Short Story Time: The Melting Kingdom (Middle Grade)

There once was a Princess named Hannah, who lived in the coldest and snowiest kingdom on Earth. Blizzardom was north of the northest pole and stood proudly at the peak of the artic. It was the only place on God’s green earth that made host to winter all year round and golly did the royal subjects love it. Frozen lakes, snowball fights and mixed berry slushies were but a few of the delights the citizens loved about the ceaseless winter, but no one, not one single soul throughout Blizzardom loved the frosty weather more than crowned Princess Hannah.

Princess Hannah adored the winter, so much so that in her ten years, she refused to leave Blizzardom. On countless occasions she rejected her mother’s requests to accompany her to a beach on the coast of Majorca. And endless times she denied her father’s invites to safari in the national reserves of Kenya. Yes, Princess Hannah treasured the feeling of slightly numbed fingers and toes, and lips that cracked in the frost. She cherished her purple woolly hats, pink fluffy muffs and hot chocolate with marshmallows embossed. But what she loved most about Blizzardom’s frosty, wintery ways, was the fact that it was Christmas, every single day.

One day, Princess Hannah was sitting on her favourite bench just outside the palace walls. She sipped on her hot coco and inhaled the fresh, musty air. “Ah, nothing beats a cold day.” Princess Hannah often sat on the bench to think about her old friend Lady Kristy. Last year, she had come down with a case of TB, and well… she never recovered. A single tear dropped from Hannah’s eye. It froze solid on her cheek and remained there like a tangible memory.

“Darling, what are you doing out here?” Mum said, with a steaming cup of coffee in her grasp.

“Looking at the Eternal Star.” Hannah embraced her mother as she sat down beside her.

The Eternal Star was the star on top of the kingdom’s Christmas Tree. Blizzardom’s Christmas Tree was renowned for being the tallest in the world and the Eternal Star was the frozen block of ice that capped it off. As legend had it, the star was fashioned long ago by all the children of Blizzardom at the kingdom’s creation, and it hadn’t melted since. It was the reason for Blizzardom’s perpetual winters. Although impenetrable by everything made to man, no one was allowed within ten meters of the tree. The star had to be protected at all costs. Without it, the cold season that Hannah adored so much would come to an end.

“Yes, it’s beautiful, isn’t it?” Mum said with a faraway look in her brown eyes. Hannah got her mother’s eyes, so everyone said, and also her glowing deep complexion.

Hannah nodded. “Alright, I’m off inside.” Thinking about Kristy often made her feel sleepy. She hugged her mother once more, and traipsed back into the palace with her long, purple scarf fluttering behind her in the wind.
 
The next day, Hannah’s best friend came over. Ebony was the daughter of her mother’s seamstress. Normally the Princess wouldn’t hang out with an employee’s child, but they had become very close since Kristy’s death.

“Duck!” Ebony shouted as she threw a snowball at Hannah’s face.

Hannah hit the ground and laughed. She immediately began constructing the biggest snowball ever. She took aim. “One, two, three…” The snowball soared across the sky and hit Ebony square in back.

Ebony giggled and made snow angels on the floor. “Oh, I love winter,” she squealed. “The Eternal Star is the best gift…” Ebony fell silent. She shot up and pointed towards the Blizzardom Christmas Tree. “Hey, look over there,” she said.

Princess Hannah squinted into the distance. Her eyes were immediately drawn to the star. She gasped and covered her mouth. Dew steadily dripped down from the ice and splattered the branches below. “The Eternal Star is melting!”

“But that can’t be.” Ebony’s face was disfigured in horror. “Can it?”

“Quick, we must tell Mum and Dad.” Princess Hannah ran into the palace, with Ebony hot on her heels.

“Where’s the King and Queen?” Hannah demanded of one of the servants.

“They’ve gone to the Caribbean, remember?” the servant replied. “They invited you, but you refused.” He shook his head and scurried away down the hall.

“What will we do?” Ebony said.

“We need to find out what’s causing the star to melt, and quickly before…” Princess Hannah stared out of the window. She gulped. The snow on the ground was disappearing before her eyes. It was the first time in her entire life that she had seen the green grass beneath it. “Uh-oh, this is bad.”

 “Let’s go find my mother, she’ll know what to do,” Ebony said. She grasped Hannah’s hand and led her to the servant quarters.

Hannah had never been down here before. This part of the palace had a very musty smell, and the damp rose in patches around the ornate windows, tarnishing the colourful stained glass that Hannah was so fond of. She stopped and peered out of the window. The water from the melting star was dripping quicker now and the snow on the ground had all but entirely gone. Hannah remembered Phineas and sighed. Phineas was her pet polar bear who loved to roll around in the snow. He lived in a specially constructed igloo on the palace grounds. Even from here, she could see that his home had begun to melt too.

“How much further,” she said, following Ebony.

“Just through here.” Ebony pushed on a large wooden door. It creaked open. “Mum?” she called.

“Yes, dear.” Ebony’s mum was grinning from ear to ear. “Have you seen outside? Isn’t it great?” she said, spinning in circles. “It’s becoming summer.”

“It’s not great.” Princess Hannah stamped her foot and scowled at the seamstress. “In Blizzardom it’s always winter.”

