Chapter 37: Last Meeting with Ase

Erland has just come to his room with the strand of hair. He kept the hair on the desk in Randi's room and opened a magazine that was on Randi's desk. There was a page saying 'fun facts of human body' which piqued Erland's interest. Erland, being the curious child as ever, started to read it.

"Okay...(So about 30% people from around the middle world has golden hair, according to the Marzanna University of Biology. Wow, a land of eternal winter has a university of Biology...Oh wait, it's not in Niflheim. It's in...Athenes...Is it associated with goddess Athena? I mean some Greek gods exists in this world.)"

Erland flipped a page.

"(I wonder why a university in Athenes was done by the name of the goddess Niflheimian people worship. Ugh...I'm getting carried away. Okay...so the golden hair can be of someone from Gaion as well...But no one passes the yard in the fear of Logi even though he is a medium sized dog. He's gotten more savage than before...Could it be?...)"

"Erland! I heard from your dad that you wanted to go." said Gunhild who just came to Randi's room. "What are you doing here? Studying, aren't you?" Gunhild asked. She seemed pleased to see her son studying until she looked at the magazine. Yet, she was no person to judge by the looks of it. She went closer to take a look and found out that it was an informative page. With pleasure, she said,

"Oh you really are studying. What did you learn?"

"It says that 30% of the people in the middle world has golden hair and...the reason I looked for it was that I found something in the backyard's big tree. A golden hair." Erland handed his mother the strand of hair.

Gunhild laughed. But at the same time, she too started to ponder who could it be, given that there aren't many golden haired people in Gaion. "But no one dares to pass Logi. He's a savage when it comes to unknown people who approaches our house."

"Yeah so...I am gonna tell you something that I-"

"You hid something from me. AGAIN?" Gunhild looked concerned because of her son. Since her son has started bearing his own matters from a very young age, it concerned her with fear yet she had a glimpse of pride in her. With a mix of pride, anger and concern, she yelled. "Erland...speak to me."

Erland rubbed his nape, looking apologetic. "S-Sorry mom. Yeah I did. I'm sorry, I thought that you would get sick if you listened to it."

"I'm stronger than you think..." Gunhild's voice became a bit harsher. "Erland...I am your mother. You aren't supposed to hide this many things from me?...Just who do you think you've become after becoming a citizen?" Gunhild frowned. 

"(This is the angriest I have seen mom...ever in my life...) Sorry...I was scared..." Erland looked down.

Gunhild sighed. "Okay...Never do it again, okay?" She crossed her arms.

"Okay mom..." Erland looked at Gunhild and let out a deep breath. "Ah- mom...Do you know Leif Avery, the Prince of Alfheim?"

"Yes I do. He was born at the same day as yours. Why are you talking about him?" 

"I know him."

Gunhild scoffed.

Erland shook his head with his eyebrows knitted. "No no, it's not some imagination. I know him for real. Even Frode does and so does Tove."

Gunhild raised her eyebrows, slightly surprised. The disbelief she had was gone from her face, now filled with curiosity.

"So...the thing is that...he has a servant named Colin. The last time I saw him, he got turned into a bunch of dark feathers. Maybe because he turned into a bird? And that he has been spying on me?"

Gunhild giggled. "Your speculations are pretty good I would say. They are brilliant but my boy, those don't really match that well. He has disappeared like a bird and with that logic you are trying to say that the bird Colin has been here, on the tree."

"Yeah...But...where am I flawed?" Erland looked away as he frowned.

"Government hawks are also used to spy, aren't they? Perhaps the one who was spying was a government bird, since you have something to do with them but not with Colin. Is that clear, my clever pea?" In the end, Gunhild kneeled and patted on Erland's head.

Erland seemed embarrassed, missing such a huge detail. He clenched his teeth lightly and grunted. "How could I miss that?..."

Gunhild stood up. "It's because you are still little...Yet you can think so far, isn't that great? Don't get so full of yourself though." She walked towards the door. "Once you get full of yourself, you can no longer fill anything in you no matter what."

"Hm..." Erland stayed silent for a moment and then caught up with his mother. "Now the question is...who is the person spying on me?..."

"Is there any golden haired person in the government?"

Erland pondered for a moment and then answered. "No...I don't remember any."

"I see.' Gunhild narrowed her eyes as her smile dimmed. She clapped her hands once, looked back at Erland and smiled brightly. "Let's leave it for now. Aren't you gonna bring something for your great granny Ase?"

"Yeah. Oh-I'll get it ready quick." Erland rushed towards his room and yelled. "Please don't go without me."

Erland rushed out of the room after a minute. He took his bag from his room and packed some pickles in it. With a cake in his mouth, he went to the door where his mother was standing.

They took a walk to the hospital, holding hands under the mild sunlight.

