Friday, December 18<\/p>\n
\u201cSo let me get this straight,\u201d Doug said, looking faintly skeptical. He, Tim, and Molly were at one of the small tables in the tea room at CrossWinds Books, enjoying the warmth of the wood stove as the afternoon inched on. It was a drowsy sort of day, with softly-falling snow shushing against the windows, and only a few people had ventured out. In fact, Molly realized, looking around, other than her family, the only other people in the tea room were the Dorrs, seated at their customary table. Mr. Dorr was reading quietly to his wife, who was knitting something purple.<\/p>\n
Probably an afghan for Lee-Ann,<\/em> she thought, watching the silver needles flicker. That\u2019s definitely Lee-Ann\u2019s color.<\/em><\/p>\n Mrs. Dorr, apparently feeling eyes upon her, looked up and smiled at Molly, who smiled back.<\/p>\n Or it\u2019s for the kittens<\/em>, Schrodinger said sleepily. He was curled up on his large cat bed with Ryan, who was fast asleep, one chubby hand curled under his cheek, the other holding on to the CrossCat\u2019s leg. The entire picture was too cute for Molly, who smiled to see her friend doubling as a pillow.<\/p>\n Doug touched her on the arm and Molly jumped a bit. \u201cDid you hear me?\u201d he asked.<\/p>\n \u201cNo, sorry, I got distracted by how stinking cute your kid is right now,\u201d Molly admitted. \u201cWhat did you ask again?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cEntirely okay, he\u2019s adorable,\u201d Doug agreed. \u201cWe already sent a picture to Mom, who probably has plastered it all over Facebook. But I asked if the entire town shuts down for the ball?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cPretty much,\u201d Molly said, nodding. \u201cEven the restaurants close. Everyone\u2019s going to be at the ballroom, with the exception of the emergency services folks, and even they rotate in and out.\u201d<\/p>\n It\u2019s THE event of the social season,<\/em> Schrodinger added. Especially since everyone wants to see what Jade and Jack have been planning for this year.<\/em><\/p>\n \u201cAnd Old Man Winter,\u201d Molly added. \u201cHe stopped by Wednesday and said that he was going to be there, because he was bummed that Lily and Zoey weren\u2019t coming this year.\u201d<\/p>\n They aren\u2019t?<\/em> Schrodinger said, raising his head and blinking. Why not?<\/em><\/p>\n \u201cThey\u2019re babysitting for Kaylee and Ryan, remember?\u201d Molly said. \u201cThey asked if you wanted to stay with them.\u201d<\/p>\n Oh, right.<\/em> Schrodinger sighed. I would, but I really, really love the ball.<\/em><\/p>\n \u201cThey\u2019ll babysit again, and you can help then,\u201d Molly assured him.<\/p>\n \u201cAre you sure that your brother and sister-in-law are okay taking Ryan?\u201d Tim asked. \u201cI\u2019d hate to put them out.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cThey wouldn\u2019t have offered if they weren\u2019t okay with it,\u201d Molly said. \u201cThey\u2019re looking forward to the night. And it means you guys can go.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cFor a ball in the middle of the forest.\u201d Doug shook his head, still skeptical. \u201cI can\u2019t wrap my head around it.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019m more impressed by the fact that she\u2019s on a first-name basis with the spirits of winter and fall, personally,\u201d his husband said, chuckling. \u201cThis is such a weird town.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s the same place that Drew and I got married in,\u201d Molly said. \u201cWhich, yeah, is in the middle of the forest, but it\u2019s magic. Doug, you grew up with Phoebe around – how can you not be that used to magic?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cTrue,\u201d he said. \u201cBut I dunno – Phoebe was just Phoebe. She was so much a part of our lives that we didn\u2019t really question it.\u201d<\/p>\n Because you met her as a child. Children accept magic easier, especially if you get them when they\u2019re small.<\/em> Schrodinger shifted just a bit under Ryan. Your son will never know anything other than magic. Think of what he will take in stride.<\/em><\/p>\n \u201cWhich is why I\u2019m so happy to be here,\u201d Tim said. \u201cI wonder what my childhood might have been like if I\u2019d grown up in a CrossRoads town.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cIt still depends on the town,\u201d Doug said. \u201cMarionville is not as saturated as Carter\u2019s Cove is.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cProbably because we\u2019re more of a trade town, especially with the harbor,\u201d Molly said.