Finally! \u00a0Now I just need to make sure I STAY caught up!<\/p>\n
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\u201cI thought I was going to die,\u201d Molly admitted, as she set gumdrops into the frosted wreath in front of her. The island was stacked high with mini gingerbread leaves – she\u2019d decided she was bored with gingerbread men, and she didn\u2019t have any more houses that she could make at the moment. So she was experimenting with wreaths and gumdrops. \u201cI honestly thought he was either going to holler at her, or walk away completely.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cAs if anyone could holler at Lily,\u201d Sue said, stealing a gumdrop from the bowl. \u201cShe\u2019s too adorable.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cOh, she\u2019s been hollered at a few times,\u201d Molly said, admiring the effect of the red gumdrops. \u201cBut not this time, luckily. He was really good to her.\u201d She picked up her piping bag and began to create a red bow on the bottom left-hand part of the wreath. \u201cSo, what did you find out?\u201d<\/p>\n
Sue had dropped by on her lunch break to bring Molly the information on Old Man Winter she\u2019d found. The folder wasn\u2019t very thick.<\/p>\n
\u201cNot a lot,\u201d Sue said. \u201cThere\u2019s a couple of old diary entries I made copies of for you – one is from Captain Carter\u2019s journal, so Old Man Winter has been here before. Not recently, though. I think the newest reference to him I found was in the 1800s.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cSo it\u2019s been a while.\u201d Molly finished the bow and laid the wreath aside to let the icing set. \u201cAnything else?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYeah, there was a neat treatise that one of the managers of the Gate Station did in the early 1920s about Old Man Winter and where he might have come from.\u201d Sue pulled out the papers in question and handed them to Molly. \u201cHe seems to have been a bit of a theoretical anthropologist, and he did some traveling, interviewing various people about what he called the \u2018Old Man Winter myth\u2019 – he apparently never met him in person, and was dubious about whether he existed.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cReally?\u201d<\/p>\n
Sue nodded. \u201cYou can read it – it\u2019s pretty interesting. He ended up concluding that if Old Man Winter did exist, he was somehow related to the Snow Queen.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHuh.\u201d Molly flipped through the pages. \u201cInteresting.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYep.\u201d Sue put the folder down in a clear spot, and then snagged one of the unfrosted gingerbread leaves. \u201cAnd now, I need to go grab my Chinese takeout for lunch, and head back to the mines. I\u2019ll let you know if I find out anything else!\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThanks,\u201d Molly said, already sinking onto her stool and reading. \u201cSee you.\u201d<\/p>\n
She didn\u2019t move much over the next hour, except to reach for her tea cup occasionally. The stories about Old Man Winter were varied, and to her surprise, there were as many about his kindness and help as there were about his wolves and his vengeance. After she finished, Molly stared off into space for a bit, wondering what she could do with this information. She\u2019d hoped it would help her understand the man a bit more, but all it did was raise more questions.<\/p>\n
In the end, it was the growling of her stomach that moved her. She had barely heard Sue\u2019s last comment, but the idea of Chinese food was a wonderful one. Molly grabbed her coat and her wallet and went out into the tea room, where Schrodinger was asleep beside the wood stove.<\/p>\n
\u201cHey, Schrodinger, Chinese food?\u201d she asked, kneeling down next to him.<\/p>\n
One eyelid cracked open. Do I have to move? I\u2019m warm. And comfy.<\/em><\/p>\n Molly laughed at the plaintive question. \u201cNot if you aren\u2019t hungry. Want me to bring you some beef and broccoli?\u201d<\/p>\n Sounds wonderful.<\/em> His eye closed again and Schrodinger heaved a great sigh of comfort.<\/p>\n She stopped at the front desk to see if her aunt or the other cashier wanted anything – they both said no, so Molly stepped out into the chill air and headed for the Lucky Garden Chinese food restaurant, enjoying being on her own for once.<\/p>\n Not for long, however. As she was striding along, Father Christopher fell in beside her. \u201cI thought it was a Wednesday,\u201d he said. \u201cAren\u2019t you supposed to be at work?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cLate lunch break,\u201d Molly said, grinning at him. \u201cI had a hankering for Peking ravioli. You?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cStretching my legs,\u201d he said. \u201cBut now that you mention it, I believe there may be an egg drop soup calling my name.