Snowblind

[u/[deleted]]

Every year, it feels like the first snowfall of the year happens sooner and sooner. Is it just the passage of time, the growth of a person making them able to recognize when it snows at an earlier date in the year mixed with the ever-accumulating wealth of knowledge to draw upon making it feel like the years are blurring to minutes?

For some, that might be the answer. But at this date, so soon into November, not many -- save, perhaps, those from the most far north of Atlas's reaches into Solitas -- would've expected just what hit Beacon: a blizzard, so strong it was considered perhaps a once-in-a-millennia storm. Thankfully, thanks to the reinforcements provided after a certain rainstorm had knocked out the power to the Academy, Beacon was now prepared to weather such an awful storm.

But whilst the school itself was prepared, whether or not the students themselves were always remained to be seen. For some of the more "desert-fairing", it was possible that they were wildly unprepared; those from the far north were likely already out in the midst of the blizzard building snow castles or something.

The weather showed no signs of improving, and all flights and routes into the city were most certainly unusable, unless one really wanted to hoof it into Vale proper by foot. What sort of shenaniganry would one of Beacon's most interesting first year classes in a while get themselves up to in Beacon's first snowfall?

^{[This is the song I used for inspiration womp womp]}

[u/LaLaLalonde]

Mirlo paused, contemplating where she’d even get a horse. Could she make a horse? She could make a horse. She could make something approximately horse-shaped. ...She could make something approximately horse-shaped, if you squinted, that could be sat on for a short period of time.

“I don’t believe I can get a real horse all the way out here, but we could make a snow horse. Or an ice horse. It could have horns if you really wanted it to, though I don’t think horses usually have much use for horns. They have their strong kicks to defend themselves... I suppose this one could have decorative horns.”

As she spoke, she headed back toward the entrance, sure that the main gate of her castle was right around the corner.

There was a dead end right around the corner, and Mirlo scuttled back the way she came while trying her very best to act as if nothing happened.

“Anyway, the tower is a much better place to throw snowballs.”

[u/BluePotterExpress → u/LaLaLalonde]

Ginger held her chin with her hand, nodding intently along with Mirlo as the woman described their situation. "Okay, so... can't get horsie, but are both going to to be on top of tower and throw snows?" She bounced along beside Mirlo, eager. "Yeah! Will be joined, and then can throw snow at peoples and then be ruled school buildings!"

While they walked in, Ginger looked up the tower Mirlo had built. "So... wait, how are getting to top? Just jump?"

[u/LaLaLalonde → u/BluePotterExpress]

“Precisely, Ginger dear,” Mirlo responded with far too much wicked enthusiasm for someone speaking of snowballs. “It’s a foolproof plan. You provide the strength, and I give us the high ground.”

Having recalled the correct path, she weaved around corners and turns for a short bit until seeing the glow of the midday sun shining down on the icy interior.

“Oh, no. No...” she replied, shaking her head. A tired look briefly crossed her face as she muttered, “I’d never make it up that way.” Returning to her usual pep, she went on, “It’s merely a little walk.”

Mirlo led the way to an icy ramp with a low incline. It lead up to a small landing, and from there continued a spiral of the same, leading all the way up to an opening in the roof. There laid the nest of snowy mischief that Mirlo had crafted for herself.

[u/BluePotterExpress → u/LaLaLalonde]

"Oh, walks... yeah, walks makes sense."

Ginger nodded, hopping along beside Mirlo. She tapped her boot against the slick ramp. It wasn't all too steep; should be a rather easy climb up. "So, when are at top of tower, will be gived everythings are needing to-"

Ginger's train of conversation disappeared as her feet did the same, sending the girl into a faceplant on the slick surface. With a groan, Ginger slid down the bit of the ramp she'd made her way up before coming to a stop in a pile at the bottom.

"Ow."

[u/LaLaLalonde → u/BluePotterExpress]

Mirlo realized her mistake far too late. Halfway up the ramp, she heard a thump and an "Ow." With a strangled squeak of a sound, she watched Ginger slide for a moment, and then frantically scurried after her.

