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The cabin was always quiet on the first day of hibernation. Not that it wasn't quiet the second or third days and so on, but the contrast made it obvious. Just a day prior, Baby had been arguing with Papa about who had finished off the last of the honey, and Mama Bear was trying and failing to keep the peace. Goldi was trying to savor the moment, since it would be the last one she had with them in months, but she also didn't want to reveal that it was really her who had finished off the honey.
Of course, she could go into town, to their newly opened pie shop, and grab some more honey while the three of them were sleeping. But she hated making the trek through the forest alone. So, instead of time with her family, she savored the sickly-sweet honey that she only really liked when she added a bit to her porridge.
That night, they all curled up in their own beds, ready to sleep for months. But Goldie snuck out of bed after only a few minutes, sure that they were fast asleep. She tip-toed, although they were heavy sleepers, something she knew from the past few winters. She sat in front of the fireplace, watching the flames roar. The feeling of heat was secondary in her mind to the quiet, and she could barely hear the light crackling of the wood.
There was no arguing, and like every other winter, she unconsciously missed the sound of constant bickering.
So, she picked up her story book, to find a page she hadn’t looked at in years. Maybe her younger self who read it daily had tips for her.
The last time she had followed this book’s advice had gone rather poorly, but it was ultimately for the better. So, she thought, what could it hurt? She turned the pages until she came across one she usually skipped over.
A story about a princess.
She hated princess tales. The contrived plot about romance, with absolutely no action, made her gag. Girls with glass slippers and fish tails and long golden hair just made her bored.
This time, though, Goldilocks gave the story a chance. It was of a young woman who pricked her finger on a spinning wheel and fell under a deep spell. Goldi then remembered why she had stopped reading. It made her want to fall asleep herself. But she read on, determined to see it through to the end this time. Soon, the story followed another character. A brave prince, one who journeyed through fire and thorns and mountains to save the princess.
Seeing this, she decided she didn't even need to read the end. Goldi put down the book and searched for her staff, wielding it high in the air and staring at the warps in the wood. She turned to the door, then back towards her family. After listening to Papa’s snores for a few more seconds, she rushed out the door, her staff still in hand.
Although she was slowly making her way towards the factory to get some honey for her porridge in the morning, she took her time, thrusting her staff towards nearby trees as if it were a sword, mimicking the brave prince. Goldi kept waving the much-too-long stick around, without any direction on how to use it properly, except the old story book.
The journey to the factory was quicker than ever, though, and as she kept practicing with her makeshift sword, she eventually wandered into Horner’s old room. Most of the items, of the few that were left, had been returned to their rightful owners, or destroyed if they were too dangerous. But there were some they hadn’t known what to do with, and Goldi would sometimes admire them, despite how they were used before.
Goldi searched for a sword, but other than Excalibur (which had felt wrong to use, especially after bits of the stone broke off), there wasn’t any. She went over to the sword anyway, and placed a hand on the handle. It didn't come loose, of course. She had tried a few times before, never expecting that she was worthy.
Still, she squeezed her eyes shut, this time imagining the vision she had of her future self, of a strong prince-like figure who was brave enough to save anyone. She felt a shifting in the rock, and as her heart skipped a beat, she pulled the sword out in one quick jolt, until--
Oh.
Apparently, Horner had managed to break the sword in half while it was still inside the stone. Goldi held up the beautifully crafted sword, but the tip ended jaggedly. She shrugged; it may not work as a usual sword, but it would be good for practice.
On the way home, honey in one hand, she pretended to stab enemies all around her. It was easier with a real sword, both to practice and to imagine herself in the role. The intricate patterns on the hilt evoked royalty, so Goldi started to imagine herself fighting a dragon with hoards of wealth, not paying attention to any one dropped piece of gold.
Still, she didn't stray too far off the path, knowing it would get dark soon. The days were short now, and although she didn't hibernate, she still needed to sleep. As the sky darkened, she put the sword to her side, switching her staff back to her dominant hand.
Maybe it was the dark, but after only a few minutes of walking, Goldi could’ve sworn she had seen an old cabin from the corner of her eye. The second she turned back around, though, it was gone. Just a familiar grouping of trees, she thought, then saw something that definitely wasn’t familiar. Right before her eyes, there was a small, wispy figure that emitted a bit of blue light, brightening the path before her.
She jumped back and pulled her sword back out at the sight, but it didn't waver. Instead, it seemed to invite her to follow.
