by Joanne Vruno
“I will, Grandma. Keep warm and safe. We’ll shovel you out tomorrow,” I said, and with that we said our goodbyes.
“Grandma said not to worry about her,” I told my parents as I walked back to the kitchen. “She’s going to spend the day watching movies and drinking her holiday glogg.” I smiled. Glogg was a spiced hot drink from Sweden, and Grandma bought bottles of it every year at this time from Lunds & Byerlys to keep up the tradition. Sometimes she added wine to it for her, Mom, and Dad.
“Hmm . . . glogg does sound good,” said Mom. “Too bad we don’t have any bottles of it here. I guess we’ll have to settle on hot chocolate. Anybody want some? I have marshmallows.”
“I’m in,” I said.
“Me, too!” said Emily, entering the kitchen still rubbing her eyes.
“It’s a perfect baking day. I know that sounds foolish with all the cookies in the house, but hot cinnamon rolls sound good for a day like today. I’m going to make some dough after the hot chocolate’s done,” said Mom.
“Snow days are something I could get used to,” said Dad as we all smiled at him. “Hey, girls, let’s go downstairs and check the snow totals this morning . . . come on, it’ll be fun.”
We all headed to the basement to watch the news about the snowfall, which was on all the major channels. I was happy to see it was scheduled to stop by two o’clock. Hopefully that meant the plows could get through to at least the main streets and enough of the side streets so Mom and Dad could go to work, and Emily and I could go to Grandma’s house.
“I wonder if we’ll get out tomorrow, Beth. Look at the totals,” said Dad to Mom as she came downstairs and sat next to him on the couch.
“It’s going to be a huge cleanup! If the main roads are clear but not the side roads like ours, we’ll be home for another day. At least most people will have some holiday leftovers. I always worry about the elderly with storms like this. It’s good your mom’s fine,” said Mom as she watched the TV screen. “Look at the state map! We’re not even in the largest snowfall area. Check out St. Cloud!”
“Well, we got the white Christmas we were wishing for,” smiled Emily, who was drawn into the excitement.
I’d be excited, too, if it wasn’t that I felt Grandma needed me. With all this snow, at least the wolf’s path was gone. The dwarfs tracking him wouldn’t be able to follow it. That knowledge made the snowfall start to seem fun to me.
“How about we all cozy up and lay around this morning as we watch the new Captain America movie? I cannot wait to see what happens! Are you ladies up for that?” asked Dad as he stood to put the movie into the DVD player.
I noticed Enar and Elsa made it downstairs and were sitting on the floor on the side of the couch when Emily turned off the lights to make it a movie theatre. I was glad they had joined us, even though Mom and Dad had no idea they were there.
Chapter 15
By two o’clock, Dad, Emily, and I were out shoveling. Small flakes were still falling as we opened the garage door to tackle the snow. The whole world was covered in a pristine white blanket. Not one footprint or car tire mark was visible. The pine tree branches were hanging down with the snow’s weight. Branches on the other trees had snow outlining them. It was a very magical scene.
“We’ll have to get a camera out here later and get some pictures of you two and the snow to mark it in history,” said Dad as he handed us shovels. “Like I said inside, this kind of a snowfall only comes once or twice in one’s lifetime here. I guess, though, it is quite common by the Great Lakes region.” He added, “Take layers off as you shovel or you’ll work too hard.” Dad demonstrated how not to hurt ourselves with too-heavy loads of snow on our shovels.
The three of us made a line of attack. Usually we would have one working by the garage, one at the end of the driveway, and one in the middle, but not today. Nobody could make it through the snow yet. It was too deep.
After shoveling for an hour Emily gave up and headed inside. Dad and I stayed, determined to make it to the road, while Chica leapt around in the edges. Only once did she venture farther, and Dad had to rescue her. It wasn’t a clean shoveling job, but at least we had made a major dent in it when Dad suggested we take a break. I was glad he called it.
