The Dead Princess and the Seven Dreams. Immortals

— Grandmother, — she asked plaintively, — I would have to drink… Honey…

Winter rushed after the bucket, filled it and brought it, putting her granddaughter in her weak hands now, and she, clutching the bucket, touching the edges with her teeth, instantly drank everything.

Zigi rushed to help, but his grandmother raised her hand and shook her head, showing that his help was not needed.

«I’ll leave for now,» Snezha said, «I won’t scare the girl, now she will wake up. Grandma, help me.

Winter took the rising Slavnitsa by the arm, and led her into another room, the witch put her left hand forward, in front of her, afraid to hit the walls. Zigi sat down next to her daughter, the weak spasms of the muscles of her arms and legs continued, and finally she opened her eyes.

— Papa, — I feel my legs, and my back too, — where is that witch-maiden, that she watered me with a magic decoction, — she tried to jump to her feet,, but still weak legs did not hold her, and she would fall straight to the floor, but her father picked her up. Zigi thought she was going to cry, but she laughed out loud and put her arm around her father’s neck and kissed her.

«Thank you, Father. The best holiday gift. And Snow, that healer, where is she?

«It’s not me, you’ve been cured. You are a witch to thank later. But she is resting, then we will come to her.

The door banged downstairs, and Gemini rose, hot, and flushed with frost. Van and Alena quickly looked at Gilda, who was already on her feet, and looked at each other knowingly. They threw off their sheepskin coats, and sat next to their grandmother on the bench.

— Do you want to drink? — Wang asked the guests politely, — I will pour kvass, or herbal infusion.

«We want,» Gilda readily agreed, looking around with pleasure at the prigozhny youth, «you see, I’m on my feet,» the girl proudly boasted, «your named sister picked me up.

«We see,» Alena smiled faintly, understanding Gilda’s joy, but knowing what Snow is like now, behind a locked door, «it’s good that Snow cured you.» About the drug, you do not tell strangers only.

«Well,» Gilda agreed, sighing at the kvass Van brought to her and her father, «thank you.» Father, let’s go, it’s probably time for us, and we will please our mother and brothers, they will no longer be sad for me. Thank you for everything. — and bowed.

— Winter, — Zigi turned to the woman who had already come, — we will come tomorrow, thank you, if possible.

— We will be glad, though we have a little place, the leader.

Father and daughter, both incredibly happy, dressed and left, although Zigi supported Gilda by the arm, rather carried, because her legs had not yet obeyed, as it should, and she stumbled through the step, but was immensely happy. They left, and Snow, having heard the steps, quickly returned, her hair had already become ash, her face had become normal, but she squinted terribly, but no longer led her hands in front of her, which was especially scary for everyone.

— Grandma, let me eat, — she asked, — I want to eat unbearably.

— Sit down, granddaughter, here are pies, here is kvass, — and she moved the bowl to the witch, — it’s good that you came to yourself faster after that.

«Couldn’t you refuse her medical treatment?» Alena asked, staring at the named sister.

— No, — the Slavnitsa shook her head, chewing the cake, — I can’t, it’s simply impossible, — and she looked at her sister in surprise, — the person suffers, I can help, and I refuse? I can’t, Alena, I just can’t. I feel how a person suffers, how bad he is, and it hurts me myself, and I will cure him whatever it costs me. But you can’t be dead — and she darkened her gaze — only the Twins themselves can, — she laughed, — not you, of course, but the Guardians of the World.

«Tomorrow the chief will come with his family, Snow.» Zima said.

— It’s good that the guests will come, but I suppose Zigi told everything about me, so the leader came with Gilda. Anyone would come, — thinking, said the witch, — was afraid of me, because I saw. I was afraid that I would refuse, but I still came. And then I realized what it was — and she grinned wryly, already joking with her hands in front of her, like a blind woman, and gawked her eyes. Grandmother came up, could not stand it, wanted to pull out her granddaughter with a towel pretty… But she just bent down and kissed her cheek.

— Well, take care of yourself, baby.

— All right, grandma.

In the morning, the whole Zigi family arrived by sleigh early — a wife, two sons, a daughter, and he himself, who ruled the sleigh. Wang opened the gates to the guests, like the eldest man in the house, with the sons of the leader set and tied horses in the barn. Fat and Zell showed him how to set food for horses, check if their knees were sick, then the three of them went upstairs, where the women were already putting treats on the table, most of which Zigi brought. The leader left the room and returned with lar, gifts for the family of Zima’s grandmother.

«It’s for you, Winter,» he gave her a new arctic fox coat.

— To you, Alena, — put in front of her beads made of river stingray pearls.

«Van, your present,» and laid a bronze axe in front of him, decorated with rich carvings.

Then she approached Snow and was cured, still waddling funny on her feet, and her father carried offerings for her, which he gave her in turn.

— Snow, this is all for you, — the girl said, — this is a cauldron for herbs, this is a bag for potions, this is a silver bowl, like the most famous witches, and a towel, I embroidered myself until I could not walk, — she sighed, listing everything, — and, you still have four bags of barley, you love pies, — and she laughed.

— Thank you, Gilda for the gifts, I have nothing to give away yet.

«You’ve already given up,» laughed the leader’s daughter, «all at once.

— Sit down, everything is ready, — and Winter and cheerful Nara, who does not enjoy her daughter in any way, began to lay out treats in bowls, ordinary venison, and Snow fish. There were even barley cakes, an infrequent thing at the table, there was also young cheese, ordinary food. Nara sat next to her husband, and next to her, from the other side of Winter. The leader’s wife looked around the twins and the witch with curiosity, Van talked animatedly with Fat and Zell, Gilda moved and climbed onto the bench between Alena and Snow. She ate with pleasure, tried both venison and fish.

