Monthly Bonus Content #1: 'Snowball Fright' (Ruby and Jane Version) (Patreon)

[Alternate Text: A header image of a snowy pathway in what appears to be a formal garden. The path itself is flanked by ice-encrusted shrubs that are carefully manicured along with a few lanterns. It has an elegant vibe. The sky is mostly gray with fresh snow about to fall. The title is 'SnowBall Fright' in a bold font with an icy blue glow around it.]

"Oooh, you're so dead, [Name]."

"Alina, don't."

Jane's half-hearted chastisement of her sister fails to change that she's right about your impending demise. The lion statue you were previously sheltering behind suddenly toppling over and crushing you beneath many pounds of stone might be less painful. Its hulking form can't shield you now, not when you've foolishly stepped out from cover.

Delighting in your epic victory turned into staring in horror at what you did by mistake.

Ruby smiles weakly for your benefit, beautiful as ever in a light dusting of snow, while her mother is staring you down. Ms. Verner's icy glower is more chilling than the cool breeze carrying snowflakes that nip at your cheeks, cooling your warm flush of embarrassment. Of the two Verners, only one eagerly agreed to a brutal snowball fight in the sprawling gardens.

Yet both have snow on them…

Ms. Verner's black sweater is coated in white from the snowball that you had packed with care, finding the fluffiest snow and working it into an icy baseball that would explode on impact. You hit her squarely in the chest instead of her daughter; it even has a splatter effect of ice crystals. Her expensive cashmere isn't meant to get this saturated with snow.

It was a complete accident!

"It was an accident," you echo the thought. "I didn't mean to actually hit you, Ms. Verner…"

Everyone waits to see how she will react.

. . .

. .

.

[Moments Earlier Before the Snowball of Death…]

Ruby quite literally slides into your hiding place behind some shrubs to avoid a volley of snow.

"Wait, wait!"

You only lower your raised arm by a hair's breadth after Ruby exclaims that, waiting to hear her out before pelting her with snowballs. Her hands are empty of any projectiles, so this isn't another coy trick. A searing kiss didn't make up for the way she brought a snowball to the back of your head, claiming it was a fair move because you'd been distracted. "What?"

"Are you still frosty, [Surname]?" she wonders, grinning at her own wordplay. Ruby straightens up, accepting your snow-free hand to rise from her crouched position. She takes her time with your jacket, adjusting it to ensure it's keeping in warmth. "I will have to warm you up, if so…"

"Your flirting isn't going to distract me."

"You mean it will not distract you again?"

Ruby's teasing smirk falters when you crumble some of the snow atop her head—a localized snowstorm. She glares through the flurries at you, while you raise your eyebrows to remain strong even if her hands feel good pressed up against your chest, resting there. This isn't a ploy unless she has snow in her pockets. "Yep."

"Very well, on to business then," she relents. "I want an alliance with—"

"You just headshot-ed me by the fountain?"

"No, I cooled us off before Jane could say we were ruining Alina's delicate sensibilities," she retorts, sliding her hands lower and urging you into a kneeling position. Another volley of snow sails through the air, chaotic and frenzied with no clear aim. "Our alliance is against them. It is fool-proof. I can take out Jane then we get the little cryomaniac. Alina is a tiny blizzard."

"How's it 'fool-proof'?" you wonder, noting how she rolled her eyes after saying that word. Your hand is free of snow now, so you brush some off her cheek, only intending to recolor her black cat ear hat. [Redacted] would be proud.

"Jane will not aim at you—far too sweet—so we use that for me to take her out then do Littlest Corvin and finally have our showdown."

Ruby leans further into your touch despite how your gloves must be cold, softening, yet her eyes spark with mischievous intent, devious.

"If you win, then Christmas will come early to you and Jane tonight. I have a nice surprise."

"I really doubt that's the list you'd be on…" As if to prove your point, Ruby shakes some of the snow coating the rose bush onto you, but you only laugh in response. "Fine, you have a deal."

"An alliance," she absent-mindedly corrects you while peering from the cover. "You would not want a deal with me. I will go first, come later."

Before you can ask for more details on the plan, Ruby darts away after having taken a few of your stockpiled snowballs. The advantage of having grown up in the gardens is useful to her; however, Jane's training and patience is also coming in handy. Alina is simply terrifying; no pause or need for a hot chocolate break as she acts as a sentient snowblower that laughs.

You wait for a long moment before seeking out your other partner who isn't in on the alliance.

