When school ends the next day, I'm heading home with Xinxia in tow.
"So, how did you do on that Magic Foundation Theory exam?"
Xinxia pouts. "I don't know! I feel like I mixed up some of the Elements' colors."
"Which ones?"
"The green ones."
"And those would be...?"
She nervously looks at me. "Plant, Wind, and Healing, dark, bright, and pale green, right?"
I cock my head and pretend to scrunch my brows in consternation, causing her eyes to mist with tears. "Jianyu, don't!"
I drop the solemn facade and grin. "Have more confidence in yourself, Xinxia. Yes, that was correct."
"Thank goodness," she exhales in relief. "Don't do that! I'm already so stressed."
"There's no way you and I didn't ace that test. But even though I know you did well, you still manage to make me feel bad for teasing you," I complain.
"You should feel bad!"
"Cheer up, that was the last final. We're done with the semester; the rest of December is ours."
Our conversation slows to a halt. Xinxia cheerfully hums while I steadily push her wheelchair.
After a few minutes, a familiar verdant estate comes into view on our left. The corners of my lips subconsciously turn down in distaste.
Standing just beyond the gate is an icy pale girl with silvery-white hair. She notices us almost instantly. Her gaze lingers, unreadable, before she steps forward.
Xinxia gives a small wave. "Hi, Ningxue."
Mu Ningxue inclines her head slightly. "Xinxia." Her eyes flick to me, cool and assessing, before sliding back. "You're heading home?"
"Mm," Xinxia says. "Finals are done. Jianyu's walking me back."
"...I see." Mu Ningxue falls into step beside us without asking.
The silence that follows is heavy. I keep my eyes straight ahead. Her footsteps on the pavement are light, precise, like she's afraid to touch the world more than necessary.
"After all that praise Xinxia lauded upon you, that first impression was not pretty," I viciously utter.
Xinxia gasps in shock and hisses, "Jianyu!"
A pair of blue eyes lock with mine. "You're one to speak."
"Oh, really? So, what, was I supposed to just lie on the ground and beg for mercy while your father aligned those 49 Water stars?"
At that, her gaze falters, causing me to sneer.
[What a display of mental gymnastics. I was completely in the right, but she avoided confronting that fact until now to preserve her upright opinion of herself and her family.]
"I'm sorry."
I flinch at the unexpected apology. "O-oh. It's fine, nothing happened." Guilt wells up within my chest; how did she apologize right when I was mentally deriding her?
"No, really." She glances down at Xinxia and gently holds her hand. "We should have treated him better."
"Ningxue, it's not 'we.' You were always respectful to Uncle Mo," Xinxia softly reassures her. "And now he's retired! Let's move forward, okay?"
"Mmn, alright."
With every step, the guilt weighing on my chest increases.
"Hey, I'm sorry too. I was extremely abrasive to both you and your father yesterday."
Xinxia glances between us, surprised. Mu Ningxue nods slightly, accepting the apology.
After another few blocks of silent walking, she says quietly, "There's a new sweets shop ahead. Left at the next corner."
Xinxia perks up. "Oh? What kind?"
"Custard, mostly. Cream-filled pastries. They're popular."
I glance at her. "You like those?"
Her gaze flicks to me, flat as stone. "Sometimes."
A grin tugs at my mouth before I can stop it. "That's unexpected. The cold princess sneaking off for cream puffs."
Color rises faintly in her cheeks, though her expression doesn't change. "It's just food."
"Sure," I say, still grinning. "Just food."
Xinxia laughs under her breath. "Now I want to try them."
We turn the corner, and sure enough, tucked between two taller buildings is a small shop with frosted glass windows and an 'OPEN' sign hung on the door. The smell of sugar drifts out as a customer exits the shop.
Inside, the air is warm and sweet. Glass cases gleam with rows of golden pastries. Xinxia's eyes widen. "They look amazing."
