For the first time in many years, I felt that I would spend a warm winter. For far too long I had spent the cold months of the year hidden in the hearts of the mountains, waiting only for spring to return. But this time I knew it wouldn’t happen, and the more that thought settled into my mind, the more I trembled with happiness. Finally, I would be able to spend peaceful days in the snow, just like I used to when I was in Elyve.

  My heart beat in time with the music. Tristan stood in front of me playing the violin, his eyes closed and his mind somewhere far away. Tao’s head peeked into the living room.

  “Hey, you two. Still here? Tri, did you at least offer something to our Guest?”

  The boy didn’t even seem to notice his presence, completely absorbed in his music.

  “Yes, you’re right, excellent idea. I’ll go get the tray of sweets that I just happened to prepare before leaving this morning.”

  I watched Tao with amusement as he shot Tristan a glare.

  He disappeared behind the door and returned a few seconds later with the famous plate of sweets, placing it on the table I was leaning against.

  “So? Did you try playing, or is he too jealous of his instruments?”

  “Yes, I just finished my first lesson. My arms are completely sore,” I said with a whining tone.

  “Ah, allow me to ease your pain a little, gentle Guest.”

  Tao bowed theatrically in front of me, then moved behind my chair and began massaging my shoulders and arms.

  “I must have missed the moment when our house became a massage center.”

  Tristan finally seemed to notice the extra person in the room. He shot us a deadly glare, though he didn’t stop playing.

  “Oh come on, don’t you feel any sympathy?” Tao grabbed my wrists and started shaking my arms up and down.

  I tried to hold back my laughter, blinking and looking at him with an expression that was supposed to be sad, but probably looked more like a grin.

  Tristan ignored us and finished the song with one last vibrant note, while we applauded.

  I spent the rest of the afternoon at their house. I knew Malù was in her room alone, and that thought made me feel guilty. I was in her house having fun while she was locked in her pain just a few steps away.

  Despite losing their daughter, I realized the parents had reacted in completely different ways. Tao had seemed from the beginning to be the most cheerful and playful among the few villagers, perhaps second only to Liz, though that might have been just a way to hide his suffering. As for the woman, I had never even managed to see her.

  We were talking about their dances and songs. About a week had passed since the celebration at the inn, but the excitement of that evening still hadn’t faded.

  “And what kind of dances and music do you have?” Tao asked curiously.

  I sighed, thinking about my home. I had briefly mentioned it to Edune, but now, thinking about it more calmly, my heart tightened.

  “I’ve actually never learned how to dance or play any instruments…”

  My entire life had been spent studying magic or reading. Back then, thinking about simple things like songs had never been part of my plans.

  I still hadn’t told anyone about my past, and no one seemed to know anything about what had happened. Tao had surely asked that question lightly.

  “Arya, don’t worry about this insensitive idiot. You probably don’t feel like thinking about the home you left. Besides… it’s getting a bit late. We should start preparing dinner.”

  Tristan saved me from that situation.

  Only then did Tao seem to realize what he had asked. Muttering a “I’ll go to the kitchen,” he stood up.

  I stood up immediately as well.

  “Let me help. Is there something I can do?”

  “If you insist…”

  Under Tao’s guidance, I started preparing a dish in a tall baking tray. First a layer of thick milk cream, then a very thin and wide pasta sheet, then seasoned meat, and then again, layer after layer of that strange mixture until all the ingredients were gone.

  “There we go,” I said to myself with satisfaction.

  I left everything to Tao and, after he told me he didn’t need any more help, I returned to the living room where Tristan had set the table for the four of us.

  A few minutes later we heard a knock at the front door.

  Tristan went to open it for the new arrival, Preon, who joined me at the table.

  “Thank you for the hospitality.”

  Preon greeted Tao, who had stepped out of the kitchen to nod at him.

  While waiting for dinner we talked about the afternoon and my first violin lesson. Hearing how beautifully Tristan played and remembering how hard it had been for me just to figure out how to hold the violin had discouraged me a little. But encouraged by Preon, I tried to gather my courage and motivate myself for the next lesson.

  “Of course we’ll also try the accordion. Maybe it will feel easier or you’ll like it more. You shouldn’t feel sad if you can’t play well on the first day. All of us who play instruments take months or even years to truly learn and become comfortable with them.”

  Tristan reassured me.

  “And if Cole managed to teach Liz how to play, then no one can have problems.”

  He started laughing together with Preon, as if they were both remembering the same scene.

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  I didn’t even have time to ask what they meant about Liz before Tao entered the room carrying the tray I had prepared earlier.

  “Dinner is served. Here is the delicious lasagna prepared by our Guest.”

  Tristan stood up and began serving us, taking the stacked plates from the table one by one. He prepared one extra plate and handed it to Tao.

  “I’ll be right back.”

  For a moment his gaze seemed to dim. He turned and disappeared behind the door.

  “Malù doesn’t come out even when it’s just the two of you?” Preon asked Tristan.

  Tristan sighed deeply and shook his head.

  “Since there’s a bathroom in her room, sometimes even I don’t see her for days. Tao or I bring her food every day. Considering the situation, we’re glad she at least doesn’t refuse to eat. Even if it’s little, it means she still wants to live. We just don’t know how to help her…”

  The air in the room suddenly felt suffocating. I felt embarrassed and completely out of place, as if I shouldn’t be listening to their conversation.