Mom had made some turkey soup to warm us up when we came in. Emily had taken a bath to warm up and was trying to stay away from the wet dog, who wanted her attention. Dad and I soon changed out of our wet clothes, too. I chose to wrap myself up in my bathrobe until after we ate while Dad put on some of his workout sweats to warm up in.
We all sat down and started in on the soup, which was so good. The oven buzzer went off and Mom got up and went into the kitchen.
“You guys did a major job on the driveway. Now we just need the snow to quit. It looks like it’s started up again and is getting heavier,” said Mom, looking out the kitchen window. She turned toward the oven and lifted out the cinnamon rolls. She spooned glaze over them before returning to the table. “We’ll just need them cool down some before we dig into them.”
“They smell great!” I said as I looked out the window. It was looking less likely I was going to make it to Grandma’s tomorrow.
“Beth, the soup is just what we needed. Thanks,” said Dad.
When I finished my soup I announced, “I think I’m going to take a bath to warm up. Even after the soup, my legs still feel cold.”
“No cinnamon rolls?” asked Dad.
“Mom, I can count on you to save one for me, right?” I asked.
“Of course. I’m sure I can save you at least two from your Dad and sister,” winked Mom.
I quickly grabbed some clean clothes and hurried to the bathroom. I started the bath water while I changed out of my robe and into the clothes. When the tub was full of hot water, I made sure the door was locked and poofed myself to Grandma’s house.
“Aly, how were you able to get away?” asked Grandma when I appeared in her living room.
“They all think I’m taking a bath right now. Is the wolf all right?”
“He was in a fight with a dwarf not far away from here. I think the scent we sent down the river may have ended up near him. He told Fen about the encounter. He hasn’t spoken to me yet. I tried patching up the cuts as well as I could with antiseptic and magic. He’s weak, but I think he’ll recover fine.”
“Was it the same dwarfs we sent away?” I asked.
“It may be, but we’re not sure. The timing seems a bit off. He traveled the river back, hoping to trick the dwarfs as he searched for any sign of Fen. When he got a whiff of Fen’s scent he followed it to your house and collapsed under the tree. He was there throughout the night,” said Grandma.
“So that’s why Dad didn’t see him. He was covered with snow. I saw some movement there, which made me focus in on him. Can I see him?” I asked.
“With the wolf scent so strong with two giant wolves, your parents might smell it through a bathroom door. I think it’s better you don’t. But come to the garage door with me and send the scent away again. Even with magic, it’s really strong and may not be confined to the yard anymore,” said Grandma.
I followed her to the garage and through the open door we magically sent the wolf scent away. I knew I couldn’t risk staying any longer, even though I wanted to. I said my goodbyes and returned to the bathroom. I stripped down and climbed into the tub. The water was still really hot. I sighed with the knowledge I hadn’t been gone very long. Even though I wanted to stay in the warm water, I didn’t. I felt I couldn’t risk the time factor.
When I stepped out of the bathroom, Mom surprised me when she commented, “That sure was a short bath. Sit down and have some rolls while they’re still nice and warm.”
I smiled to myself as I realized I had totally mastered time travel. In the past I could never quite achieve it, always returning a few minutes later th
an I meant to. Lately though, I knew I was getting close to the exact same time and today I felt confident I’d done it.
I sat down and slowly ate the two cinnamon rolls Mom set aside for me. They were warm, sweet, and delicious. I had always loved Mom’s homemade rolls. Today they seemed extra special.
Just when I finished, Mom showed up with a twelve-thousand-piece puzzle. “Do you think this year we can finish it?”
For three Christmases we had started this puzzle of a Thomas Kinkaid painting but had never completely finished it. Today did seem like the right time to do it.
“I’m in. How about you, Emily?” I asked. Dad was snoozing in the recliner at that moment. Emily came over and we started the task. As we worked, I decided being snowed in was great family time.
