Alice woke up slowly as she breathed in, gently becoming aware of her environment as she shifted under a soft duvet and heard the sheets rustle... Alice could see the light behind her eyes as her ears registered the silence around her, and quietly she wondered if she was alone.

Carefully she opened her eyes, seeing that she was facing the rest of the bed, with its ruffled white sheets and crumpled duvet, suggesting that someone else had been sleeping there. Visual thoughts of Magnus, specifically his lips and eyes, seeped into her mind and she felt her chest warm... but it was then that the headache behind her eyes and the dryness in her throat made itself known.

She whined quietly and rubbed her eyes as she sat up to face the glass wall of sunlight that showed her a magnificent view of the valley and the resort covered in fresh powdered snow... it was snowing gently, making everything seem extra quiet and muffled since it was evident that it was late in the morning. Whilst sighting heavily Alice got out of bed, aware that she was alone in the room now since there was no one in the bathroom and Magnus's side of the bed was empty.

She wondered where she was as she stumbled slightly, rubbing her forehead as she looked down, only to see herself in an oversized grey t-shirt that smelt deliciously of him. Alice smiled warmly as she lifted the material to her nose and breathed in, feeling herself become momentarily dizzy with fuzzy feelings of affection, but they quietened down as she exhaled, and decided to get herself ready for the day and find out where everyone else was.

After showering and her usual morning routine of cleansing her skin and putting her make up on, blow drying her hair and moisturising her body, Alice was ready. She dressed herself in her new marching set of deep red leggings and a long sleeved crop top, the ribbed texture was thick, soft and warm and extremely comfortable. On top of that, it fit underneath her puffed bright red ski suit.

She remade the bed, flattening down the creases and making it look neat again before she left with her phone in hand, her thumbs typing away a message to her friends to see where they were. Fei responded almost immediately, saying she was downstairs making and breakfast waiting for her.

Alice quickened her step, her fluffy bunny eared slippers tapping lightly against the floor as she made her way down the staircase. She noticed how the chalet looked and smelt like there hadn't been a raging party last night... obviously the cleaners had been because the chalet was spotless again... like last night never happened.

Fei waited in the kitchen area, looking down at her phone as she sipped her herbal tea that she'd brought with her, whilst dressed in leggings and a navy blue oversized Harvard sweatshirt that she'd stolen from her dad. She'd been relieved when she received Alice's message since Candice hadn't shown her face yet, and she felt awkward sitting at the table with just Magnus, Trey, Lucy and another girl called Katie, all of which Fei didn't know very well.

Magnus had gotten up early, unable to sleep since he never could usually after drinking. There was a gym downstairs he'd visited for a couple of hours before Trey showed his face, and they'd been side by side ever since until Fei has arrived downstairs and shyly conversed with them until Lucy and Katie arrived. He tapped on the edge of his coffee cup and flared silently at Lucy as she typed on her phone, ignoring the sound of Katie talking to Trey about the party last night. "I got so wasted, I didn't even know about what had happened until this morning." She said, referring to Juniper.

"She was passed out in the bath tub when I found her this morning," Lucy laughed, "We're going to visit Juniper later if either of you want to come?" She asked, glancing at Magnus who was still glaring.

"I think we made plans to go skiing, sorry." Trey said, seeing as Magnus made no effort to answer her question. "If we'd known before then-"

"No it's okay, I get it." Lucy replied, feeling Magnus boring holes into the side of her face. "They said she was fine so it's not really an emergency anymore." She continued just as Alice walked into the kitchen and dining room area. Her appearance caught Magnus's eye quickly, and he glanced over within a few short seconds of her being there. He stood up almost immediately, revealing that he was dressed in sweatpants and a lose white t-shirt that he'd thrown on after showering.

Alice smiled, her eyes now landing on him as he walked over to her, her steps slowing down as she got closer to the kitchen area and waited for him to approach. "Morning," she smiled, her chest feeling warm again as she admired him, seeing his slightly wet hair pushed back out of his face.

