The Snow Queen, Part 4

It took several days, but the tauntaun seemed to know where he was going. The woods thinned out the next day, then ended all together. They were in a sparkling world of ice cliffs and snow mountains, surrounded by nothing but blinding whiteness. A blizzard whipped around their faces, causing Leia to pull up the fur wrap she'd taken from the robbers' castle around all but her eyes. It didn't seem to faze the tauntaun, which just kept running.

The shaggy beast finally stopped in front of a great gate made of pearly crystal that seemed to go on for miles. It opened with a creak as a larger sleigh trimmed with silver and fine white crystal trotted out, pulled by six tauntaun that were easily twice the size of their friend. Leia observed the slender silhouette of a woman wrapped in white velvet and fur seated in the back of the vehicle. The gates were left open, just a tiny bit.

“That must be her.” Leia peered out first. “Looks like it should be ok. We just have to find Luke and get out of here.”

“Easier said than done. Chewie,” Han gave his buddy a nudge, “go open those gates.” Han took the reins, driving the repulsor-sleigh into the courtyard as soon as his big furry friend pushed them aside. He drove the tauntaun into a smaller building that held parts and looked like it normally housed Frostra's sleigh. Leia gave their friend a pat and the last of the dried meat before they crept through the thick blocks of ice that passed for doors.

The Snow Queen's castle was massive and very cold. Leia couldn't help thinking it was also very lonely. No wonder Frostra had wanted Luke to remain with her. There was barely anything in the sharp icicle towers but ice and snow. No pictures or maps or knick-knacks, or even much furniture. Their footsteps squeaked on icy crystal floors, and they made the only noise in the entire castle other than the howling wind outside. It was beautiful and as empty as a tomb.

“Is it colder in here than out here,” Han grumbled, “or is it just me?” Chewie barked, holding out his bowcaster. “Yeah, I don't like this either, buddy. It seems kind of strange that they just abandoned the place like this.”

Leia tugged at her fur wrap. Even it couldn't keep out the chill that seeped into her bones. “We'll keep looking. Luke has to be here somewhere. I didn't see him in the sleigh. Besides, I can feel him.”

“I can feel it?” Han scrunched up his nose. “What the hell does that mean, Your Worship?”

They stepped into the largest room, likely the Queen's throne room, from the dully glowing seat made of blue ice in the back. “I know because...” She'd no sooner opened her mouth than a familiar figure hunched next to the chair, grumbling over a pile of colored tiles, came into view. “Luke!”

He didn't even look up at the sound of his name, or when Leia rushed to his side. “Luke, are you ok? What happened?” She gasped when he looked up at her. “Your skin...”

“Kid...Luke?” Han rushed over with Chewie, only to stop short when he saw his friend. “Kid, you're blue. As in bright blue. As in, not a color that normally occurs in humans blue.” Chewie's long, low growl was full of concern. His friend rolled his eyes. “I'm well aware that the blue tint is a good sign that he should have frozen to death by now. What I'd like to know is, how did he stay alive?”

Luke finally looked away from his tiles...and the icy lack of emotion in his eyes shocked Leia more than the anger in his expression. “Who are you? Who let you in? Go away, or I'll get my Snow Queen to turn you all into snowflakes!”

“Luke, it's us!” Leia tried to blink back the tears in her eyes. “Don't you know us? What has she done to you?”

“Nothing. I don't know you, and I don't care.” Luke shoved her into the snow. “Go away! I'm busy. I have to solve this before Queen Frostra returns from the City.”

“Solve what?” Han frowned. “Luke, what's going on?” He nodded at the door. “Chewie, go keep a look out for that Snow Queen. We'll take care of the kid.” Chewie barked again, but he did return to the door, giving Luke one last concerned growl as he did.

“Luke, please!” Leia threw her fur cloak around him. “We've come all this way to rescue you!”

“I don't need rescuing.” The frozen youth didn't even look at her. “I need you to go away, so I can figure this out.”

Han dropped to his knees on his other side. “Looks tough, kid. I used to be pretty good at puzzles. Maybe Her Worship and I can help you out.”

Luke's blue eyes narrowed at him. “I don't need anyone's help.”

“I'm not bad with puzzles, either. I used to do them all the time when I lived...well, when I had the time for things like that.” Leia pushed one of the scarlet tiles to the edges, where it settled into the ice with a click. “Looks like this is where this piece goes.”

Han's finger moved a larger, more jagged red piece against it. “And this one goes here.”

“And I think this one goes here.” The young Jedi gave Leia his first small smile she'd seen since they arrived. He moved another red one against Han's. “And I think this one goes here.”

