Casper
The cozy smells of evergreen and spiced cider filled the little house, the mood punctuated by the crackling and popping of the fire in the hearth. If Casper closed his eyes, he could almost believe that he was back in his own home, preparing for Norditch’s Midwinter Festival. Though the pangs of homesickness had dulled over time, there were still moments when the desire for his family was so strong that it nearly overwhelmed him.
But they’re likely long gone by now. Time may have affected us differently under the curse, but it still flows normally for everyone else. Even if I were to find a way to break this curse and get us back, what kind of a home would we even bereturning to? I doomed my crew the moment I accepted that deal.
“I didn’t realize you had such negative feelings about fir trees.”
He blinked. Sienna had dropped into the chair across from him at the table and was eyeing him over the tall pile of greenery that she had returned with after her morning stroll with Devri. After their late adventure the previous night, he had been surprised that she still had enough energy to be up and about before the sun, but she was gone when he awoke and returned an hour or so later with several burlap sacks full of evergreen boughs, red ribbon, and twine colored to match the soft, green needles.
“What?”
“You were staring at those branches like they knocked a hole in your favorite boat. I can do this myself, you know. You don’t have to help me.”
The ‘this’ was tying the branches together into wreaths and garland for the Midwinter festival that he kept hearing about. Devri was apparently responsible for providing some of the decorations, and she had recruited Sienna’s help.
He raised an eyebrow. “With one hand?”
She scowled at him, the expression both foreign and adorable on her freckled face. “Stop reminding me, please. It’s bad enough that someone apparently wants to kill me, but it’s even more rude that their poor attempts left me basically useless for a week.”
“You’re not useless. And I don’t have strong feelings about fir. I was just…thinking.”
“About the music in the crates that you said you would tell me about later?” She blinked big, sea-blue eyes at him. “I’ve been very patient. I didn’t even try to pry the information out of Jem before he left this morning, though he likely would have been more than happy to tell me.”
His eyes narrowed. “You spoke with Jem?”
“Of course I did. He was up and leaving about the same time I was.”
Casper decided not to stop and examine exactly why it was that the thought of Sienna having a moment alone with his gregarious first mate bothered him. It shouldn’t, after all. Jem was nothing, if not loyal, and he would never dream of approaching Sienna with anything other than respect.
But there was no denying the fact that Jem was sunshine where he was cloudy sky. Smiles where he was scowls. Easy chatter where he was grunts and one-word answers.
Jem was the kind of man that most women fell for.
He was the kind they walked on the other side of the street to avoid.
But I thought we weren’t stopping to examine this topic.
“Ah.”
“So we’re back to that again, are we?” Sienna shoved some of the greenery to the side in order to clear a space in front of her. She picked up a few boughs and began arranging them in a circle.
“Back to what?”
“The dynamic where you act all grumpy and broody and don’t actually talk to me.”
“I don’t—I’m not—that’s…” He shoved his fingers through his hair with a frustrated growl. “I’m nottryingto be.”
“Well, I do feel better knowing that it seems to just come naturally to you. I will do my best not to take it personally. Now, about the music?” She frowned at the circle of green on the table before scooting the spool of twine over to him. “And while you tell me, you might as well start tying this all together.”
“What about it?”
“What kind of music was it? How do you know that we don’t have anything of the kind here in Faerie? What did you mean bysaying it was yours?” Her questions came out rapid-fire, and her eyes were bright with unbridled curiosity.
The sight almost made him forget the crippling guilt and regret that accompanied the mention of the smuggled goods. “That’s a lot of questions. I’m not sure I know how to begin.”
“That’s easy.” She leaned the elbow of her good arm on the table and rested her chin on her palm. “Start at the beginning and tell me everything.”
“Everything?”