So, she did. The first figure disappeared, but immediately after, she saw another a few feet away. One after another, they disappeared right before she could reach them. She groaned and sprinted after the next one she saw, leaping towards it before it could disperse. No such luck, though, as it faded just before her fingers met the light. Instead, she took a dive into the mud, scraping her hands and knees on the stone in the process.
Goldi started running, then, following as fast as she could so they would never leave her sight, not realizing that she was running straight back towards home.
Sure enough, the small blue figures led her back to the cabin, and even as she followed them inside, she saw another, this one right in front of the fireplace. Despite her best judgement, she knelt down beneath the mantel and watched as the last spirit disappeared within the fire, causing it to turn blue and then go out.
Then, with the fire now turned to ash, she could see that the wall behind the fireplace was now gone, with a whole new fire visible beyond it.
Beyond that was a room that hadn’t been there before, one full of people gathered around a large table of food. Goldi was more than a bit jealous: during hibernation, she tended to get tired of porridge. She could barely make out what the people were saying until one of them raised their voice.
"I suppose a princess just does what she's told?" A young woman with bright red hair yelled.
Goldie gasped, and leaned away from the fireplace. "Princess?" Her instincts kicked in and she reached for her sword, but not before stopping to take a peek at her story book. She saw the illustration that she had been focused on for the past few hours: the prince wielding a sword to fight a mighty dragon. Cliche, sure, but it inspired her to hold on a little tighter to the grip of her new sword.
She turned back a page, then, realizing she may have been focused on the wrong thing. The page held an illustration of the prince climbing through thorns to make it to the princess’s castle. She felt the jagged tip of the sword, and it was sharp enough to draw blood without much pressure. Still, she couldn’t imagine how painful crawling through thorns would be. She shuddered, and turned back to the fireplace.
Once Goldi looked back through the fireplace, though, the entire room had changed entirely. She could now see a smaller, cozier room, probably a bedroom. The redhead was back, and still arguing with the older woman who Goldi had to assume was her mother. It wasn’t long before the fighting had escalated to the redhead cutting something on the wall, something obviously important to the mom if not both of them. Goldi thought about interfering by yelling at them to get along, knowing just how strained mother-daughter relationships could get, but she had no idea how to explain her circumstances.
"Merida, you are a princess, and I expect you to act like one.”
Again, there was a mention that the girl was a princess, but Goldi agreed she didn't exactly act like one. At least based on her story book.
When she saw a wooden bow thrown towards her into the fire, the scene changed once again, the bow gone in the blink of an eye.
This time, Goldi saw the two of them in a kitchen, the redhead handing the mother a cake. Goldi smiled, happy the two were making up, but something behind the girl’s eyes seemed wrong. She blinked and they were back in a bedroom, this time with a large bed. But instead of fighting, they seemed to be panicking, and the mother was obviously not well.
In another blink of an eye, the mother had turned into a bear.
Goldi gasped, her brain running through as many options as she could think of before it finally settled on the truth: the girl had cursed her own mother to become a bear. Goldi’s heart sank before she wondered whether or not there was more of that cake. She stuck her head through further, enough to feel the warmth of the fire, but not enough to touch it. She thought about crawling through, dousing the flames, and grabbing the cake as quickly as she could before she could get caught. Maybe this was why those spirits were showing her this place, since it had the one solution to being alone all winter.
She stuck a hand through, testing the flame, before running back to the kitchen to grab a pitcher of water. She threw it towards the flames, but despite it seemingly landing directly on the fire, nothing happened.
She kept watching, and now this time the princess was struggling against her dad, who locked her in the room. The princess threw a chair at the door, and Goldi couldn’t help but want to save her. Then, the princess went to grab the fireplace poker and paused, staring through the flames. “Is someone there?” Goldi leaned back a bit. Had she been seen? The princess shook off the thought and went back to struggling against the door, breaking the window and finally resolving herself to crying as the rain streamed in.
“You’re not alone,” Goldi cried out, knowing she wouldn’t be heard.
She was wrong. The princess perked up and rushed back to the fireplace. “I heard you. Who’s there?” She looked around the entire mantel, looking for a crack or imperfection. Then, she resolved herself to staring straight into the flames.
Goldi stared back and decided to go for it once again. “Save her. Savor every moment with her.”
The princess nodded and stood back up, but Goldi wasn’t sure if she’d even heard her. She could only watch as the princess yelled through the door, and once she blinked again, she was gone.
Goldi got more water and tried to douse the flames out again, but still no luck. The room changed again and again as she tried over and over to put out the flames. She was about to give up when she blinked and saw the room changed once more into the kitchen where she first saw the cake.
