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The sun of Spring had no intention of hiding behind any clouds, the heat absolutely scalding and forcing those who dare expose themselves to it to hide under any shade they could find, when Moomin decided that he would go to the beach, a jar in hand.
It had rained last night, much to everyone’s surprise as the winter just came to pass, and all of his friends preferred to stay in, sick after they all played in the rain. Moomin was fortunate to not catch their illness.
“Ugh, you’re so lucky, Moomin.” Sniff groaned as Moominmamma wiped his forehead with a washcloth, “How come you’re so well while Little My and I have to stay in bed all day?”
“Oh, don’t blame Moomin for that, Sniff.” Little My said, tucked in bed as well, “It’s not like he’s the one who spent more time playing in the rain, unlike some other creature in this room.”
“You’re not safe from that either, Little My.” Sniff argued, “In fact, I think you were out there longer than me!”
“Don’t fight you two.”Moominmamma cut through the conversation, dipping the washcloth into the water basin and giving it a quick squeeze to wipe Little My’s forehead, “What’s done is done and you both should focus more on getting better. I’m sure one of Grandma’s recipes will help both of you and a little cake won’t hurt to cheer you up.”
“Cake?” Sniff said, eyes suddenly wide, “I’d love that, Moominmamma! You’re the best!”
Moominmamma smiled at Sniff, then turned to Moomin, “We better leave these two to rest, Moomin. We might catch their sickness as well if we stay for far too long.”
Moomin nodded at his mother, gave his friends a quick “Get better.” and closed the door, hurrying after Moominmamma.
They reached the kitchen, where Moominmamma began to prepare lunch, a few ingredients already on the table. Moomin stood there, unsure of what to do.
So he asked, “Mamma, is there anything I can do to help?”
“I’m alright, Moomin, but thank you for asking. You can do whatever you like until lunch time.”
Moomin thought for a minute, arms on his hips as he tapped his foot. Perhaps he could sneak back to the room his friends shared and play with them? No, he’d get sick too. Well then maybe he can read another book? There wasn’t anything he was interested to read though!
A few more seconds passed, Moomin’s eyebrows furrowed, before he exclaimed, “Aha!” A light bulb appearing in his head.
“Mamma, can I borrow a jar? Like the one we use for jam!” Moomin asked his mother.
“Of course, but what will you use it for?” Moominmamma asked, already walking to the cabinet where she kept her empty jars and selecting one, handing it to her son.
“It’s a secret!” Moomin declared. He thanked his mother, promising that he’ll be back for lunch and giving her a kiss on the cheek before running out the door.
“Moomin is always full of surprises.” His mother said to herself, smiling as she watched her son run down the hill their house was on and vanishing into the forest.
The day, as hot as the weather is, was still young and wonderful! So today, instead of staying in his house (it was probably going to be boring, anyway), he decided it would be more fun to see if the storm brought any seashells to the coast of the beach not too far from his own home. Surely his mother would enjoy a few new shells for her flowerbeds! And he’ll give some to Sniff, Little My, and his father. If he’s lucky, he’ll keep some for himself, too!
Once he entered the beach area, he ran as fast as he could to the sand that was repeatedly soaked by water (the sand he was stepping on right now made his feet feel like they were on fire and Moomin wasn’t one to enjoy such a feeling.) He made it to the sand, the darker color of it a result of the repeated soaking it had differentiating it from its dry counterpart, and Moomin began to look for shells there.
It took a lot of digging, some of the sand finding a home in Moomin’s claws, but he managed to dig a few he found to be interesting. Once he found one, he would toss it into the jar then begin to dig a little more.
The ones he found, in his opinion, weren’t the nicest. Some of them had chips on their corners, or some parts of it were completely discolored, or some had little creatures hiding in them, demanding he leave them alone before he could even pick the shell up, so those were some who couldn’t keep.
How could he give these to his family, Moomin thought to himself. If anything, they deserved the most beautiful ones he could find!
He sighed, looking at the jar he brought with him. He hadn’t even gotten that many and the few he did find weren’t as lovely as the ones he found the last time there had been a great storm. Those were used as decorations for flower beds and some were strung up on their verandah, moving with the wind when a breeze was kind enough to pass by.