“Not anymore,” Ebony’s mother clapped her hands together. “This will be great for my dress sales. Do you know how hard it is shift dresses when everyone is always cold?”

 “But what about Phineas a–a–and all the ice caps, they’ll melt, and then the animals won’t—” Princess Hannah started.

“Who cares about the animals!” Ebony’s mother had resumed dancing now. “I’m going to be rich.”

Hannah stormed out of the room and dragged Ebony with her. “Your mother was no help at all.”

Ebony shrugged and looked down at her feet. “It would be nice to have a new pair of shoes for once. Ones without holes.”

“Life isn’t all about money.” Hannah sulked.

Ebony smiled. “Not for someone who has it.” Ebony sighed and retreated into the room. “I think I’m going to join my mother now.”

“Ebony wait, I think I know who’s behind the melting star.” Hannah’s excitement grew until she was practically hopping on one leg. “I can’t believe it took me so long to see it.”

Ebony stared at her blankly.

“It has to be the most horrid, evil, corrupt man on earth, who else could it be but… Father Christmas.”

Ebony exhaled; her chest deflated. “I’m afraid you’re on your own for this one.” She shut the door in Hannah’s face.

“Fine, then I’ll go to the North Pole and confront him myself.”

The journey to the North Pole was rougher than expected. Princess Hannah got lost several times, but finally she came across a signpost that read: Santa’s grotto in 2 miles.

Forty minutes later she was standing outside the ice cave, willing herself to enter. Hannah didn’t want to meet Father Christmas. He was greedy. Afterall, he had everything in the world, but chose to only give presents once a year on the 25th of December. He never gave Hannah exactly what she asked for when she asked for it; he always made her wait. And last year when she really needed him; he abandoned her.

Hannah took a deep breath and walked into the grotto. She was greeted by two elves in green tights and woolly hats.

“Have you an appointment?” The one with thick-rimmed glasses asked.

Hannah shook her head. “I’m a Princess.”

The elf smirked. “Santa doesn’t care for titles.”

“Well, it’s an emergency.” Princess Hannah crossed her arms and stared down the elves.

“Fine. Just this once.” They led her through the winding passageways that seemed to go on forever. It was so dimly lit inside the cave that she kept bumping into the walls. 

“In there.” The elf opened the door and pushed her inside.

Hannah tripped over her feet and cried out as she landed flat on her face at Father Christmas’ giant feet.

“Ho, Ho, Ho,” he bellowed.

“Don’t Ho, Ho, Ho, me.” Hannah shook off the dust on her cloak and straightened herself up.

“What brings you here, little one?” Santa tapped his knee, but Hannah scoffed and turned her nose up.

“You are responsible for melting the Eternal Star of Blizzardom, admit it!” She wagged her finger in his rosy-cheeked face.

“Why would I do something like that?” he said, with a gentle smile that was almost completely hidden beneath his white fluffy beard.

“Because you’re cruel and you want me to suffer.”

“Oh, Hannah why would you say such a thing?”

Perhaps Hannah’s eyes were deceiving her, but were there tears behind his spectacles?

“I wanted a pony two Christmases ago, but you gave me a donkey instead. When Phineas had a bad case of the shivers, you let him suffer for two weeks and when Kristy… when Kristy was sick… I wrote to you every day for months to make her better, but you didn’t. Why do people call you father, when you’re no father at all?” Hannah hung her head and wept bitterly. “You’re always judging if children are bad or good, but you’re the bad one.”

Father Christmas lowered himself to the ground and swept Hannah up in his big arms. It was warm inside his firm embrace. He patted his eyes and whispered in her ear. “Young Hannah, sometimes bad things happen for good reasons. You never got your pony because I knew one day, you’d fall off it and break your leg. So, I gave you another companion instead, one that you wouldn’t be so eager to ride.” Santa chuckled and wiped Hannah’s wet eyes. “As for Phineas I didn’t make him sick, but the cold he had strengthened his immune system. He’ll be much stronger from now on.”

“And Kristy?” Hannah peered into Santa’s warm eyes, desperate for a word that would make her feel better.

Santa cuddled Hannah and stroked her curly hair. “You’re looking at death all wrong. Death is not the end of life, but a part of it. I have it on good authority that your friend is doing just fine.”

Hannah’s eyes lit up. “Kristy is OK?”

Santa nodded. “Better than OK. She’s no longer sick and never will be again.”

“Can I see her?” Hannah pleaded.

“One day, dear child. One day.”

Hannah was disappointed but she was starting to understand. “So, you didn’t melt our star?”

Santa shook his head. “No. I didn’t. But I know who did.”

Hannah’s eyes grew ten sizes bigger. “Who?”

“There is only one thing that can melt the Eternal Star. When more children in Blizzardom don’t believe in me, than do.”

“But I’ve always believed in you.”

“No, you knew of me, but you didn’t believe in me.” Santa popped Hannah down on the floor. “Now, go back to Blizzardom and help the other children believe in me too.”

Hannah left the North Pole at once and returned to Blizzardom. She was shocked to find the glaciers had melted, but she didn’t let that deter her. She swam throughout the kingdom, spreading Father Christmas’s message to every child. Hannah didn’t stop until the snow returned to the ground once more, and the Eternal Star was frozen to its shiny, shimmery core.