As I looked up into her beautiful, yet dismissive face, I said, “I don’t know why my presence here has caused you distress. Stanley and I haven’t done anything to offend anyone.”
Giovanni explained, “I’m sure Xodia didn’t mean anything by her outburst. Xodia is the one who organised the Brimstone Mountain Festival.” He flashed a smile at Xodia. “She’s done a marvellous job. She’s so organised and methodical.”
Xodia thrust the used tissue back to me. I shook my head and told her to keep it. Xodia said, “I wanted to call it the Brimstone Mountain Games and to have a series of competitive activities, but the residents refused and said they wanted to have a mixture of other non-sporting events.” Her mouth twisted in disgust. “They want it to be fun.”
“Don’t you want it to be fun?” I asked.
“There’s no place for fun when it comes to physical competitions. The aim is to show everyone what you’re capable of and how far you can push yourself.” She glanced towards one of the stalls on the ice. “It is not to show how good you are at knitting scarves. Any imbecile can do that. But not everyone can throw a spear two hundred metres and pierce an apple right through its middle.” Her chin lifted. “I can do that with my eyes shut.”
Giovanni let out an uncertain laugh. “Yes, I’ve seen you practising. Xodia, not everyone is as athletic or energetic as you. We’ve discussed this many times at the council meetings. The Festival needs to be suitable for all residents.”
“That’s your opinion.” Xodia turned her brown eyes on me and sized me up. “Is this why you’re here? To put me in my place? To keep an eye on me to make sure nothing goes wrong?”
I shook my head. “No, nothing like that.” I hesitated and then decided to tell her the truth. “I was sent here by Blythe to keep an eye on things. We’ve had murders in Brimstone town and she’s concerned something like that could happen here. I’m not here to interfere with your Festival.”
Xodia continued to stare at me. I shifted to my other foot and then back again.
She suddenly blinked and said, “Fair enough. What makes you think there’s going to be a murder here?” A sudden laugh rang out from the ice and Xodia glowered at the offender. She barked, “Quiet! There’s no time for laughter! Get on with your work before I come out there and teach you a lesson in discipline.” She turned back to me. “I don’t think there will be any murders here. We’re like one, big happy family.”
I nodded. “So I see. I want to get to know the residents and to look for warning signs of unrest. I want to know how they feel about each other and if they’re harbouring any resentments which could turn into something else.”
Xodia placed a gloved hand on my chest and made me stumble backwards. She announced, “I’ve just decided that you can be a judge in the Festival. Then you can get to know everyone and be of some use at the same time. As you’re a stranger here, you’ll have an impartial view of the events. The judging will start in a few hours.” She removed her hand and I wondered briefly if she’d left a bruise on my chest.
I asked, “Is everyone taking part in the Festival?”
Annoyance flickered in Xodia’s eyes. She said darkly, “Everyone except Leonard.”
“Leonard?” I said.
Giovanni said, “He’s a yeti; a very shy yeti. He lives in a cave at the bottom of that mountain behind us.”
“A yeti?” I looked over at Stanley who was just as surprised as me. I was about to say that yetis were a myth and no one has ever found any evidence supporting their existence, but then I remembered where I was.
Xodia said, “He’s a fast runner. A really fast runner. I wanted him to enter the running competitions in the Festival, but he refused. I offered to train him daily and to improve his technique, but he said no. I even offered to look over his diet and to make it better. But he wouldn’t listen. He’s a stubborn fool. He’s not making the best of himself.”
Giovanni held up a hand. “I disagree. Leonard is a shy creature who prefers his own company.”
“Some creatures don’t know what’s best for them,” Xodia retorted. Her attention went to a group of smaller creatures who were clustered around a table on the ice. “Look at those elves out there! Chatting away to each other as if they were at a dinner party! This isn’t a time for chatting. They’re in competition with each other! I’ll put them straight.” Xodia looked back at me. “Don’t be late for the judging. I don’t want my schedule messed up.” She strode away with a purposeful look on her face and I felt sorry for the elves who were still chatting to each other unaware of Xodia marching towards them.
