The Winter Game

"My name is Winter," were his first words to me, no greeting, not even nod.
Confused by his sudden appearance, I didn't know how to reply. So of course I said the first, and most trivial thing, that came into my head,"Like the season?"
The man grinned, his pearly white teeth sparkling in the soft evening light,"Yes, very much like the season."

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Sixteen year old Will Young is an orphan. Or at least that is what he considers himself, having never actually met his father. He has lived a difficult life, a life of labor and hardships in an orphanage ever since his mother passed away.
But then one blustering day, his life takes an unexpected turn. It was the 11th of December, a day like any other you could say, except for the fact that it was snowing, an occurrence which was extremely rare in the town of Blackwood, and the temperature was lower than ever seen before by the towns people. And of course it was also the day that Will literally met Winter.

[extended synopsis inside]