It took them nearly a hour of pushing tiles across ice on their knees, but the trio finally figured out the puzzle. Luke got the last green piece into place. “It's words,” he exclaimed. “'Friendship melts the ice of the universe and warms the heart and soul of the galaxy.”

“Luke?” The princess put an arm around her friend as he started crying. “Luke, are you ok?”

“Yeah. I think...I am now.” As the tears gushed down Luke's cheeks, they gradually regained their regular pinkish-tan color. His eyes deepened to sky blue and lost the icy indifference. When he blinked, she noticed a bit of glass flutter from his eye, where it had been lodged. “Oh Leia, what have I done? What did I do?” He flung himself into her arms, sobbing heavily on her shoulder.

“I don't think it's entirely your fault, kid.” Han brushed the sliver of glass from his eye. “You had this stuck in there. Probably those dumb trolls and their tricks.”

Leia nodded. “That's what we heard when we were at Lady Gerda's. We were right at the foot of the mountain. Most trolls live in caves in mountains and hills. They may have been right behind us.”

“Can we go home now?” Luke was shivering from top to bottom in Leia's arms. “I'm freezing! I don't think I'll ever get warm. Besides, the Queen told me I would be my own master if I solved the puzzle. She didn't say anything about having help to do it.”

“I still haven't met Queen Frostra.” She rubbed her hands as the three of them got to their feet. “I need to talk to her about joining the Alliance. That's why we came in the first place.”

They didn't hear Chewie's bark and the sound of feet in icy armor until it was in back of them. “She's here now, Your Highness.” They all whirled around...to find themselves face-to-face with Queen Frostra, in all her pale crystal and velvet magnificence. The head of Norweden was even more icily gorgeous than in her holo-portrait. Her creamy white waves went down her back, framing long lashes and a crown made of thin icicles. “I went to the City and the Summer Lands to find you, but it seems you've already found my home.”

“Your Majesty.” Leia bowed before her. “We're here to ask only two things. One, that you restore Commander Skywalker to us. And two, that you consider joining the Rebel Alliance. Commander Skywalker is of absolute importance to our mission, and we need all the manpower, supplies, and weapons we can get.”

Frostra took Luke's hand, giving him her thin smile. “My boy, I told you that when you solved the puzzle, you would be your own master. You may do whatever you wish.” A soft sigh escaped her lips. “I wish I could keep you, but I talked to Zoma when I was out. I just came back from her home, in fact. I think it's time we both stopped hiding. We'd be less lonely if we spent more time among our people and with Lady Gerda and the other members of the court and less in our own little worlds.”

“So,” the princess pushed, “you'll join us?”

Frostra nodded. “I'll have to talk to my Court and my sisters and brothers-in-law to make it official, but yes. Norweden needs to stop hiding, too. It'll be worth the losses if we can help you eliminate people like Vader and his Emperor who don't understand how important people are to each other.”

“One more thing, Your Coldness.” Han showed her the sliver of glass. “We think there's trolls in the mountains behind Lady Gerda's manor house who played a little trick on the ki...Commander Skywalker. That's what brought us up here in the first place. We came after him.”

Chewie nodded with a curt bark as he lifted his bowcaster. Han gave her his lopsided smirk. “Yeah, Your Frostiness, we can take care of those guys, if you want us to. There were a bunch of robbers back in the woods that we wouldn't mind taking care of, either.”

“That will be completely unnecessary, Captain Solo.” Frostra gave him a little smile of her own. “I'll handle both the trolls and the robbers.”

“We took the tauntaun pulling our repulsor-sleigh from the robbers.” Leia waved her hand in the direction of the stable. “I make an offering of him. The repulsor-sleigh really belongs to Lady Gerda, but the tauntaun is ours.”

“I'll set him free in the wild woods.” Frostra's smile was much gentler with Leia. “I have plenty of my own tauntauns, and I'm sure he'd rather be among his own kind.” She swept towards the door. “But for now, we need to talk to my court and deal with these miscreants you've mentioned.

Indeed, that is how it happened. Queen Frostra and twenty of her guards drove them in their repulsor-sleigh and the Queen's, keeping the tauntaun hitched until they reached the snowy woods again. Han unhitched him there, letting him give him a slobbering kiss (to the amusement of the others) before bounding into the brush.

They stopped just outside the robbers' castle. The guards turned the Queen's carriage over to the courtyard. “Be careful, men,” Frostra warned them. “Princess Leia and her friends say these people are full of tricks, but they're also likely to be quite inebriated. Bring them to the royal jail in the City. We'll annex this building and find something to do with it, perhaps make it a royal zoo or nature preserve, so no other thieves try to take it as their home or bother the local wildlife.”