Chapter 16
The third day after Christmas, Emily and I made it to Grandma’s house. We both let out a sigh when we arrived and found a neighbor had plowed her out. We were so tired of shoveling. The weather forecaster on television had finally announced that the total snowfall was twenty-six inches. Not as big as the Halloween storm, but close.
Grandma was pleased to have us there again. Mom had us stop at the grocery store on our way to pick up some food for all of us. She told Grandma she didn’t want her out driving until all the streets were clear and the groceries should last her for at least four days. Sometimes I think Mom tried to figure out ways to repay Grandma for all her babysitting, because Grandma refused any payment otherewise.
As Mom left, Grandma stated, “That was nice of your mom, but we’ll still need to go to the grocery store for dog food. Those wolves eat such large quantities that I’m almost out!”
“We promise not to let Mom know,” laughed Emily.
“Can we see them?” I asked.
“Yes, but after hearing from your parents about how you two smelled, I think you should change into some of my clothes. I can throw them into my washer without your parents getting suspicious. If I keep sending you home smelling of wolf, your mom will wonder if I’m cleaning my home. I don’t want her to investigate right now. I’m not sure the wolves are invisible to humans without magic. Your Dad could hear the howl, so I think they’d be able to see the wolves, too.”
“You’re right. I thought maybe Dad couldn’t see the wolf because I noticed it under the tree when it moved. Then I realized it would have been covered with snow after spending the night there, and when it moved the snow fell off of it. I moved it so quickly, Dad didn’t have a second chance to spot it. Do you think that’s because it’s only part magical?” I asked.
“That might be it. Fenrir and his ancestors, Skoll and Hati, were the only magical wolves in Norse mythology. Odin had two wolves, Geri and Freki, but they never seemed to have magical abilities. They were used for added protection for Odin,” Grandma informed us. “We know Fen has some magic in him to be able to speak to us, but we don’t know if he has other magical abilities. Fir hasn’t spoken to me yet, so I have no idea what magical abilities he may have. He still needs time to trust us. Fen took to you, Aly, maybe because you brought him here to safety and helped heal him. Fir may know of you through Fen now, so maybe he’ll feel safe with you, too. It’ll be interesting to find out,” finisehed Grandma, handing us old clothes of hers.
Emily drowned in all of the clothes. We helped her roll up the sleeves and pants, and Grandma pinned both of our pants with safety pins to hold them up. We looked ridiculous but nobody outside of Grandma’s house or yard would see us.
We entered the backyard side by side. Fen was lying next to his brother, guarding the door of the tent. Grandma must have kept brushing the snow off the top because it was clean. I knew from experience tents were not meant to hold heavy loads after they’re set up. Once we had decided to let our wet clothes lie on the roof of our tent to dry in the sun after a strong rain, and within minutes our tent collapsed. If wet clothes could do that, I could only imagine what a heavy snowfall could do. Poor Grandma. She must have been extra busy taking care of everything here while we lounged at our house. I was glad she had help from her tomtes and gnomes.
Fen rose and walked over to us, rubbing against us both. “Sorry we couldn’t come sooner,” I said. “How’s your brother? I know he was injured. We found blood in the snow where he was under the tree by our house.”
Both Emily and I heard Fen’s response in our heads. He has a deep cut in his shoulder and some smaller ones on his back. I still don’t know how he made it to you alive, but I’m glad he did.
“It must have been your scent that allowed him to find me,” I said, petting Fen’s head and giving him a hug.
Emily took it upon herself to approach Fir. She walked into the tent and sat down next to him. Emily, be careful. Remember he’s wild and may not trust humans, I telepathically spoke to her.
I looked toward Fen for his reaction, which was calm.
“See, Aly, he’s just as sweet as Fen,” said Emily out loud. “You know we wouldn’t harm you, don’t you? You see, we help injured creatures. You’re safe with us.”
