As they walked throug the crisp woods, Merko swung her arm back and forth and kicked at leaves.

"Why would an elf steal shoes anyway?" Jillian asked. "I thought you made them."

Merko blushed. "I get lazy, you see. And then I see you sleeping and your nice boots! I couldn't resist. Where are we going, anyway?"

Jillian paused. Was she still going to do what she planned? She decided, yes. She owed it to him. "We're going to find the giants."

Merko actually tripped, getting a mouthfull of dirt and leaves. "What?" he spluttered. He spit out the dirt, but chewed the leaves nervously. "Where'd you get a crazy, scary idea like that?"

"Well, my friend....Kit..." Why was it so hard to say his name? "...we wanted to convince the giants to join the Snow Queen's army."

"The Snow Queen, eh?" the elf raised an eyebrow at her. "Very noble of you to help. But also worrisome." Seeming her confused look, he continued. "The Snow Queen supports her people, but I have heard scary rumors about her. Things she has done to people who cross her." He shuddered slightly.

Jillian frowned, unsure. "Is she still a good person?"

"Oh yes, Miss Jillain! They are only rumors. Just a fair caution."

This was looking more complicated than she thought. What if they did their job wrong and the Snow Queen punished them? Well, they must not fail. For her...and for Kit. It was her silly plan and he died trying to achieve it.

"Are you thinking of him again, Miss Jillian?"

Jillian hadn't even realized she was crying until Merko spoke. "I-I'm fine," she wiped her eyes. "I just don't want to mess this up."

"You won't," he said, with so much confidence that she almost believed him. "You have me!"

She laughed for what felt like the first one that day.

Merko glaced up at the darkening sky. "The stars are coming out to dance. Let's settle down for the night."

The good thing about having an elf for a friend was that they knew how to survive in a forest. Jillian wanted to help but Merko said she could rest or take a bath in the steam a few yards away. She decided on the latter, she was filty and her dress was reduced to rags.

She walked along the bank until she found a spot covered by the hanging leaved of a weeping willow. She quickly undressed and sank into the water up to her chin. She sighed in relief and scrubbled the water through her grimy hair. Making sure to keep herself covered she pulled her dress into the steam with her and gently rubbed it around. It faded from really dark gray to slightly lighter dark gray. She pulled it on, wet and all, and went back to find Merko.

It was pitch black and a cool wind slipped around the trees. Jillian should of been freezing with her wet dress and hair but she felt fine. It was comortable, even. Maybe it was an extension of her magic.

She stopped just outside the little campsite, where she could see a fire blazing. Should she tell Merko that she was magic? He could have guessed that already, with wanting to see the Snow Queen and all, but she wasn't really sure.

Before she could make up her mind, Merko spotted her and waved excitedly. "Come, Miss! I have food for you!"

She smiled and walked over, pushing her other thoughts out of her mind. She wanted to enjoy his campsite.

Merko defiently had been hard at work. The fire bathed heat and light over them, which was just as comfrtable as the cold. With the berries and nuts he'd gathered, he made a herb and berry soup and a crunchy nut bread. He even found some beans for a bean mash that was delicious. Everything was delicious. Jillian would have loved some forest chicken or a rabbit, but elves were strcitly vegetarian.

"Our cousins are the goblins," he explained. "They can turn into animals so we don't want accidents during hunting so we don't take chances. The goblins are mostly peaceful but if something like that happened they would go to war. Very nasty business."

"Oh yeah," she agreed. Jillian then frowned. "Where are the goblins? The elves too? This wood is awfully quiet and empty."

"Oh." Merko looked uncomfortable. "They left. For the war. They heard the Snow Queen has recruting again and wanted to join up. I was going to go with them, but I am a bit clumsy. And a scaredy, coward, too. They told me I would be of no help so they up and left one night. I've been traveling the land trying to find them. An elf needs to be with its own or will be doomed. We need each other for protection and family."

He gave a sad sigh. Jillian then noticed how miserable and tired he looked in the firelight. His hair was a mess of snarled curls mixed with dirt and twigs. His clothes, though expertly made with leaves, were caked with mud and torn. Some leaves were a withering brown and crumbling, as though it was no longer fresh. With his small stature and thin face, he looked like one of the young orphans that were unluckly enough to get the smallest portions at mealtimes. She had always given them some of hers and that was enough to make them smile just a little bit.

"I'm so sorry, Merko." She drew him into a warn hug. He sighed and settled there, like a child. "Thanks,' he said with a muffled voice.

She ruffled his hair. "Now lets get some sleep."

They settled in some little beds made out of leaves. Merko was a genius.

She stared up at the sky through the treetops. For a moment, she felt happy. She had a friend, she was alive, and she had a quest. Jillian wondered if she would see Kit in the stars. Someone once told her that there were so many stars in the sky because the people we lost were watching over the living. She stared but nothing stood out to her. She then sat bolt upright, staring at the sky in wonder.

"What is it?" Merko mumbled, turning over.

"Nothing," she replied, lying back down.

No one would of believed her but she thought she saw the stars dancing.