"Why are we here mom?" said Erland, lookin around. The surrounding is filled with tall buildings.

"Because this is where great granny Ase is." said Gunhild.

"But I thought that she is at uncle Svend's hospital." Erland looked up at his mother.

Gunhild looked down at Erland. "No she isn't. Why are you worried about that?"

"No...nothing." Erland looked away. "...let's go."

The hospital was bigger than the one Erland usually goes to. It has more nurses, more chambers and more patients to wait outside for their turn. But as much as the hospital was big, so was the gloomy atmosphere, spreading like a plague. Erland could see people crying and some people waiting cautiously. Some were joying for their loved ones getting well and some were eager to await a good news.

Gunhild saw a man in nurse's dress and spoke to him. "Excuse me..."

After a brief conversation, the nurse led them both to Ase's room where she was lying on the bed, sound asleep. She has gotten thinner than before. The Ase of that time looked almost dead to Erland. He got close to the bed and kept his hands on Ase's.

Ase opened her eyes and looked at Erland as she rose up from the bed.

"Erland! My little pea. How've you been?" said Ase. She looked cheerful as always. She held Erland's hands tight and looked at Erland with a curios glance.

Erland replied with a polite smile. "I've been alright. How've you been?" He held the bag of pickles up. "I brought you some pickles."

"Oh, you know my favorite but..." Ase tried her best to act mad. "I'm mad at you. Go away!"

Out of shock, Erland widened his eyes as his elegant demeanor wore off in a second. "Huh? Why???"

Gunhild nodded her head and sat beside Ase. Ase took Gunhild in her arms and asked,

"Where have you all been?..." said Ase. Tears fell down her face the moment she spoke. It was certain that no one has given the lady a visit since she has been admitted to the hospital. "I've gotten old...Right now, the only thing I want is some peace and some people to be around with..." Ase smiled. Her cheerfulness was gone and there lied a gloom she has been hiding for a long time. "With everyone gone...you all are all I have."

Gunhild was filled with guilt. She looked down, biting her lower lip and then spoke with shaky voice. "We didn't get the chance. I'm so sorry. Erland got in...so so many troubles that we couldn't. And then you know about Hilda. Erik is busy all day long and the only one who can stay beside Erland is Randi."

"What troubles?" Ase furrowed her eyebrows and looked at Gunhild with her teary eyes, as if her gloom is long gone, replaced with shock.

Gunhild looked up. "He got attacked draugs or similar ghostly things several times-"

Ase forgot her own loneliness. She looked at Erland, feeling just as apologetic as him and spoke. "Oh...I'm sorry...I-I didn't mean to blame..."Ase smiled cheerfully. "Now that my little Erland is here, we will talk a bunch!...(For the last time...)"

"As long as you want!..." Erland smiled widely but then came at a realization and his smile faded. "Oh wait...the nurse gave us half an hour...Darn it." 

"I'm gonna bribe the nurse with something, don't worry." Ase smirked mischievously.

"(Welp...That's the great granny Ase I know...She's gonna get everything her way, one way or another.)"

They talked in their heart's content. How Erland got his pet through his job and what happened when he met the ghost. He talked about his disasters with Logi and about Halfdan's fiancee, Arise. Hearing such good news, Ase asked,

"That boy got a fiance? How's his sports life going?"

"Yeah. It's going good, though he doesn't go to play much since he got engaged." said Erland.

"Tell him that great granny Ase told him to keep a balance between love and ambition." Ase fluttered her eyes as if she remembered something. "Oh and I got something from Randi recently, I don't remember when. What was that paper for?"

Erland tilted his head, unsure. "I don't know. Didn't you read it? What did it say?"

"I didn't read it because Randi gave it to me."

"(Sometimes I wonder how the hell is this lady the landlady of half of Gaion...) Oh I just remembered. You own half of Gaion, right?" 

Ase nodded. "Yes I do! You want anything from it? I'm afraid that I can't give you my lands though. But I can give you something else if you want."

"I just wanted to hear the story about how you got to be the landlady...(Even though I am sure it will be another fairytale...I am curious to know about it even if its half lies.)"

"Oh! Come here, sit close to me. Okay so once upon a time, there was a little beautiful girl-"

Erland shook his head. "No! This is a fairytale-"

Ase frowned. "Goodness gracious! Let me speak!" Ase cleared her throat.

"The girl led a simple life, wearing simple cloths, her beauty matching the royals yet inferior when it comes to power. She would weep by her door everyday...

She was one day sitting by her door, weeping. And then a prince came with a white horse and spoke to her...

Day after day, the prince started to meet her. They fell in love...But there was another girl in a faraway place who was a princess. She had both beauty and wealth. The moment she heard from her pet crows that the prince loves someone already, she got furious...

