#willatinkerfh

Franklin and Louis attack their breakfasts with the enthusiasm only growing teenage boys can manage, while Willa enthusiastically smears egg across her cheeks before most of it reaches her mouth.

After breakfast come the stockings, and the twins each find a small cloth pouch tucked inside theirs. Both contain a modest handful of coins carefully saved by their parents, but both boys react as though they have inherited a railroad fortune.

The rest of the day passes peacefully; snow blanketing the ground while the family remains warm inside, enjoying the rare luxury of a day free from work.

As afternoon fades toward evening, however, a knock sounds at the front door.

When Melody answers, she finds Toby Bruenig, hand raised to knock again and snow dusting his shoulders. His expression is unusually serious.

"Melody," he says softly, and she puts on her coat and steps outside with him onto the porch, their breath visible in the sharp winter air. For a moment Toby seems to struggle to find the words, then he reaches for her hand, and Melody’s heart immediately begins racing.

"I ended the engagement. It isn't right to keep pretending when my thoughts are elsewhere." Melody stares at him.

"Toby…" she begins, as the last rays of the setting sun paint the snow gold around them.

"I care for you, Melody. More than I ought to have allowed myself to." The words hang between them for only a moment, then Toby leans forward and kisses her. They linger there in the snow, with Christmas sunset glowing across the fields and the smoke from the Tinker chimney rising into the cold evening sky, before Toby bids her good evening and wishes her a lovely Christmas.

By the time Melody finally returns inside, her cheeks are red enough that Wanda raises an eyebrow from the dining table, where the family has gathered to enjoy Christmas dinner.

Before anyone can properly enjoy the snow, however, Franklin and Louis age into teenagers. One moment the boys are children, the next they are taller, deeper-voiced, and suddenly taking up considerably more space around the supper table.

Franklin carries himself with a little more confidence afterward, while Louis immediately discovers that becoming a teenager does not exempt him from any of his father's expectations regarding chores.

Naturally, the next morning the boys celebrate their newfound maturity in the most sensible way possible: by going outside and building a snowman.

For nearly an hour they roll snow across the yard, adding larger and larger layers until the thing becomes enormous. By the end, the snowman is taller than either of them, sporting a battered hat, a carrot nose, and stick arms that seem perpetually poised for a fistfight.

As evening falls, the family gathers around the table while snow continues to drift outside. The twins argue about who put more effort into the snowman while Willa bangs a spoon enthusiastically against her little table and chair.