"Morning," He murmured, keeping his voice low as the others watched him intently, curious to see what he would do. "Hungover?" He asked, glancing down at her outfit again and approving of it silently.

"Not as much as I thought I was going to be," Alice replied, "Just got a headache so I was going to make some-" she trailed off as Magnus reached for her waist and pulled her close, leaning down to press his lips against hers carefully...

"Don't use the coffee machine," he said very quietly, kissing her gently again and enjoying the softness of her lips.

"Why?" Alice asked, placing her hands on his biceps and tried to ignore the intense butterflies that were beginning to wake up in her stomach. They kissed again, this time their lips lingering as their mouths moved together a few times and Alice placed her right hand on his cheek affectionately... a warm energy moved between them, pulling them closer together, and they obeyed silently, bringing their bodies closer together as they kissed...

The others looked away, some out of respect and others out of irritation, but either way they weren't watching them anymore, which is what Magnus wanted originally.... and yet now he had been momentarily distracted and continued to kiss Alice affectionately as he held her waist... he pulled away slightly reluctantly, licking his lips and clenching his jaw briefly to fight the sudden surge of lust he felt coursing through his blood stream. "Just don't use it," Magnus mumbled before he moved his head back to look her in the eye properly.

"Okay," she whispered, wondering what he was up to as they edged apart and Magnus let his hands linger on her hips as he caressed over the material of her clothes... "Have you eaten?" She asked, the question leaving her lips before she could stop herself. It sounded like she was trying to baby him, but he didn't seem to notice.

"Not yet," Magnus replied, letting her go as they watched each other whilst making their way into the kitchen.

"I need some coffee before I watch them make out again." Lucy muttered, causing Katie to laugh quietly. Trey's eyes narrowed slightly but he didn't comment out loud.

"Make me some?" Katie asked as Lucy got up and walked around the table and across part of the room to get to the kitchen area and the fancy large coffee machine that the chalet had provided.

"So do we order in or?" Alice asked quietly, glancing at Magnus who was stood next to her, leaning against the counter, his gaze on the coffee machine. "M-" she began, about to ask for his attention but glanced where he was just as Fei walked over to them happily.

"Hey," Fei grinned, "Did you sleep okay?" She asked,

"Yeah I did," Alice smiled warmly, "Did you?" She continued as Magnus watched Lucy fiddle with the coffee machine before she realised it wasn't on... he began to smile slowly, watching as Lucy reached for the plug switch, leaning across the steam nozzle that shot out bursts of boiling hot steam... it was angled strangely, but not strangely enough for Lucy to notice as she flicked on the socket...

"Yeah, I-" Fei began, but was interrupted by a slightly strangled, piercing scream that burst from Lucy's lips. Each of the girls whipped around, their eyes wide as Lucy cringed and stumbled back and away from the machine, her hands instinctively wanting to cover her neck but shook violently with the pain as they hovered close to her skin.

The steam nozzle hissed violently and menacingly and Alice's eyes widened as she realised what had happened. "Oh my god!" Fei gasped, grabbing a damp cloth and hurrying over to help Lucy who had been burnt severely by boiling hot steam.

Magnus walked forwards and managed to avoid the hot air as turned the machine off properly, discreetly clicking the nozzle back into place then wiped it down. The others gathered around Lucy as Alice stood to one side, watching with shock and accidentally caught a glimpse of the burn wound and cringed deeply, suddenly losing her appetite. "Get her to the hospital quickly," Trey said, "It might scar if you don't," He added, looking at Katie who was fumbling with her phone to call a taxi.

"Fei, there's a first aid kit in the bathroom if you want to get that," Magnus said, his voice low as he stood to one side with his arms folded. Fei looked up, looking confused suddenly but as she made eye contact with Magnus, she realised it wasn't a suggestion.

"Oh," she mumbled, feeling the air go slightly hostile as she stood up and hurried away to get the first aid kit, disappearing around a corner as Trey furrowed his eyebrows just a little and Katie hurriedly spoke down the phone to the resorts taxi service, asking for a vehicle quickly.