Ningxue orders quickly, as if she's done it before. A box of custard puffs is set on the counter. She grabs one without hesitation, biting into it neatly, as if even eating is a serious discipline.
"You really don't waste time," I dryly remark.
She swallows, unbothered. "They're better fresh."
I pick one up and take a bite. The cream bursts across my tongue, sweet and light. "Good taste, Miss Mu."
Her eyes bore into my skull.
[Noted, 'Miss Mu' is an effective jibe.]
Xinxia indulges in a custard puff of her own. "It's perfect."
After a moment, I smirk at Ningxue. "I'm still trying to decide if this ruins your image or makes it better."
Her eyes narrow just slightly. "What image?"
"The one where you survive on nothing but frost and disdain."
Xinxia covers a laugh with her hand. Ningxue doesn't deign to reply; she just takes another bite with perfectly controlled grace.
But I swear, at the corner of her mouth, there's the faintest curve of a smile.
...
...
Half a year flies by.
The Mu estate is hushed this evening, and the manicured gardens are as spiffy as ever. Strange to think that I smile rather than scowl when approaching this place now.
Inside Mu Zhuoyun's residence is pale marble, tall windows, light spilling across silk rugs, and expansive rooms. It ought to feel imposing, but I've grown used to it.
In her bedroom, Xinxia and I find Ningxue curled up near the edge of her pale blue bed, silver hair draped over her shoulder, a porcelain teacup cradled in her hands. She's engrossed in a rather thick textbook and hardly acknowledges our arrival.
Xinxia wheels herself beside the table, laden with neatly arranged books, school supplies, and a computer. She hums with relief as I set down the bag of books we've been hauling all week. "Finally," she exclaims, "summer break!"
I flop down onto the beanbag opposite Ningxue's bed. "Still reading that 'history of ice magic' book?"
"Mhm."
"I know I've said it already, but I'll say it again. Just because your body has recently been feeling a bit cold, it doesn't mean you have to frantically learn everything there is to know about the Ice element."
Ningxue's blue irises flit up sharply. Before she utters a word, I narrate her thoughts for her. "But the Mu family is more prone to awakening Ice. These cold symptoms match those of an early self-awakening. Self-awakening is dangerous. Understanding Ice might mitigate the dangers. Yes, that's a good argument, but did you thi-"
"Guys, please don't start this again," Xinxia gently cuts in. She pleadingly gazes at me, so I sigh and lean back into the beanbag.
Satisfied, Xinxia wheels over to Ningxue. "Anything interesting?"
"Actually, yes. Guess where the most deadly place on Earth is for Super Ice Mages."
Xinxia blinks. "Umm, maybe Death Valley? Ice Mages might have a tough time casting spells in an environment that hot."
"It's not Death Valley," I declare from across the room. "Xinxia, don't fall for her trick question. Think, which dangerous place would Super Ice Mages most frequently visit?"
It dawns on her instantly, and she flushes with mild frustration. "Antarctica. Ningxue!"
Amused, her lips curve up. "It wasn't meant as a trick question. Part of the danger is the allure. Yes, Death Valley is dangerous, but every Ice Mage knows not to go there."
"The author is a pompous buffoon," I scoff. "In terms of sheer threat to survival, Death Valley is worse than Antarctica for Ice Mages, and that's how most people would interpret the question. Not to mention that it's such an equivocally phrased question in the first place."
Ningxue slams her book shut and sits up with her arms crossed. "Jianyu, do you have something to say? Why are you so combative recently?"
"Ningxue..." Xinxia tugs at her pajamas.
"No, I want an answer. Reading about Ice has been fun, but he has tainted the experience by constantly antagonizing me."
Heat surges to my cheeks, and I leap up from the beanbag. "Antagonizing you? All I've ever said is that I'm concerned about your obsession and that your worries are unfounded."
"They're not unfounded. I haven't told you guys yet, but..."
Ningxue pauses, angrily breathing heavily.