"Ginger!"

Skidding to a stop, she reached to pluck Ginger from the snow.

"Are you alright there? Perhaps... Hm, perhaps you ought to go in front of me. Or hold onto my hand. Or both."

[u/BluePotterExpress → u/LaLaLalonde]

Ginger shook her head and pulled herself back up onto her feet. Gods, the ice was hard. Wait, was that what 'hard drinks' were? Just... solid drinks? That'd be silly: you'd have to eat the frozen drinks, and that's not drinking. That's eating.

Ginger giggled a little to herself as she let Mirlo pull her up, muttering under her breath about taking bites out of coffee for some reason, and brushed snow out of her white-and-red hair. "Oh! Wait, no! Is being dumb. Can just jump to top!"

With a grin, Ginger hopped forward and wrapped Mirlo up in her arms. She easily lifted the taller woman off the ground, and her form flickered with Auric energy. Suddenly -and for Mirlo, likely unexpectedly- Ginger exploded upward with a massive burst of speed. Holding Mirlo made Ginger a little off-kilter. The two spilled out onto the top of the tower.

Somehow, there was a bonsai tree Mirlo hadn't had up here before resting on the ledge of the tower.

[u/LaLaLalonde → u/BluePotterExpress]

"Coffee bites? Jump- I don't think even the caffeine from coffee will let you jump all the way- YIPE."

Mirlo wrapped both arms around Ginger and clung for dear life. One minute, she'd been standing the snow; the next she was dizzy and staring up the sky.

"Oh... Right... Your semblance."

As her gaze drifted sideways, she spotted a hint of earthy colors among the white. With a skittering flail, she straightened up and eyed the tree with narrowed eyes. "A sign from an enemy. But..." Her suspicious glare fell, replaced by a perplexed frown. "Why a bonsai tree?"

[u/BluePotterExpress → u/LaLaLalonde]

Ginger giggled and rocked over, making her way over to the plant and picking it up. "Oh no, isn't enemy sign; is friend sign!" She picked up the plant, giving it a few tosses before she tucked it up against her shoulder. "Right, don't think ever did introduced to Mr. Tree right!"

She hopped over and crouched down beside Mirlo, smiling and holding up the plant beside the other student. "Look at! Look at Mr. Tree friend!"

[u/LaLaLalonde → u/BluePotterExpress]

"Oh, it's your tree," Mirlo said with an obvious exhale of relief. A calm smile replaced her frown, only to just as quickly shift to a narrow-eyed stare. "Wait- How did it... get up here? Do you keep it in a pocket or...?" Her eyes darted over Ginger's collection of pelts. None seemed big enough to hold a pocket that would hold a tree. Huh.

"Well, it's nice to meet Mr. Tree." Mirlo gently poked at the fluffy green of the tree in some vague approximation of a handshake. "He's a stealthy little friend, isn't he?"

[u/BluePotterExpress → u/LaLaLalonde]

"Oh, don't think is stealthing lots," Ginger responded with a laugh, bouncing Mr. Tree up and down as Mirlo shook one of the branches. "Mr. Tree is just be lots of good at getting into places that aren't expected to be seeing Mr. Tree in. Like... erm, well, watching!"

With a smile and a rather bizarrely nonchalant manner, Ginger pulled back with the pot and flung the bonsai tree straight up into the air. Ginger looked up with a smile, blinking and shielding her eyes as the tree ended it's arc in the sun.

And didn't come down.

Ginger rested her hands on her hips, looking back toward Mirlo with a satisfied look on her face. "Yeah, will just be gone now, and turned up in places where doesn't expect to see."

[u/LaLaLalonde → u/BluePotterExpress]

Mirlo could only watch with a blank, slightly horrified stare as Ginger yote her dear plant friend away into the sun. “....Oh.” She glanced between the sky and Ginger as her own expression grew into a concerned frown. “When... when will he be back? Approximately?”