Magnus took careful, menacingly slow steps over to Lucy who was shedding tears heavily because of the throbbing, searing hot pain in her neck. He extended a hand to help her off, and Trey backed off suddenly causing Alice to glance between them carefully. "Does it hurt a lot?" Magnus asked in a strange voice as Lucy got up, sniffing loudly as her body trembled from experiencing high levels of adrenaline.

"Yeah," Lucy whispered, every movement in her face and body causing more pain to strike and sting as her skin seemed to split, seep fluid and blister in front of their eyes...

Alice felt her stomach turn and folded her arms across her body as she stood huddled in one corner of the kitchen, watching the scene very quietly, wondering why, if her suspicions where correct, why Magnus has tampered with the coffee machine to injure Lucy. Suddenly her queries was answered as Magnus grabbed Lucy's neck and squeezed, causing her to cry out in a strangled shriek and grab his wrist to try in some desperate attempt to stop him from digging his fingers into her found.

Trey looked away and Alice's eyes widened, her heart beginning to race as Lucy squirmed and cried, begging him to take his hand off her neck. "Not until you apologise." Magnus spat as Alice looked at his face in shock, seeing the sudden void in his eyes that sent a chill right down her spine.

"I'm sorry!" Lucy sobbed as she tugged at Magnus's wrist in desperation. "Magnus, stop please!" She cried, causing Alice's eyes to well up suddenly.

"Not to me!" He snapped, turning her around as he took her hand off her neck just for a moment before he pressed his thumb harshly against the burnt skin. Alice stared in a shocked, tense silence as Lucy sobbed, looking directly at Alice.

"I'm sorry," she cried weakly, her face screwed up as she seemed to break apart and crumble in front of Alice's eyes. "I'm sorry," she whimpered.

"Why?" Magnus asked, pressing harder on Lucy's burnt and damaged skin, but Alice raised her hands and waved it off, suddenly feeling sharp stabbing pains of guilt in her stomach as her eyes began to water more.

"I accept it, I know why." She whispered quickly as Magnus looked at her, and slowly she could see the small snippets of emotion showing in his eyes. He took his hand off Lucy's neck and she hurried away from him and out of the kitchen area towards Katie who had been watching in a tense, shocked silence. They both left shortly after, heading to the hospital to get Lucy's skin treated.

Alice stared at Magnus as he watched his hands, the kitchen area now quiet as Fei hurried back with a large green box. "It took me ages to find it," she huffed, then looked between the three remaining people left in the kitchen. "Did they leave?"

"Yeah." Trey replied quietly, and Fei furrowed her eyebrows at the tone of his voice. She looked around her, seeing Magnus looking calm and a little tense as he watched Alice, who looked shocked and upset. Only a few seconds later Alice pushed herself away from the counter and walked off quickly, causing Magnus to say her name loudly to stop her, but she didn't listen.

"What happened?" Fei asked, looking towards Trey as Magnus followed Alice shortly after she'd left, his expression unreadable.

"Nothing. Alice was freaked out by the burns." Trey said, taking the box of medical supplies from Fei's hands and putting them on the counter top. "Coffee?" He asked, attempting to distract her with a charming smile.

"I don't drink coffee..." Fei replied, seeing through the smile even though it made her heart flutter. "I'll have another tea though. And maybe we should order some food? I feel like everyone is grumpy because they haven't eaten." She continued, returning to her usual friendly self as Trey smiled at her. He agreed and turned away from her to turn the kettle on, now not seeing that her smile had dropped... her mind had now begun to replay what she had seen only minutes before, her stomach turning with uneasiness and worry as she looked behind her to where Magnus and Alice had just gone...

Alice walked quickly towards the downstairs large bathroom and pushed the door open sharply, walking over to the paper towels by the sink and snatching one off the roll. She dabbed under her eyes carefully just as Magnus strode in and closed the door behind him. "Go away," she mumbled, mainly because she didn't want him to see her cry.

"No." Magnus replied bluntly, "Why are you crying?" He asked, "I thought this is what you wanted me to do."

"What?" Alice replied, turning to look at him properly instead of in the reflection. "I never asked you to do that."