<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s more than that, actually, dear,\u201d Mrs. Dorr said. \u201cI\u2019m sorry to interrupt.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cNot at all!\u201d Molly said, smiling. \u201cYou know more about the town than almost anyone else here.\u201d She turned back to Doug and Tim. \u201cMrs. Dorr and her husband have been all over, even more than most.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cThat\u2019s because we\u2019re retired, my dear. It gives us something to do and keeps us young.\u201d Mrs. Dorr smiled at all of them. \u201cBut the big reason that the Cove is more magical is because of who borders the town.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cWhat do you mean?\u201d Doug asked, leaning forward.<\/p>\n \u201cYou know how every CrossRoads town has metaphysical borders with several other Realms, right?\u201d Mrs. Dorr said, setting her knitting down for a moment. They nodded. \u201cWell, not all of those Realms are necessarily magical. In the case of Carter\u2019s Cove, however, almost every other Realm that touches upon it is at least partially magically active. So all those different magical energies flow and eddy here in the Cove, and make this place more magically active than most. That\u2019s why so many children born here have magical gifts.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cWe need to have another child,\u201d Tim said, looking at his husband. \u201cI want to see what we can come up with.\u201d<\/p>\n Doug laughed. \u201cYou say that now,\u201d he said. \u201cLet\u2019s at least get through the terrible twos with the one we have before we have another.\u201d He winked at Molly. \u201cBeside, I want to see how Molly and Drew\u2019s family turns out first.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cDo you know something I don\u2019t?\u201d Molly asked him, raising an eyebrow.<\/p>\n \u201cNot yet,\u201d he grinned. \u201cBut I\u2019m pretty certain you guys will have a baby before we do another one.\u201d<\/p>\n Mrs. Dorr smiled at Ryan. \u201cHe\u2019s young enough to soak up the magical energy. You might get him developing gifts, you know.\u201d<\/p>\n Both Tim and Doug looked surprised. \u201cReally?\u201d Doug asked.<\/p>\n \u201cYes.\u201d She nodded. \u201cI\u2019ve seen it happen before.\u201d She looked over at her husband, who had put a bookmark into his book, and was getting up to get his coat on. \u201cIs it that time already?\u201d<\/p>\n Mr. Dorr smiled. \u201cOnly if you want to stop and see Lee-Ann and Jeff before we go home,\u201d he reminded her. \u201cAnd we need to stop at the grocery store.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cRight.\u201d Mrs. Dorr gathered up her things as well. \u201cWe\u2019ll see you all tomorrow night,\u201d she said, and they headed out into the snow.<\/p>\n \u201cSo everyone really does go to this ball,\u201d Doug said, watching them go. \u201cI wouldn\u2019t believe it.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cMarionville didn\u2019t have anything like that?\u201d Molly asked him. \u201cReally?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cNot really,\u201d he said. \u201cI guess the closest thing would have been the Homecoming game and party, but it\u2019s not a fancy ball.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cThey weren\u2019t really into fancy anything in Marionville,\u201d Tim added, chuckling a little. \u201cI don\u2019t think you would find anyone who wanted to dress up that much.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cTrue,\u201d Doug admitted. \u201cWe\u2019re kind of informal.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cWell, tomorrow night will not be informal,\u201d Molly said, reaching over and warming up the tea pot with a bit of her magic. She didn\u2019t normally do that, but she was disinclined to get up. \u201cIt\u2019s a black tie affair.\u201d She eyed them both. \u201cAnd no, I won\u2019t tell you what I\u2019m wearing, even though I know Drew asked you.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cSo instead, tell us what to expect tomorrow night,\u201d Doug said. He offered his cup as she poured more tea into her mug. \u201cBecause I\u2019m a little worried, to be honest.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cWhy?\u201d Molly shrugged. \u201cEveryone gets dressed up in their prettiest clothes, and goes to dance.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cSomehow, I doubt it\u2019s the Top 40, though,\u201d Tim said. \u201cIs it?