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Back in her old village, Coco was no stranger to the winter festivities. Though much of her time was spent on rush orders with her mother, snipping and sewing together fur-lined winter coats, those small moments of quiet and joy are the moments she remembers best. It was the time when her mother would switch to warm, hearty soups and Coco finally got to bust out the bakeware for cookies and cakes (mostly just to sit by the stove and bask in its warmth).
Winter isn’t so different at the atelier, though. The snow is just as white, the mornings as frigid as ever, and though the company has changed, that familiar kindness and care are unwavering.
Though—she does have to admit—there are some BIG differences.
Though her nose is still cold from where it peaks out over the covers, Mister Olruggio’s snugstone keeps her from incessantly shivering all night long. Just as the days had begun to turn cold, Professor Qifrey had put in an order for lined cloaks, magically insulated and terribly comfortable—Coco’s almost fallen asleep in her’s more times than she can count.
Despite the Professor’s apparent dislike for the Great Hall, Coco had woken up one morning to the insistence they visit. Practically all of Tetia’s excited rambling off had completely passed over Coco’s head until they finally made the trip and it processed: The Great Hall’s incredible ice skating rink.
Coco’s skated before; when the lake freezes over in her village, it’s the number one destination for her and all of the other kids for the next few months until it melts. But witch skating is a whole other ballpark.
The rink—she’s sure it’s ice—but when she puts a hand on the surface it’s warm to the touch. Underneath the ice, just barely visible through the sheen, she can tell there’s an intricate rune committing such wizardry. Though, even if she could see it up close she’d be hard-pressed to understand how it works in the slightest. Though they’re deep underwater, it almost looks like it’s snowing from the high-domed ceiling, little fractures of light bounding off and disappearing as they land.
Then there are the skates—and had Coco known that magic skates existed, never mind that they were totally awesome, Coco would have started saving for a pair much sooner. Not only do they seem to glide much smoother, but there are so many options for cool effects and tricks that can customize them.
Agathe’s pair of skates are more function than form, with runes like those on her soar boots to launch her into the air or to make her go even faster along the ice. Riche’s skates are the exact opposite (and done herself too!) with ribbons fluttering and glitter flaking off behind wherever she skates (if she manages to get across the ice, which unfortunately doesn’t seem her forte). Tetia’s go exactly with the outfit she picked—incredibly pink and absolutely frilly—and she’s not quite sure what the magic is but it almost looks like Tetia bounces across the ice rather than glides. Coco can’t wrap her head around the inconvenience of such a feature, but Tetia seems to have much more fun bouncing, gliding, falling, and getting back up than she might with regular skates.
Coco, despite herself, goes simplistic. As tempting as some rental options were, Coco wants to make her skates her own. Professor Qifrey promised he would get her a pair, so she’ll just have to make sure that the next time they visit, she’ll have her spells ready.
“Coco! Come join us!”
Tetia calls to her from the other side of the railing, hair bobbing as she bounces up and down waiting for her. Coco laces and ties her skates, wobbling toward the entrance of the rink with a wide smile. It feels like it’s been so long that getting on the ice is a bit scary, but once she gets going it’s exactly as she remembers. Soon enough, she’s speeding across the ice, weaving around the other patrons and looping back to a dumbfounded Tetia.
“You’re like a pro!” Tetia’s mouth has a hard time closing. “How’d you do that?”
“Ah, well,” Coco scratches the back of her head. “I guess just practice. And… non-bouncy skates.”
Tetia, blasphemed, looks down at her skates, “But they’re so much fun!”
Riche glares at her from where she’s attached at the railing, “Riche practices every year.”
Coco laughs, “Well I guess I had a good teacher too. Sticking to the rail won’t help you, though.”
Riche seizes up when Coco gets close to her. “Riche will fall if she lets go.”
“Yup!” Coco beams. “You have a lot more falling to do before you perfect skating.”
With that, Coco takes Riche’s hands, prying her from her hold on the wall and dragging her out onto the ice.
…And then they both immediately collapse.
Riche groans, rolling off of Coco and onto the ice, curling up. “Riche is going to take a nap. Ice is warm.”
“Aww, come on!” Coco gets back on her feet, pulling at Riche’s arm. “Just try to keep your knees bent, and don’t let your ankles collapse. We can get you standing on the ice at least.”
With some effort, Riche gets back up, stable enough that she can keep from lurching as long as she holds on to Coco. Coco takes both of Riche’s hands in hers, skating backward and allowing Riche to come along for the ride. If her incessant squealing and petrified look is anything to go by, Coco is doing a great job. Tetia must think so at least because she’s bouncing along and giggling in accompaniment.
“What are you three doing?”
Agathe glides beside them, looking over the arrangement with little interest.
“Skating! What else does it look like?” Coco grins, taking one of Agathe’s hands and continuing on her way.
“Wait- Hey! It’s a lot harder to balance with you tugging me around like this-”
Coco, respectfully, ignores her. The result is about ten seconds of gliding, giggling, and Agathe’s intense struggle to keep her balance before they all fall over each other. Though the two she’d brought down with her are groaning, Riche is grinning, Tetia is laughing, and Agathe looks to be hiding her own amusement, avoiding meeting Coco’s eye no less.
“I can skate on my own, thank you very much,” Agathe says, standing and brushing herself off.
“Oh yeah? I bet Coco could beat you in a race to the other side of the rink,” Tetia says, a clear challenge.
Coco stands, a denial of the claim on her lips before, from below her: “Riche thinks so too.”
Agathe huffs, “I’m not going to do a race. There’s a lot of people here and I don’t think-”
She’s cut off by Professor Qifrey’s voice calling them over from the seating area. Coco slyly eyes Agathe and notices the other girl looking back at her with the same expression.
“Well, I’m certainly not going to be the last one there!” And then she’s off, Agathe hot on her heels and the distinct Riche-sounding cry of ‘Don’t leave me here!’ fading behind her.
Her heart pounds, adrenaline pumping at every near miss and dodge around the other patrons. She notices when Agathe comes up beside her but tries not to let it distract her, instead pushing herself faster and faster until she comes to a grinding halt as she slams into the railing with a large ‘OOF.’
Agathe skids to a stop before she reaches the wall, unwilling to meet the same fate as Coco even if she would win the race. Then, of course, there’s Tetia and Riche inching along the rail comically slowly.
They only spend a bit more time at the rink before heading out, eating lunch in the Great Hall before making it back to the atelier.
To their shock, with Mister Olruggio having stayed behind, they arrive back at an atelier newly strung with lights, garlands hanging around the doorways and windows, red bows and gold bells tying everything in place. Though Mister Olruggio complains like it’s been some great ordeal for him, she doesn’t miss the smile that crosses his face at everyone’s reaction. Luckily, there are still wreaths to be hung and snowmen to be formed to protect their winter fortress—and plenty of winter magic to be had. She hopes Professor Qifrey hadn’t planned any lessons, because Coco spends the rest of the day covering her friends in snow and dashing around the yard to avoid their retribution.
By the time she comes inside, it’s dark, she’s cold, and dinner is just 30 minutes away. She pauses, just enough to let it all sink in. The warmth of the fire going, the smell of delicious food being cooked, the comfort and love she feels around her.
“You coming?”
Agathe stands at the bottom of the staircase, looking at her expectantly.
Then, she settles her heart and smiles.
“Yeah!”