The wind was blowing right now, and it was only when Moomin followed a Daffodil flowing through it until his head was completely turned to the ocean when it fell down on the water.
“Strange.” Moomin muttered to himself when the flower didn’t move at all even when the waves moved back and forth around it, "What a stubborn flower."
Slowly, he stood up, leaving the jar behind and walked to it, wondering if it was a sign for something.
(He, unfortunately, missed the sign of someone watching him not too far away, staring at the jar of shells.)
He made it to the bath house, the water clear as ever and noticed, under the Daffodil, was something glinting, nearly buried in the sand underwater.
He took a deep breath and jumped into the water, kicking with all his might until he reached the bottom. He quickly began to dig and would have gasped with joy if he weren’t saving his breath.
There, in his hand, was a beautiful seashell. It was perfect, the shell shining with various spiral patterns on it, light shades of pink and blue meeting each other and making a light shade of purple, and his reflection was staring back at him, too! The shell itself seemed to be iridescent and the sun made it shine even more.
As Moomin continued to examine the shell, suddenly, out of the corner of his eye, he could have sworn something had moved, and he quickly turned his head to see what it was. He stared for a few more seconds, preparing himself in case anything happened, but everything was still, so he relaxed his tense shoulders.
A trick of the light, he told himself before hurrying back to the surface and gasping for air when he made it.
(He failed to notice the eyes that glowed as they stared at him, hiding behind one of the huge pegs that held the path to the bath house up, head tilted curiously at him.)
He made his way back to the shore, excited to share with his family the nicest shell he found. It wasn’t until he made it back to where he left his jar was there a problem right in front of him.
“Nice shells you got here, buddy.” Stinky says without a hint of friendliness, shaking the jar, “Mind if I have some?”
If Moomin knew anything about Stinky, it’s that he wouldn’t want some, but all of them, so he shook his head, “No way! Those are for Mama and everyone else in Moominhouse!”
“Not even one for me?” He said, pretending to shed a tear, “You’re so mean, Moomin!”
“Give it back, Stinky.” Moomin said, walking to him and reaching for the jar.
Stinky clung onto the jar harder and moved it away from Moomin’s reach, making the troll irritated as he struggled to reach it with one hand and hold the shell in the other.
Stinky caught sight of the shell Moomin found and he was quick to let go of the jar and pounce at Moomin to grab it. He rolled a little and came to a full stop a few inches away from Moomin.
“Ooooh, this is a great shell, Moomin!” Stinky exclaimed, admiring the shell with a smirk, “It would be a shame if it suddenly went back into the ocean.”
Moomin’s eyes widened and Stinky began to run, Moomin chasing after him and yelling at Stinky to give it back to him.
Stinky wasn’t careful though, and even if he was a faster runner than the moomintroll, he eventually found his way into the ocean, but he kept running until the ocean water was beginning to reach his mouth already.
“Say goodbye to this thing, Moomin!” His smirk much bigger and got ready to throw the shell into the ocean.
“No!” Moomin yelled as Stinky tossed it. His aim was surprisingly good and the poor shell sunk deep into the ocean.
Moomin kneeled on the dry and still burning sand, frustrated that he failed to get the shell back in time while Stinky laughed at him.
“I suppose I should just forget about the shell, it’s sunken much deeper than before now and it’ll surely be harder to find it again.” He thought to himself, getting ready to stand up and walk back to his jar, feeling utterly defeated-
Then two things happened at once.
Stinky’s laughter stopped, his eyes suddenly much wider than Moomin’s had been, and before he could finish yelling in surprise, he was pulled into the ocean.
Moomin stood there, mouth open in confusion. Was Stinky pulling another prank on him? Was he in danger this time? If this wasn't a joke, does that mean that there’s a-
“MONSTER!” Stinky screamed as he suddenly swam up and to the shore, ignoring Moomin as he ran faster than he’s ever had, “THERE’S A MONSTER IN MOOMINVALLEY!”
Moomin watched him disappear into the forest, his terrified voice echoing and scaring birds away, then stared at the spot Stinky was in.
He could go back to parents and tell them about it then tell the Inspector and alert the others in the valley, but what if the monster leaves? What if it wasn’t a monster at all? Moomin just has to know what it was, then he can be on his way.
