Chapter 72
Six A.M. He arrived at Ildico's as she was emerging from her house, her breath visible in the chill morning air.
Sasha sat placidly, watching them doing their stretching and warm up calisthenics before the run.
They ran at an easy pace, enjoying the crisp air reddening their cheeks as they ran.
Sasha naturally trotted alongside Roger, her protective instincts evidently in play.
While unbeknownst to Ildico, Maribel flew overhead.
So far, she was heeding Roger's firm admonishment to behave herself when it came to Ildico.
She was their friend and neighbor and was not to be pranked.
Maribel 'hmphed!' as he admonished her, but did as she was told.
They had a pleasant surprise when Freya caught up to them and trotted alongside Roger, her long legs easily keeping the pace.
Ildico chuckled and said gaily, "With those legs of yours, you could dominate marathon racing!"
Roger grinned as he remembered when Freya had run down a purse snatcher at the mall when she was twelve.
The boy had taken off running as fast as he could while the woman screamed.
Freya tore after him, quickly caught hold of his hoodie and stopped suddenly.
He landed on his back and all but screamed when he saw the seven foot tall Freya glaring down at him.
Freya smiled at Ildico as she trotted along and said,"'Twas nae problem catchin' up to ye, 'tis an easy pace tae run at."
Ildico grinned at the towering girl and retorted, "With those legs of yours, catchin' us had better be a cinch, we're just running for our health."
Meanwhile high overhead Maribel flew in great swoops and dives, her tiny face grinning from pointed ear to pointed ear.
Roger just smiled, Maribel was happy and that was all that mattered, later he'd give her some chocolate morsels for being good.
A very rude mockingbird began chasing Maribel and as she swooped and dodged it.
Roger could only watch helplessly as the tiny sprite was on her own.
Ildico remarked, "What is with that crazy bird? If he's not harassing a cat, he's harassing one of us."
Roger glanced up at Freya, she could only shrug in reply, she was just as helpless as he was.
Help arrived in the form of the old raven with the distinctive patch of white feathers on one wing that lived nearby.
With a raucous cawing that sounded for all the world like "Leave my friend alone!"
He chased after the mocking bird and drove it away while it protested the whole time.
Ildico chuckled and said, "I don't know what that was all about, but it's obvious that 'Old Poe' got here just in time."
"Old Poe? You call him that too?"
"Yep! That's what I've been calling him, he's been around here a long time. Every time I 'd see him, I'd think of Poe's 'The Raven', ergo 'Old Poe'."
Maribel recovering from her fright, spent the rest of the run firmly attached to Roger's head.
Finishing the run in her driveway, they did a few cool down exercises and afterwards, Ildico handed Roger some papers to fill out.
He looked at them and asked, "What're these for?"
"They're to get Sasha certified as a service animal." Replied Ildico with a grin.
"Your health has improved greatly since you started running with me. Still, you may become fatigued and or feel anxious in certain situations, having Sasha with you could forestall that."
Roger took the papers without comment, he'd fill them out just to humor Ildico, but he didn't think he needed a service animal.
He'd seen too many idiots abusing that privilege and was skeptical about the idea.
After they left Ildico's, Freya took his hand and they strolled back to the large house they shared with so many others.
Maribel flew ahead of them, happily teasing Sasha by swooping close to her great furry ears.
Spotting Old Poe perched up in the big pine tree in their front yard, they both grinned when Maribel flew up to him and gave him a peck on his feathery cheek in gratitude.
Roger chuckled, he didn't know if it was possible for a raven to blush, but it sure seemed as if Old Poe blushed that morning.
They found Anita seated in the breakfast nook gazing out the bay window there.
Outside she could see a large salamander curled up in the fire pit enjoying the lingering warmth from the dying embers there.
She watched several plump creatures as they ate the snow patches still in the yard.
They resembled very large caterpillars covered with wool and had sheeplike eyes.
Freya sat down and said quietly, "Woolybugs, we shear them in th' springtime an' th' wuid elves make clothin' frae their wool."
Anita looked at them with tears streaming from her eyes.
In a voice thick with emotion she said. "I never knew the world could be so beautiful, now that I can finally, truly, see it."
