Storymania - Frost by Bernadette

Frost
Bernadette

Morning already?
My mind rattled a bit. I sat up, reaching for my cup of water at my table.
I drank, the cool water satisfying my thirst, and my dry throat, from snoring.
Wow, that was cold.
I throw off the covers, and get up, sighing. My teddy sits crooked on my pillows. I tuck my hair behind my ears and check my reflection in the mirror.
Oww!
I rasp as I clutch my throat. Some kind of burning sensation ran straight through.
I sat down, my head spinning.
It doesn’t go away, and I reach for my cup again.
I gulp it, and it fades.
Ahh. Thank goodness.
I get up again, stretching.
“Arrgh!” I screech. I draw my hands back to my throat.
My throat! It feels like it’s blocked!
I cough violently. Something light blue sparked from my mouth.
Ice?
I cough again. This time I catch it in my hand.
Ah, that’s better.
I look at the icicles in my hand; they catch the light, blue and purple, and sparkle back at me as if to say ‘Good morning’.
“Wow.” I breathe, getting up. I brush the icicles off my hand and walk to the window, overlooking the garden.
“I love winter.” I say, wiping the window with my pyjama sleeve.
Even for winter, getting ice in your throat isn’t normal.
“No, it isn’t.” I say aloud, glancing out the window.
“I guess Santa’s coming soon...” I said.
Just as I said that, I hear a noise coming from my cupboard. A faint scrabbling noise, as if something was trying to escape.
Hmm?
I walk to where the noise came from.
“Hello?” I ask, to the doors.
“Scree!” came a shrill voice, as the doors burst open, sending me flying backwards.
I hit the wall with a violent ‘Kafudd’.
I hope my parents didn’t hear that.
Argh.
I hold my head for a bit, then sit up to see a little creature, about my knee height, sitting like a dog, head tilted, looking straight back at me. It had little pointy ears, large, shiny, blue eyes, and dark blue braids, pale skin tinted with blue and tiny little lips. It seemed feminine.
“Scree?” It said, tilting its head the other way.
“Uh...” I mumbled, frost flying from my mouth.
It’s actually quite adorable.
“Wrenoodle?” It asked me, scrabbling to its feet and giggling.
“What? I can’t understand you!” I said, as it scuttled over to my drawer and pulled down my cup.
I’m surprised it can reach. What is it, anyway?
“Baadaa! Wrenoodle!” It said, pointing to the inside of the glass, then it darted up to my face and pointed to my mouth, saying ‘Baadaa!’
“Yes, I drank the water.” I said, nodding, and pointing to the glass and my mouth.
It sat, as if it was commanded to. Right on the spot. It tilted its head.
“De... de... Denkie?” It asked.
“Drink.” I stated.
“Dank!”
“Drink.”
“Drek!”
I sighed, and rolled over. It made a noise, like a dog whimpering.
“DREK!” It squealed.
“Yes, drink.” I said.
It came over and sat in front of my face. I grumble.
“Buh buh Izz Lend!” It squealed.
“Izz land?” I asked it.
It whimpered, nodding. It held the cup close to my face. “Rem.”
Then it pointed to the cup, then my mouth.
“You want me to drink it?” I asked it.
It sat, and tilted its head.
Maybe I should break it down.
“Drink again?” I asked.
“Aganie?”
“Again.” I say, annoyed.
“Agin.”
“Again.”
“Agin Drek.”
I nod, taking the cup. It giggles.
Remind me why I’m taking orders from a...a...what is it?
I put the cup down. “What are you?”
I point to the creature.
It wiggles its ears. “Alf.”
An Elf?
“Why are you here?” I asked it, putting the cup on my table and sitting on the bed.
I point to it, then the ground.
“Izz laaaaaaand!” It cries.
“What?” I said, more confused then I had been in my life.
“Unda!” It whimpers.
“What is Izz land?”
It sighs. “Den hera perkin strees.”
It starts signalling to me, then to the window. Then it points to the cup, then my mouth. It jumps up and down, squealing.
“What are you trying to say?” I asked it, frantically.
It jumps up even more, pointing over again to the window and me, and my cup.
I stand up, and pick up my cup. I drink a little bit of the water, and cough so my throat doesn’t get blocked up again. I put the cup back and see the elf’s reaction.
“I’m only 14, and you expect me to know what you’re trying to say?”
Its large eyes grow bigger, water, and it starts to cry.
Oh dear.
“I’m sorry; I didn’t want to make you sad!” I said, reaching out to comfort the little creature.
It turns, and stares at my arm. I look too.
“My arm is covered in frost!” I scream.
Just then I hear a knock at the door. “Julia, are you alright?”
The little elf runs and scrambles under the bed, making whimpering noises.
“Yeah, mum, I’m fine. I’m just getting dressed!” I say, trying to stop her from coming in.
“Is there something you want to tell me?” she asks, in a motherly tone.
Wow, mothers really can read minds.
