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A little girl was something definitely different for the unmarried father. Jason already had Colby for a few months now and then managed to acquire Shayla. He wasn't complaining so much, though a baby girl was not something he ever hoped for. Why? Well the man hated women, but something deep down inside just told him to tend to the little ice princess. Seemed to be a lot of those types of girls in his family at the moment...

But there he was, pushing the now double stroller along with the mothers of the area. Sure he may stick out as being a single father but hey, he was doing pretty good so far.

Stopping at a park bench across from Isra, he tugged the stroller to the side and sat down to relax. Colby was fast asleep in the warm sunshine though Shayla had been fussy the whole walk. It was understandable why, she was too warm.

"Oh pumpkin.." Jason muttered as he plucked the whiney baby from out of the stroller. "I'll get you home soon. I promise." He smiled down at the girl, doing his best to rock his arms and calm her down. His only response was a huffy groan and a pouty face.

Giving a small shake of his head, he grabbed a small cooler from inside the stroller and took out a partially melted ice cube. It was handed over to the baby girl and she quickly started to suckle and play with the melting cube. Jason just smiled a bit finding it rather cute before lifted his head and took a glance around. Seeing a woman across the way he just flashed a smile trying to be a bit polite.

Isra watched the young man and the two children with a slight interest. Most of the parents in the park were mothers. She smiled, it was good to see a father doing some of the work for a change.

Not that she could really talk. This was the first time in a while she had taken Ziya out.

She returned the man's smile with a small nod and turned her eyes to the stroller. She wasn't the most sociable of people, but she really did want to know more about the labor saving devices that seemed to be so popular.

She gave a glance to Ziya. He didn't seem to understand what to do with the crayons she had brought him and had taken to simply bashing them on the paper, laughing at the marks they made.

Isra smirked and looked up to the man again.

"Excuse me." She asked, leaning forwards a little. "I don't mean to interrupt but where did you get your ... um, that." She asked pointing to the stoller. She wasn't entirely sure what they were called.

Jason's attention passed from the baby and back to the woman across the way, head inclining to the side as she spoke. What was what? His eyes followed to where she pointed and he frowned. The baby? Well that was a story not meant to be repeated anymore- or at least it just put salt in old wounds. Then again... she didn't mean the birds and the bees right? Oh gods he didn't want to tell that story AGAIN any time soon. Like hell Ballentine could do it, oh NO. Leave it to Jason to give the 'your body is changing and this is why' story.... At least there was a book for it now...

"I'm sorry..." Jason said, turning his head to once more look at the woman. "What is what? The baby? The little critter... stroller? Um... cooler? I don't really know what else is over there to answer your question." He frowned, reaching up to scratch at his cheek. "Ya gots a kid of your own so I really don't think you need 'the talk'..." He stated, actually making the air quotes with his fingers.

"So... can you be a little more specific?" He asked, shifting Shayla in his lap so she wasn't cutting the circulation off to his leg. "And that's a cute little boy you got over there. What's his name?"

A slender eyebrow lifted as the woman referred to the stroller as a contraption. She just made it sound like a torture device. Well maybe it was torture to his back having to push it around all the time. "Well... That contraption as you called it... Is a stroller." He stated, giving his head a small bob to the side to indicate it. "Most department stores have them... I'm sure you can find a cheap one if you were looking for it. They also have those pouches to carry kids on your back or chest... But with wings that's a bit difficult for me." He laughed a bit, adjusting Shayla in his lap.

"Aye... That she does." Jay stated as he looked down at the girl in question. "She's fairly cool to the touch as well..." Deciding it was best on their voices not to continue shouting across the way, Jason stood. "Though... I do believe we have one thing in common if I am correct." He said, placing Shayla into the buggy and tugging it across the walk and the other bench. "Your boy... Where did you get him from?"

Shayla had managed to sit up in the buggy once it was stopped, ice cub sticking out of her mouth and slowly melting to drip down her chin. Her eyes caught sight of Ziya and she watched what he was doing curiously. But a little giggle from the girl caused the ice cube to slip from her lips, dropping to the ground.

Ziya woke to the morning light seeping through the wooden door that covered the cave. The day before had been tiring for both he and his parents. They had climbed a whole mountain the day before, well his parents had. Carrying him was shared between the both of them and all the new sights and sounds had made him exhausted by the time they reached the cave.

Giggling to himself he buried himself down in between the warmth of his parents and the thick fur blankets that caccooned them all. He couldn't wait to go outside and play.
"mamamama." He babbled to himself reaching up to take a strand of her hair in his hand and pulling tightly.

