Immediately a cold winter wind unblocked by walls pushed against her causing her to stiffen in shock. A slow smile spread across her lips as she adjusted to the feeling. Looking up and down the street she found it was quiet. Of course, most people had probably gone home for the night and were likely having a late supper or readying themselves and their homes for bed.

          She drifted along down the street heading west towards the road in front of the house. She knew it would be busier and she was eager to discover and explore as much as possible not knowing if she would ever get a chance like this again.

    The sounds of cars driving by before the road actually became visible due to a small rise in the road. As she reached the road, she found it hard to believe that this was the sight her cousins complained about so woefully as they dragged their feet out to the car waiting to shuttle them off to their private school. Ice thought it was beautiful. The new snow they had gotten remained undisturbed in many places and hundreds of glittering icicles shimmered reflecting the light of shop signs and those of the passing vehicles. Breathing in deeply the cool crisp air Ice stepped out on the sidewalk of the street. To her left it seemed to head into more of a country like setting which although very alluring Ice was more attracted to the unknowns of the city to the right. So north she went following the well-maintained little roadway for people.

   As she walked more and more lights showed up on the shop signs. Most of which were closed, at least all the respectable looking ones. After a hour or more she found her in the true city with skyscrapers stretching so far up she had to crane her head way back to get a glimpse of the tops. The only plant life she saw was planted in well-maintained cement plots along the walkways. Until she came to a great big park which seemed so unlikely to be nestled in among so much steel, cement, and glass that Ice actually gasped at the beauty of it.

  The walkways winding this way and that showed that clearly the occupants of this city loved the park too. As Ice strolled along contently, she began to make out the just barely there sound of music playing. Tucking her hair behind her ear she listened intently trying to determine from which direction it came from. Music was another luxury to her as she only allowed to listen to it when she had music lessons. Why she wasn’t allowed was another one of the many things that had never been made clear.

   This music she found was unlike anything she had learned to play. It was very heavy on the bass and rhythm and the singer had a very interesting way of dragging out the lyrics in a pleasant way. As she got closer, she spotted a small group of people gathered around a main playing a piano in the middle of the park. It was his music she had heard and this people like her had followed the music and stopped to listen for a while. Ice felt a thrill of excitement as she realized she was listening to her first busker performance.

    Several people of the crowd began to dance to the man’s next song. Figuring she would never see these people again Ice began dancing too. She had had years of dance lessons in a whole host of styles and had never had the opportunity to use any of them until now. 

          After nearly an hour of dancing to the man’s music he finally called it night.

  “Alright folks! That’s it for me tonight! These old bones need to go find some warmth! Thanks for listening and come back and visit ya hear?” The man called.

   After receiving a hearty round of applause, the crowd gradually dispersed most of them leaving a small bit of money in the man’s tin cup sitting on top of his piano. Ice wished she had thought to bring her small amount of savings; she wondered how the man planned to move the musical instrument. He answered her unspoken question by surprising her with a little flat cart with wheels which he slid underneath the instrument as he lifted one side. In a few minutes Ice was left standing in small intersection alone once again. Listening intently to the sounds of the city that she could make out she headed in the direction that the piano man had gone. Figuring he had led her here he might very well lead her to the next adventure of the night. And indeed, he did as she remerged into the city proper with its cheery robust noises and bright dazzling lights.

          As she walked on, she came to what appeared to be a party spilling out onto the street. Looking at the sign of the building she saw that it was a pub. Upon a closer inspection she found it was a birthday party. With lots of food and alcohol to be had for any who decided to risk the somewhat rowdy crowd. Feeling hungry and thirsty after all the walking and dancing she went in to find something decent to eat. Spotting untouched cheeseburger on a clearly abandoned table Ice seized and looked for a less crowded corner to eat it. Music was playing here too although she couldn’t make out much detail from it she still found it a novel idea. Was this how people lived just having music so prominently in their day to day lives that they could just ignore it. Every new thing she saw tonight was fascinating to her. It was one thing to read to piece an idea together from a book but seeing it in person was something else entirely.

          The cheeseburger tasting deliciously unhealthy she knew it would be something she would crave for later. After her rescued from certain abandonment snack was thoroughly enjoyed, she began looking for something to drink. Yes, there was a lot of alcohol, and it was a pub, but surely someone in this massive crowd had ordered plain soda or juice and left it abandoned somewhere just waiting for her to rescue it from neglect. Dodging a staggering man, she promptly ran smack into another one.

 “Pardon me. I— “

 “Oh Sorr— “

 “Ice?”

 “Roger?” Of all the pubs in the city and of all the people how did she have the rotten luck of running into her cousin in this pub?

  “What are you doing here?”

  “I could ask you the same.” Ice stalled hoping he’d be too confused about the whole situation to turn her in.

  “You snuck out!” Her hopes vanished in an instant. “I’m calling for a car. You don’t move a muscle.” With that he blended away into the crowd presumably to find a phone or cell reception. Ice thought about making a run for it. But the whole exercise would be pointless. They wouldn’t believe her over Roger to begin with for any reason and then of course if Roger called a car and arrived home first they would make very quick work of searching all the rooms she was allowed access too and of course when she’d arrived back exhausted by the long trek if the garden was still unlocked she’d be caught out there and if it was locked she would have to resort to the front gate and definitely be caught out there.

          Sighing Ice turned a plopped down onto an unused booth. Directly in front of her was a tall glass of water left untouched by its owner. Several minutes later Roger returned and escorted her outside she followed leaving behind another empty glass for the already overcrowded table. She hoped the workers were paid decent; she would hate to be the one having to clean up that mess when the party finally wound down.

  “So.” Ice began having already planned out her next words while sitting at the table waiting for Roger to return. “Aunt Priscilla would really go wild if she ever found out that either one of us were in a place like that. Well… no. Just you she would probably expect it from me.”

   “You won’t say anything.” He snorted.

  “Oh? Won’t I? I see no reason not to I mean it isn’t like I will lose any money, any fancy decorations for my room, any pretty new dresses, or any privileges on being able to move about the house freely. I really have nothing to lose from it.”

   “Look don’t bother because it’ll just make you look worse. I can see it now! I followed my idiotic crazy cousin through the darkness and found her here in that irrefutable place where upon finding her I immediately call for a car to bring us both safely home.” He smirked.

  “Try again. Cute story, but don’t you think your breath smells a little too sharp for that to fly? And although you may be old enough, I don’t quite think Aunt Priscilla will approve, therefore you won’t be doing anymore traveling for a while and in the meantime, you’ll have your mother watching your every move like a hawk. Sounds appealing, does it?” Ice arched an eyebrow. Roger hadn’t seemed to think this part through. After a while he held his hand out to her. “Truce? I don’t tell on you, and you don’t tell on me.”

  “How are you going to handle the questions when we return at such a late hour?”

  “Leave that to me this isn’t my first time.”

  “Very well. Truce.” Ice shook his offered hand.