Chapter 35: The Festival of Valoria

The soft footsteps crunched over the snowy field as Neo walked beside Nora, her small hand held firmly in his own, leaving a trail of footprints behind them in the snow.

Snow continued to drift down slowly from the dark evening sky. Both of them wore thick hoods pulled low over their heads, keeping the cold from biting too hard at their ears. They moved carefully, taking measured steps, crouching low whenever they passed beneath the tall windows lining the outer wall of the mansion, making sure no one glanced out and spotted them.

It hadn’t been easy getting this far.

Earlier that evening, right after dinner, the two of them had made a show of yawning loudly and complaining about how tired they felt, practically dragging their feet all the way up to their rooms. Sylvia had fussed over them for a moment, pressing a hand to each of their foreheads to check for fever, before finally deciding they were simply worn out from playing outside all day. Once the doors closed and the halls quieted down, Neo had slipped out of bed, thrown on his coat, and crept down the hall to fetch Nora from her own room.

Now, here they were, sneaking along the edge of the estate’s outer wall, hearts pounding with the thrill of doing something they very clearly weren’t supposed to be doing.

"Almost there," Neo whispered, though he quickly remembered Nora couldn’t hear him and gave her hand a small squeeze instead, nodding toward the narrow gap near the old garden gate where the wall dipped low enough to climb over.

Nora nodded back, her breath fogging faintly beneath her hood, her lavender eyes bright with quiet excitement despite her usual blank expression.

They slipped through the gap one at a time, Neo boosting her over first before pulling himself up right after. Once they landed safely on the other side, they broke into a light run, giggling under their breath as they put a good distance between themselves and the mansion before finally slowing back down to a normal walk.

The city of Valoria stretched out before them, lit up brilliantly against the dark winter sky. Strings of glowing lanterns hung between every building, swaying gently with the breeze, casting warm golden light across the snow-covered streets. The distant sound of music and laughter drifted toward them from the main square, mixing with the delicious smell of roasted chestnuts and spiced cider carried on the cold air.

Neo felt a grin spread across his face despite himself.

"We actually made it," he said, glancing over at Nora, who was staring wide-eyed at the sea of lights ahead of them.

She nodded, without turning away from the scene.

"It’s pretty."

Neo laughed softly. "Yeah. Come on, let’s go take a closer look."

They made their way down the sloped path leading into the heart of the city, keeping their hoods low and sticking close to the edges of the crowd. The market square was packed with people bundled up in thick winter coats, moving between rows of brightly decorated stalls selling everything from roasted nuts to handmade trinkets and small glowing lanterns shaped like animals.

Nora tugged lightly on his sleeve, pointing toward a stall selling small paper lanterns shaped like foxes and rabbits, each one glowing faintly from the inside.

Neo followed her gaze and smiled. "You want one?"

She nodded eagerly, already stepping closer to get a better look.

He walked up to the stall, exchanging a few coins with the vendor, and picked out a small fox-shaped lantern, its paper ears folded neatly at the top. He handed it over to her carefully.

Nora took it with both hands, holding it up close to her face, watching the soft light flicker gently inside the thin paper.

"Warm," she said quietly, a small, barely a smile tugging faintly at the corner of her lips.

Neo felt his chest warm up at the sight, quickly looking away before she could catch him staring too long.

They wandered further into the festival, weaving between the crowds, stopping every so often whenever something caught Nora’s attention. At one stall, she pointed curiously at a tray of sugar-coated fruit skewers, and Neo bought two without hesitation, handing one over to her before biting into his own.

"Careful, it’s sticky," he warned, though of course she couldn’t hear him, and only realized it herself a second later when a bit of sugar stuck stubbornly to her fingers.

She held her hand up toward him, clearly expecting him to solve the problem for her.

Neo blinked. "What, you want me to lick it off or something? Just use a napkin."

Nora simply stared at him, unmoving, her hand still held out expectantly.

With a long-suffering sigh, Neo grabbed a napkin from his coat and wiped her fingers clean himself, muttering under his breath the entire time about how she was way too spoiled for someone who could barely speak a full sentence out loud.

Nora, completely unbothered by his complaining, simply went back to eating her skewer, looking rather pleased with herself.

They continued through the festival for a while longer, passing by street performers juggling glowing orbs, a group of children building tiny snowmen near the fountain, and a small stage where a group of musicians played a lively winter tune that had several couples spinning together in the open square.

Neo paused near the edge of the square, watching the dancing couples with mild curiosity. Nora followed his gaze, tilting her head slightly.

"What are they doing?"

He glanced down, forgetting for a second she couldn’t hear him, before quickly grabbing his notepad instead.

[Dancing. It’s a festival tradition.]

Nora read the note, then looked back toward the dancing couples, studying their movements carefully.

Before Neo could stop her, she grabbed his hand and pulled him a few steps closer to the open square.

"Wait, what are you doing?" he asked, stumbling slightly as she tugged him forward.

Nora simply held both his hands, positioning them the way she’d just watched the other couples do, her expression completely serious despite the fact that neither of them had the faintest idea what they were doing.

Neo groaned, his face heating up rapidly. "Nora, I don’t actually know how to dance."

She either didn’t understand or simply didn’t care, because a second later she was already moving, dragging him along in a clumsy, off-beat attempt at whatever dance she thought she’d just witnessed. Neo stumbled along awkwardly beside her, nearly tripping over his own feet twice, while Nora, completely focused, kept adjusting his hands whenever he got the position wrong.

A few nearby festival-goers noticed the pair of small, hooded children awkwardly spinning in circles and let out warm, amused laughs, a couple of them even clapping lightly in encouragement.

Neo wanted to sink straight into the snow and disappear.

’This is humiliating. I’m getting cheered on by strangers for the worst dance performance in history.’

But glancing down at Nora’s face, lit up faintly by the surrounding lanterns, her usual blank expression softened into something quietly content, he found he couldn’t really bring himself to mind all that much.

They eventually stumbled to a stop, both slightly out of breath, laughing quietly between themselves, or at least Neo was laughing, while Nora simply looked pleased with the entire ordeal.

"Okay, that’s enough dancing for tonight," Neo said, tugging her gently away from the square before she could suggest doing it again. "Come on, let’s go find somewhere warm to sit for a bit."

They found a quiet bench near the edge of the square, tucked beneath the shelter of a large decorated tree, its branches strung with tiny glowing lights. Neo bought two cups of warm cider from a nearby stall, handing one carefully to Nora before sitting down beside her.

For a while, they simply sat together in comfortable silence, watching the festival lights glow softly against the falling snow, the distant music still drifting faintly through the cold night air.

Nora leaned her head lightly against his shoulder, still holding her small paper lantern carefully in her lap, its warm glow flickering gently between them.

Neo glanced down at her, a small, quiet smile settling onto his face.

’Yeah. This wasn’t such a bad idea after all.’

They stayed like that for a long while, tucked away safely under the twinkling lights of Valoria, completely unaware of just how much trouble they’d be in once their parents eventually discovered their little disappearing act.