Spells, Snow, & Sky

Dedication

This book is dedicated to my family. You support me so much (and I’m not just talking about making sure I’m fed and watered). Thank you for your (pushy) encouragement, the door-delivered coffees, and for making sure I actually leave the office every so often. Kisses and hugs.

An extra thanks goes to the wonderful beans that hang out in my Twitch channel - I love seeing all your writing progress too, and thanks for the encouragement!

This novella couldn’t have been written without 4thewords and coffee!

♡♥♡♥

Description

Sky needs breathing room. Keeping a photographer on a short leash is, in her opinion, an act of cruelty. Fleeing Florida and landing in Hokkaido might just be the act that saves her sanity, even if it dooms her romantically.

Yuki wishes to leave Japan. Not forever, but to at least travel the world for a while with a lover at her side. The hard part is figuring out how a being of ice and snow can survive outside of Hokkaido's winters.

Nyssa needs to find her runaway girlfriend. Too bad she doesn't want to be found and has turned off her phone. When Nyssa receives a panicked farewell though, all her wants center on arriving in enough time to save her love.

It's going to take honesty, communication, and some heart-felt apologizing for things to be okay between everyone... but Sky's not going to settle for just okay when, with a little push, there's happiness on the horizon for all of them.

A fluffy, cotton candy paranormal romance where being poly is the solution, not the problem!

♡♥♡♥ Chapter 1 ♡♥♡♥

IT CERTAINLY WASN’T the humidity of Florida nipping at her hair that greeted her. With every breath sharpness sliced the back of her throat and made her cough into her brand new blue mittens. This was good, though. Her essence trail would have long evaporated by the time her witchy lover thought to look for her in Hokkaido. Skyler shivered. Well, witchy ex-lover.

Eight thousand yen, demanded Yamamoto-san, pointing to the number displayed on the dashboard screen beneath his picture and name. He glanced to Skyler, then cast a bushy eyebrow at the large family residence illuminated by the taxi’s headlights. One?

She nodded, leaning forward to pass over eight crisp bills the airport’s current exchange machine had spat at her. He quickly checked, vanished the money to wherever taxi drivers kept their cash, and released the trunk’s lock with a loud click.

Just me, she agreed, holding up a finger. Yamamoto-san hoisted himself out of the car with a grunt as Skyler stepped out of the taxi and landed shin-deep into the snow at the edge of the road. Taking advantage of the time, she transferred all the shopping bags from the backseat onto the snowbank outside. Sure, she might have gone a little overboard, but those drinks and snacks were going to last her, hopefully, for a couple of months. There was also her purse and backpack to grab; the first had her cell phone while the latter had her laptop. Skyler waited as two battered blue suitcases joined the rest of her items. She hefted her backpack and adjusted where her heavy purse was digging into her shoulder, fine with leaving the bags where they were for the moment. Thank you, Yamamoto-san!

He grunted, which echoed, then settled back into his seat and lit a cigarette. His head stuck out the window, the red glow a brief touch of color in this winter landscape.

See you in two months! Skyler called out, waving as he began backing down the road. Within a few minutes, the yellow and white car had dipped below that last hill. She examined the pristine snow around her, fingers itching to take Heart, her Canon, and head off into the nearby woods... then she looked at the entrance to the house and sighed. It can wait, Sky. Patience. Besides, by the time I lug everything up, it’ll be too dark to head out today.

She surveyed the various bags and pieces of luggage around her.

Sooner begun, sooner done! she laughed, the sound swallowed by the quiet location. Then she frowned, remembering just who taught her that phrase. Between the icy winds, snowflakes sliding into body parts she wanted to keep warm, and the darkness coming on fast, it took her five trips to transfer all the items she’d brought with her. Each of the suitcases was heavy enough she wasn’t sure she’d be able to control them, so they were individually pulled up the steep incline. Even with fresh snow blanketing the ground, she’d already learned the hard way to be wary about hidden ice.

Then there were only two plastic bags left. Skyler planted herself in the snow and faced the house, taking note of the enormous place. It reminded her of A-frames people had on the beach, but she was missing the constant rush of the waves, the scent of the sea, and the azure sky she’d been named after. Here the clouds froze the sky a pale bluish-gray, the only smell that she could identify was cold, and while the wind had similar patterns to waves, there were enough differences that she was more unsettled than comforted.

She snatched the last two bags and stormed up the pathway she’d carved out of the hill. The front door seemed thick enough to keep warmth inside, and she wanted to see how well it lived up to its promises. A small entrance way led to the kitchen, and after Skyler deposited the plastic bags on the counter with the others, she took a bit of time to peek about.

This is going better than I thought it would. Since the snow was no longer attempting to bury her, and she’d brought in everything from outside, Skyler took off her dark blue jacket and hung it on a hook in the hallway. Much better.

