Sisterland

by Salla Simukka

  Alice rowed through the entire night. When dawn began to break, a curling white mist rose on the surface of the water. She didn’t dare row fast anymore, because she feared she would lose her way. She allowed the log to float slowly through the mist.

  Suddenly Alice made out a familiar figure. As she came closer and the mist parted, she saw what she’d been looking for.

  Queen Lili sat in a small boat, casting nets into the water. She looked very different from before. Her long white hair was in tangled braids and buns, along with some feathers, branches, bones, and dried flowers. Her once magnificent, shining icy-white dress was tattered and gray, and the queen had patched it in many places with various colors of fabric. Her feet were bare, as were her arms. Her skin was no longer silky smooth. She was almost ordinary now.

  The queen looked smaller and older and nicer. Not at all frightening, even though Alice had seen her terrible power and anger.

  “Queen Lili!” Alice cried.

  The queen turned her gaze toward Alice with a surprised expression. Her eyes were no longer sparkling ice; they were simply blue gray. Her brow wrinkled.

  “Alice?” she asked hesitantly. “It’s been so long. Like a hundred years and then a hundred more.”

  “It can’t have been quite that long this time,” Alice said. “Queen Lili…”

  “Just Lili. I’m not a queen anymore,” she said.

  Lili gave a quiet, sad sigh.

  “What are you fishing for?” Alice asked.

  “I’m fishing for what’s left of my land. Junk, trash, and refuse. Everything that was once beautiful and important. I’ve been using it to build myself an island. When the island is large enough, I’ll move there to spend the rest of my days.” Alice looked at the objects Lili had raised from the water. It was hard to guess what they had been. Pieces of the palace? Dragon treasures? Ship sails? Suddenly Alice felt very guilty. If she and Marissa hadn’t broken the mirror, Queen Lili’s kingdom would still be just as beautiful and magical as before. The queen wasn’t the only one at fault for the change. They all were.

  “You must be very sad,” Alice said. Lili looked at her with her head to one side.

  “Yes. And no,” she replied. “I’m sad when I think of all I’ve lost. But I also feel freer. Being queen was exhausting. I was responsible for everything, for every flower and every dragonfly wing in the Garden of Secrets. Now I don’t have any kingdom or any responsibilities.”

  “But you do still have a kingdom,” Alice said. “It’s just different now.”

  Lili shook her head.

  “I’ve ruined everything and betrayed everyone. That’s why it’s only right that I spend the rest of my life alone. Everyone hates me.”

  “They don’t hate you,” Alice said. “They want you to come to them. They want to work with you. You could help them.”

  Lili gave a sad, silent smile.

  Then she asked, “Why are you here, Alice? You and your friend made it clear you prefer to live in your own world.”

  “It’s because of my friend.”

  And then Alice told about Marissa’s change because a shard of the mirror had lodged behind her eyes.

  “I assume you know how to melt it,” she finally said.

  A smile spread on Lili’s face.

  “I could make her return here. I still have that much power. Then we could cut the shard out of her and use it to grow a new Mirror of Shadows. Then everything would be like before. And you could stay here forever and become my daughters, my princesses. You would receive everything you ever dreamed of. We would all be happier than we had ever been.”

  Lili’s posture straightened, and her eyes began to glow.

  Now it was Alice’s turn to shake her head.

  “No, Lili. I won’t agree to that. That wouldn’t be right.”

  Lili stood up in her boat. She raised her hands, and a cold wind began to blow from the north.

  “I will call forth a storm!” Lili cried. “I will make you bend to my will, stupid child!”

  Alice held on tight to the log as the waves tossed it to and fro. But she wasn’t afraid. She hadn’t come here to listen to Lili’s threats.

  “You can’t, and I’m not a stupid child!” Alice shouted over the howling of the wind. “Just like Anna wasn’t a stupid child, even though she disagreed with you and decided to leave Sisterland.”