Giovanni shook his head at her departure. “She’s quite a character, isn’t she? Don’t be intimidated by her. And don’t show her any weakness. The best way to deal with Xodia is to stand up to her.”
I nodded. “I don’t understand why she’s living in such a cold climate. How long has she been here?”
“About six months. It’s clear she doesn’t like it. She’s tried to change every aspect of how this area is run. When she first arrived, she ordered everyone to get up at six a.m. for a five-mile run.” He smiled. “One of the older dwarves put her right on that score.”
Stanley jumped down from his chair and padded over to Giovanni. He said to him, “Tell us more about Leonard. I’ve never seen a yeti. Does he live far away?”
“Not that far.” Giovanni frowned. “Now that we’ve mentioned him, he has been acting out of character recently. He normally keeps to himself in the mountains. He loves running and I see him now and again darting through the snow. But these last few days, I’ve noticed him hanging around the edge of the ice as if he were looking for something or someone. I waved to him and invited him inside, but he scampered away. He looked as if he had something on his mind.”
Stanley gave me a hopeful look. “Cassia, perhaps we should go and see him and make sure he’s okay.”
I was just as curious as Stanley to meet a yeti so I said, “That sounds like an excellent idea. Giovanni, is it far to his home? I’ve left my broomstick in Gran’s cabin, but I can pop back for it.”
“It’s not far at all. Just a couple of miles. It’s a lovely walk.” His eyes twinkled. “I can come with you and keep you warm on the journey.”
I quickly looked away. “No, thank you. I can use a spell to keep Stanley and me warm.”
“That’s a shame,” Giovanni said softly. “Let me know if you change your mind.” He suddenly pulled me into his embrace and kissed me on the cheek. “Take care out there.”
Once he released me, he picked Stanley up and cuddled him. “You take good care of Cassia. And yourself.”
Stanley nodded. “I will do.”
Giovanni kept his eyes on us as we left the gazebo. When I looked over my shoulder at him, he smiled and waved enthusiastically.
Stanley trotted at my side and said, “Giovanni is friendly, isn’t he? I like him a lot.”
“He’s a tad too friendly,” I replied. I smiled down at Stanley. “I can’t believe we’re going to meet a yeti.”
“I hope he’s a friendly yeti,” Stanley said.
Chapter 8
Stanley chattered incessantly as we walked on the path that took us away from the gazebo and towards Leonard’s home.
“Do you think he’ll have white fur?” he asked. “No one knows for sure what colour the yeti’s fur is. It could be brown or grey. But you’d think if he lives in a cold climate that he’d have white fur like a polar bear.” He nodded to himself as he trotted along the path. “What do you think he eats? I hope it’s not small animals like rabbits or cats. Although, I don’t mind if he eats mice because you know how I feel about them.” He shivered at the mention of his most hated animal.
I offered my opinion, “Perhaps he’s a vegetarian? I’ve noticed that even though the trees are bare of leaves, there are plenty of berries on them.”
Stanley continued, “What do you think he’ll sound like? If he lives on his own he might not talk much.” He abruptly s
topped talking and looked around us. “When did we enter this forest?”
“A few minutes ago. The path is still here, but it’s covered in snow now.”
Stanley looked at the path in front of him and I saw his eyes widen. “Can I be the first one to run onto this snow, please? I’ve always wanted to do that when I’ve seen snow from the window at Esther’s house, but I’ve never had warm paws before.”
I waved my hand at him. “You go ahead. But don’t go off the path. I don’t like how dense the trees are becoming up ahead.” An icy breeze fluttered across my face. “I think the warming spell is wearing off. I’ll have to cast it again. I don’t want you getting frostbite in your paws.”
Stanley was already bounding along the snow-covered path. “I’m fine! I still feel warm! Look at my paw prints! Look at the pattern I’m making! This is fun.”
I felt another breeze cross my face. It was colder this time and I shivered. The warming spell on me was definitely wearing off, although, my hands were bare and they still felt warm.
