Let it Snow!

❄Fifteen❄

It was starting to snow when Nora parted ways with Adele outside the school, half an hour later. That changed Nora's plans for the morning-- there was no point returning home for the few hours before she would have to come back to pick up Daniel, she would only get drenched in the snowfall on the way.

Sighing, she directed her footsteps towards Clelia's shop; it would take her a while to get organized somehow. She definitely did not plan to spend every morning waiting for Daniel in the town... But they might call her from the castle, she reminded herself, and if she was lucky, that job would fill her empty morning hours.

Clelia was only too happy to see her. She was getting anxious about the market and seeing her like that, Nora left her to deal with the customers and offered to fill several wooden crates with the books which her godmother planned to carry to the square in the afternoon, once the market stalls were set up.

The moment Nora was done with the books, Clelia thrust a basket of Christmas decorations in her hands.

"Here," she said, tugging her towards the shop's window where she had placed a Christmas tree as tall as Nora. "I just don't have enough patience for this, please?" she explained, her eyes begging from behind her round glasses as she sprayed the fake needles with pine scent.

"Fine," Nora agreed on a sigh. She wasn't particularly thrilled about Christmas, and now she was being asked to decorate a tree, too. "But then you'll let me go if you want me to be back at five. I promised Daniel I'd read to him after school, and then I'll really need to go home and get changed before I'll come back here," she said, thinking about the dinner with Martin. And as every time she thought of him, her stomach filled with butterflies, and her cheeks felt warmer. You really are old for this... She scolded herself, not realising she was frowning until Clelia raised her hands in the air in mock surrender.

"Sure, sure... As soon as the tree is done, you're free. If you haven't just moved back, I'd suspect you're meeting someone tonight. You're all... funny," Clelia mumbled, shaking her head as she walked off to check the crates Nora had prepared.

It was snowing heavily when she walked out of the shop, looking back at her Christmas tree contentedly through the glass. She waved at Clelia, who beamed at her from behind the tree, pulled her hood up, and walked towards the school.

Nora was looking forward to an hour or two spent with Daniel. Adele, however, had news for them-- the boy's father managed to get the afternoon off, and he would be taking over today, Adele needed to deliver him home straight after school.

"Never mind, I'm sure you'll have fun with daddy, and we will read every day together from Monday," Nora told the boy who held both hers and Adele's hands, keeping the women at his sides as they escorted him across the park towards the castle. "So... what do you usually do with your dad?"

Nora was quite curious about the boy's father by now. Wasn't there a mother? Was he a single parent?

"He teaches me loads of things. Horse riding. Fencing. Chess..." Daniel listed proudly.

"I think he mentioned that he would take you to your ice hockey practice today," Adele interrupted.

"Oh yes... it's Friday," Daniel said, looking up at Nora, expecting her reaction.

"Oh wow!" she exclaimed, smiling at him. "You are a very busy young man."

The young man dropped their hands just then to run towards the park's fountain to dip his hands and the sleeves of his green coat into the warm water. Nora laughed, joining him, making Adele shake her head at them both.

Nora walked with them until they reached the drawbridge. She promised Adele that she would meet Daniel there at eight o'clock on Monday morning instead of her and wished the old woman a happy Christmas with her family before she walked home.