
The keeper glances over at me, an eyebrow raised in question but he nods.
"Yes, anything big or small that has the capacity to create and maintain memories will have their memories brought to the Hall. Why?"
I fidget in my seat.
"Well, would-would it hurt to just take a peek at her memories? To see if she saw the humans that turned her into that—" my voice catches and I clear my throat, glaring at the table. "If she saw the humans who did that to her? To just maybe give us a hint of who might be behind all of this and why? So that way we can rule out all those names from the articles that you and Father Time found?"
I bite my lip as Cato stares at me, the wheels turning behind his light green eyes. He tilts his head to the left with a hum.
"You know, it doesn't hurt to check," Cato says gently, eyes distant from still being lost in thought. What exactly he is thinking of, I'm not sure, but hey, if he doesn't think it a bad idea, what does it hurt to check, as Cato said?
Mother Nature breathes out slowly through her nose.
"All right. But we are absolutely certain that Frost wasn't the main target?"
"Yeah," Ake answers as he sips from his only slightly steaming mug. "And as we discussed, it would have been quite the gamble for the humans to try and catch a glimpse of Snowflake."
I shrug.
"I didn't even know I was going to land there. I was just really hungry and it was the first clearing I found that had any type of food."
Mother Nature's face pinches as she turns toward me.
"Why didn't you just wait until you reached home? It sounded like you were fairly close."
Frost spreads across my cheeks as I clear my throat and glance off toward the sink.
I mean, this was a part of why I came here today, wasn't it? To get supplies for not only me and any guests I might entertain in the future. But also to get some oaks for the deer and maybe some seed for the birds. I have asked her for supplies in the past, so why am I suddenly embarrassed to do so?
My nose wrinkles and wiggles as I drag my gaze back to my now empty mug. It's probably because I waited too long to gather supplies when I knew there were signs of an early winter this year. I just wanted to give Kaia as much space as possible since I know she was irritated by the prospect of an early winter. I may have some control over the winds and snow, but sometimes they just make decisions all on their own and I'm told as an afterthought.
"Frost-dear?"
I jump at Cato's soft prompting and realize that I have just been sitting there in silence making weird faces to myself. Embarrassment shoots through my body, warming it more than it should be right now, and I sink in my chair.
"Right, uh, sorry about that," I say, chuckling nervously. "What-What was the question?"
A small frown tugs on Mother Nature's lips as her gaze flickers to the two beings next to me before landing on me once more.
"I asked why you didn't just find food at home, Darling."
Biting my lip, I wiggle in my seat, trying to straighten up.
"Well, uh, I kinda d-don't have any f-f-food at the house right now," I say weakly, trying hard to hold Mother Nature's gaze.
A bewildered look crosses her face as she sets her mug down.
"Don't have any food—? Frost! Why on Earth did you not come to me the instant you knew that you didn't have any food in your house!" Mother Nature was out of her seat immediately. "Honestly! We may be immortal, but we aren't invincible!"
She huffs as she digs in one of her drawers and pulls out a pen and a pad of paper. Mother Nature plops the two utensils down in front of me.
"Now, start a list of everything you need. I know you have a refrigerator and an ice chest down in your basement. And they're both cleaned out?"
I nod, relaxing slightly as I lift the pen.
"Y-Yeah. I usually clean them out before I leave for the summer months so that if something happens with the electricity, it doesn't rot or mold."
Mother Nature purses her lips but nods.
"All right. I'm going to start giving you canned and jarred goods to have in your basement so that this doesn't happen again." She shakes her head. "I should have known that the food you normally take with you wasn't enough. We need to rectify that." Mother Nature holds up her hand as I start to argue. "No, Frost. Even Kaia, Haru, and Suvi have extra stores of food at their homes just in case something like their season starting early happens."
My eyebrows furrow.
"They do?" I tap the tip of the pen on the clean sheet of paper, thinking of what I might need.
Mother Nature stops her pacing and I sense rather than see her turn toward me. I quickly write out Oaks and Seeds before pausing to look up at her. An unreadable expression is on her face as she stares at me.
"Of course they do," Mother Nature says, voice straining a little. "Frost, Darling, haven't they shown you?"
I smile at her, shaking my head a little, and write down Apples and then Carrots.