A sudden cracking noise to my left startled me and I looked that way to see a small, bare tree swaying from side to side. I looked closer at it and could see something white caught in its lower branches. That was weird. I couldn’t take my eyes off the strange tree and noticed its black branches were now moving in a waving motion almost like hair.
A pair of black eyes abruptly opened in the branches and stared directly at me causing me to stumble to the side in fright.
The creature came into focus and I could see it was a snow-spirit. She had long, black hair that resembled twigs, her skin was pale blue and her white dress floated back and forth as she moved silently towards me.
I quickly thought back to the spell book that I’d seen in the log cabin and recalled the words that would make this creature vanish. Yes. I had them clear in my mind.
Before I could mutter a single word, a freezing blast shot my way and my words froze on my lips. A biting cold descended over my body and I was unable to move. The snow-spirit rushed towards me and hovered inches from my face. She opened her mouth and exhaled slowly. Her breath turned into a big black snowflake and it floated towards my mouth. I tried to blow it away but my mouth wouldn’t move. My lips were too cold to feel the snowflake as it landed on them. My terrified eyes took everything in.
The snow-spirit let out a little cackle. She hissed, “I’ve been following you, witch. I know who you are. You can’t do any magic now, can you? Not with your hands frozen like that.” She loomed closer and I could see tiny blue veins in her cheeks. She went on, “I know why you’re here. There’s going to be a murder. Oh, yes, Cassia Winter, there’s going to be a murder. But will it be yours?” She gave me a slow, evil smile which would have sent shivers through me if I weren’t already frozen. “Or will it be your cat’s?” She placed a finger to her lips and looked over at Stanley.
I couldn’t move my head, but from the corner of my eye, I could see Stanley moving backwards across the snow and shaking his head from side to side. He looked like he was trying to moonwalk like Michael Jackson. I pushed all terrified thoughts from my head and concentrated on the words of the spell. I didn’t have to say them out loud, I could mentally focus on them instead. What was the first part of the spell again? I couldn’t remember now. My brain felt as if it were going to sleep.
The snow-spirit moved silently over the snow towards my unsuspecting friend who was now lying on the snow on his back and attempting to make a snow angel.
The part of my brain that was still awake urged the other part to wake up. What was the first part of the spell? Concentrate! Don’t look at Stanley or that evil creature! I closed my eyes and tried to remember the exact words. They were coming to me now.
The loud cackle that the snow-spirit suddenly emitted made my eyes snap open. She was holding Stanley up and was about to breathe on him.
A monstrous-sized creature shot out of the trees and landed on the path in front of the snow-spirit. It opened its huge mouth and let out a thunderous roar which sent the snow-spirit reeling backwards. The huge creature swiftly grabbed Stanley from her arms and roared at her again. The snow-spirit screamed and covered her ears with her thin, blue hands. A blizzard of snow whirled around her and she disappeared.
There was a sudden silence and my ears rang with the echo of the huge creature’s yells.
The creature strode over to me, pulled the black snowflake from my mouth and threw it to the ground in disgust. The words of Gran’s warming spell instantly dropped into my brain and I shouted them out far too loudly. The spell worked and the cold feeling left my body immediately.
Stanley was still in the creature’s arms and was staring up at it. “Are you Leonard?” he asked.
The creature nodded and gave Stanley a shy smile. His voice was deep as he replied, “I am. Are you okay? Did that snow-spirit hurt you?”
Stanley shook his head. “No. Are you really a yeti? How tall are you? I like your grey fur. It’s like mine. But I haven’t got brown eyebrows like you have.” Stanley reached up to touch Leonard on the chin. “And I haven’t got a little brown beard like this. I like it. I’m Stanley, by the way.”
Leonard said, “Pleased to meet you, Stanley. I like your fur too. Mine used to be white, but that was a long time ago.” He looked my way. “Are you okay? That snow-spirit is not supposed to be in this area. I don’t know how she got here. Are you hurt?”