"For the past 2 days, it's felt like an ice cube has been constantly pressed to every inch of my body." She softens slightly after peeking at the gruesome scar on my left forearm. "Forget the pain. But do you still want to tell me there's nothing wrong?"
My mouth opens, but no words come to mind, and it closes. I collapse back into the beanbag.
[What the hell? 2 days of frost-induced agony?]
"I'm sorry. You were right," I apologize. "I guess I got annoyed that you weren't being rational, but I was the fool all along."
My spirits lift when she smiles, acknowledging the apology. I ask, "So, are you okay? I mean, it's incredible that you're functioning like the pain doesn't even exist. But do you think your body is sustaining damage?"
"I don't think so. The Healers at the hospital couldn't find anything abnormal."
"Did they have anything to say about the ice cube pain?" Xinxia nervously fidgets.
"I didn't tell them. You two are the only ones who know."
My eyebrows raise. "Not even your father?"
"Father... he wouldn't be concerned like you both," she sighs. "He'd just congratulate me on being talented enough to self-awaken Ice."
Xinxia lifts herself onto the bed and plops down next to Ningxue. She laces her fingers with Ningxue's. "I don't think that's true."
Silence ensues as we're all engrossed in our own thoughts.
Suddenly, Xinxia yelps and yanks her hand away, then gazes at Ningxue in shock. "You're... freezing."
Her perpetually cool expression now warbles, then tears seep out of her eyes. She curls up and collapses onto the bed, shivering and writhing.
Alarmed, I lunge over and grasp her hand, but it's so cold that I nearly fling my hand away out of instinct.
"Xinxia, she's so... Holy fuck, my hand is sticking to hers. The moisture on my hand is literally freezing in real time."
I gingerly peel my hand away, right as a frosty mist flares around her.
A low wail slips from her throat before she bites down on her lip hard enough to draw blood. Xinxia folds up the pale blue bedding and offers it to Ningxue, who clenches her teeth on it while crying.
Her body jolts with spasms, each one harsher than the last. Her chest heaves, but she can't seem to draw a full breath: it's strained gasps, not fluid breathing.
Sweat breaks across her brow, only to freeze in an instant. It streaks her temples in pale frost. Her white lashes bead with tears that turn to tiny crystals as soon as they fall. Her whole frame trembles as though it's being torn apart from within.
The cold around her spreads with her pain. I scoop Xinxia up and plop her down in her wheelchair, then escort her to the door, leaving it propped open in case I need to flee with Xinxia.
Frost crawls across the bed and then the carpet, biting up the legs of the table, snapping glassware containing pens with brittle pops. The walls creak as cracks race across them. Outside the window, flakes begin to fall where the sky had been clear.
She suddenly rolls around on the bed, gasping through clenched teeth, and then her body arches back violently. She screams in agony as the icy phenomenon becomes a miniature blizzard.
The wooden floor splits, then the bed, ice bursting upward in jagged columns around her. The shockwave of frosty air stings my skin. I clench onto Xinxia's wheelchair, ready to wheel her out at a moment's notice. Our exhaled breath now condenses into a cloud of mist instantly.
Finally, her body slumps, still trembling. The shards of ice vanish in puffs of icy mist. The blizzard fades away. Xinxia sighs in relief, and I wheel her over to Ningxue now that the temperature is bearable. She crawls onto the bed and hugs the icy girls's limp body. "Ningxue? Are you feeling better?"
A weak voice replies, "Yes... there's no more pain. Please... keep hugging me. It's so cold."
Now Xinxia's the one crying. I busy myself by entering an adjacent room and grabbing some blankets that aren't streaked with ice crystals. When I enter Ningxue's room again, the two are still wrapped around each other.
I gently pull away the pale blue sheets from underneath them and layer a few blankets on top of them, then exit the room once more, shutting the door behind me. I shuffle away, deep in thought.
[A 13 year old Basic Mage, who self-awakened the Ice Element.]