Then she went to the girl to drug her drink, so that she will be killed. The princess ordered her crows to mix an elixir she made in that girl's drink. The night she drugged her drink, the prince went to the girl to have a lovers' chat as usual...

The prince drank from the girl's cup and fell on the ground. Seeing the prince at that state, the princess left, cackling like a witch which she is no different from. The girl took her lover in her arms crying and praying to the Lord of life, Phanes. But he didn't answer. The girl then went to Gaia, the one who holds the middle world so that she would revive her one and only.

Seeing the girl's determination, Gaia was pleased. The way she speaks and pleads made her feel compassionate towards the girl. Then Gaia gave her the rarest of herbs and ores to her so that she can make a cure out of it. The girl took the herbs and rushed to a doctor she knew who could cure the ones, destined for death...

The doctor made her a medicine with one condition, she has to marry him. Having no choice, the girl said yes to his proposal weeping and pleading to the Lords to change her fate. After the prince awoke, the girl rushed away, not being able to stop her tears...

Then the day of the girl and the doctor's marriage came. The doctor was smiling with pride and joy while the girl was weeping under her wedding veil...

Just when the marriage was about to start, the prince ran in the hall with his horse and took the girl away. No matter how much everyone chased them, the speed of the prince's horse was unmatched and so was the prince's skill...

Then...they went somewhere beautiful. Everyone adored them in that place. The girl and him married but for some reason, they could not have children. The prince cursed the doctor's name for it every single day, until his death. But not even for one second was he bitter to his love.

After many years of staying in the nation of all exiles, the prince slowly began to buy the lands of the place with the handsome amount of money he had. Slowly, he brought half of the place with his money. Then one day, he fell down upon the girl's lap as the girl stroked his hair. Time passed but he didn't wake up. They bid farewell with a smile on each other's face as they both bid farewell..."

The vivid scenery in Erland's mind with the dashing prince and the simple girl with the beauty of a flower was all gone as Ase stopped speaking. All that remained was a tinge of confusion and sadness.

"So great-grandpa died..." Erland let out a soft sigh.

Ase looked outside from the window as the memories from many years surged in her mind, leaving a bittersweet smile on her face, filled with satisfaction. "Yes he did. But he still comes to me at night. He looks the same as the day I last saw him. You know, I sometimes go somewhere in my dreams with him. I forgot to tell you the last part, there is a rule of Gaion. If the husband dies, the properties are all the wife's."

Erland smiled. "That's wonderful. Uh...why was his face smiley even after he died?"

"He died smiling at me. Hehe. Oh Lords, I have to take my medicines! Hey! Nurses! Where are my medicines?" Ase yelled.

Erland got up from his seat. "I'll be going then. The sun's set already." Erland stared outside the window and then around him. As he noticed something, he fluttered his eyes and looked around like a lost puppy. "Wait a minute, where did mom go?"

Ase laughed. "She left midway. Didn't you notice? I think she's waiting outside, talking to someone."

Erland looked at the door. Through the glass, he could see the shadow of his mother so his mind got eased. "I see. I'll be heading off then. It was wonderful talking with you." Erland walked towards the door and then turned his head towards Ase with a wide smile. "Goodbye!"

"Come more often next time." Ase waved at Erland.

Erland headed outside the room to see where his mother is among the crowd. "(The stories Ase told me...they don't sound so unrealistic now that I think about it...)

After a short walk, he saw his mother sitting on a chair waiting for her son.

"Mom!" Erland called out and walked to his mother. Gunhild got up as well and held Erland's hand.

"Let's go now. We've gotten late. Your father is probably starving by now." said Gunhild and started walking towards the exit.

Even though the gloomy story was over, Erland's mind wasn't put to ease. He had a hunch of something bad happening from the very beginning and it was getting more and more obvious.

"Mom..." said Erland.

"Yes?" Gunhild looked down at her son.

"What disease does great granny have?" Erland frowned.

"I don't know...The doctors said that she can't eat anything sweet and that her heart sometimes beat fast." 

They both reached the exit and finally exited the hospital.

Erland propped his chin on his thumb for a moment."(Old age problems...) Does this happen to all old people?"

"Similar things?" Gunhild tilted her head. " Ase and us have been knowing each other for...so long its hard to let her go like this. I've seen her longer than I have seen my own mother in my whole life..." It was certain that sadness has engulfed Gunhild as well.

"Oh..." Erland let out a sigh. 

Afterwards, Erland returned to his bed where he fakes his sleep to wonder about all the matters of the world. He looked towards the window by his mother and father's bed and then he turned around again.

"(...I still don't know where that golden hair came from...It could be Arise's but she can't just spy that easily as much as I know...)" Erland put his bent index close to his lips. "(Then there comes...)" His eyes widened as if it glowed like a gem in the dark room. "(Wait a minute...)"