“No, I’m fine, thank you.” I gazed at Leonard. He was magnificent. I’d guess his height to be nine or ten feet. His grey fur was thick and his hands and feet were enormous. He would look terrifying if it wasn’t for the friendly smile on his face. I said, “I’m Cassia. I’m a witch.”
Leonard nodded. “I know. I’ve met your gran before. How is she? I haven’t seen her for a while.”
“She’s fine, thank you.” I was no longer surprised at how many creatures knew Gran. “Leonard, I’ve been sent to this area because Gran thought there could be trouble here. Do you know of any trouble? Is anything bothering you that I should know about?”
Leonard looked down at Stanley in his arms and said quietly, “Yes, someone is bothering me, but I shouldn’t complain. I don’t want to waste your time.”
Stanley said, “You’re not wasting our time at all. We’d love to help you.”
Leonard’s brown eyebrows rose. “You’d do that? You’d help me?”
“Of course,” I answered. “Tell us everything.”
Leonard cast a nervous look over his shoulder. “I don’t want to talk here. Let’s go to my cave, if that’s okay with you? It’s not far.”
I nodded. “Stanley, would you like me to carry you?”
Stanley shot a hopeful glance at Leonard. The yeti picked up on his look and said, “I can carry you, Stanley. You feel nice in my arms. If that’s okay with you?”
In answer, Stanley rested his little head against Leonard’s arm and sighed happily. Leonard let out a rumble of a laugh and said, “It’s this way.”
I followed Leonard and wondered if I was doing the right thing by following this huge creature to his cave. But there was something comforting about Leonard and I didn’t have any misgivings at all about going with him.
I hoped my gut instincts about him were right.
Chapter 9
For every one stride that Leonard took, I had to take five. He was soon a good distance in front of me and I had to jog to keep up with him. I was tempted to ask him to carry me too.
It didn’t take us long to reach Leonard’s home and we came to a stop outside a cave opening.
Leonard said, “This is my home. It’s not much, but it’s mine. Do come inside.”
I followed Leonard into the cave and spotted a stone bed at one side complete with a stone pillow, and a stone table at the other side set with one chair. There was no other furniture in the cave.
Leonard took himself over to the stone bed, sat down and placed Stanley on his knee. Leonard’s tone was embarrassed as he said,
“I know it doesn’t look very homely, but this is all I need.” He indicated his hand towards the chair. “Take a seat.”
I did so and looked over at the friendly-faced yeti. I asked him, “How long have you lived here?”
Leonard considered the matter and replied, “Fifty, perhaps sixty years? I can’t quite remember. I feel that I’ve always lived here.”
Stanley looked around the cave and said, “I like it. It’s cosy.”
Leonard let out a deep chuckle. “I don’t spend much time in here. I’m always out running. I love the feel of the wind blowing through my fur as I race along. I’d run all day if I could, but I have to sleep and rest sometimes.” He very gently stroked Stanley’s back. “Do you like running?”
“Like Cassia, I only run when I have to,” Stanley replied.
I said to Leonard, “Do you want to talk about what’s bothering you now? If we can help in any way, we will do.”
Leonard sighed and looked towards the opening of the cave. He began, “It’s Xodia. She’s been pestering me a lot recently about that Festival she’s organised. She keeps telling me I should compete in the races, but I’ve told her I’m not interested. I run for the fun of it, not to compete with anyone else. I’ve told her that over and over again, but she won’t listen. She keeps turning up here and shouting at me. She’s very loud.”
I nodded. “I know, we’ve met her.”
Leonard shook his head sadly. “I just want to be left alone. Why can’t everyone see that? I just want to run and be left alone.”
I was surprised to see a tear rolling down his furry cheek. I immediately left my seat and went over to join him on the stone bed. I felt a slight draught around my legs as I lowered myself.
I said, “Do you want me to have a word with Xodia? As a justice witch, I think I have the authority to do something like that. If she’s becoming a nuisance to you, I can stop her.”
Leonard’s chin trembled and he gave me a nod.
Stanley snuggled closer to Leonard and said, “Don’t get upset. We’ll deal with Xodia.”
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