Their village welcomed all sorts of people, anyway. Grofo himself was from the Kaale people and also Swedish. And it was all good - he honored both his roots and his country. That's how it was
here. Everyone was united by daily life, hard work, and helping each other out. (Well... everyone
except Roman.)
Like, their grandpa owned the sawmill - the same one where Suzy's mom, Petra, worked. And Rudolph's brother (Rudolph was Grofo's classmate) was an engineer at the chemical plant.
Everyone in town had their place. Everyone chipped in. And Grofo thought that was pretty cool.
Still... in Stockholm, there's that one stand - up bar. The one where he dreams of performing someday. With an actual audience and real laughs. Here? All he's got is a future full of boring, predictable stuff. And there was no way - no way - he wanted to float logs for a living. Hard pass.
Nobody said we're going - Suzy's voice was tight, like she was a little bummed no one took her side. - I was just sharing what happened. You guys can decide what to do with that info.
Grofo noticed the disappointment in her eyes, so he jumped in to cheer her up:
Hey, just 'because you didn't see the thing that guy pointed to doesn't mean it wasn't there. Maybe your vision was still messed up, or you were too freaked out to notice it. It could've been super tiny, like my brother's nose.
He pressed his middle finger against his thumb and pretended to flick Roman's nose, which made the guy whine again - classic. But Suzy chuckled, and that was exactly the win Grofo was going for.
You'll stay right here, - Grandpa said firmly. - In half an hour, I need to be at the sawmill to sort some stuff out, but after that, I'll be back, and then we'll all go there And don't even think about going to the lake without me! - He warned his grandkids, and even Suzy gave an obedient, guilty nod.
Grofo immediately exchanged a sly glance with Suzy. Grandpa caught it right away and acted like he snatched their looks mid - air and trapped them in his palm.
I can already tell you two troublemakers are planning to disobey me. Just remember- you'll have to deal with Grandma, and she's not going to forgive you as easily as I All it takes is one tearful 'I'll never do it again' and she'll melt. But her? Nah. Especially you, Roman! - He pointed a stern finger at his youngest grandson, whose eyes instantly welled up. What did I do, Grandpa? I'm the one who's trying to stop them from
Then keep doing Meanwhile, I've got to get ready. I'll patch the roof myself, since clearly no one around here's going to help me. -
Grumbling under his breath, Grandpa walked back into the house. Grofo practically bolted toward the lake. But first, he turned to Suzy.
You're really sure you saw it? -
She was admiring that magical city, and then saw the boy, as clear as you are now. And he pointed to an empty spot next to the big boulder. But there was nothing there.
So you're going there now? - Roman asked - Maybe don't? Or at least wait for Grandpa- he'd make it safer.
Grofo snorted and stomped his foot.
Why are you always like this? Don't you want to see something awesome? Maybe even step inside that city? Just think about it. Yeah, that'd be cool, I But I don't want to get dragged off by a lake ghost. That city's underwater, dude. - Roman grimaced like he had a mouthful of dental pain. Yeah, thought Not surprised. I'm not waiting for Grandpa- I'm going to check it out myself. And you, Suzy, should go rest. You've gotta be totally wiped out.
He secretly hoped she'd say no and join him instead, but the girl chose boring old common sense.
Okay, Suzy's going home. But you two, as soon as you're back- come over to her place right away. Or call. Or text. Just let her know how it goes. Deal! - Grofo practically shouted, and took off like a rocket- away from boring repairs, adult lectures, and constantly babysitting his brother. Though, okay, maybe he'd spoken too soon… I'm going with you, but I hate this kind of stuff! - puffed Roman, struggling to keep up with Grofo's fast pace. - You're dragging me into trouble again, just like with that alcoholic yeti
Grofo bit his lip to keep from laughing. That time, the local drunk Erik had passed out in the street, all tangled hair and a giant fur coat, and Grofo had told Roman it was a mountain yeti. Roman believed him instantly, started filming with his phone, dreaming of internet fame. In return, he got a drunken growl- which, honestly, could've been a real yeti too.
The forest drew near- or rather, the boys were rapidly pulling it closer with their fast legs. Nature's symphony mingled with the whiny buzz of a mosquito, expertly performed by Roman, who kept reminding Grofo how hopeless and dangerous this mission was. Grofo waved him off, then finally stuck his fingers in his ears.
He walked like that for a while, making it crystal clear that he'd had enough of his brother's whining. Roman usually didn't give up easily, but this time, he did- just pouting in silence. And so they made their way through the short forest trail Grofo hated with a passion. He despised the wild and dreamed of the capital.
The lights of Stockholm seemed way cooler than a squirrel choking on a nut.