  Anna’s name was like a magic word for Lili. Her arms dropped, drained of strength. The wind disappeared, and the waves calmed. Lili collapsed in her boat.

  “True. All of that is in the past. Some dreams never come true,” she sighed.

  “But you know a way to melt the shard of mirror glass in my world, don’t you?” Alice asked insistently.

  Lili nodded.

  “Yes, I do. My tears would melt the shard. But I haven’t cried since Anna left. Then I cried so many nights that in the end, my tears ran out. I don’t even know if I could cry if I wanted to now.”

  Alice handed Lili the glass bottle.

  “This is from Anna.”

  Lili was so shocked that her hands began to shake.

  “From Anna? How…? Do you know…?”

  “Go ahead—open it,” Alice said.

  With trembling hands, Lili opened the bottle and carefully pulled the small slip of paper out.

  “What is it?” she asked Alice.

  “A letter.”

  “But I don’t know how to read,” Lili sighed despondently.

  Alice looked at her in surprise and suddenly felt terribly powerful. She knew how to do something that Lili didn’t.

  “I could read it to you,” Alice said. Then, taking the paper and unrolling it, she began to read:

  Dear Lili,

  Far too long has passed, but hopefully you will still listen to what I have to say. During all these years, I’ve never been able to stop thinking about you. I didn’t leave because I hated you or Sisterland or because we fought. I left because I had to return to my own world, to my own home. You would have done the same in my position, I know it.

  I still dream of Sisterland and of you. I’ve never had another friend as good as you. You were and will always be my soul sister.

  Forever yours,

  Anna

  Lili’s eyes went wide, and Alice could see them begin to glisten. Then big, bright tears rolled down her cheeks. One by one, Lili trapped them in the bottle. There were many tears, but Lili looked more happy than sad.

  “Maybe something just melted in me too,” Lili finally sighed, and handed the bottle to Alice. “Thank you for coming. Thank you for bringing me the letter.”

  Alice wiped her own eyes. For a moment, they sat in silence and allowed the waves to rock the boat.

  “Do you think the others really still want to build the kingdom with me?” Lili asked in a dreamy voice.

  “I’m sure of it. They want to build bridges.”

  “Good. Let’s go. But first let’s get my island,” Lili said.

  Together they rowed through the mist to retrieve the small island Lili had built so far. They took along the log Alice had been using and then tied the island to the back of the boat with a strong rope. Then they set off rowing where Alice said. During the journey, Alice grew so tired that she curled up in the bottom of the boat to sleep.

  Just before she fell asleep, Lili said, “You’re a brave girl, Alice. Why did you do all of this?”

  “Because life isn’t really worth living without a best friend,” Alice replied with a yawn.

  “I think you’re right,” Lili said, and smiled.

  Alice awoke to a cold, wet nose against her cheek and a familiar deep voice in her ears:

  We’re waiting.

  Alice opened her eyes. The shapeshifter sat in the boat in his wolf form and look
ed at her with his golden eyes. Once she had sat up, feeling groggy, Alice realized that dozens—no, hundreds of other eyes stared at her. Lili’s boat had arrived at the Floating Village. Now all the world’s inhabitants were there, including the oculars. And the Glimmer’s crew and the dragons. Everyone waited in silence to hear what Alice would say.

  “I’ve brought Lili to you,” she said.

  The residents of Sisterland looked at each other and murmured.

  Finally, Raven said, “Is this our sovereign? She looks so normal.”

  “You look so normal yourself,” Alice said. “Sisterland has changed, and so has Lili. And she isn’t a queen anymore. She’s one of you.”

  Lili smiled a little shyly. Then she raised her eyes. The sea began to swirl around the boat. Algae began to rise from the waves, weaving together into a strong suspension bridge. Lili raised the bridge over the Floating Village and then flew it to rest between the two closest islands, which were small but had steep shores.

  There were oohs and aahs of delight.

