{open} a nice warm drink

JUNIPER

you think i'm happy because i'm smiling,
but it's the easiest thing to do

Juniper hesitated, took a drink to cover her hesitation, and felt her eyebrows shot up at the taste of the Halovian liquor, quite different from the Fae wine she usually preferred. Oh, that would certainly keep you warm, wouldn't it? She managed, with some effort, not to cough. "Isolation has not helped my people weather recent storms, so we've chosen to try something new. Or at least I have."

After all, she still wasn't sure how many Fae would listen to her, if she tried to bring them some great deal with the outsiders, some alliance that they had to keep. Alina hadn't seemed to want one, and Nephele, who had originally suggested it -- Juniper hadn't heard from Nephele for some time, and not for lack of trying.

"You're new here?" Something about that surprised Juniper; he simply seemed so comfortable in the environment. An Outlander, perhaps, but he didn't have the lost air that Juniper associated with them -- not that she'd met many. "Staying indoors would certainly help. I'm Juniper."

if you looked a little closer,
you'd find my eyes aren't smiling too.

table by Skylark