Removing her coat felt as though a whole layer of cold went with it. The surprising thing was that the atmosphere was cozier and warmer without it. She also removed her boots, groaning when she realized the snow had soaked her socks.

Bedroom first, and a little extra work along the way. She checked the tags on the two blue suitcases and chose the one with a silicone sun, rolling it over to the bottom of the dark wooden staircase. Taking in a deep breath, she lifted it up the stairs, step-by-step. There were only two bedrooms in the house, which was a little surprising for how big it was. The one on the left she privately dubbed the lavender room. Three framed pieces of art, each of them showing fields of purple blossoms, were the focus of the lilac painted walls. Sheets and blankets on the bed were periwinkle, and when she discovered that the pillows gave off a heavy whiff of lavender, Sky vetoed the room for sleeping and checked out the other one..

Here’s what I’m looking for, she said, stepping into a warm room of winter. This was more like how she’d imagined Hokkaido to be. Art showed paintings of wintry landscapes, with the walls replicating the same bluish-white the sky had been earlier as the pillows and covers focused on snow white.

I don’t mind purple, she muttered to herself as she plopped her suitcase onto the bed and unlocked it. But I don’t want to be sneezing all night.

A quick sock change and she was back downstairs again, tossing the wet ones over the shower bar in the bathroom.

No toilet, though? Skyler turned around, but she wasn’t mistaken. It really wasn’t there. The room contained an old-fashioned mirror edged in wood that doubled as a storage cabinet, a sink with yet more storage underneath it, and an average-sized shower area. That was it. And I thought there was a bath in this rental?

A country of snow and no way to submerge herself in a hot bath. Skyler shivered and rubbed the goosebumps on her arms.

Leaving the disappointing toilet area, she began exploring the doors leading away from the room. Thankfully, the next room was the one that held the actual toilet. Then there was a small closet, and a set of sliding doors that opened up into the kitchen area from the living room. Finally, she walked to the last door and threw it open. Darkness and cold winds greeted her.

Nope. Not without a jacket and some time soaking up the heat, she said firmly, shutting the door and locking it behind her. At least there was a shower to warm up in. She set her phone on the table in the middle of the room, checked that the volume was high enough, and set it to play the songs she’d downloaded before leaving the airport. First up was Whenever Without Me and soft curls of sound filled the room. Sky danced as she made her way to the fireplace, booping her head up and down. A small, laminated piece of paper by the fireplace caught her eyes.

How to start fire. First, place two woods in fireplace. Crumble paper and put between the woods. Place wood on top. Add wood on top and allow air. She checked the items stacked nearby, nodding at the little logs of wood, the newspaper, and even a large container full of matches. Grammar might not be perfect, but the idea is perfectly clear. Here goes nothing...

A few minutes later a small fire was flickering to life in the fireplace Brushing her hands clean of the detritus the wood left behind, Skyler flopped onto the faded blue couch and pulled a small blanket over herself, smiling as the song changed to Forget About Tomorrow.

This will be good for me, she told the crackling flames. I can have a great photography season without Nyssa being overprotective. Just a couple of months in a new place where I don’t need to worry about love, romance, or whatever else Treford decides to put in my path.

Skyler was used to weird things happening in Florida, but sometimes it felt as if her home city was trying to outdo the state with weirdness. Case in point was the ridiculousness that had pushed her over the edge. She sighed, and her stomach grumbled along with her.

Right... screw thinking about all that again. She closed her eyes and imagined herself grabbing all of a gray, puffy cloud in her mind and shoving it deep within a glowing white box. Then she magicked up an ornate silver lock, snapped it through the clasp, and saw herself dusting off her hands. Then she opened her eyes again. Okay. What I need now is to put all the groceries away, eat some dinner, and make sure my equipment survived the plane rides over—so come on Sky, she chided herself. Put some clouds under your feet and get a move on.

Her mother’s expression made her smile, as it always did, and she stood up with enough energy to at least tackle the first task in the kitchen. She snagged her phone along the way, then took a few steps into the area, wincing as she compared what she’d bought to how big the fridge was.

Block puzzle time, she muttered, one hand on her hip and the other tugging on her ponytail. Between the meat, cheese, drinks, milk, and everything else, she was pretty sure the cabinets were going to be creaking and groaning before the night was over. Well... at least there’s enough room for the rice and other dry goods to go on the floor.

That was a good place to start, and about thirty minutes later she’d herded all the items to their new homes, putting her music player on shuffle and dancing through the chore.

Not sure what I want dinner tonight to be though... Since the rice can keep for a while, it’ll be better to whip up something with more perishable ingredients. Something with milk would be good for now. And hot. She shivered, and a fleeting thought pictured her in front of the fire, warm and snug under a blanket.

Food first, she told herself. Then she could check her equipment. Tomorrow, maybe, she’d unpack her clothes and toiletries. The plan wasn’t to live out of suitcases for the entire time, but if unpacking took longer than a day or