Did Roman share his views? Hmm… truth be told, Grofo would've liked to take him along, even though the guy was free to do whatever he wanted. But… he really did care about that whiny little brother of his - the youngest heir to the Petulengro family. An older brother's got to look out for the younger one, even if the guy's constantly pointing at weird stuff…
Wait a sec… he's not pointing for no reason!
The moment they crossed the invisible line separating the forest from the lakeside, they realized they weren't alone with the mountains and the snow. Just ten steps away sat a nearly naked man, dressed only in tight boxer briefs like the kind sports stars wear in flashy commercials.
He definitely didn't look like an athlete though - he was an old guy with a saggy belly, long hair tied back with a thick headband, and big bushy mustaches hanging down like vines to his chin.
That's who Roman was pointing at.
The old man sat cross - legged, eyes closed, hands resting on his chest. Every now and then he'd moan loudly:
The ice is part of It grows in our hearts, in our souls, and in our worm - ridden brains, like meadowsweet. If you gather it all together - you can freeze your subconscious and forget them… forget her… forget anyone, 'cause cold fades the colors of pain. - Ooooh, spooky, - Grofo snorted and gave a shove to the trembling Roman, who stood frozen and just stared at the creepy - Move it, or the monster from the depths is gonna rise up and gobble you whole! -
To drive his point home, Grofo grabbed Roman's side, making him squeal and flail his arms like a scared bird.
Fool! What're you doing?! Let's get outta here - this Drury the Murky dude is super sketchy! No arguments here, - Grofo agreed, glancing at the weirdo who just stared blankly ahead and muttered to the void. - He's definitely weird and messed up… though, can't say I blame him, considering his life… -
They talked while walking, sneaking past the unsettling man, and Roman finally let out a breath of relief when they were thirty steps away. Still, he kept glancing back every few seconds - just in case Drury stood up and came chasing after them.
Once he was sure the old guy didn't care about them at all, Roman asked:
What happened to him? And how the heck is he sitting almost naked in this cold? -
Well… it's like this: his wife packed her bags, took the guys, and ran off with some Big Icicle - a guy with a big business overseas and loads of Since then, Murky never got over it and hates snow and ice with a passion. - Oh, come on! - Roman muttered grumpily, picking up the pace while Grofo laughed like he was gonna die from it.
When he finally caught his breath, Grofo said:
I don't actually know anything about his Just know he doesn't have one. As for how he's not freezing to death - even he doesn't know. He's always been like that. Could've been famous, like that dude from abroad who's got a similar superpower. He's in survival shows, gets tested in crazy conditions, and they even wanna put him in the Guinness World But our Drury's way too weird for that kind of thing - and he doesn't want fame anyway. I honestly think he feels like he's made of - The boy added suddenly, then shut up, surprised by his own insight.
Maybe he was right - maybe Murky did think he was made of snow. Who knew…?
As they kept chatting about their local legend, they finally reached the lake shore and began scanning the area, trying to spot the big rock Suzanne had mentioned.
There it is! - Roman shouted, but quickly deflated when he saw that the rock was tiny - definitely not the kind of boulder a girl could sit on.
While his little brother played detective, Grofo stepped closer to the water's edge and peered into the depths, hoping to spot the skyscrapers of the underwater city. Just as he'd expected - nothing. All he could see was a mass of cold water and patches of ice.
Didn't think so, - he grumbled, disappointed, and chucked a small stone into the Still sucks, though. Realizing there's no such thing as magic. Just… kinda stings.
His little brother, though, firmly believed that he was the only one allowed to be sad. He believed in miracles way more than Grofo - mainly because he'd never expected anything good from them.
And for the first time, the pessimist's glass wasn't just half - empty - it had been poured out straight into the lake.
Hey! Come here! I found the And there's something lying near it!
Seeing Roman waving his arms like crazy, Grofo ran up to him and, once there, noticed that from this angle, you really could see something half - submerged in the water.
Why didn't you check it yourself? - He asked. Roman shook his head violently and stepped You're not dragging me into this. Check it yourself.
Fine. What do you do when all the responsibility always falls on you? You take it.
Of course, Grofo wanted to approach the thing with cautious little steps, but he absolutely didn't want to look like a coward in front of his younger brother. So, straightening his back and trying to look like an eagle swooping in for prey, he strutted over to… a human hand.
Now it was his turn to step back, clamping down on the rising scream in his throat.
- How? Where from? Why?!
Panic never usually touched Grofo's brain. But today must've been some kind of special. Shutting his eyes for a few seconds, he tried to switch his freak - out into something more positive.
- At least it's not my hand. That's already a win.