The next day Chris found out that his stay was going to get even longer and much less exciting.

It was morning, and they were all lounging around the sitting room wasting time until the excuse “but it’s still breakfast!” could no longer be used to get out of the usual chores for the day. Arnold was helping Daniel solve a crossword puzzle from a local magazine while Chris stared at them from a nearby couch. Winter seemed absorbed by a newspaper and kept talking to Ian about one article or other on occasion.

When Osburt marched in, the first thing he did was look up at the skylight above them. He made a displeased sound.

“I-I think the answer here is rhodiola rosea, Mr. Daniel. Good morning, Mr. Belwhite!”

Mouthing a greeting, Osburt motioned for the closed curtains.

“You’ll have to stay longer than you had planned, it seems,” he announced, pulling them open.

Chris jumped up from the couch and raced towards the windows.

“No way! What is that?”

The scenery outside was engulfed in a thick white fog, and the sitting room was now swimming in dim gray light.

“A blizzard?” Ian stepped next to the Hach, clenching his teeth. “This will last at least two more days… when did it start?”

“A few hours ago. You’re lucky it didn’t catch you on the move,” said Osburt.

“Wi-will we be okay here?” squeaked Arnold worriedly, raising his head from the fourteenth question. Daniel peeked past him with awe.

“This house is well-built and it’s only two floors, so yes,” Osburt assured him.

Winter’s face had curled into a frown, and she mumbled something about this situation being a serious delay. Chris started telling her not to worry when Ian’s voice cut him off with a loud:

“Have you kept up the shields around the house, or did you decide it wasn’t necessary, like last time?”

“If memory serves me correctly, last time faðr seyole*—”

At this point, Chris decided to stop listening. These petty arguments tended to be a daily routine with the Belwhite brothers, and he had no intention of trying to decipher all of their Aurorian speech each and every time.

In the end, Osburt did point out (in English) that strengthening the shields around the mansion wasn’t a bad idea after all, and asked Winter to delay Chris’s training with one hour.

She stood up and threw the newspaper on the coffee table. “I will help with the shields, and Ian will too. It will be faster that way.”

“Ah, fantastic! You people can all take care of yourselves for a while?” Osburt looked around at the three who weren’t Witches. Arnold fidgeted and gave Ian a pleading look. Ian didn’t seem to notice; he was busy looking furiously out the window, as if the blizzard was personally responsible for all of his problems. Daniel only shrugged.

“We’ll be okay,” replied Chris. He settled back down and sank into the soft fabric of the couch cushions.

“Lovely! Ian, you won’t break from this, will you?”

“Your hands are going to be broken if you…”

Their voices faded as they progressed down the hallway. Chris heard Arnold murmur something, and Daniel replied an “I know.”