Chapter 27: A Charming Carriage Ride, Part 1

A knock at the door caught the words in Serendipity's throat. Perhaps it was a good thing, as she wasn't exactly sure how to reply to Maevis's statement.?She didn't know precisely how many times Corey had knocked, but she pulled herself to her feet, wiped the tears away from her eyes, and crossed to the door, all without saying a word.?
She threw off the lock and pulled the door open, blinking against the sun, and saying nothing, she turned to get her coat--her mother's coat--off of the hook by the door.?Maevis crossed over quickly and helped her put it on, neither of them addressing the man standing in the doorway.
At last, as Serendipity turned to face her, Maevis straightened the fur collar around her neck, and said quietly, "Take care, my darling," and kissed her gently on the cheek.
Serendipity nodded her head and said quietly, "I will see you soon," before looking around her cottage one last time and stepping out onto the porch.
The expression of confusion on Corey's face was telling, and it at least made Maevis remember her manners, if not her charge. "Mr. Cane," she said, offering him her hand as Serendipity stepped past them off of the porch, "I'm Maevis Thrinsplit, Serendipity's caretaker."
"I see," he stammered, looking from the older woman to the back of the younger one who was now standing a few feet away, her back to him, waiting as patiently as possible for him to come along. "And--that's Serendipity?" he asked.
Maevis chuckled, realizing for the first time that he had not seen her since the scrubbing and brushing. "Oh, yes," she replied. "She looks a bit different once she's cleaned up, eh?"
Corey could feel his cheeks warming, sure they were turning red as well, something that rarely happened. "Uh, yes," he replied. "Unrecognizable."
"Take very good care of her, won't you, Mr. Cane?" Maevis requested, her eyes narrowing in warning.
"Of course," he assured her, patting Maevis on the arm. "She will be in excellent hands."
Maevis said nothing, only squinted one eye slightly, a look that could only mean Mr. Cane had better keep his promise or suffer her wrath, one way or another.
"Look there!" Serendipity shouted just then and bounded across the yard toward the little copse of trees. Beneath them, in the same vicinity where Maevis had found hoof marks was a sparkling silver sleigh complete with two reindeer fastened out front, standing perfectly still as if they were statues.?"Aren't they wonderful?" Serendipity asked as she approached them. She offered her hand, as if to show them she meant no harm, and it was only then that they began to move, both giving a simple nod, as if it was the only way they could signal that they should like to be petted.
"These are two of our finest reindeer," Corey explained following behind her at a much more leisurely pace. Maevis closed the door to Serendipity's cottage and crossed the yard as well.?"This is Dunder, and this is Blixen." He gestured at each of them as he gave their names, and each one nodded in introduction.
"They're stunning," Serendipity exclaimed as she continued to pet them. "Are they sisters?"
"I'm not sure," Corey admitted. "I thought they were male" he glanced down as if he were checking something.
"Oh, I don't think so," Serendipity replied, "Unless it's some sort of magic. That is, they fly with full antlers in December, and everyone knows that male reindeer lose their antlers in November. And these reindeer have such enormous antlers. I would say they are just about to lose them in the spring, after they have their babies. Isn't that right?" The reindeer seemed to agree with her, and Serendipity continued to pet them on their heads, noses, and ears, causing them to lose their statuesque qualities almost immediately and become quite playful.
"How in the world do you know that?" Corey asked, wondering how this fact had been left out of his bank of knowledge for all of these years when he had grown up in the North Pole.?
"My father taught me," Serendipity replied, glancing over her shoulder at Corey. "Of course, it's possible that Christmas reindeer are different than regular reindeer." The reindeer tossed their heads about as if to say she was correct in her presumption that all reindeer are the same. "But I'm quite certain these ladies are, in fact, ladies." Serendipity smiled now, genuinely, perhaps for the first time in many years.
And her smile was catching. Corey found himself smiling as well, noticing how she had one dimple on the left side of porcelain-like face and how her eyes were still the same shade of icy blue but they also had small flecks of silver-gray in them. "You're quite the animal expert, aren't you, Ms. Fizzlestitch?"
"Please, call me Serendipity," she replied. "I shouldn't think of myself as an expert, only someone who really appreciates animals. That's why I am looking forward to collecting my sweet Pozzletot as quickly as possible."
"Yes, of course," Corey replied, remembering himself and the meaning behind his mission.?"Well then, if I may help you into the carriage, we shall be on our way." He offered his hand to her so that he could help her inside.
Before she took his outstretched hand, she turned back to Maevis who was standing a few feet behind them. "Goodbye," she said quietly, throwing her arms around her friend's neck.
"Goodbye, my sweet," Maevis whispered. "Give it a go, won't you?"
The familiar words caught Serendipity's attention, and her eyes widened for just a second. She wasn't sure if Maevis had chosen those words--her father's words--on purpose or not, but they struck home with her. She nodded and managed to stutter out, "Please take care of my other mice friends while I am away."
"Yes, of course," Maevis assured her. "I'll look after them."
With that, Serendipity took Corey's gloved hand and pulled herself into the carriage, something she hadn't done for many years. With a wave to Maevis, he took his place beside her, picked up the reins in one hand, and then turned to Serendipity and said, "You shall want to hold on tightly."
"To what?" she asked, her forehead puckering in fear.
"To anything," he replied. He gave the reins a quick snap, and the entire sleigh, team, and passengers disappeared into the sky. Maevis found herself standing in an empty yard staring at a copse of trees, tears streaming down her face as she began to realize Serendipity was gone and she had no idea of knowing when she might be back.
Serendipity had only a moment to grab a hold of "anything" so one hand had flown to the handle of the carriage next to her, the other to Corey's arm. The sleigh was a small one, possibly built for one large person or two small people, and since she was slight and he was rather regular sized, they fit snuggly.?Nevertheless, once she had her bearings and realized she was not about to topple out, she did not release either of her grips, though her breathing began to steady to a normal rate.
"Are you quite all right?" he asked once they had reached cruising altitude. They were traveling at a speed he could not quite explain to her, should she ask, but he was able to adjust their own interpretation of that speed so that she could now see a bit of her surroundings. It was nearly dusk now, and she was able to make out a few stars, the ocean beneath them, and the occasional island.
"I'm fine," she replied after a long pause. "That was some takeoff."
"Wasn't it? These are two of our fastest in the stable," he explained.
"How long shall our journey take?" Serendipity asked. She began to realize that her hand was still grasping Corey's arm, and she released her grip, sliding her hand from beneath his arm and returning it to her lap, though her grip on the railing to her left did not change.
"Only twenty minutes or so at this speed," he said.?"We will have to travel through the dome, which is a strange sensation, but not painful, and then we shall be in the Village."
"The dome?" Serendipity repeated. "And what, precisely, is the dome?"
Corey had answered that questions many times, but usually the person asking the question did not really want an answer; he or she just wanted assurance that they were not about to meet their demise. Serendipity, however, was different. His typical answer may not suffice for her. He began to explain. "You see, there's a sort of a magical force field all around the North Pole and the lands directly in the vicinity. This helps to protect St. Nicholas and his workers from intruders or the overly curious. The dome helps regulate the temperature in the North Pole. It provides us with day and night similar to what you are used to, rather than months of day followed by months of night, and it provides stabilization to the landmass beneath us, which is mostly made up of large floating blocks of ice."