\u201d<\/p>\n Molly noted the bag over his shoulder but didn\u2019t ask. Before long, they were ensconced in a little booth in Carter Cove\u2019s only Chinese food restaurant, with steaming cups of green tea in front of them.<\/p>\n \u201cI hear you\u2019ve been busy,\u201d Father Christopher said, sipping his tea.<\/p>\n \u201cYou mean Old Man Winter.\u201d Molly decided to cut to the chase. \u201cI\u2019m not going to sit around and wait for Drew to come home, Father. You know me better than that.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cI do.\u201d He nodded. \u201cBut you know I have to caution you. Old Man Winter isn\u2019t your normal customer.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cNo, he\u2019s not. He\u2019s an old man with a lot of power and a lot of bitterness.\u201d Molly took a deep breath. \u201cAnd I think I have a chance to help Drew change his mind.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cMaybe. Just be careful, Molly.\u201d Father Christopher held up his hand to stop her saying anything. \u201cAnd yes, I know, you\u2019re always careful. But you\u2019re not. And this time, you may have bitten off more than you can deal with.\u201d Then he smiled at her. \u201cSpeaking of Drew\u2026\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cOh, my goodness!\u201d Molly said, as she accepted the gold and red stocking he handed her. \u201cWhere did he find this?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cI have no idea,\u201d Father Christopher said. \u201cI do know that he\u2019s been planning this December for a while, and that he\u2019s doing an amazing job of making you smile. We haven\u2019t seen you smile this much in a long time.\u201d<\/p>\n Molly peeked inside the soft velvet stocking and saw several things, which she pulled out: a CD with the words \u201cMolly\u2019s Christmas Melodies\u201d written on it, a gold and red ornament and a red envelope. \u201cJust wait until Christmas, and Santa and I will fill this to overflowing,\u201d she read, and then sniffled.<\/p>\n \u201cHe misses you,\u201d Father Christopher said quietly.<\/p>\n \u201cI miss him,\u201d Molly said, putting the card, ornament and CD back into the stocking. \u201cI\u2019m hoping that if I can make enough of an impression on Old Man Winter, maybe I can get him back soon.\u201d<\/p>\n Father Christopher put a hand on hers. \u201cIf anyone can convince Old Man Winter to let him go, it will be you, and Schrodinger.\u201d<\/p>\n <><><\/p>\n Drew was in the stable talking to Ember when Old Man Winter came in, dragging a sled behind him. He didn\u2019t say anything but he nodded to both of them in greeting and then headed to the end of the stalls, leaving the sled in the center of the room.<\/p>\n \u201cCan I help you?\u201d Drew asked, as the old man came back, carrying a large sealed barrel.<\/p>\n Old Man Winter paused and looked at him. \u201cWhy?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cBecause I can carry just as well as you can, and it\u2019s polite,\u201d Drew responded evenly. \u201cBesides, then I have an excuse to ask you how your date with my girlfriend went.\u201d<\/p>\n To his utter surprise, Old Man Winter\u2019s face creased into an unexpected smile. It looked odd on the old man\u2019s face. \u201cShe\u2019s a spirited one, boy. You\u2019re lucky.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cI think so,\u201d Drew said, after a moment.<\/p>\n \u201cCome with me.\u201d<\/p>\n They loaded the sled with the barrels (Drew had no idea what was in them, and Old Man Winter didn\u2019t offer), and then Old Man Winter picked up the sled\u2019s lead. \u201cDo you need more help?\u201d Drew asked.<\/p>\n \u201cNope. I\u2019ll be fine.\u201d Old Man Winter stopped at the door and looked back at him. \u201cShe took me to the ballet.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cThe Nutcracker?\u201d Drew blinked. \u201cReally?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cYep.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cDid you enjoy it?\u201d Drew asked, since the old man was still looking at him.<\/p>\n \u201cYep.\u201d And with that, Old Man Winter left the stable, pulling the sled behind him.<\/p>\n Well, well, well,<\/em> Ember said from behind him, as Drew watched him go. I need to meet this Molly, I think. That\u2019s the happiest he\u2019s looked in a very long time.<\/em> As Drew turned to look at her, the dragon cocked her head at him, and he swore she was laughing. You might want to make sure he doesn\u2019t run off with her.<\/em><\/p>\n Drew found that a horrifying concept.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Finally! \u00a0Now I just need to make sure I STAY caught up! <><><><><><><><><><><><> \u201cI thought I was going to die,\u201d Molly admitted, as she set gumdrops into the frosted wreath in front of her. The island was stacked high with mini gingerbread leaves – she\u2019d decided she was bored with gingerbread men, and she didn\u2019t …<\/p>\n