Her instincts kicked in and she leapt towards the room, without even thinking. Once her brain caught up to her body, she braced herself for pain, but none came. She looked down, and although she was knee-deep in flames, it didn't hurt and her flesh was unscathed.
Goldi crawled the rest of the way into the kitchen to inspect the room, but upon seeing no one, she looked back into the fire. It was untouched, but the wall behind it was back to normal. She panicked, wondering if she would be stuck there forever.
Her panic didn't last long as she looked around the kitchen, seeing none of that cake. Her heart sank, and she was instead just disappointed.
Then, she heard a scream from the other room, one that sounded like a girl her age. The princess. Goldi ran, and her panic and disappointment disappeared as adrenaline kicked in and she wielded her jagged sword by her side.
“Ah! A bear!” She heard as she ran, only reinvigorating her drive. She turned the corner, saw a glimpse of the princess, and kept the sword as still as she could before it could hit the very girl she was trying to save.
The princess screamed, and Goldi could tell it was genuine this time. But nothing was wrong, in fact, it was only her brothers pretending to be a bear.
The princess’s scream ceased once she realized there was no real danger. “Oh, it’s you. I had expected it to be my mother coming around the corner,” Merida said, as if she knew her. “But how are you here? And what’s with the sword?” She motioned to her brothers to leave as if saying ‘we can try again later’.
Goldi blushed and hid the obsolete sword behind her back. “I came through the fireplace,” she blurted out. So, evidently, the princess had seen her earlier.
The princess could only laugh. “Well, thank you for trying to save me, even if it did ruin our prank. I’m Merida.” She held out her hand. “And when it comes to me, I want you to know, I don't need saving.”
Goldi had to switch her sword to her other hand before shaking Merida’s. “I know.”
“Now maybe I can try and save you. Something must be wrong if you had to climb through our fireplace.” Merida said, leading her into the other room.
“Wait, what happened with your mom? I thought she had turned into a bear.”
Merida shook her head. “That was days ago. She’s better now.” She lit a fire in her room and sat in front of it. Despite just crawling through soot, Goldi joined her, and the warmth did feel rather nice.
Time must move differently here, Goldi thought. She wondered how fast the winter was going by back home.
"So, why did you come through the fireplace?" Merida asked, positioning her feet to get warmed as they sat in front of the fire.
Goldi could see through the flames if she looked long and hard enough, and for a split second, she could see the way back home. She leaned forward and saw that, indeed, the fireplace in this room was open again. They must stay open longer, here, too. "Why? I come from another world through the back of your fireplace and you're asking why?" She sat back down next to Merida, hoping it wouldn’t be too much of a pain to crawl back through again. Hoping that if she did crawl back through, that it would still be open the next day.
"My mother turned into a bear." Merida laughed. “It’s not the weirdest thing that’s happened to me.”
Goldilocks thought about telling her that what she really wanted was the cake. That was the true reason, the first thing that made her want to crawl through soot and ash and eventually fire to a whole other world. Instead, she recalled the first time her family hibernated since they had taken her in.
Mama had warned her many times that they would be going to rest for months, but Goldi was young and still didn't know much about bears. As Mama and Papa prepared food, water and advice for Goldi, she barely listened, instead teasing Baby about something that didn't matter.
Then, as always, as they went to bed, Goldi snuggled up next to them in her own bed, one that wasn’t quite as just right as Baby’s. She slept well, the warmth and gentle breathing (and snoring) from them all lulling her into security. But when she woke up, they were all still asleep.
On a normal day, Goldi was always the last to wake up. There was always porridge on the table by the time she got out of bed. This time, though, there was no smell of porridge, and she still heard that soft sound of snoring from them all. She shook Mama, since she was usually the lightest sleeper, but it was no use. She tossed and turned in her sleep, but she wouldn’t wake. Goldi panicked before remembering one of Mama’s warnings.
“You’ll have to make your own porridge.” With those words of wisdom leading her, she tried to remember how Mama would make it, and got out the honey. There wasn't much left, but she could stretch it for the first few days at least.
"Don't leave the house." Was something she also remembered. Months alone inside with almost no honey. She gave up on the porridge and went back towards her bed, instead snuggling up next to Mama in hers. She could sleep just a bit longer.
Goldi thought Merida might find her family a bit strange after all she went through with her mom. Still, she didn't seem that weirded out by the crawling through the fireplace. "My family is made up of bears. So my winters have been lonely."
Merida nodded, kicking her feet to warm them up. "So you came here for a friend?"
