Fan made an indignant noise, then turned back to Harry with a frown. "He's right though," she said suspiciously. "The fog is strange, and it's funny it should turn up just as you did."

Harry took a moment to register her meaning. "What?" he squeaked, then cleared his throat. "No, no this isn't me."

Fan didn't seem all that convinced as she chewed her lip. "But, it's sort of like snow isn't it, could you have brought it with you?"

Harry spluttered out a laugh. "This, snow?" he scoffed. "It's not an official snow fall unless you can make a regulation-proportion snow man of a minimum of three feet," he informed her. "I'm not sure I've ever seen anything like this before?"

Except, he did know it was at least called fog. Maybe he had seen it somewhere? Maybe he had heard about it in a story or something, because Christmas Land never got weather like that.

"Hmm," said Fan, unsure as she chewed on her thumbnail.

Harry shifted on his feet as she eyed him up. "So, what's a Nian?" he asked, trying to change the subject. There may have been strange things going on, but he knew he wasn't the cause of the mist.

"Just a story," Fan explained, shifting her gaze to the edge of the fog. It seemed to be getting thicker, and possibly creeping closer to them. "It's a monster that steals children."

Harry jerked to attention immediately. "Then we should stay back," he said, stepping in front of her and putting his arm out. "After all, anything is possible."

Fan spat out a laugh and pushed his arm back down. "It really is just a story, but that was very cute of you to protect me from the big, bad beast."

Harry felt a flush heat up his cheeks. "Sorry," he mumbled.

"Nah, it's okay," she said and ran her fingers through her thick hair. "Look, okay, I'm not saying I believe you, but right now all I see is some weird mist. So, I guess I'll just have to trust you?"

"Listen girlie, do you want to come with us to the portal, or not?" Rocky demanded a little rudely in Harry's opinion, but it did seem to snap Fan out of her suspicions.

"Yes," she said decisively. Harry guessed it wasn't often she got to spend time out of Nai Nai's envelope shop. "But we can't go fumbling around in that." She pointed towards the fog, unimpressed. "Let me go grab a lantern from the shop, then we can go to your portal, okay?"

Harry nodded to show that was fine by him, and tightened his grip on the travelling stick that held his packed handkerchief as she dashed back through the door of "Lucky Gifts". "What do you think Rocky?"

The little bird puffed up. "I think there might actually be something fishy going on here," he said, narrowing his beady black eyes. "But don't tell her that. How about I go see if I can't find any of my scouts, then I meet you back at the portal?"

Harry wasn't so keen on the idea of splitting up, as no matter how brave the robin was he still was very small, but he agreed all the same. Rocky knew what he was doing, and it would be better to find out what was going on if they could. "Don't take too long," he called as the small bird vanished into the fog.

Harry sighed, and looked around him, not that there was much to see just then. The mist made him think of his nightmare, and he strained again to try and dredge up any memories he could about his mystery boy.

He couldn't swear it, but he felt like they had been in a forest, and it was dark, night time probably. That didn't sound particularly romantic or fun, but in Harry's mind the boy had looked so beautiful his chest ached. He hoped with his whole heart that he was really real. Otherwise, he wasn't sure what he was going to do with himself.

A sound to the left caught his attention, and Harry cocked his head to listen. It wasn't Fan coming back, as he could still see the door to her envelope shop despite the haze that hung in the air. But then it came again, from within the cold mist, and Harry shuffled on his feet. "Hello?" he called uncertainly.

It was sort of a clattering noise, and it was coming closer and closer.

Harry scowled, not liking the shiver of apprehension that fluttered over his skin. "Hello?" he demanded again. "Who's there?"

The fog swirled, and Harry leaped back. He hadn't heard Fan re-emerge onto the street once again, but he certainly heard her scream now, and he couldn't say he blamed her. Because what came shuffling out of the mist was too awful to comprehend, and Harry's whole body electrified in horror.