— At home, the brothers alone, she said, are having more fun here, but she looked at Wang’s rare locks with interest, although her brothers also had their hair cut.

— Alena, and you, Snows, come to my house, to visit. I also have a hand ferret. He’s funny. And maybe my mother will let me go now to Ore studying, herbs, so I will also learn to treat everyone.

— Let’s see,“ answered Nara, who hears everything at the table, „let’s eat, otherwise no one will marry, and so she weaned while she was lying on the bench.

«Now, I suppose, there will be grooms,» Gilda was not afraid, «I’m no worse than others.

The guests parted with the owners soon, the Winter Family went to spend their sleigh, and waved after them for a long time, wishing them a happy journey.

— Well, the groom, Gilda has already grabbed you, — the sister laughed, and pushing him on the side, from which he turned painfully red, and the sister laughed even more, — Thank snow, she is your matchmaker, — and laughed again.

Snow just looked at Alena, but sighed incomprehensibly, and turned to face her brother and made her eyebrows a house, which made Alena laugh even more. Winter just shook her head, looked at her grandchildren and smiled.

The grandmother did not interrupt the malicious Alena, but only thought about it, but smiled happily: «It would be nice, otherwise it’s an orphan, and Gilda is a girl from a good family. It would be nice.» And she said aloud to Alenka:

— Enough for you, it’s too early to think about it, he is still three years old before the grooming.

Fern decoction

Two years passed, unnoticed in hard training, and the annual wandering through pastures along the Ob River, in the summer they, cattle breeders, all climbed closer to the Student Sea, went down to the south, in the steppe for the winter, in order to preserve herds. The Snow Maiden has become a well-known witch and healer, despite her youth. Many came, wanting to cure the sick, but she did not pass the Tests, did not leave for Alatyr in any way, and could treat the unwell only with Ora. Healing was already easy, and she no longer changed in her face, but only her eyes turned black, but after a minute her vision returned to her. Wang often came to visit Zigi’s house, but not to the leader, but to Gilda. He showed how to manage horses, went to the Ob with her and her brothers, to fish. The leader’s daughter completely recovered, and often visited Winter’s house, asking her parents to visit Alena and Snow, but she came to Van. So everything continued, but there were hard lessons at Liszt, and the young man did not show up at home for a whole month, and Gilda walked lost, unsmiling, with dark circles under her eyes, but came to her sisters to knit together, or studied herbalism with Ora.

— Let’s go tomorrow, Snow Maiden, watch how the youths learn. They already control the teams of horses, — and she continued in a whisper, — only you pretend that you are sitting just like that, they say, these youthful fun are not important to you.

— Why? Snow simply asked, picking through the drying herbs on the canvas.

— So it is necessary, — the girl repeated incomprehensible, — such an order, otherwise they will think about themselves…

— Okay, — just answered the witch, — let’s go, let’s see.

Gilda also went with them, to see how Van rules the chariot. The girls took with them a bag of nuts, which would not be boring, and sat down in a row. Around them, as if by chance or on a very important matter, sat with a dozen three young girls, from the Huns or Mans. Each or knitted, or spun, and everyone was dressed for this ordinary work on Divo smartly, so the bracelets rang when knitted.

Gilda and Snow sat on a bench next to Alena, the witch watched, pretending that she was not interested in how young men learn to control light chariots. Like pairs of hot horses, and for some, triples chased by teamsters, turn around, maneuver without hitting each other, and young warriors throw darts at full gallop and shoot chariots from a bow into straw targets. Clods of earth, from under the hooves of horses, just earth, or sand, flew around, dust stood as a pillar, falling on future soldiers. Not far stood their mentor, he was only six years older than the students, his name was, as Alena heard, List. The chariot fighters were wearing leather helmets so that the young men would not suffer an unexpected fall. The teacher was also in the helmet and carefully looked at the students, and shouted something to them, and the girls did not hear what these words were, and most likely it was fortunately. Gilda looked at the races, her eyes wide open, and sometimes screamed impetuously, grabbing Alena and Snow by the elbows, when the chariot of Van and Vetta bent dangerously. The Snow Maiden watched, and her heart froze, as Van managed to hit the target, and by some miracle did not fly out of the wagon. The girl thought about it, and began to get the leaves of different types of ferns, and moved dry herbs, put them together in a linen bag.

— Snow, What are you up to? — Alena smiled with her big mouth, grabbing her friend’s sleeve, — something new again? Your decoction saved several old people with weak hearts from death..

Gilda also looked at the drawing on the ground, but did not say a word, only smiled knowingly, looking at the witch with admiration. Snow after cure forever became an indisputable model for the leader’s daughter.

— I don’t know yet… — she again seemed to have heard no one — it is possible in another way, on a chariot — and thoughtfully bowed her head, took a twig, and began to draw on the ground.

Alena stood and looked at the drawing, at the chariot, at the long spear of the warrior in the chariot. Yes, Snow is a witch, you know what you thought…

The young men finished dressage, ran to wash themselves and wipe their horses from sweat, and then Wang came to the sitting girls with Vett, a friend.

— Good day, Slavnitsa, — said Van, bowing to the girls, and these words were repeated by Vett. The youths stretched out, became like young oaks, who still had to get stronger, but their growth was already considerable.

— Hello, Van, — smiling broadly, Gilda said hello, blushing with annoyance, removing sewing in the bag on your side, — you hold on perfectly in the wagon.

«And hello to you both,» Snow said after all, «I don’t have much time, Wang.» Look at the drawing, and she showed the young man a sketch on the ground.

The young man looked, thought, got up and so and so, shook his head. He took out a figure of a warrior on a chariot from his bag, put a long rod to his hand, drove along the ground, thinking about it.