Goldi didn't respond, and just stared at her own feet in front of the fire.
"Ah. Bears, so..." Merida thought back to the first time she’d seen a misplaced glint of gold hair from the corner of her eye. "You wanted the cake?"
Goldilocks sighed. "Yeah,” her voice choppy as she elaborated. “I love my family. It’s being without them for months that hurts the most. It might be easier if I could hibernate, too.”
Merida laughed, ignoring Goldi’s vulnerability, instead watching the fire spark. “It wouldn’t have worked, anyway. After a day, the spell curses you to be a mindless bear. Bears don’t really talk,” she finally looked Goldi’s way to see something approaching anger on her face, “or raise children in our world.”
Goldilocks sunk to the ground to lay on her back, resigned. “None of my wishes have worked. I guess I’ll have to be stuck with my life as it is.”
Merida leaned over Goldi’s frame to come face to face and narrowed her eyes at her. “If I’ve learned anything from the past week, it’s that you don’t need a wish to change things. Maybe you could make the best of it?”
Goldi huffed, but continued looking up at Merida, her orange curls framing her face. She realized that before today, she didn't even know of this world. If her family wasn’t hibernating, if she hadn’t gone into the woods alone, she never would have found this place. So as Merida stood up, and reached out her hand, Goldi took it. Suddenly, she was standing, and just as fast, she was running, trying her best to keep up with Merida.
She ran like a horse, graceful and with near-perfect form, whereas while Goldi was fast, she wasn’t used to long distances or obstacles.
They ran to Merida’s horses, and to the archery range, and all around the castle. After a long day of the actual kind of excitement that Goldi missed, she told Merida she would have to go home at some point. “I doubt you’ll be able to come back through my way. But it might be open again tomorrow, if you want to do this again?”
Merida nodded, looking closely at the fireplace. Sure enough, she only saw a wall where Goldi could see the front room of her cabin. “I would love to.”
The days went by quicker than they ever had before, and Merida showed her as much of her world as she could each day. Goldi always went back at the end of the day, though, not wanting to leave the bears alone for too long.
She could tell when winter was turning to spring, though, and just the same, it seemed the magic was fading. The barrier between their worlds was starting to blur, and the window seemed to blink in and out. Goldi worried that she would get stuck on the wrong side. “I think I’ll have to go soon.” It was the beginning of March at this point, and the days were getting longer and longer. That meant she spent more time with Merida, but it also meant their time was coming to an end.
Merida could see the worry in her eyes. “It’s ok. I’m sure we’ll see each other again, right?”
That question seemed to solidify the ‘goodbye’ in Goldi’s mind. Her heart dropped: she had no idea how far apart they truly were, or if they even lived in the same world. Goldi imagined Merida could likely be residing on some distant star, so far away she could never bridge the distance in a lifetime. But there and now, they were impossibly still together. “Even if I have to climb through thorns and fight dragons to get back here, I will.”
“Something tells me that won’t be necessary.” Merida looked past Goldi somewhere over her shoulder.
Turning around, Goldi could see those same blue, floating lights from before.
“Will o’ the wisp,” Merida said, as if that would mean anything to Goldi. She turned back around to look her in the eye. “Spirits. They’re supposed to guide you to where you need to go.”
“They led me here.” Goldi blushed.
“Then they’ll lead you back again.”
They both approached the fireplace, and Goldi reached her hand in. The fire was warm, but once again, it didn't burn her. She started to climb in, but paused to look back. “I’ll see you next year.” She held out her hand as if she was making a deal.
Merida took it despite the circumstances.
Maybe it was the heat of the fire, but Goldi’s face heated up as they didn't even shake hands. Instead, Merida just held on until Goldi pulled hers away, preoccupying herself with her sword. “Take this. To remember me by.”
“I don’t think I’ll forget,” Merida said, but took it anyway, her beautiful fiery hair even more stunning as Goldi looked through the licks of flame that made their way in front of her eyes.
It wasn’t long before she was on the other side now, and she watched through the transparent wall until Merida finally turned and left. Goldi’s heart was beating fast, and she turned around to see the sun shining through the curtains of the cabin. She sighed and stood up, taking charge to get things clean before her family woke up.
When the temperature rose the slightest bit, and the snow melted, Goldi’s family woke up. Just like always, they asked Goldi how the winter went. She didn't tell them much, but they started to get suspicious when she could suddenly hit a target with an arrow from a mile away, or run faster than any of them.
It was especially curious when she would stare a bit too closely at the fire, as if willing the back to open once more.