Winter of the Ice Wizard - Mary Pope Osborne [7]
“It’s a good thing you read so much,” said Annie.
“Oh, look!” said Kathleen. “Hares and foxes!”
“Where?” said Annie.
“There!” Kathleen pointed into the dark distance. “Playing in the snow! And listen! Whistling swans—overhead, behind that cloud.”
“Wow,” said Annie.
Jack was amazed by Kathleen’s power to see and hear so many things. As before, the moonlit landscape seemed completely empty to him.
“Where are you steering us?” Annie asked Teddy.
“I have no idea!” said Teddy, laughing.
“We’re supposed to go to a curve of a bay to find the Norns,” said Annie.
“Then turn left and follow the swans!” said Kathleen, pointing across the snowy plain. “They are flying toward the sea!”
Teddy swerved the sleigh to the left. For a while, they bounced up and down over the snow. Then the ride grew smoother.
“We are on sea ice now!” said Kathleen. “Seals are beneath! I see their breathing holes! Perhaps we should stop.”
“Indeed!” said Teddy as they whizzed along. “But how?”
“Try tying a knot!” said Annie.
“Excellent idea!” said Teddy. “Jack?”
Jack yanked off his gloves. With cold, shaky fingers, he tied a knot in the string. The wind lessened a bit. The sleigh began to slow down. He tied another. The sail started to droop.
“Hooray!” said Annie.
Jack tied a third knot and the wind completely died away. The sleigh glided to a stop.
“Well done!” said Teddy.
“Thanks,” said Jack. He tucked the string back in his pocket and looked around. “I wonder if this is where the Norns live.”
“I will ask,” said Kathleen.
Ask who? thought Jack.
Kathleen climbed out of the sleigh. She walked over the sea ice, studying it closely. Then she stopped above a small hole.
Kathleen knelt down and spoke softly in selkie language. Then she put her ear close to the hole in the ice and listened.
A moment later, she stood up. “The seal told me the curve of the bay lies just beyond those sea rocks,” she said, pointing. “That is where we will find the Norns.”
“Great,” said Annie.
Jack, Annie, Teddy, and Kathleen crunched over the frozen sea under the bright moon. They walked through a narrow passage between the sea rocks. When they stepped out from the passage, they stopped.
“There ’tis,” said Teddy.
About fifty yards away was a large, snowy white mound. Smoke was coming from a chimney on top of the mound. Lantern light flickered from a small, round window.
“I know you must bargain for the Ice Wizard’s eye alone,” said Teddy. “But I would at least like to take a peek at the Norns.”
He moved quietly to the window and peered into the house. The others joined him. They saw a large fire burning on a hearth. In its rosy glow, three strange creatures were weaving at a big loom. Jack caught his breath. Their appearance was shocking.
The three Sisters of Fate were as skinny as skeletons. They all had straggly hair, long noses, and huge, bulging eyes. Their crooked, bony fingers fluttered over a large tapestry. Around the room other tapestries were stacked to the ceiling.
“They look like witches in a fairy tale,” whispered Annie.
“Aye, but they are not witches,” said Teddy. “Every cloth they weave is the history of a life.”
“Wow,” said Annie.
“Well, good luck,” said Teddy. “Kathleen and I will wait out here while you go inside and ask for the wizard’s eye.”
Suddenly a terrible howl pierced the silence.
“Yikes!” said Annie.
“The wolves!” said Kathleen.
Teddy hurried to the door and threw it open. “Everyone inside!” he said.
And all four of them scrambled into the House of the Norns.
Teddy slammed the door against the wolves. Jack caught his breath.
“Welcome!” the three Norns said in unison. They all looked exactly alike, except they wore gowns of different colors—blue, brown, and gray.
“How are you, Jack, Annie, Teddy, and Kathleen?” said the blue Norn.
“We’re good now,” said Annie.
Jack was amazed that the Norns knew all their names. Despite their strange appearance, their friendly smiles and twinkling eyes put him at ease. In their cozy house, he began to feel warm for