It was Freya who spoke truly, "Dinnae hink th' warld is aw faeries an' sprites an' elves an' bonnie things. Thaur ur dreadful things tay. Boggarts an' wights an' other things Ah hope ye ne'er see, ur haur tay."
Freya reached out and gently rubbed one of Sasha's velvety soft ears.
"Sasha an' 'er kin' protect us frae th' beasties 'at woods harm us. Regular dogs dae it tay. Ever wonder wa a dog will suddenly start tae barkin' fur nae apparent reason? They saw ur heard somethin' nae meant fur yer eyes tae see."
Freya smiled at her diminutive friend and said, "Ye may come tae regrit havin' th' sight, though Ah hope nae fur yer sake."
The mood was broken when Dena came in with Maribel and the two were squabbling over a missing bit of chocolate.
Maribel it seemed, had stashed a couple of chocolate morsels for later and when she went back to get them, they were gone.
Dena, being the only other person living in the house small enough to get at them got the blame.
Dena fought back by pointing out that the house had other small creatures living in it and any one of them would qualify for the accusation.
Roger finally spoke up, "Ladies, ladies! What are you two going on about?"
Maribel pointed at Dena and chittered angrily.
Dena in turn, pointed at Maribel and declared, "An'Ah say Ah didnae tak' onie chocolate frae 'er hideyhole!"
Maribel puffed herself up and was about to retort when Roger held up his hand and said wearily,"Is there any way you could lower the pitch of your voice so I can understand what you're trying to say? Much of what you're saying I cannot hear because your voice is so high pitched."
Maribel seemed to visibly deflate and after a bit of throat clearing and neck massaging, she squeaked, "Ah had me chocolate hid safe an' Dena took it!"
While her voice was still quite high pitched, at least Roger could now understand her.
Dena was about to retort again when Roger held up his hand again and asked, "Maribel, are you aware that we do have mice in this old house? Is it possible that your chocolate was not inside a container a mouse could not open? Perhaps it was a mouse that got your chocolate and not Dena? The Dena I know is very honest, even if she does seem like a little scamp at times, she would never take anything without asking first."
Dena was smiling while he said this until she realized Roger had called her a scamp.
"Hey!" she cried,"Wa dae ye mean cawing me a scamp!"
Maribel chittered happily, Roger had gotten one over on Dena.
Roger grinned at them and said firmly, "First, no more stashing food items, the mice will eat them and it just encourages them. There is a reason why we have so many storage containers, they're to keep the mice and other creatures, out of our food supply. Second, I will get you a container to store things in if that's what you really want. And lastly, please lower the pitch of your voice, so we humans can understand you, 'kay?"
Maribel grinned and nodded in agreement, then she turned to Dena and said, "Ah'm sorry ah said ye took me chocolate, Ah was wrong an' Ah apologize."
Dena smiled at the foot tall sprite and replied, "Thenk ye, Ah appreciate 'at!"
The two hugged briefly and squealed happily when Roger gave each of them a bit of chocolate.
"If only all problems could be solved with a bit of chocolate." Muttered Roger.
By mid morning Roger had built a cheery fire in the front parlour's fire place and while it crackled merrily.
Anita watched in fascination as the large salamander she had seen outside sleeping in the fire pit, sauntered into the parlour and curled up among the burning logs.
She looked up at Roger who smiled and said, "He's been living here ever since Freya's mom gave her his egg. Salamanders love heat so we keep a supply of firewood so he can have a small fire going year round just for him."
She smiled back and commented, "That explains why you always had a fire going in here, even during the summer months."
Roger chuckled and replied, "That and the fact that this house lacks a real central heating and cooling system other than the passive air flow system that was built into it. It does get chilly at times."
He grinned and remarked, "Though it doesn't seem to keep you ladies from walking around here all naked during bath time."
Anita retorted, "You never complained before and Freya does it all the time, she even sleeps with you occasionally."
Roger smiled, "I'm not complaining, no man in his right mind would complain about seeing lovely ladies in the buff. Besides, Freya and I have an understanding. Yes, we have slept together, many times in fact and sleep was all we did."
Two days later, Roger was watching in mild amusement while an evaluator was looking Sasha over.
The woman had initially stood wide eyed and gape mouthed upon seeing the pony sized wolf for the first time.