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cNo,\u201d Molly said, giggling at the thought of a DJ at the Snow Queen\u2019s Ball. \u201cThere\u2019s live music. Last year, she had a string quartet, but I don\u2019t know what they have planned this year. It changes.\u201d She leaned back in her chair, cradling the warm mug of tea in her hands. \u201cThe dancing is all over the place, though. There are slow dances, and fast dances – all different kinds of music, although I will admit that there are more slow couples\u2019 dances.\u201d<\/p>\n Don\u2019t forget the last dance,<\/em> Schrodinger said. That\u2019s always the best.<\/em><\/p>\n \u201cThe last dance is a Cinderella dance,\u201d Molly agreed.<\/p>\n \u201cWhat, we all take off one shoe and dance like that?\u201d Doug asked.<\/p>\n \u201cNo, silly.\u201d Molly laughed at him. \u201cThe women all take off a shoe, and we put them in a large pile in the middle of the room. Then the guys go and choose a shoe at random.\u201d<\/p>\n Everyone does it, even the Snow Queen,<\/em> Schrodinger added. And if something special is going to happen, it\u2019s usually then.<\/em><\/p>\n \u201cYes,\u201d Molly said. \u201cEven Jade puts her shoe in. And it\u2019s always danced to the Christmas Waltz.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cWhat do you mean, if something special is going to happen?\u201d Doug said.<\/p>\n \u201cWell, there\u2019s been engagements,\u201d Molly said, thinking back. \u201cAnd we\u2019ve saved the Cove a couple of times.\u201d She laughed at the look on her cousins\u2019 faces. \u201cSeriously!\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cHow?\u201d Doug asked.<\/p>\n \u201cWell, last year, we got the Snow Queen and Jack Frost together,\u201d Molly said. \u201cThat saved her life, and the life of the Cove.\u201d<\/p>\n And three years ago, Molly stopped Old Man Winter from destroying the Cove by blowing up the Gates,<\/em> Schrodinger said. That was the year Drew was kidnapped.<\/em><\/p>\n \u201cYes, but I had help,\u201d Molly said. \u201cOh, and two years ago, Lily and Zoey went to the Ball! And had a wonderful time.\u201d She didn\u2019t want to remember the fire that had destroyed Zoey\u2019s home while they were all dancing. After all, Santa had fixed that too.<\/p>\n Tim and Doug were staring at her, slightly open-mouthed.<\/p>\n \u201cWhat?\u201d she asked, startled.<\/p>\n \u201cYou\u2019re serious,\u201d Doug said, and it wasn\u2019t a question. \u201cYou\u2019re really serious.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cYes,\u201d she said. \u201cIt all happened.\u201d<\/p>\n Doug turned to his husband. \u201cAnd she says it so casually,\u201d he said, shaking his head. \u201cShe\u2019s managed to save her town at least twice, and she just dismisses it.\u201d<\/p>\n That\u2019s part of her charm,<\/em> Schrodinger said. She\u2019s modest.<\/em><\/p>\n \u201cI had help,\u201d Molly felt required to point out. \u201cIt wasn\u2019t just me. Lily helped win over Old Man Winter, and Jack really made changes to show Jade that he could be the partner she needed him to be.\u201d<\/p>\n But you started it all, Molly. They wouldn\u2019t have been able to do it without you.<\/em><\/p>\n She blushed and hastily changed the subject. \u201cSo yeah, now you see why it\u2019s such a big deal,\u201d she said. \u201cAnd honestly, the more people who go, the better.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cWhy?\u201d Tim asked her.<\/p>\n \u201cBecause there are protections on the Cove, and the Ball helps keep them charged,\u201d Molly told him. \u201cJack and Jade started it back with the founding of the Cove.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cWow.\u201d Doug leaned back in his chair, pondering that. \u201cAmazing.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cI am so glad we moved here,\u201d Tim said. \u201cI just wish\u2026\u201d His voice trailed off, and Molly reached out for his hand comfortingly.<\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019m sorry,\u201d she said quietly. \u201cHave you heard anything?\u201d<\/p>\n He shook his head. \u201cNot that I expected to, but I\u2019d hoped.\u201d He sighed and squared his shoulders. \u201cOh well.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Friday, December 18 \u201cSo let me get this straight,\u201d Doug said, looking faintly skeptical. He, Tim, and Molly were at one of the small tables in the tea room at CrossWinds Books, enjoying the warmth of the wood stove as the afternoon inched on. It was a drowsy sort of day, with softly-falling snow shushing …<\/p>\n