Margit Sandemo - The Ice People 23 - Rituals

She sat back down in her chair. “But you were lying just now.”

“I never lie.”

“Ha! It was your biggest lie. Vinga Tark is not all you desire in life. You also want Gråstensholm.”

“Yes, I do. But it comes in second place.”

“Well, then let’s start with second place! Then perhaps you’ll have more time to take pity on troublesome me later on.”

“Honestly, Vinga!” Heike said, smiling, as he rose to his full impressive height. She was always a little shocked at how commanding he looked. It was probably because of his shoulders. Those peculiar Ice People shoulders with the frightening, pointy bones turning upwards. And his narrow thighs and long, straight legs. His upper body and head seemed to tower above one so overwhelmingly.

She immediately got up and took a step towards him, afraid he might leave. “Another glass of wine?”

“In your presence? No thank you! I’d prefer to maintain my composure.”

“What a shame! Did you realize that you’ve never even so much as kissed me, Heike?”

“I’m perfectly aware of that. I hardly think of anything else.”

“Well, do it, then,” she said, standing as if glued to him and looking up at him with sparkling, pleading eyes.

He couldn’t stay serious. “It would be the beginning of the end for us, Vinga.”

“What end?” she hissed, hitting his chest with her small hand. “Whom would we be harming by having a nice time together?”

Heike grabbed her by the wrists and held her firmly, but he didn’t look at all angry; on the contrary, he laughed at her rage.

“I would be upset about it. I would never be able to forgive myself if I violated you.”

“We’re back to the goddess thing again,” she snorted. Then she grew affectionate and charming again. Oh, how well he knew all her tricks! “Heike,” she said in a persuasive voice. “We had such a wonderful time in that cart, didn’t we? It was the only time you ever gave in.”

“Yes, Vinga, it was a wonderful moment. One to remember for a lifetime.”

“It was, wasn’t it? I helped you and you helped me without either of us losing our virginity or chastity or whatever you call it. Oh, I have dreamed about it so many times! Longed for it. But now I’m forced to satisfy myself and that isn’t nearly as much fun.”

“Goodness, Vinga!” he gasped, shocked.

“Well, what did you expect? I told you I’ve grown up and that I love and desire you. And I wake up from wild dreams about you or I lie here in my loneliness, fantasizing about you being with me and thinking about what we’d be doing, and then I’m simply forced to liberate myself from my aching desire for you. Don’t you do that?”

Heike blushed.

“Don’t you?” she persisted.

“Oh, for heaven’s sake, Vinga, I thought I was the only one!”

“So you do! So is our confidence not mutual? Isn’t that the beautiful thing about it? That we can talk about everything?”

He could see that she was hurt. “Yes, of course we can, I just never dreamed that you also ... of course you are in my arms every night, Vinga! I press myself against the mattress, imagining that you are lying under me and ... No! We mustn’t play with fire!”

Child of nature that she was, she immediately beamed and didn’t demand anything more of him. Now she knew that they were on an equal footing. He placed his hands on her shoulders, stooped and kissed her on the forehead.

“Is that the best you can do?” she cooed.

“Yes, for the time being.”

“Well, at least that was promising. But couldn’t we at least repeat that wonderful moment in the cart, right here? Right now?”

“This time I wouldn’t be able to stop before it’s too late.”

“Wonderful!”

“Vinga, this is serious. Try to be a little more helpful, please!”

She pulled away. They sat down and felt less like talking.

“What about Gråstensholm, then?” she asked, her voice sounding a little tired, as though she were ashamed of her own insistence.

Heike could see that she felt stupid and humiliated, and he took her hand. “Dearest Vinga, may I say something without finding you in my arms before I’ve finished?”

“Just say it,” she said, indifferently.

“I love you more than I can express. And for that very reason, I am afraid of you. Think of the day when you find a man whom you really can love and marry. No, I don’t want to hear any protests: I’m doing the talking now! I still want to give you a deadline to find someone else. But if not, you should know that before the clock strikes midnight on your eighteenth birthday, you will find me lying in your bed – without mercy! If you still want me by that time, that is.”

Then she let out the most joyful and cheerful laugh, showering his hand with kisses. Vinga never held a grudge for long.

She sang at the top of her voice, “Come autumn, come autumn, we’ll be happy together!”

Heike couldn’t help laughing.

Then she curled up in the chair, her eyes sparkling. “Now I’m ready to talk about Gråstensholm.”

Heike helped himself to another glass of wine. He felt that he deserved it. Vinga still hadn’t finished her first glass and he had no intention of giving her more. He was, after all, her guardian!

He began, “Yes, as I said before, I have tried every conceivable solution. From now on Snivel is going to get what he asked for.”

Vinga lowered her voice. “The grey people?”

“Yes. I’m going to call on them now.”

“Do you really dare to?”

He hesitated for a moment. “I have been speaking a lot with our ... protectors.”

“Our four ancestors? How is it that I never see them?”

“Because you are an ordinary human.”

“I’m not ordinary at all!”

“No, you can say that again! But you are neither stricken nor chosen.”

“It’s not fair! That you can have so much fun but I can’t! Well, who are the four then? Aunt Ingrid, Great-great grandfather Ulvhedin ... young Trond and ... No.”

“Dida, the woman who lived long ago.”

“And they suggested that you call on the grey people?”

“No, they most certainly didn’t. They are warning me about them. But they will definitely help me if I take the next step into the unknown.”

“Heike, who are the grey people?”

“I can’t answer you definitely. You know that the grey ones served Ingrid when she was living alone at Gråstensholm: your mother, Elisabet, caught a glimpse of them every so often ...”

Vinga stared dreamily into space. “Aunt Ingrid called them the little people. But Mother said that they didn’t seem little at all – on the contrary!”

“Yes, and when Ulvhedin moved in with Ingrid the grey people stayed with them, for he was also one of the stricken. They were able to command the grey people. Ingrid doubts whether I would be capable of that.”

“I’m not. You are capable of everything. And you also have the mandrake!”

“Thank you for having such confidence in me. Sol was also familiar with the grey people, for they belonged to her world.”

“Yes, but what are they?”

Heike’s gaze grew distant. “They are all the creatures that live in a shadow world parallel to ours. They are many and various. They are the ones you catch glimpses of every so often out of the corner of your eye. They are the ones who hide themselves in the moonlight or in mysterious houses. They live in people’s belief in the spirit world; they may be good or evil, dangerous or helpful, happy or unhappy. They are the deceased who restlessly wander in a void because of something that happened when they died. Perhaps they were buried in unconsecrated ground, or there was something important they didn’t get the chance to do. They are demons, spirits of the abyss, elves, heavenly creatures, beings of the underworld, immortal ...”