They continued on to Herfa and Delent's home. They rushed out to greet them the moment they pulled into their courtyard. “We're so glad to see you again!” Herfa gave Leia a hug. “We were sure you'd perished, but Frostra told us that you had gotten through safely.”

Delent had to blink several times when he saw Luke. “You do look like me!” the young prince exclaimed. “Only a bit shorter.”

“And you look like me!” Luke grinned. “I've never been told I look like royalty before!” The two were fast friends before they even went in the house, laughing and chatting about flying and flowers.

Herfa convinced them to stay for a few hours, just to warm themselves. She even managed to get Frostra inside, though she insisted on not sitting too close to the fire. “I'm glad you changed your mind, sister.” Herfa sipped her hot dewdrop fruit cider. “I think none of us can remain neutral in this war for much longer. It'll be worth dealing with Vader's wrath to stop them from taking over the rest of the galaxy.”

“I agree.” Frostra took her sister's hand and squeezed it kindly. “And Zoma and I promise to not hide so much anymore. I barely know my people, and she's even less familiar with them. We all rule this planet together.”

Her sister gave her a hug, nearly spilling her hot tea on her lap. “That's all I've ever wanted.”

Luke sniffled. Delent wiped his eyes with a woven handkerchief. Leia smiled at the two sisters. Han grumbled about having something in his eye before Chewie handed him one of the woven napkins and used another for his own wet eyes.

They stayed overnight, showering and dressing in new, warmer clothing that didn't smell like tauntaun, before taking off once again in the repulsor-sleigh. Frostra promised her sister that they'd sit down and have a longer talk with Zoma at the main government building in the City. Luke and Delent exchanged holo-addresses and made their own promises to get together again sometime.

It was two days later when they finally pulled into the stable at Lady Gerda's house. She came out to greet them, as lovely as ever in her blue velvet gown. “Welcome back, Your Highness, Commander, Captain and Navigator.” Gerda curtsied low before Frostra as Luke helped her out of the carriage. “Your Majesty. It's an honor to have you in my home again.”

“It's an honor to be back, Lady Gerda.” She gave her that mysterious little smile. “We have much to discuss, including joining the Alliance. But first,” slender fingers waved at the craggy hills behind them, “I have something I need to do in your backyard. It seems that you have a few miscreants causing trouble in the mountains behind your home.”

“Oh dear,” Gerda groaned, sounding remarkably to Leia like their droid C3P0, “what have those idiot trolls done this time?”

Han crossed his arms. “They were the reason Luke took off. Some glass got into his eye an' made him into a jerk.”

His young friend's cheeks turned a rosy scarlet. “I felt this piercing in my eye, and then...I couldn't feel. I didn't care about anything, or anyone. It was like...I couldn't love.”

“When you cried, Luke,” Frostra explained gently, “you washed that sliver away, along with the spell I put on your heart.” Luke glared at her, but she put up her hand. “I did that so you wouldn't freeze at my home. None of you could have survived for longer than the few hours you were at my domain if I hadn't. I do realize it was wrong to try to keep you like a pet now. I should probably find a tame tauntaun or kittane who can deal with the cold, or maybe take on a human apprentice to teach my secrets to.”

“I much admired your Jedi and their padawan/master system,” Frostra went on with a smile. “I hope you can bring them back someday. We need more learners and teachers in the galaxy.”

Luke returned her smile with his own sunshine grin. “I hope so too, Your Majesty.”

They were now in the backyards, facing the mountains. Chewie barked and pointed his bowcaster. They could see three blurry brown figures against the soft white snow. Their screeching arguments carried for miles and sounded like the wind howling.

“Hold on to your hats and each other.” Frostra put her hand to her lips. “I'll need a bit of snow magic to take care of them.” As she blew across her hand, the wind she created blasted across the yard, nearly knocking everyone over. It danced across the mountains, lifting up the trolls, and carrying them so far away, they would never be able to cause a living soul trouble again.

“Wow!” Luke let go of Leia and hurried over to her. “Can you teach me to do that?”

“Maybe.” Frostra took his arm, ignoring his shiver. “If you teach me how to handle a lightsaber. I've always wanted to learn to use one.”

Luke couldn't help smiling. “Sure!”

Leia grinned as Han and Chewie took her arms. “Looks like I have two scruffy-looking escorts,” she teased.

“Scruffy? Us?” Han gave her that famous lopsided grin as Chewie let out a whuffling laugh. “Nahh.”

They all laughed as they made their way through the snow back to Lady Gerda's home, occasionally stopping to throw a snowball at their backs or blow a bit of snow under their collars. Leia was glad they'd gained an ally and a friend...but more than that, she was glad she had Luke, and Chewie, and yes, even Han. She didn't know if they'd always be together, but they had each other now. That was what mattered.

The End