Winter Swan Novels & Stories

Seeing how there was nothing else I could do, not even dab on lipstick or mascara, I moved swiftly to the door and opened it. “Hi,” Winter said, standing as if he were nervous. He wore a blue suit which highlighted his sapphire eyes and white hair. He looked like a modern-day Viking with a haircut and always clean-shaven, while Husk acted like a damn Berserker whenever someone ticked him off. “Come in,” I stepped aside and waved an arm out. “After all, it’s your suite.” “Yes, and we want you to feel comfortable.” He entered and left the door open behind him. “You don’t have to lock yourself in here. That wasn’t the plan.”

I said opening the dip. She took a small piece and a napkin. “It looks delicious.” As we took our first bites, a pair of white swans sailed in low over the lake, stretched their legs forward, skied across the surface of the water, and then dropped gracefully on it. I swallowed. “I wonder if they realize how magnificent they are. How free they are.” “I’m sure they have no idea. They just do what they know to do.”

There was a princess who lived in a palace that had everything except a garden. The soil was wrong, everyone had always said so, the ground was too cold and the light was wrong and nothing could grow there. But one winter someone planted sunflower seeds anyway. Not with any real hope. Just because the seeds were there and the ground was there and sometimes that's enough of a reason. The seeds didn't grow for a long time. And then they did. Lily was very still against his arm, Gerald was on her lap. The candles moved. I was watching Ethan.

However, he never showed himself, leaving me with no chance to vent my frustration. This absurd routine continued until the Snowcrest New Year. It was the grandest festival on the Snowcrest Plateau. To my surprise, John did not show up. By the time the sun was setting, I overheard people talking. Another avalanche had struck the Skyspire Mountains. My eyelid twitched. A moment later, the neighbor’s daughter spotted me and asked in surprise, “Dr. Summer, isn’t that handsome guy with you? He went to get you a gift, didn’t he?”

Vanguard, Grimm, Hilarion, and Slake took turns moving their rods near her mouth so that whenever someone was about to blow, she could harvest the delicious nectar without a break. Snow White focused all her energy on licking, her tongue flicking the notched heads and teasing their openings before engulfing them to the root. Storm tensed up, his hips bucking in the air. "Ooh... is she trying to suck us dry? Sss... oh... ooh... I’m gonna blow! Suck it!" SPLURT!! SPLURT!!

“Ms. Quinn, the Crownland ID card you are carrying is fake. Your official identity registration has always been tied to your overseas citizenship. All these years, you have only stayed in Crownland on a tourist visa. “And this bank card does not belong to you either. The account holder is a woman named Olivia. “In other words, if you want to withdraw any money, you will need her permission.” My mind went blank. On my first day in Crownland, Ethan had handed me that local ID card. He told me he had arranged long-term residency for me so I would not have to worry about visas. I never doubted him. The bank card? The gallery’s finance department gave it to me during my second month of work. It w

, so why should I? Hans was still asleep, with his arm lodged deep in my bosom. Silently, I disconnected him from my body and crept towards the lake to watch my reflection under the bright moon. Removing Hans' robe slowly, I observed the marks he had left on my naked body. I had very fair skin, snow-white by definition, which went very well with my name, Winter. My skin got bruised easily, which Hans knew. I didn’t understand what he stood to gain by leaving these marks. Didn’t he know that I was fond of revealing outfits? Or was he trying to prove something to Charley?

She wiggled her eyebrows at me—as if what she were saying made the idea somehow more appealing. "It's a private school." I chuckled, shaking my head at the stupidity I found in her statement. "Every dance we have is invested with over thousands of dollars. They're all the biggest." "Yes—but this one is the winter one which is always better than the spring one." Preslie retorted, her tone defensive. "Yeah—peanut butter and jelly is always better with bread." I rolled my eyes, sighing at my weak comeback. "How does the season signify which will be better?"

"Astraea, it's still an opportunity. Maybe you should agree." Tears mixed with cold sweat as they slid down my face. I bit my lower lip and tasted blood. With a single, brutal kick, the heavy oak door flew off its hinges. It slammed against the wall, splinters spraying everywhere. A voice thundered through the room—cold, furious, like a clap of lightning, wrapped in an implacable chill. "Who has the nerve to lay a hand on my Swan Queen?!"

As rain started to fall, I belatedly remembered how the weather forecast said it would get colder later in the night, and maybe even start to snow. Once it starts snowing in Atlanta, it never seems to stop. I used to dread winter, but Lucas would always wrap me in his coat several sizes larger than I was, keeping a warm blanket available in his car just for me. Looking back now, those moments of so-called happiness were never meant to last. As the rain poured harder, strands of hair stuck damply to my forehead, and my steps wavered almost to the point of collapse. I shook my head and let out a bitter laugh. How did my life end up like this?