  “She is Lili,” Raven declared.

  One small dragon coughed a wisp of smoke. “And she isn’t going to chain us anymore?” it said in a quiet, cautious voice. “How can we trust her?”

  “I promise I will never put anyone in chains again,” Lili replied.

  The dragons and other creatures muttered to each other suspiciously. Alice understood them. She also had a hard time trusting Lili’s promise.

  Lili sighed a little impatiently at seeing the residents of Sisterland still treat her with such caution. Then, grabbing a polished bone from her mane of hair, in one motion she smashed it into powder, which she stored in a tiny container.

  “Hear me,” she proclaimed. “This powder will overthrow any magic done by me. I will give this vial to the wind fairies as a pledge that if I ever use my powers for evil, you will have the means to undo the spell.”

  “How do we know it really works?” the small dragon asked insistently.

  Lili snapped her fingers, and the dragon’s wings withered.

  “Hey, you can’t do that!” the other dragons said angrily, looking as if they were ready to spit fire and burn Lili to a crisp.

  “Have patience! Wind fairies!” Lili cried.

  The wind fairies flew to her side.

  “Take this vial, and sprinkle a smidgen of the powder on that poor dragon,” Lili said.

  The wind fairies did as ordered, and the dragon’s wings grew back to normal, perhaps even stronger and more beautiful than before. The dragon was so overjoyed to have his wings back that he did a little aerial exhibition between the boats, showing off with loops and terrifying dives.

  The inhabitants of Sisterland broke into enthusiastic applause, both for the dragon and for Lili. Then they immediately began a new meeting with Lili. They spoke about bridges and connecting islands, and about what to do when winter arrived.

  Alice listened to all of this, feeling melancholy. None of these plans really had anything to do with her anymore. When she left this world now, she would likely never return. She wouldn’t see what it would become. Perhaps it wouldn’t be as beautiful and impressive as before, but it would still be their own, something they had built together.

  The shapeshifter, ship’s fox Lox, and Raven noticed Alice slipping away and came to say goodbye.

  “How do I get back to my own world?” Alice asked the shapeshifter.

  Row out until you see nothing but open water. Then spin five times clockwise, jump in the water, and say “To other waters, to other lands.”

  Alice hugged the shapeshifter. He smelled of forests. She hugged the fox. He smelled of the sea. Finally, she hugged Raven, who smelled of coffee and poetry. Alice knew she would miss them all terribly.

  And beware of sea monsters.

  Alice waved goodbye to all the creatures and the village and Lili—and the adventure, the likes of which she might never experience again. Finally, Lili approached her. In her hand, she had a feather from Raven’s wing.

  “Take Anna this in answer to her letter,” Lili said. “On this feather, I have cast a spell for crossing worlds. If Anna wants, she can use it to visit here.”

  Alice accepted the feather.

  “And tell her that she has always been and remains my soul sister too,” Lili said.

  * * *

  —

  Once Alice had rowed far enough, she began to do just as the shapeshifter had advised. But when she stood up on her log to jump into the water, she saw it rippling strangely all around. It wriggled and bubbled and made a strange hissing sound. Then flower petals appeared on the surface. Except they weren’t flower petals; they were vertical scales. An enormous sea monster had coiled around the log. Its hissing head rose from the water. Its gigantic mouth full of razor teeth…

  “To other waters, to other lands!” Alice shouted as loudly as she could, then clutched the glass bottle and the feather and jumped headfirst, as far away from the sea monster’s mouth as she could.

  Alice dove and dove.

  The water around her was full of bubbles, and she could feel the currents caused by the motion of the sea monster. She heard through the waves as it crushed the log in its teeth and ripped it to splinters. Alice dove deeper, kicking harder and harder. She had to get away.

  Just as Alice thought she was safe, the end of the monster’s tail wrapped around her ankle like a rope and squeezed tight before beginning to drag her toward the terrible head and gaping mouth. Alice tried to hit it with her fists, but that had no effect. Her lungs were already bursting. She wouldn’t be able to stay underwater for long. However, the alternative was even worse.

