He blinked, his tired brain struggling to process the view. He tilted his head back slightly and found himself looking upside down into Grey's face. She was squatting behind his head, her expression one of simple, open affection as she smiled down at him.

"You… tired," she stated, her voice soft. "I'll help you… inside." She gestured towards the house with her gaze.

Adrian's face flushed when he realised he had been gawking at her chest all this while. He quickly sat up, scrambling away from her in the snow to get some distance and a right-side-up perspective. "I'm—I'm okay, Grey. Really."

"You don't need to stress yourself. I can still walk just fine." He brushed the snow from his coat, trying to regain some composure. "Did you need something? It's gotten quite cold out."

Grey shook her head, her grey hair swaying. "Mother wants… you. She said… there is a visitor outside the front door." Grey smiled at the fact that her words were more fluent than before.

Adrian smiled, touched by her earnestness. He reached out and gently patted her head. "You came all the way out into the cold just to tell me that? You could have just called from the door."

A low, happy rumble, almost like a purr, vibrated in Grey's chest at his touch. She leaned into it for a moment before standing up. "Come," she said simply.

Adrian got to his feet, his muscles protesting but he tried his best to mask it, and followed her back toward the warmth of the house. He gave one last glance at his woodpile, a small spark of pride overcoming his fatigue.

*****

Stepping out the front door, Adrian was surprised to see Leo standing there, shifting his weight from foot to foot and looking uncomfortable in the cold.

"Leo?"

'What's he doing here?' he thought to himself. 'Has his family sent someone so soon?'

"What brings you by?" Adrian asked, his tone casual as he pulled the door mostly closed behind him.

Leo offered an awkward smile. "It's nothing serious."

"I, uh, heard around the village you had some visitors. I suppose I got the wrong idea—"

"What do you mean?" Adrian asked, raising a brow.

"It's nothing. I just thought that maybe they were people from my family, sent to find me." He rubbed the back of his neck. "I'm well aware now that I was wrong. If it's not too much, mind if I come in for a moment? It's a bit chilly out here."

"Sure, of course," Adrian said, stepping back and opening the door fully. "Come on in."

*****

The moment Leo stepped through the door, his eyes scanned the main room and landed on Snow, who was observing him with calm curiosity from near the fireplace. His eyebrows shot up. "Oh! Another new face. My apologies for intruding," he said, giving a slight, formal bow of his head. "I'm Leo," he introduced himself but his smile faltered when he was met with silence.

Grey stood by the table, watching him. Emma, from her perch on a stool, just stared with her unnervingly intense emerald eyes. Snow offered a slow, silent blink, but no words. The quiet stretched, becoming thick and uncomfortable.

'Gods,' Leo thought inwardly. 'Did I interrupt something?'

'They're… a very quiet bunch,' he added.

Fortunately for him, the awkwardness didn't last long. The tension was broken as Melissa emerged from the kitchen, wiping her hands on her apron. "Leo! It's so good to see you on your feet," she said, her voice warm and welcoming. She walked over and hugged the young man.

"It's a pleasure to see you again as well, Aunty," Leo responded in kind.

She then glanced at the three girls with a gently scolding look. "Girls, where are your manners? Offer our guest a seat!"

As if waiting for the cue, Grey immediately stepped forward and pulled out a wooden chair from the dining table, gesturing for Leo to sit.

"Thank you, dear," Melissa said, beaming at Grey. "That's very thoughtful of you."

Grey smiled and nodded, a look of pure happiness in her eyes at the praise.

From across the room, Snow's pleasant expression tightened into a faint frown.

'Hmph. The pup is more clever than she looks,' she monologued, irked that she hadn't been the one to earn Melissa's approval.

"Thank you," Leo said, gratefully taking the offered seat. As he did, Emma made a sudden, darting movement to claim the chair next to him, but Adrian was faster, smoothly sliding into it himself. He gave Emma a look that was both one of warning and questioning.

'What are you up to?' he thought as he stared at the petite woman.

Unfazed, Emma simply smiled a wide, cheeky smile. Without a hint of shame, she turned and brazenly plopped herself down right in Adrian's lap, looping her arms around his neck.

Adrian's eye twitched. He could feel Leo's gaze quickly shift away, focusing very intently on the grain of the wooden table. The air in the room became profoundly awkward.

Leaning close, his lips nearly brushing her pointed ear, Adrian whispered, "Emma, a visitor is here. You can't behave like this."

Emma turned her head, her face so close to his that their noses almost touched. She whispered back, her words simple and her phrasing not quite fluent, but her meaning crystal clear. "It's okay. I'm not going to play with the human. The only human I plan on playing with is you." She gave a little wiggle in his lap for emphasis, her emerald eyes sparkling with possessive glee.

Adrian sighed, the sound full of utter exhaustion and resignation.

'Let's work on her decorum next time,' he said to himself.

The cosy atmosphere in the house was soon filled with the rich, savoury scent of the nearing meal. Melissa suddenly smiled warmly at their guest. "Leo, dear, are you hungry by any chance? The stew is just about ready."