Jane's ebony peacoat, a gift from Ruby which she took time to accept, helps you find her. She's biding her time, hunkered down behind a lion statue that has icicles hanging off its stone mane. The fearsome animal has its paw slowly crushing a shield, compressing the edges while also providing a great vantage point to peer out from. Within seconds of your eyes meeting Jane's, she beckons you closer, hurling a snowball across the way at another statue. It was cover fire based on Alina's curse.

You hurry over to her, head kept low and feet crunching across some of the fresh snow.

Your alliance must be true because Ruby would typically have tried to land a snowy hit.

"[Name]," Jane greets you softly, breath fanning out faintly. "Want some coffee?" She indicates the side of her coat that has a cylinder-shape to it, suggesting an interior pocket. "It's still really warm from the thermos."

"You have fresh coffee?"

"Ruby gave it to me before a sneak attack," she shares with a bemused look, smiling. "It was mostly nice."

"She did the same thing to me with a kiss!" you whisper-exclaim, ducking when Alina rallies to throw more snowballs. You and Jane return fire for a second before both sides regroup; it's true that she has yet to lob any snow at you.

"It's her nature," Jane observes. "Ruby is very competitive."

"Treacherous," you joke, while considering your own double-cross. Where is she lurking? You begin crafting a snowball from what's around you, packing it with a solid core before adding more fluffy ice to its sides, the perfect one.

"I think the coffee was to soften the inevitable snowball, not the reverse," she gently disagrees.

"You are sweet," you conclude, echoing what Ruby said earlier with a smitten look. Alina aiming for something other than you or Jane tips you off to where your competitive love might be. It also helps that Jane's sister is in an eye-catching sweater that has twinkling, LED lights studding the embossed reindeer's antlers. You watch her—how she's moving and where she is hurling snow—to guesstimate Ruby's position. She must be approaching.

"How did you dodge that?!"

"Skills."

Ruby's counter receives a laugh from Jane, while Alina notably stops their usual banter after popping up from her statue once again.

She must be getting closer.

Alina meaningfully waves at you and Jane, possibly a signal? You already have your perfect snowball at the ready, intending to win by pelting Ruby and tag-teaming against the youngest Corvin. Jane will cover you. Your new plan will grant you the icy crown, all you have to do is catch Ruby by surprise. You're ignoring whatever silent communication is going on between the two Corvins, too intent on realizing victory. You hop up, pitching the snowball as soon as someone's in sight, except there are now two someones and—

"Wait."

Jane's warning is too late; besides, you don't hear it over the exclamation Ms. Verner made, sounding both taken aback and disgruntled.

Ruby gives you a wide-eyed, disbelieving look.

It was an accident….

. . .

. .

.

[Back to Your Icy Demise, Current Time]

Everyone is frozen in the snow-coated Verner gardens, all eyes riveted to a woman who has seemingly made the temperature plummet further.

"Mother?" Ruby asks.

Ms. Verner disregards her daughter's uncertain prompt, taking the snowball out of her gloved hand without a single word. You wonder if she is going to crush it as a warm-up for once you're in her grasp or use it as a prop during a lecture on why snowball fights are a waste of time. Apologizing does cross your mind, barely even ticking across it when slush impacts your front. She threw it? You balk, barely feeling the coldness seeping through your jacket thanks to Ruby's adjustments. It was over your heart.

"To be clear: that was no accident," Ms. Verner flatly notes with the barest hints of a smile at the stunned expressions all around. "There is a band of severe weather and sleet blowing in, so return to the mansion until it passes over."

"Thank you."

Of course, Jane finds her voice first, while you and Ruby are still openly staring and Alina seems reluctant to leave the gardens behind.

Ms. Verner departs after delivering that warning, but your eyes follow her retreating form before diverting to the sky. It's cloudy with darkness on the cusp of what you can see to suggest a brewing winter storm. She must've received a weather alert. You join the others for the walk back, feeling Ruby's gaze on you in seconds.

"Who were you aiming for?"

"Not your mom, that's for sure," you admit.

"I am as amazed as you are… I will take your traitorous behavior with a grain of salt," Ruby concludes, slipping past you to walk closer to Jane's side. Jane welcomes her without a word while Ruby's concentration stays on you. "But you will be proven correct about my niceness later."

"Am I missing something?" Alina wonders.

"No," Jane quickly assures her sister. "You're not."

You bite back a smile at how Jane knows something is going on between you and Ruby.

At least you'll be entertained if you do end up snowed in.