The gleam of sunlight through ice woke Snow Miser as the sun rose on the western horizon. His silver eyes flickered open, and he winced at the concentrated light. After a moment, the sun shifted enough so that he could see the flare of the sunrise splashing across the sky. He watched the colors with a small smile on his face then his smile faded.
At first he wasn't sure why he didn't want to get up, and he reached up to scrub at his tousled hair. Then his eyes landed on the calendar above his bed. Oh, that was why. It was the three-month family reunion again. That meant a whole day with his perfect siblings. He wondered if Father Time would be there before he scoffed. Of course he wouldn't be, he thought as he glared at the ceiling. Despite his name, he never had enough time for his family. Growing up, there had been a lot of missed opportunities because Father Time could just peer down the passage of time and see what he'd missed. That didn't heal the gaping hole where his father should have been during Snow's difficult times.
There was a surge beneath him, and he groaned. Heat was awake. He really didn't want to deal with that hothead today. But he couldn't just ignore his brother. That would be admitting something was wrong, and he couldn't admit that. Mother dearest wouldn't like that.
'Temper, temper, Snow,' echoed in his head, heard a hundred thousand times. It was never in front of his siblings, but that didn't stop the sting. They could all do just as much damage as him if they lost control. Tornadoes, earthquakes, tidal waves, and even volcanic eruptions were fine, but not an ice age. 'Where's my happy boy, Snow?'
Snow rolled out of bed and went to take a cold shower. Sometimes he wished for some hot water, but he wouldn't give Heat the satisfaction. He fondly recalled taking hot showers and baths when he and Heat were growing up. They were actually pleasant memories. There were some. But there was also a lot of fighting, a lot of too-far jokes that turned violent, a lot of never-good-enough when it came to his brother. He wanted what Mrs. Claus had suggested a few years before. He wanted his brother to be his confidant, the one he confided in and who gave the same right to him.
'Brothers should be friends,' he thought bitterly. 'But Heat and I... we just can't get along.'
Snow knew Heat didn't understand him, and the same was true of the reverse. Though they had reached an odd civility around each other, it was still forced to a degree. Mother had been very glad to see they were fighting less. But because of that, Snow was getting more and more frustrated. Used to, their fights had kept the blizzard from stirring in his heart, but now...
The castle shook as Heat launched something at it. Snow sighed, and he stepped out of the cold water and froze the droplets off his body before dressing. He carefully styled his hair and froze it so that it stayed in place. As he plodded out into his bedroom, one of his ice minion servants came in with a fruit smoothie. Snow smiled a little. "Mother sent us baskets again, didn't she?"
The servant nodded. "Your favorite."
Snow grinned and picked up the smoothie. "Thanks, Flurry." He gestured toward his brother's castle. "What's old sulfur breath up to?"
Flurry shrugged. "He seems irritated."
"What's new?" Snow asked dismissively.
"More so than usual."
Snow took in a mouthful of smoothie and closed his eyes, savoring the flavor. He answered after swallowing. "It's a reunion day. Of course he's more irritated than usual."
"So that's why you're lingering?"
Snow grunted, sipping from the cold glass. "Don't, Flurry."
Flurry bowed slightly. "Sorry, sir."
