AN: Ooooh we are getting closer and closer to the end! Hooray! Hope you're enjoying yourselves xo
Thanks to my awesomesauce BFFL Kaitlyn Fall. If you like my stuff, why don't you go check out her stories? I fell in love with them instantly and I know you will too! :D
The Finn Woman
Two hands grabbed Serenity roughly by her shoulders and she was hauled to her feet. She squinted through the flurry of snow, glimpsing two things. One, a blinding smile of white teeth, and two, a shock of blue eyes standing out against the pale skin, pale hair, and pale white hood that covered the head.
"You must be looking for me," the hooded person said, turning Serenity around and taking them to Helios, who was on his side.
"Could have warned a reindeer," he grumbled, glaring up at them. Serenity dropped to her knees and helped him onto his stomach, where he climbed to his feet and shook the snow from his antlers.
"You want to come inside or not?" the Finn woman demanded as Helios continued to shake his head, trying to dislodge snow from his left ear. Serenity placed her hand on Helios' back and together they followed the rugged up woman to her home.
"It's built of ice," Serenity murmured as they watched the Finn woman locate the door and open it effortlessly, though it looked heavy and sticky. "Fascinating."
"Mmm, let's just get in, shall we?" Helios said beside her. "I've got ice in my ear and my hooves are starting to freeze."
Suppressing a smile, Serenity asked "I thought reindeer could withstand such cold weather?" They entered the dwelling, which turned out to be surprisingly warmer than it had appeared.
"You look like you could use a drink," said the Finn woman. "Brandy? Whisky? What's your poison?"
"Um," Serenity said, frowning and glancing at Helios. "I'll just take a tea if that's alright. And my friend Helios here will have some warm milk if possible."
"You don't want a drink-drink?" The woman looked surprised. "You want a drink? Well, suit yourselves. Sit down and tell me where you've come from."
"The Laplady said you could help us," said Serenity as she settled herself near the fireplace, which roared heartily with life and warmth, despite being made entirely of large blocks of ice. It was so implausible that the logs the fire was burning over remained dry and yet Serenity saw it with her own eyes. In fact, though the whole house was made of ice, it was cosy and dry. How weird, Serenity thought. "We brought you a... note. It's rather unorthodox."
"What is it this time?" she grinned. "A leg of lamb? A turkey?" Her eyes fell on the object in Serenity's hand as she gingerly removed it from her bag. "A fish. Of course." She chucked. "She never fails to surprise you, that's for sure."
Serenity handed the cod over, watching as the Finn woman studied the message written on the frozen seafood with interest, before staking it with a nearby knife and flinging it into a pot of water in the kitchen. "That'll be great for dinner." She started making Serenity's tea. "So, you want to go to the Snow Queen's winter palace? You know she'll be there this time of year. "
"Yes, we want to find her," Serenity said as she took off her boots, wriggling her frozen feet near the fire to thaw. "That's why we've come all this way. To see the Snow Queen."
"And you... what, want to die?" the Finn woman asked half sarcastically, half serious. "Because that's what'll happen if you go. You won't be coming back. Not for all the cod in the world."
"I will," Serenity said with determination, startling Helios and the Finn woman. "You'll see."
"Well," her host said airily. "That's nice of you to think that. Brave, I suppose." Her eyes flicked to Helios."And you think Horsey feels the same way?"
"Reindeer," Helios growled at the same time as Serenity said,
"No. He's not coming. He'll be taking me there, yes, but I do not expect him to come with me."
"Of course I'm coming with you," Helios said, his chest puffing out. "You think I'm going to leave you there, alone and defenceless?"
"Like Endy wasn't?" the blonde said quietly, her serious eyes meeting his. Her poor Endymion had not had the same help she was being offered and yet she wouldn't lead her new friend into danger."Helios, I can't ask you to accompany me. The Finn woman is right, and so is the Laplady. And Ann. And Amy and Greg. Everyone's right. There's a high chance I won't come out alive, so I'm not taking that risk with you too."
"Serenity, it would be my honour," the reindeer bowed his head. "I'm with you till the end."
"No you're not," the Finn woman interrupted.
"Oh yes I am," Helios said with the same tone of determination that Serenity had spoke only moments earlier.