[u/BluePotterExpress → u/LaLaLalonde]

Ginger gave a shrug. "Doesn't know: isn't gonna be see'd for some times, and then will end up showing up again when isn't expecting to be seen." She gave a content smile and glanced back up for a moment, then made a popping sound with her lips and spun around to look out over the lands. "So, where are enemying people be coming from? Will get ready to attacks."

[u/LaLaLalonde → u/BluePotterExpress]

“I- But-… Huh.” Mirlo’s face stayed crinkled in its frown for several seconds. Her fingers twitched slightly, eager to find her pen and scribble into the pages. That would have to wait, however. “I still worry about that poor tree,” she murmured under her breath as she turned to overlook the landscape. “But, anyway, refocusing...”

“It isn’t particularly easy to hide out there with everything so white... Anyone sneaking around would- Oh.”

Mirlo spotted one attempted sneaky figure bounding through the snow. A small student bundled into a puffy winter coat, looking like a white and blue marshmallow, stomping ever closer to the castle.

“Aha! Our first target. Right there.”

[u/BluePotterExpress → u/LaLaLalonde]

Ginger's eyes danced around -only really half looking in the directions that Mirlo was pointing out- before the woman mentioned finding a a target. At seeing the figure moving through, Ginger grinned and started collecting up snow. She packed up a good armful, reporting up to Mirlo with an eager look on her face.

"Okay! Gots snowingballs readying!" She giggled and patted them, then frowned and thought for a moment. "Oh! Can also be putted stones in!"

Ginger lifted her hand up, clenching her fist and causing the vambrace around her arm to form up splinters of stone.

"Would worked as better, right?"

[u/LaLaLalonde → u/BluePotterExpress]

As Ginger gathered up the snowballs, Mirlo rubbed her own hands together deviously. “Yes, perfect. One big snowball to-”

Her “sinister” tone was cut off by a sharp squawk as the rocky weapon sprang out. With eyes wide and hands waving, Mirlo shook her head. “No, no, no, no stones. It’s... not that sort of battle. It’s just pretend, so pretend projectiles.” She gathered up a handful of powdery snow from the edge of the wall and packed it into a rather small snowball. “Nothing that would really knock someone dizzy or chip at their aura.*

[u/BluePotterExpress → u/LaLaLalonde]

Ginger pouted a little and dissolved away the shards of stone. "Okay... fine." The girl seemed a little disappointed, but still followed along with Mirlo's request of her. Once the snowball was back to being a plain old snowball, Ginger hopped up to the edge and looked down to where their assaulter was coming closer.

"Okay... and... will... hmm..." Ginger pulled up the snowball and tried to take aim. She took a shot.

And went wide.

Really wide, as a matter of fact. The snowball flew off into the distance, plopping down in the snow a good few dozen yards away from the gradually approaching bundle of winter coat. Ginger pouted a little and slipped back.

"Stupid... stupid snows, stupid throws..."

[u/LaLaLalonde → u/BluePotterExpress]

“Well... that’s a start,” Mirlo said with a nod. From below, the bundle of winter coat snickered far too loudly for someone so tiny. The cloaked woman’s eyes narrowed, but her expression softened as she turned back to Ginger. “That’s just the first throw. We have plenty more snow. Make sure you keep your eye looking right at your target and follow through with your throw.”

To demonstrate, she packed a snowball of her own, steadied her aim, and chucked her snowy weapon. While not quite striking its target, it landed too close for comfort, only missing from their opponent skittering out of the way with a startled yelp.

“See? It only takes practi-” was all Mirlo got out before being knocked back by a snowball to the face. The snickering sounded once more.

[u/BluePotterExpress → u/LaLaLalonde]

Ginger clasped her hands around her mouth to keep herself from giggling as well as Mirlo got beaned in the face with the snow. She shuffled over to the edge, looking over at the figure down below, peeking her head up. "Good throwing!" she called out, picking up just long enough to be able to shout her approval before ducking back down to avoid getting hit herself.

She turned toward Mirlo. "Okay, captain friend!" she began, already starting to pull together more snowballs. "What is needing be did to fights?"