  With the last of her strength, Alice sank her teeth into the sea monster’s tail, which tasted like rotten fish and death. The monster’s grip loosened just enough for her to get her ankle free. But when she let go with her teeth from the sea monster’s disgusting flesh, her mouth filled with water and she swallowed. Then Alice’s vision went black, and she was no longer in that world, or in any world.

  A big, soft feather stroked Alice’s cheek. Did it belong to Raven? But Raven was small. He didn’t have feathers that large. Or maybe Raven had grown bigger, to the size of a human. That was possible. Everything was possible.

  “Raven,” Alice said.

  “Alice.”

  The voice was familiar, but it didn’t belong to Raven. Alice opened her eyes a crack. Mom. Her mother sat next to her, stroking her cheek. Her mother’s hand felt soft like a feather. Alice lay in a bed that wasn’t her own. The lights on the ceiling were too bright and harsh. Attached to the back of her hand was a thin tube that led to a bag full of transparent liquid.

  “Dear, you’re in the hospital,” her mother said in the tone she always used to calm Alice down.

  “Why?” Alice asked.

  Talking was a little hard. Her mouth was dry and tasted strangely of chlorine. Her lungs hurt.

  “You almost drowned at the swimming pool. Thank goodness they saved you at the last minute. Now everything is fine. Your throat and lungs might hurt for a while, but it isn’t dangerous. You should be able to come home tomorrow, since you’re doing so well and you’re awake.”

  Alice knew that her mother talked that way as much to calm herself as Alice. She could see from her mother’s eyes that she’d been crying. But now her mom smiled with relief. Alice started to smile too. She’d done it. She’d gotten away from the sea monster and returned to her own world. And most importantly, she’d brought back Raven’s magic feather and Lili’s tears, which would melt the shard of mirror glass.

  Except that…

  Alice’s hands were empty. She looked around the bed and under the covers. Nothing. Only a glass of water was on the nightstand next to the bed. Her swimsuit had been switched for a hospital gown. Someone had probably taken the bottle at the sam
e time.

  “Where’s the bottle?” Alice asked hoarsely.

  “What bottle, dear?” her mother asked, and stroked her sweaty bangs.

  “The small glass bottle. The one I had when I almost drowned.”

  Her mother frowned and looked at her.

  “You must have been dreaming. You didn’t have any bottle,” she said.

  “Yes, I did! It was about this size! And there was a feather!” Alice said, and started to cough.

  Her mother’s expression grew concerned again.

  “Alice, honey, you’re just confused. Don’t get yourself too worked up. Just go back to sleep. I have to go home now, but I’ll be here in the morning as soon as the doctor does her rounds, and you should be able to come home.” Her mother kissed Alice’s cheek and wished her good night. Alice was so tired that she could barely raise her hand to wave goodbye.

  Once her mother was gone, hot tears rolled down Alice’s cheeks. No bottle? No feather? Had she let go of them in Sisterland? Apparently. She had failed and made the whole trip for nothing.

  The lights in the room went out. All the patients in the other beds were already asleep. Alice wept silently so she wouldn’t wake them up or worry the nurses. She cried so long that it felt as if she’d cried a whole salty ocean.

  * * *

  —

  Alice woke up during the night to another patient in the room snoring so loudly that it sounded like someone drilling through a concrete wall. Alice turned on her side and tried to fall back asleep, but every time she nodded off, the snoring erupted again. In the dark room, even the smells seemed stronger. It smelled like medicine and cleaning products and old people. Alice realized she’d never been in a hospital overnight since she was born.

  The door opened, and two night nurses, a man and a woman, came in on their rounds. Alice squeezed her eyes shut and pretended to sleep because she didn’t want anyone asking her if she was having nightmares or feeling homesick.