"This sounds to me like something Serenity needs to do alone. Girl," she said in a gentle voice, handing her a mug of steaming tea. It ticked Serenity's nose with spices that she had never encountered before. The aroma was mouth watering. A dish of similar smelling milk was placed before the reindeer. "Tell me why you wish to see the Snow Queen."
"She has a friend of mine and I want to rescue him and bring him home where he belongs," Serenity said, feeling strength shoot from her chest, travelling down her arms and legs as she said it. Already the reality was setting in. Tomorrow she would see her best friend again! And no amount of time or experience could separate them again. When she rescued Endymion, he would never be leaving her sight again.
"And how did the Snow Queen come about acquiring your friend?" the Finn woman asked curiously, sinking into a broken armchair. Serenity settled comfortably into the back of hers, feeling the warmth of the fire wash over her. Already her toes felt defrosted and her DESCRIBE ANOTHER FEELING HERE. She blinked sleepily at the woman before her.
"He was kidnapped nearly four years ago from our hometown."
"And you know the Snow Queen did it?" The Finn lady's tone showed her doubt, which was also reflected in her expression. "Forgive me if I seem ignorant, but you look like you have travelled far just to come here, so what would the Snow Queen be doing all the way over where you live and why would she want your friend?"
"Endymion is clever," Serenity said, frowning at the almost-insult. "And handsome. And kind. I have no doubt that any combination of his good qualities could have tempted her.
"Amiable qualities," the Finn woman said with a smirk. "Okay, so let's move on from there before I insult you further, yes, I can tell I insulted you," she said when Serenity made to protest. "You are very protective of your friend, I can already see that. And you thought you would fly across the country on the back of a reindeer to find your friend?"
"Actually, Serenity and I only met several days ago," Helios countered. "Before we'd been introduced, Serenity had been travelling on her own."
The Finn woman's eyebrows lifted, rising to meet her pale blonde hair. "But you're so young," she said, surprised. "You didn't think of the dangers ahead of you?"
"What dangers?" Serenity grinned. "I didn't really think anything through when I decided I was going to rescue Endymion. All I knew was that I was going to bring him home whether he liked it or not."
"Such conviction." The Finn woman tilted her head. She surveyed the young girl silently as Serenity started shedding her coat and pushing her hair over her shoulders. It was easy to acclimatise to the warmth in the house of ice, whether it looked liked it from the outside or not. "All right." The Finn woman leaned forward, elbows resting on her knees. "Tell me your story."
"Well it was my 18th birthday," Serenity started, "and a beautiful summer's day..."
"That's a pretty sad tale," the Finn woman said when Serenity had finished her recount. "And child, I've heard a lot of sad stories, being out where I am. You ever see a baby die of pneumonia? I have."
"I wouldn't compare my journey to the death of a baby," Serenity said with a frown. "But now you see how far I've come, and how I'm so close to finding him."
"You don't know he's alive," the Finn woman pointed out. "But you think he is and that's enough for you, isn't it?"
"He is alive," Serenity said.
"And you've prepared yourself for any alternatives?"
"There are no alternatives," the girl disagreed. "He's alive. Trust me."
They were now eating the cod, Helios happily crunching through a few carrots and lichens. The fire crackled under the huge cooking pot that had been used for their meal and Serenity was content with everything, the food in her stomach, her aching and exhausted body now relaxing in a very comfortable chair, the warmth of the small and cosy igloo...
She was desperately trying to fight off sleep when the Finn woman put her finished plate aside and sighed loudly.
"So you want my help, that's what you're here for," she said with no uncertainty.
"Well with your magic, you can bind the winds, tie them in a bow and string them along as you like," Helios said. "If you could help us even break into the palace -" He was silenced when the Finn woman held up a hand.
"How will my magic help this young woman?" she asked. "How will the power of the wind aid her in her quest?"
"You could give her the strength of a small army to fight the Snow Queen," Helios argued. "You want to see the witch defeated as well, don't you?"
"Of course I do, but it won't do any good." She snorted before getting up and striding to the other side of the room where a collection of scrolls and books clung haphazardly to a bookshelf, as if all holding on by only the hint of a breeze. She wiggled her fingers as her hands hovered past many scrolls, before sticking her hand into the mass and emerging with a scroll wrapped in a dark blue and yellow ribbon. Serenity glanced sideways at Helios, but they both remained silent. Minutes ticked by, and Serenity was finding it harder and harder to fight off the sleep, but she had to know if the Finn woman could help her or not.