She muttered, "Ildi wasn't kidding when she said she was very big."
Quickly recovering her composure, she asked, "We don't usually get requests like this. What species is this animal again?"
Roger patiently explained to her where the great guardian wolves had come from and how they were very protective of their young charges.
He concluded by saying, "I filled out the papers mostly to humor Ildico because she was so adamant about it. I personally don't think I need a service animal and even if Sasha does meet your criteria, I would be very reluctant to expose her to a crowded shopping mall or a bulk warehouse sort of an environment. She would attract way too much attention."
He smiled and said, "I live with a Jotun girl who already attracts a lot of attention by virtue of her size alone, never mind her Norse goddess looks."
For emphasis, he pointed at a framed photo of himself and a towering young woman standing next to a bulky aircraft.
The girl stood well over a foot taller than him and was quite pretty in her own right.
The woman whistled softly and said, "I see what you mean and she's how old?"
"She's thirteen and this photo is six months old, she's grown some since it was taken."
Another whistle was heard and the inevitable question came next. "How tall will she get?"
Roger sighed and remarked, "Nine feet give or take an inch or so, both of her parents are over that height and she'll likely grow a bit taller than nine feet."
He paused and remarked, "Jotuns are also known as frost giants, as in Norse mythology's frost giants."
He smiled and commented "But, we're not here to discuss a young woman's growth cycle. We're here to discuss a service animal."
The woman smiled and replied, "Yes, we are and while your Sasha is remarkably calm in her demeanor, she still would require extensive and expensive I might add, training before certification. She really should have begun her training when she was a year old. Most service animals are raised for the purpose and are quite valuable."
She grinned and remarked with a wink, "I'm afraid I'm gonna have to disqualify Sasha for training and certification due to her age."
She smiled and said playfully, "Is that alright with you?"
Roger chuckled and replied, "I'm fairly certain we'll survive the disappointment."
He walked the woman to her minivan with Sasha right alongside them.
She grinned at him and said, "There is something I just have to do before I leave here."
Glancing at Sasha she asked, "May I?"
Roger chuckled and replied, "Go ahead, she loves a good scratching."
The woman grinned and proceeded to do just that.
She dug her fingers into Sasha's deep, dense fur and scratched and scratched, a smile upon her pretty face as she cooed and murmured in Sasha's furry ears.
Sasha in turn, enjoyed every moment of it with her long pink tongue lolling out of her great jaws, jaws that could crush the heaviest beef bone with ease.
Sasha turned her great head and shlurped the woman on her cheek, she giggled and said happily, "Yoou are sooo precious!"
She grinned at Roger and asked, "Are all of these guardian wolves sooo gettable?"
Roger laughed and said in reply, "That's been my experience with them. It's quite a sight seeing Jotun children playing among a pack of these huge wolves without a care in the world, for they are utterly safe."
She smiled and remarked, "Sasha would make an amazing therapy animal for abused children. She's so huge and gentle and soft to the touch. I know I'm supposed to be the dispassionate professional here but, I just had to put hands on her!"
Roger chuckled and replied, "I know what you mean. When I met her up in Canada we liked each other almost at once and I hated leaving her behind, but the airplane I'd borrowed was just way too small for her."
He smiled wistfully and caressed her furry ears. "I was very surprised when I saw her several months later half starved, she had come down from Canada to find me and had lost quite a lot of weight during her ordeal. I almost didn't recognize her and it took a long time for her to regain the weight she had lost."
He toyed with her velvety ears and said, "It's hard to say who rescued whom. I saved her from near starvation and she saved me from a horrific dog attack. I came to her rescue when she was attacked by the owner of the dog's husband and ended up getting shot for my troubles. I should have died but didn't. Throughout my recovery and therapy process, Sasha was there to support me if I needed to lean on her."
Continuing to play with Sasha's velvety ears, Roger smiled and said, "I really don't mind that she was disqualified from being a service dog, in fact I kinda prefer it that way. Selfishness I guess."
He grinned and remarked , "By next fall, she'll be ready to have her first litter of pups. There's a young male she seems to like at home. He's quite the handsome wolf I have to admit. They'll make a good couple. Freya and I will be flying up there in a couple of more months and taking her with us so they can mate."