“Actually,” said my mother, “There’s something I want to tell you.”
What?
“When you’re dressed, come to my bedroom.”
“Okay mum!” I said.
“Oooooh.” came a noise from under the bed.
The elf scrambled back out with one of my odd school socks. It nibbles it.
“That’s not to eat.” I take it and put it on my table. The elf giggles.
“Look, I don’t know where you came from, but I have a life to live.” I say.
The elf tilts its head.
I sigh. “So you...don’t want anyone else to know?”
The elf shakes its head. “Ga.”
“Well, you are gonna have to hide in my closet.” I said to it.
“Clo-set.”
“Very good!” I say, beaming. It darts into the closet and shuts the doors behind it.
I open the door and look down the hall.
Mum beckons me. I follow her into her bedroom. It smells of incense. Her dressing table is filled with makeup, potions and lotions of all sorts, and perfume.
“Here, sit on my bed.” she said.
I sit.
My mother opens the closet doors. I see her searching for something. Clothes fly everywhere.
Then she pulls out the most amazing dress I had ever seen.
It’s white, with gossamer lace edges. The dress has a large floral pattern on the front, and lots of snowflakes etched on the lace. The dress looks about ankle length. It looked like it would fit me.
“I was about your age,” she began, “When I first wore this dress.”
“It’s beautiful.”
“This is the dress that I wore, when I was an ice fairy.”
A what?!
My mum smiled when she saw my face.
“Have you met an elf?”
“Yeah...” I said, looking down.
“Don’t worry, I’m allowed to talk about it with you. Do you want me to tell you why it’s here?”
I nodded violently.
Of course! That’s what I’ve been trying to figure out for the last hour!
“Would you mind bringing it here? I haven’t seen an elf since I had you.”
“I’m not sure if it’ll let me.” I said, scratching my hair.
Mum sighs. “Say these words: ‘Gaaraa stooden koosh’ and it will be more than happy to co-operate.”
“Alright.” I say, opening the door, and walking back to my room.
“Wreh?” The elf peeked through the cupboard door.
“Umm, gaaraa stooden koosh.” I say, flatly.
It squeaks, flies out of the cupboard, and then scrabbles up my side and onto my shoulder.
Big, red scratches are left on my legs, and rips on my clothes make me grumble.
I walk to mums room, and I see a large object, a stick. It’s made of frost, but it never melts. The ends of the stick steam like crazy.
“Isn’t it adorable?” said mum, picking it up, tickling it, and it giggles.
“Yeah. What’s that?” I point to the stick.
“It’s a magic wand. For the ice fairies.”
“So can you tell my why it came?”
“These little guys have a world they call Ice Land. In Ice Land, there is a big tree, a Christmas tree. This tree is powered by the joy of the children when they receive presents. Now, though, Ice Land is falling, because some children do not get presents. This little elf was escaping...”
“So there are poor kids out there who get no presents for Christmas?” I ask.
“Yes. Unfortunately.”
“How do you know that you’re an ice fairy when you sleep?”
“Like you did. Ice forming when you drink water.”
“Where does Santa come into this?”
“He’s in charge of the whole colony.” Mum answers.
“Why didn’t I know about this before?”
“Because you have to reach a certain age and winter is the only time when a fairy works.”
The elf gets up on mum’s bed and starts to jump on it.
I sigh.
“You know, I can’t imagine not having a present for myself at Christmas.”
“Neither can I. The role of the fairies was to look after the elves.” She glances at the elf amusing itself. She laughs.
“Yes. Ice fairies work while the human side sleeps. It’s too late now. Unless...”
I perk up. “Unless what?”
“Unless the humans get involved...and buy gifts...for the children...”
“I don’t think there will be enough people willing to help!” I cried.
The elf stopped, and sat on the bed, and its eyes became wide again. Tears streamed down its face. It began to make sobbing noises that sounded like hiccups.
“Why is it crying?”
“Because it will lose Ice Land and all of its friends if we don’t do something.”
“There must be something we can do!” I said, sighing.
“Even if we do, it may not be enough. There are too many children that need presents. Two humans won’t be enough.” said mum, pulling me in, as she noticed I had tears in my eyes.
“I don’t want the elves to lose their land!” I gasped.
“I want kids to be able to know the joy of opening a present!”
“It’s up to the humans now. Us.” She said, releasing me.
Then she reached for the dress, and the wand, then put them back in her closet, for good.
The elf jumped into my lap, curled up, and whimpered.

Tell me, dear reader, would you help those children and save Ice Land from destruction?
Bring the warmth of giving back to the true meaning of Christmas.