He knows that, Emily. He’s just quieter than I am, Fen said telepathically so all of us could hear. Give him time, and he’ll tell us all about what happened to him.
Emily reached out and pet the top of Fir’s head. She felt a bump behind his ear and automatically held her hand over it and quickly healed it. That was the first time I had witnessed Emily use her healing power. I knew she had it in her after healing me in the autumn when I was hurt in the hockey game, but I never saw her applying it to others.
The wolf lifted his head and looked straight into Emily’s eyes in surprise. As Emily smiled toward the wolf, he licked her hand.
A thought came to me and I went quickly inside to get Grandma. Soon Fir was surrounded by the three of us. We informed Emily how to perform the magic as all three of us started at Fir’s head and passed our hands over his entire body, healing every inch of the wolf.
“How do you feel now?” asked Grandma.
The wolf stood and moved around in the snow as we all watched. Soon he turned to us and asked in our heads, Are you like Queen Elin?
“Kind of,” said Grandma. “We were gifted with powers from her brother, King Klas. From all I’ve heard about Queen Elin, we’re not nearly as powerful as she is. Our purpose in life is to keep light elves safe. We three are guardians.”
Emily looked at Grandma with surprise and happiness. She was included as a full guardian for the first time though she hadn’t acquired all her magic yet.
Guardians, brother. We were never told of guardians, said Fir to Fen.
It seems King Klas added more protection for light elves, said Fen with a smile. Imagine how shocked a dwarf would be up against one of these humans.
I smiled at Fen as I said, “Most the time they don’t even know what hit them. They just reappear someplace new without a memory of where they came from. That must really shock them!”
Reappear? questioned Fen.
“Just like light elves, we don’t take lives, but we move our enemies and erase their memory of their past,” explained Grandma.
You just moved all the dwarfs you went up against last week? asked Fen.
“Yes, and also wiped away any memory of where they were and of you. None of them will remember any of it. Grandma,” I said, looking straight at her, “do they remember they were hunting light elves, then?”
“Aly, I never thought of that. They wouldn’t remember. Their memories are void of where they were, why they were there, and who they’d met! Until they run into another dwarf or rock elf, they’d think they were just traveling through an area or out hunting.”
Grandma and I looked at each other as if reading each other’s mind. We both knew this needed to be addressed with our light elves, tomtes, and gnomes. We needed a meeting.
“What are you two thinking
?” asked Emily. “You look as though you’re in shock!”
Both of us were brought back into reality. “We just learned something today and have to think about it,” I said. Emily and the wolves were looking at us with concern.
“So, Fir, how many dwarfs attacked you?” I asked, trying to change the subject. I didn’t want to worry the two wolves we were trying to befriend and I didn’t know if they could read our minds, so changing the subject seemed the safest course.
Fir took a while to answer me as he watched my face carefully. There were three, he finally said. They trapped me, and I fought my way free. I traveled as fast and as hard and for as long as my body could, but by the time I caught Fen’s scent I was barely able to move. I hid until darkness came and then slowly followed it. When the snow came I knew I might lose my direction but at that moment all I could do was find shelter under a tree. I had no idea I had picked the right tree.
“If it weren’t for our dog, Chica, I might not have found you,” I admitted. “She can sense creatures who aren’t part of the group she’s familiar with. She went nuts barking until I transported you here. We were just lucky my dad didn’t notice you. Our parents can’t know of our powers. We need you two to keep our secret, too. It’s fine to tell Queen Elin someday when you get home. Right, Grandma?” I asked, looking for confirmation.
“Yes, I feel all right with her knowing. After all, her brother gave us these powers,” replied Grandma. “I think I should make you two some food, and Fir should still rest up a bit. Girls, you should come in soon.”
Grandma made her way inside the house.
“Fir, it was nice to meet you,” I said. “I know Fen will take care of you when we leave.” I gave Fen a hug and received a wet lick back. “I’m glad you have your brother back.” I patted the wolf’s head as I left the yard.