Leo offered a polite, slightly weary smile in return. "That's very kind, Aunty, but no thank you. I'd rather not impose on you. But a cup of warm water would be wonderful, though, if it's not too much trouble."

Before Melissa could move, Snow gracefully rose from her seat.

"Of course."

"Please leave it to me," she said, before she moved to the kitchen. Recalling her mother-in-law's teachings, she got a kettle and filled it with water before placing it over the fire.

A while later, she removed the kettle from the fire and poured the steaming water into a wooden cup. She then brought it to Leo.

"Thank you," Leo said, accepting the cup. He took a slow, careful sip, then another, his body visibly relaxing as the warmth spread through him.

A short moment later, he let out a soft, satisfied sigh. "This is perfect. Thank you again."

He looked around the room, at the three unique girls and the bustling mother, a genuine, if tired, smile touching his lips. "This place is certainly lively. It's a bit of a change compared to the quiet atmosphere over at the doctor's home."

Adrian, who had been trying to subtly adjust his position with Emma still firmly planted in his lap, looked up in surprise. "You've been staying with Mr. Miller?"

Leo nodded, taking another sip of water. "I have. Is something wrong?"

"Forgive my earlier tone. It's just… I'm surprised anyone could live with that man," Adrian admitted with a bluntness born of long familiarity. "He's about as warm as a block of ice."

"Adrian!" Melissa frowned at him. Adrian pursed his lips. "But it's true though…" he mouthed like a child who refused to listen to reason.

Leo let out a small chuckle. "Well, it's not as if I had much of a choice. I was, and still am, imposing on his kindness after all."

"But honestly, I don't think your description of him is accurate. He's been nothing but gracious to me ever since he got me to stay with him. He's actually quite nice to talk to and I can't seem to recall any instances where he wasn't." He said with a smile.

'That old man, nice? Friendly?'

'This has got to be the biggest joke I've ever heard…' Adrian thought.

'There is absolutely no way we are talking about the same person,' Adrian said to himself but, on second thought, recalling all the times he'd seen the doctor, he really had been nothing but friendly with everyone.

'Wait… then doesn't that mean I'm the only exception?' Adrian didn't like the thought of that so he decided to steer the conversation back. "What did you mean, though, about his place being quiet? What's it like over there?"

Leo waved a hand dismissively. "Oh, it's not that there's anything wrong with it. It's just that the doctor and his daughter are always so busy with the clinic. I'm left to my own devices for most of the day. It's very… peaceful." He seemed to choose the last word carefully, even though it looked like he was itching for some action.

Adrian nodded, understanding what he meant. He was about to ask a question about Amy's mother when a memory surfaced.

He remembered Mr. Miller's arrival in the village years ago, a tall, stern man who seemed to be surrounded by an air of mystery, holding the hand of a little girl with vibrant orange pigtails. That was back when no one in the village was familiar with either of them.

'Back then, I don't recall seeing them with anyone else,' Adrian thought, a pang of sympathy for Amy hitting him.

'I forgot again…'

'But wait, if Mr. Miller is supposed to be a hunter, then why would he come all the way out here to live in the village? With his skills I'm sure he could've lived a normal life in a place like the capital or somewhere closer,' he said to himself.

And yet, his thoughts were dispersed by Leo, who continued on.

"It does get lively when they return home in the evening, though," Leo continued, pulling Adrian from his thoughts.

Adrian chuckled. "I bet. You must get along with them really well, then."

Leo's expression shifted into something more awkward. He cleared his throat. "I'm… sure about the doctor. He's a man of few words, but they're always measured. His daughter, though… Amy is… different." He let out a long-suffering sigh. "If she isn't talking about medicine, the patients they had at the clinic, or making dinner, then she's definitely talking about you."

Adrian blinked, completely taken aback. "About me? What do you mean?"

Adrian wasn't aware, but the ears of Snow, Emma, and Grey perked up at this point.

Seeing the genuine shock on Adrian's face, Leo stifled a laugh. "I mean, if I didn't know any better, I'd think the two of you were the best of friends. The way she always talks about you, it's either 'Adrian did this' or 'Adrian said that.'" He leaned forward slightly, a teasing glint in his eye.

"Just the other day, she spent a solid ten minutes explaining, in intricate detail, how you managed to gather a specific order of herbs in a single day, analysing your probable routes you might've taken. She was actually able to come up with how you might've completed such a task, and recalling that cave you found me in, I realised that her analysis was definitely close, if not spot on."

"Honestly, it was… impressive, and a little terrifying at the same time," Leo let out a tired sigh.

Adrian could only stare, his face growing warm. He'd always known Amy was energetic and friendly to him, but this was a level of attention he'd never considered.

He felt a prickling gaze on him and turned to see his mother giving him a suspicious stare. A helpless smile emerged on his face.

'Now Mom probably thinks I'm a womaniser…'

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