  “Let’s hope she returns to the person she used to be,” Preon said quietly, looking up at the ceiling.

  “So? Aren’t you eating? It’ll get cold if you keep waiting.”

  Tao returned, unknowingly breaking the melancholy that had settled in the room.

  Tristan gave him the usual glare, and we started chatting again as if nothing had happened.

  “Did you manage to translate that text then? What does it say?”

  Tristan immediately began bombarding me with questions about the text and the cave, barely containing his excitement.

  I told them about the translation and about David’s help. I still hadn’t had the chance to return to the cave, and I didn’t know how to gather information to solve the mystery surrounding that place. But sooner or later, maybe in one of the books in the library, I might find some useful clue.

  “Still, I’ve never noticed hidden caves in the forest before. Liz told us about your discovery, and it surprised me too,” Tao added. “I’d like to see it.”

  “Maybe we could all go together one day. It’s beautiful. Though I wouldn’t know how to get there, Liz guided us.”

  Since I didn’t know the forest well, finding that rock again alone would be impossible.

  “Maybe when it’s less cold and the snow has melted. In spring.”

  After Tristan said that, the topic of the cave and the text was set aside, and we started talking about magic.

  They couldn’t cast powerful spells and mainly knew only simple elemental magic, fire or water. A good compromise to survive with limited resources in the village. They could cook and preserve food, easily light candles, or create light by heating mana stones.

  I wondered how they had learned magic and obtained those stones.

  Mana, the essence of magic, existed in every object and living being, though in different amounts. But mana stones were not easy to find in the human kingdom, as far as I knew. Yet there were almost too many in the village to have been found by chance.

  What if they had learned everything from us elves? What if, many years ago, the parents of their parents had learned magic from the very people who had hunted and killed us, and then passed it on to other humans?

  “…ya… Arya!”

  A voice interrupted my thoughts.

  “What?”

  I looked around. For a moment I had forgotten I was sitting at the table with other people.

  “Are you alright? Are you tired?” Preon asked worriedly.

  “Ah, sorry. I’m not feeling very well. Maybe I should go home. You keep eating… I can’t manage dessert.”

  I stood up quickly. I wanted to leave as soon as possible.

  “Wait, I’ll walk you home, let’s go-”

  I didn’t even hear the rest of Preon’s sentence as I rushed outside.

  Why? Why? What’s happening? I can’t stop trembling.

  I started running blindly into the night. As if drawn by an invisible force, I ran into the forest without knowing where my legs were taking me.

  The biting cold caught me unprepared, I had left my jacket at home. Still, I kept running, my lungs burning from the cold air.

  Eventually I slowed down, breathless, and sat down in the fresh snow, shivering.

  What if humans started using me to learn magic…

  I shook my head, trying to drive away the image of my village drowned in blood.

  I knew it. I should never have come here.

  I opened my palm and a small blue flame lit my face. Catching my breath, I warmed myself.

  Thinking more calmly about what had just happened, I realized that for the second time since arriving in Agene I had run away into the forest.

  I prepared myself for the scolding Preon would surely give me.

  Reluctantly, I stood up and began walking back.

  I tried to think of an excuse, but nothing came to mind.

  But I’m not forced to go back…

  The thought of staying in the forest, or continuing my journey, appeared in my mind.

  Maybe the only thing I should do is return to Elyve and forget about this village.

  Suddenly I changed direction.

  Inside me, I felt an uncontrollable desire to return to the small lake. I didn’t even know exactly where it was, but my heart guided my legs, and soon the faint blue glow of the lake appeared between the trees.

  I had returned.

  The green trees full of leaves and the ripples of the crystal water were still there. Even though the sky was covered by clouds and neither stars nor moon were visible, the water shone with its own light, as if the bottom of the lake held its own glowing sky.

  I approached the shore, no longer feeling cold. A gentle warmth rose from the water.

  I sat down again, leaning against a tree.

  Minutes, or perhaps hours, passed while I remained enchanted. Time seemed to flow quickly and stand still at the same moment.

  I felt at home in the village of Agene, yet I still couldn’t erase the fear I felt toward humans.

  I closed my eyes, surrounded by silence.

  A suffocating grip woke me suddenly.

  Instinctively I struggled, shouting and kicking. I had been taken by surprise, my muscles numb from the cold, and the grip restrained my movements.

  “Arya, calm down. It’s me!”

  Preon’s voice reassured me.

  “Preon… why-”

  He hugged me again before I could finish the sentence.

  My heart was racing, my mind a storm of scattered thoughts.

  Fear. Relief. Sadness. Preon. Home.

  “Forgive me, please. We made you feel bad, didn’t we?”

  He held me even tighter.

  Everything I had been thinking burst out in tears. Without answering him, I let myself be comforted by his embrace until all the tears were gone.

  Exhausted by the cold, I let Preon carry me in his arms all the way home.

  One arm behind my back, the other under my knees, holding me securely.

  I rested my head against his chest, lulled by the sound of his heartbeat.

  “You know… this reminds me of a few months ago, when I first saw you.”

  I tilted my head back so I could see part of his face.

  “That day, when I saw you in the lake, I feared the worst. Luckily I reached you in time. You have no idea what a surprise that was…”

  He kept talking, but his voice sounded distant and muffled. I would have loved to know every detail of those first days, but even staying awake required an enormous effort.

  Without even realizing it, I fell asleep, lulled by the sound of his footsteps in the snow.