Helios cleared his throat, but the Finn woman ignored him. He coughed a minute later, but she ignored that too.
Serenity and Helios traded another glance but the Finn woman only turned around when she had finished reading. Serenity couldn't hold back the hope in her eyes as she stared longingly at the woman who had the power to control the wind.
"Well," said Helios. "Can you help us?"
The Finn woman crooked her finger at the reindeer, beckoning him to join her on the other side of the room. Suddenly, howling winds picked up outside, which Serenity took to be the Finn woman's method of shutting her out of the conversation. She watched as the two spoke through tight lips, and Helios' body language change from curious to outraged to defeated, all in quick succession. The winds died down a little.
"Serenity," Helios said as he and the Finn woman rejoined her by the fire. She was now starting to sweat slightly; it was so warm in the room. Now she understood why the Finn woman had chosen to take the chair furthest from the fireplace. "Serenity, I can't go with you."
"You what?" Serenity jumped to the edge of her chair. "But Helios! How am I supposed to make it to the palace from here? I'm going to die within an hour out there in the snow! Please help me," she begged. The reindeer dropped his green eyes to the carpet beneath their feet.
"I can take you to the palace, of course I will. You know I would get you to the Snow Queen. But I can't stay and help you."
"You must perform the final task of your journey alone," the Finn woman said.
"Why?" Serenity asked as fear began etching into her heart like cold, hard ice.
"Endymion is with the Snow Queen," the Finn woman said. "That I can tell you with certainty. But he is wholly within her power. He thinks he is happy and content where he is. His heart is frozen and he can't see the truth because he has a sliver of the Wiseman's mirror in his eye."
Helios shook his head in disbelief, but Serenity didn't know what that meant. A real mirror? In Endymion's eye? And who was the Wiseman? "What's that?" she asked, eyes flicking between the Finn woman and Helios.
"The Wiseman is a horrible creature, some say the devil himself," Helios supplied sadly. "His weapon is powerful and something you should fear. It can ruin even the happiest of men. All it takes is a fraction of it in a window or a pair of spectacles and its magic causes destruction and despair everywhere it goes."
"So if it somehow made its way into Endymion's heart..." Serenity thought back to when Endymion had suddenly changed from her caring and thoughtful best friend to a cruel and dismissive stranger who wanted nothing to do with her. "Oh no," she breathed, closing her eyes. "He was spellbound?" Her heart sank. If only she'd known! She would have tried to help him instead of letting go. He had to change back into the young man he'd been, not the horrible and destructive creature into which he'd turned. That wasn't Endymion. That was... a shell of Endymion with no real Endy inside. Serenity dropped her eyes from Helios', tears welling up.
"But you can give her some strength, right?" he asked, turning to the Snow Queen. Serenity's head snapped back up. "A - a weapon of some kind to help her release Endymion?"
The Finn woman shook her head and Serenity watched Helios grow angry. "You just want us to let her blindly walk into that palace with nothing to defend herself? She'll be killed!" He stamped a hoof.
"Does she look defenceless to you?" the Finn woman growled back, throwing a hand in Serenity's direction. "Look at her! She is a weapon!"
Serenity blinked, glancing down at her hands. She had a weapon? Where was it? How could she use it?
"This girl has walked a thousand miles through bitter experience and the worst of the weather. She's survived being spellbound by an enchantress, kidnapped by bandits, and talked her way to freedom for the both of you. She only has her bag, her dress, her coat and what's left of a pair of shoes. Are you saying she has nothing?"
"I do have nothing," Serenity blinked, realising she didn't actually have a weapon like she'd previously thought. "So you can't help me? That's fine."
The Finn woman scoffed and turned to Helios. "Why have you come all this way?"
"To help Serenity," he replied without thinking.
"Why?" the Finn woman pressed in a firm voice. "You hardly know her."
"Because..." Helios' eyes widened slightly and shared a look of understanding with the Finn woman. Serenity looked wildly between the two.
"There is your answer," the Finn woman said, patting his head.
*pokes head over story* ENDYMION! I SEE YOU OVER THEREEEE *waves* ... Or do I? ^_^