"No, not really," I admit. "But, I mean, it's not like I can really visit their homes, 'cause of how much warmer it is. Which is okay! Honest, because I know they can't really visit my home, so it's not like we really swap any stories about how we handle our seasons and preparation. And I was even surprised with how early winter was coming this year. I didn't really get a chance to prep this year."
I wince as I pick at the paper before me. I know I'm babbling but I just really awkward when it comes to me explaining my relationship with the other seasons. I don't want to make it seem like the others don't care, because I know that they do. A silence follows my talking but I refuse to look up at any of the older beings.
A hand lands on the back of my neck causing me to jump. I glance over at Father Time as he kneads the muscle in my neck and my shoulders slump as I instantly relax. Huh. I didn't know he could do that.
"Just relax, Frostbite," Father Time says softly. "There's no reason to be all tense and flighty with us. We were just asking you a question and I'm sorry we made you uncomfortable. Just continue writing your list."
I blink, my vision blurring briefly before I nod and continue writing down the supplies that I believe that I need.
After a beat, I slide the pad of paper toward Mother Nature and she quickly scoops it off the table. She reads silently for a few breaths before looking up at me in amusement.
"'Oaks'? 'Seeds'? I take it these aren't for you, are they?"
I smile sheepishly up at her.
"I met a deer last night and I promised him that I would get him and his friends some oaks to enjoy this winter since it was starting so soon." Mother Nature's lips quirk up as I shrug. "And I like having seed for the birds. They always help me find berries when I need them, so it's only fair."
Amusement dances across all of my companions' faces. Father Time's fingers continue to rub circles into my neck and I can't help but lean into it. Father Time chuckles.
"Enjoying yourself, Frostbite?"
I jerk and almost lean away but Father Time stops circling and just holds my neck keeping me in place. I glance at him over my shoulder.
"I-It-I was," I swallow thickly as my words jumble together, frost painting my cheeks. "It did, does, feel nice."
Cato reaches over and pats my wrist.
"Don't pay him any mind, my dear, he's just being a tease."
CLANK!
The three of us jump as Ake starts cursing and leaps back from the table. His mug somehow slipped from his fingers and is now spilling the rest of his drink across the surface and heading for his lap. On instinct, I wave my hand out and freeze the liquid in place before it can ruin the moon entity's pants.
"Are you all right, Ake?" I ask as Cato hurries to grab some towels to place the frozen chunks onto.
"Yeah, sure," Ake grumbles as he starts picking at the frozen tea, breaking it enough to place on the towels. His face is pinched and I shrink back at the harsh tone, eyebrows knitting together.
Did we annoy him? Mother Nature has left to grab the things on my list. Father Time huffs as he drops his hand from my neck.
"No need to get huffy, Ake," Father Time scolds. "Everyone drops their tea from time to time. It's not like Ela doesn't have more."
I perk up.
"I could make you more if you'd like?"
Ake lifts his head, his pale eyes landing on me and I shakily smile at him. After a beat, the moon entity's face softens as a tiny smile forms.
"Sure, Snowflake, that would be wonderful. No milk, but two things of sugar?"
Nodding, I scramble to my feet and quickly check the kettle for water before turning to the stove. I've never made tea before, but I've seen Mother Nature and Cato do it enough that I shouldn't have any problems with it.
Turning on the flame, I place the kettle on to heat the water once more. Walking over, I pluck Ake's mug from the table as he and Cato continue to clean up the frozen spilled tea.
It doesn't take long for the kettle to squeal and I shakily pour the water into the mug. Grabbing the tin full of teas, I pluck the Earl Grey, remembering Mother Nature using this one for everyone's tea today. Standing on my tippy toes, I just barely manage to grab the sugar from the shelf and scoop two spoonfuls into the liquid. I quickly stir the tea, careful not to spill any as I place the spoon down and bring it over to the waiting entity.
"H-Here you go," I say, smiling bashfully as I hold it out for Ake to take. Ake takes it gently and beams up at me.
"Thanks, Snowflake, I appreciate it."
Nodding, I quickly return to my seat as we wait for Mother Nature to return. I drum my fingers on the table. Maybe we should go visit the other seasons just to let them know about all of this. Or maybe the others will do it since I know their homes will be too hot for me to be there.
Shrugging, I return to my seat and stare out the window.