Roger laughed when she shlurped his cheek and he said cheerfully, "That's right you big, silly girl! We'll bring both of you back here so you can raise your own family right here."
The woman chuckled and remarked, "I can't help wondering if Portland is ready to host its very own pack of giant wolves."
She grinned at him and they hugged briefly before she got into her van.
She leaned out the window and said, "Keep in touch okay? I wanna see those puppies!"
Moments later, her animal rescue sticker festooned van was disappearing around the corner below the neighbor's house.
Roger smiled at his giant lupine companion then he called out, "Dena! You can come out now, she's gone!"
He winked at Maribel who giggled, she was in plain sight for those who had the sight.
She had sat on a tree branch watching Roger, Sasha and the woman who conducted the evaluation of Sasha.
As a reward for behaving herself and not dropping twigs or tiny pebbles on the woman, Roger had given her a bit of chocolate.
Dena on the other hand, was plainly visible if she chose to be seen, so she had gone into hiding during the woman's visit.
She usually did so when strangers came around, no sense attracting unnecessary attention, Freya and Sasha did enough of that already.
Dena appeared on the front porch looking rather adorable in her made to fit designer jeans and turtleneck sweater.
Gifts from a fashion doll maker who had seen her at a fan convention when Freya had smuggled her in.
Once he got over his surprise at seeing her, he insisted on giving her some of his doll clothing as she was the right size for them.
She smiled at them as they climbed the stairs towards her while Maribel fluttered over his head, a bit of chocolate in her tiny hand.
They entered the house once built for a giant, a house once empty and now it was filled with life, laughter and love.
Roger glanced at the huge grandfather clock in the front hallway, Freya would be coming home soon and she would be hungry after her workout with the women's volleyball team at Portland U.
He entered the kitchen and saw Anna Karlsen ensconced in the breakfast nook, her laptop opened up and her work pulled up.
With tea set and a plate of nibblies, all readily to hand, Anna meant business.
Sitting across from her was Anita, now a semi permanent resident with her mom working overseas part of the year.
Anita was similarly arrayed with her own laptop and other writerly necessities, also readily to hand.
He briefly considered his own writing obligations, so rudely interrupted by a series of unfortunate events.
Putting them aside mentally, he reached for the oven door on the huge stove and peered inside to see the Dutch oven filled with all the ingredients for the pot roast he was making for their dinner.
He lifted the heavy lid and basted the hunk of beef sitting atop the veggies inside.
Everything was looking good so far.
He got out the pot he was going to make the mulled cider in.
It would be the perfect thing to drink with dinner on a cold winter's night.
Next, Roger went into the front parlour and carefully added some chunks of hardwood to the cheery fire.
The large salamander curled up in the glowing coals sleepily adjusted to the added bits of fresh wood and resumed his long winter's nap.
He would stay there until the springtime thaw and the ashes had to be cleaned out.
The kitchen timer sounded off and Roger turned off the massive oven.
When Freya got home it would have cooled enough to be ready to serve.
He started heating the cider and would add the spices in a few more minutes.
Not wishing to disturb the writers at their labors, he laid out the huge dining room table.
It and its chairs, had been a part of the original furnishings and were scaled for an eight foot tall person.
He returned to the kitchen and added the spices to the hot cider, after giving the mixture a few turns with a spoon, he noticed Sasha heading for the front door.
Sasha as always, took up her post by the front door, ready to greet the returning family member or to inspect any guests.
Roger smiled, that meant the car bringing Freya home had pulled into the long driveway.
Moments later, he heard her cheery, "Thank ye fur th' lift an' Ah'll see ye later!"
Seconds later, Sasha rose to her feet, her luxurious tail wagging.
The door opened and the giant form of Freya Sigurdsdottir came inside, she smiled at Sasha and said, "Well, aren't ye glad tae see me! Didnae yer daddy spoil ye enaw today?"
She hung her scarf and light jacket on the clothes tree next to the door and said, "Somethin' sure smells good!"
She greeted Roger with a warm hug and a brief kiss.
Sasha returned to her happy place near the fire in the front parlour where the salamander lay curled up among the glowing coals.
Soon dinner would be served and the hot cider drunk.
Everyone was home safe and sound, as it should be.
Sasha closed her golden eyes and slept.