"Ow." Came the sleepy response as her blue eyes opened and stared down at him. Unable to stay angry at him for long Isra's expression softened and he realeased his hand. Crawling up the bed he sat up and clapped his hands together.
"O.k, o.k." She sighed with a smile reaching out from the warmth of the blankets to grab a thick fur coat and a tiny one for Ziya. "Let's make a fire."

~~~

Ziya sat on the floor by the roaring fire, wrapped up in his huge fur coat. His father was preparing breakfast whilst his mother was out getting some water. Ziya was not too sure where she was going to find water. He had not seen any lakes on their way up. Shrugging he continued to play with his cloth dog on the stone floor.

With a gust of cold air and a few flakes of snow Isra returned to the cave carrying a bucket of ice.
"It snowed over night." She said excitedly shutting the door and stamping the snow off her boots.

Ziya watched the white flakes with facination as one landed on his arm and his dog. The one on his arm was cold and dissapeared easily, leaving a speck of water in its place. The piece on his dog took much longer to dissapear. It was facinating.

Even more facinating was the bucket of ice that his mother had brought in. He watched with awe as she put the bucket over the fire, slowly begining to understand. Would it become water like the white stuff?

"Look!" he cried pointing to the bucket and clapping his hands.
Isra smiled and picked him up so that he could watch. It was facinating. The hard blocks of Ice grew smaller and smaller until they became water. Ziya laughed and clapped his hands as Isra dropped some tea leaves into the water to make them some warming tea.

~~~~

"Are you sure this is the only place you can get Snowdrops." Isra remarked irritably as she folded her arms and watched Ziya make snow castles.
Azhar looked up from the bush he was searching and nodded.
"Well, the closest place." He said with a smile as he continued to collect the precious flower.
Isra gave a snort of unamusement at her husband's words and smiled at Ziya as he showed her his rather haphazard pile of snow.
"Well done darling." She cried clapping her gloved hands together and watching her breath turn to ice in the air.

Ziya giggled and crawled over to a new piece of snow. He liked this white stuff. It was like the the oposite of the sand he was used to but just as much fun. You could roll in it and make things from it. You could eat it. it tasted better than sand. Less gritty.
Babbling to himself he started to dig in a big pile of snow. Maybe he would make a tunnel, he thought as he burrowed.

Before long his hands hit what felt like a rock. Taking the stone between his clumsy, gloved hands he pulled it out and set it on his lap. It was the same stuff that his mother had brought in that morning. Ice. Only there was something in the middle of it.

Frowning a little Ziya held the ice up and looked at it. The thing in the middle was shiney and pretty. Like his mother's jewelry. Ziya shook it and tapped it on the snow wondering how he could get to it.

He stared at the shiney object, looking back to his mother who was talking to his father again.
As he stared at the pretty object he had a plan. If it was ice, maybe it would turn to water and the thing would come out in the water. Smiling to himself he turned to his mum and shouted to get her attention.

Isra looked up at Ziya and walked over to him, sniffing through her numb nose.
"What is it Zi?" She asked crouching down next to him as best she could in all the layers she was wearing.

Ziya held the ice rock up to her and smiled.
"Hot." He said, grinning at her, hoping that she would understand.

Isra took the ice rock and looked at the object in it. Looking back to Ziya she was amazed he had made the connection of how to get the object out of the rock.
"That's right." She smiled bending down to pick him up and turning to Azhar.
"Love, we're going to go inside and get warm." She said carrying Ziya into the slightly warmer atmosphere of the cave.

"Right, lets see what treasure you've found here." She said taking the bucket and placing it over the fire again. Smiling she put the ice rock in the bucket and held Ziya so he could watch it melt.
"Hot." He giggled as he watched the ice turn to water.

Once it was melted Isra reached into the luke warm water and pulled out the object. It appeared to be a bracelet, made from green coloured stones and old coins.
"Wow." She said, smiling to Ziya and sitting down with him on her lap. "Looks like you found some treasure."

Ziya laughed and held his hand out to touch it. he wondered if it would fit his small wrist, it looked more like a bracelet for adults.
Isra smiled and placed the bracelet on his tiny wrist, wrapping it around several timed before she was able to fasten it.
"Very pretty." She laughed bouncing him on her knee. "You're first piece, just like my ones you keep borrowing.
Ziya laughed and clapped again he liked this snow even more now.