"Last night when you told me about what they did to your dog and your house, you didn't want me to act on it?" Magnus asked, stepping towards her as he analysed the shimmering in her eyes from fresh tears.

"I'm not some defenceless female you know, I can fight for myself. I didn't need you to do that for me." Alice mumbled, moving some hair out of her face and blinking quickly as she tried to get rid of the moisture that was building in her eyes.

Magnus narrowed his eyes slightly, "but you wanted me to," he replied, "Otherwise you wouldn't have told me."

"I told you because I was mad and upset and you thought I did that thing to Juniper because I was jealous, when I wasn't." Alice shot back, folding her arms across her chest. "I didn't expect you to go full fucking psycho-"

"Full what?" Magnus cut across her suddenly, his tone angry. Alice watched him quietly and shifted where she stood, moving some hair out of her face as she thought of what to say.

"I'm sorry," she murmured,

"No you're not," Magnus snapped, feeling his chest burning with frustration and anger suddenly. "But you're right Alice, I should never have done shit for you. And that was the last time I'll ever defend you, since you seem to be doing a great job of it on your fucking own."

"Magnus-"

"You asked me to teach you about this whole shit last night, and when I show you what it's like, you want to run to the bathroom to cry. That's not my fucking problem. If you want respect, don't give people a one fucking inch." He snapped again, before turning away and reaching for the bathroom door to leave.

"Magnus wait," Alice replied quickly, stepping forwards purposefully as she suddenly felt guilty for hitting a nerve. "I'm sorry for what I said, I was just in shock because I'm not used to this yet. I do appreciate what you did, I just... it freaked me out a bit." She continued as he stopped to wait with his back to her.

He turned around to look at her, his expression unreadable as he looked into her eyes to see if she was sincere or not. She stared back, her arms now hanging by her sides. "I don't defend people a lot, you should know that." He murmured, his statement causing Alice's chest to warm with affection.

"Thank you, Magnus." She said softly, stepping towards him as he looked down at her with a sceptical look. "Just give me a bit of warning next time." she smiled softly, reaching up to smooth out a crease in his t-shirt. He inhaled slowly, feeling her palms on his chest... the slow gentle touch calming him.

"Okay." he replied quietly, his voice low as Alice watched his expression soften. They watched each other, letting the seconds trickle by as the tension between them dissipated into thin air and was carefully replaced with a warm, affectionate aura. It was as if they had silently agreed to put what had happened only a few minutes ago behind them and focus more on enjoying Alice's first time at Panorama. "You up for skiing today?" Magnus asked, the gentle tone of his voice making Alice's heart warm inside her chest.

"Yeah," she smiled, feeling tingles of excitement dance through her veins.

"Good," Magnus replied, glancing at Alice's lips before he stood to one side and motioned for her to leave the bathroom before him. She smiled even more and thanked him quietly as she left, both of them now walking back towards the kitchen area where Trey and Fei had just finished ordering breakfast for everyone...

* * *

"Do you guys always get the fast passes?" Alice asked, dressed in a body hugging red puffed all-in-one ski suit that kept the cold out and the warmth in perfectly. She held her two thin skis to her side carefully as she walked behind Magnus with Fei behind her and Trey leading the way... The other members of their group that they had travelled with seemed to vanish, probably still recovering from extreme hangovers, or at least that was Trey's theory.

"They come with the chalet," Magnus replied, dressed in a thick black ski coat with watching bottoms, tucked into large black ski boots. His hair was covered with a similarly dark black beanie, and he stood out against the pearly white snow that had been trampled a few thousand times that morning by other people staying at the resort, who had been skiing since dawn.

They made their way past a long queue of skiers, their fast passes around their necks so they could be easily seen by the officials passing everyone through the gates to get the slopes. It was extremely cold, but with gloriously bright sunshine that bounced off the fresh powdery snow that was being blown around by the wind around their snow boots. All four of them clambered into a ski lift and sat down after being ushered quickly through the gate and towards the large glass dome that would take them to the top of the mountain after about fifteen minutes.