Shye and Smerdle had been shopping too, but for nothing as fun as crayons. Well, there had been one purchase that even Shye had to admit was pretty cool. With the weather getting colder, Smerdle had insisted on buying the toddler shoes, much to his initial dismay. Shye preferred to go barefoot, but even he couldn't resist his new, little, bright red, light-up sneakers. He had demanded he be allowed to wear them as soon as they were paid for, which was why he was stomping through the park in them right now.

The spirit child turned around to check on his mother, satisfied to see her just a few feet away, arms filled with packages. He turned back the way he had been heading, but instead of looking down at his shiny feet, Shye looked ahead. His eyes lit up. There was a very familiar boy on a bench!

"Hay!" he said, trying to catch Ziya's attention. He half-skipped, half-hobbled over to the bench, feet blinking all the way. "I kno yooo!" he sing-songed, a bright smile on his face. "'m Shye!" They might have known each other, but they had certainly never been properly introduced.

Shye nodded. Sand-Castle-Boy! Or Ziya, as it turned out. He looked at the offered hand for a moment before grabbing it, executing an action that probably constituted a fair approximation of a handshake, even though Shye had no idea what he was doing.

"Watch!" he said, making sure there were no lingering pokey fingers before lifting his foot and stomping. The lights flashed frantically, and Shye chortled, loud enough to alert Smerdle to the fact that the toddler was probably getting into trouble of some sort.

"Shye, what... oh," she said, lowering the bag that had obstructed her view of the children. She recognized the second boy as the sandy kid from the other day, in a new larger size just like her own midget charge.

"Ma, go 'way," Shye said. His tone wasn't whiny or mean, but it seemed as though the child already knew he would get his way. Sure enough, Smerdle hoisted her bags and packages again and carried them to the base of a tree near the other side of the bench.

"I'll be over here," she said.

Shye nodded again, his eyes lingering on Smerdle to make sure she was staying put. From there, they fell to Ziya's mother, the Blue Lady, and continued on until they were stopped by Ziya's scribbly masterpiece. "What'choo drawrin'?"

Ziya watched as he stomped and let out a loud gasp as the lights flashed on his shoes. His eyes widened, he was entranced. They had to be the coolest thing he had ever seen.
"WOOOOAH." he cried standing and looking down at his own boring leather shoes. He stomped a foot and nothing happened. "Magic shoes." he laughed, pointing to Shye's shoes again, watching as the lights continued to dance.

At his question lights were forgotten and Ziya grabbed his drawing book and his crayons.
"The tree." He said pointing to the tree to show how obviously similar his drawing and the original were. "You want to draw?" He asked, turning the page clumsily and offering Shye his crayons.

"'Kay," Shye said, taking a bright purple crayon and a seat on the ground. "I draw tee too!" He had better shoes, and he would certainly have a better tree, purple or not. "Diff'rent tee tho," he added. He wouldn't want Ziya to think he was copying or anything.

Shye looked up from his hideous masterpiece. A dog? He had never been close to one before, but, yeah, that thing with the bushy tail looked about right.

"What we gon' do?" he asked. Catch it, dress it up, ride on it - Shye wasn't very good with the concept of perspective yet - he didn't really care, so long as they did something. It would be a shame to let a good dog get away.

Shye clasped his hands together silently and stood as well. Catching a dog! He grinned widely. His mother probably wouldn't approve, but she - he looked over, just to make sure - was reading some boring, thick book.

He nodded and tiptoed after Ziya, feet flashing intermittently.

Shye's mouth quirked as they reached the tiny dog. He supposed they couldn't ride on it after all. Nodding at Ziya without moving the rest of his body, his eyes remained fixed on the squirrel. He couldn't count higher than five on a good day, but he knew all about the famous "one, two, THREE" that was coming any second now. Shye tensed his little legs in anticipation.

Shye threw himself forward, saw grass and dirt and squirrel rushing up to meet him, and squeezed his eyes shut. He hit the ground with a muffled 'oof' and clasped his hand around something furry. He wasn't sure if it was the dog or some rogue handful of coat.

"Whassit?" he asked Ziya, his eyes still clamped shut.

"Ha!" Shye said. They had caught a dog! He sat back as well, waiting for the animal to do something. Didn't dogs do tricks? "Talk!" he encouraged.

At the sharp command issued by her demanding child, Smerdle looked up from the magazine she'd been looking through. "Shye? What are you doing?"

"Dog, ma!" he said, as if that explained everything.

Smerdle got up and started to head toward the two toddlers.