As he told himself that, he still continued to feel nervous as he cautiously returned to the bathhouse to keep an eye out for the monster while making sure he was still on some land.
He leaned as close as he could to the water, scoping out the scene. So far, there was nothing. He spent a few more minutes looking around, asking himself what could have possibly scared Stinky that badly.
Just as he was about to give up, a voice called out, “Oh, excuse me.”
Moomin looked around, befuddled, “Who’s there?”
“Over here.” The voice repeats with the sound of some water splashing loudly alerting Moomin of the voice's location. He turns to where the voice is, and gasps.
There, holding his dropped shell, was a creature he’s never seen before. The creature’s eyes were the most interesting to Moomin as the sclera and pupil were black, yet the iris was a brown like the milk chocolate Moominmamma made. He had an olive green tail, only slightly covered by a dark green shirt with sleeves that only reached slightly past his elbows. A hat with shells of different kinds laid atop his head, soaking wet (How it stayed there when the creature was underwater was a mystery to Moomin) and freckles were all over his face and body.
Moomin must have stared at the creature too long, as he turned his head away from him, his hat covering his face a little more.
“Pardon me, but, were you the one that grabbed Stinky?” Moomin hesitantly asked.
“Yes.” The creature confirmed, “I was about to leave when I saw that you yourself had left, but I saw that creature-“Stinky” was it?-throw this away just like that and laugh at you.” The creature looked at Moomin and smiled, raising up the scaly (the tips of his fingers were dangerously sharp, Moomin noted) hand that held the shell to Moomin, “This is yours, isn’t it?”
“Oh, uh, yes,” Moomin says as eloquently as possible, slowly leaning forward to take the shell. “Thank you, uh…”
“Snufkin.” The boy responds, tipping his hat to the troll.
“I’m Moomintroll, but you can call me Moomin!” Moomin returns, reaching out for Snufkin’s hand and shaking it, “It’s nice to meet you, Snufkin!”
Snufkin chuckles and the dangerously sharp teeth that showed themselves surprised Moomin and he began to understood why Stinky was so scared (though Moomin saw nothing scary himself) “I believe I haven’t met you even after all my travels, so it’s a pleasure to meet you as well.”
“Travels?” Moomin asks with wonder and curiosity.
A light shines brightly in Snufkin’s eyes and he eagerly nods, “Yes. I’m a vagabond at heart, and I’ve wandered these seas all my life. One day I’m here and the next I’m not and during these travels, I’ve experienced my fair share of trouble.” Snufkin frowns and mutters, “Especially with those gatekeepers.”
Moomin tilts his head. “What was that?”
“It’s nothing.” Snufkin turns his attention, “What about you, Moomin? How is the land like?”
“It’s very wonderful!” Moomin happily tells Snufkin, “The forests and the valleys and the flowers-they’re all very lovely! I’d love for you to see more than what I can describe!”
“You seem to love it all very much, so I trust that it’s as lovely as you say as I myself will not have a chance to see it,” Snufkin tells Moomin, sounding a little upset behind his calm expression.
“Why’s that?” Moomin asked.
“I’m a mermaid, you see, and we can explore the oceans to our heart’s desire, but the land is something none of us have ever seen all of before. And with how different we look, there aren't that many who are welcoming of us.” Snufkin replies.
Well, the mermaids in Moomin’s storybooks were different from what a real one would look like, but Moomin found himself not upset at all, enthralled by this stranger’s appearance.
“That’s sad to hear. I’m sorry.” Moomin said, frowning in understanding.
“It’s alright.” Snufkin reassures him, “At the very least, it’s been fun meeting you so far. You seem to be very kind and unlike most of those I’ve met, you didn't run away the moment you saw me.”
Moomin felt himself flush at Snufkin’s compliment and he couldn’t figure out why. But he has to say something back! Something just as friendly and maybe even nicer!
“Well,” Moomin started, “You’ve been really nice too, Snufkin! I have no idea why anyone would run away from you. You seem quite handsome in my opinion.”
...okay, maybe that was a little too much for a first compliment (and maybe that really is what Moomin observed a while ago, but still!)
Snufkin’s calm demeanor broke, and he tried his best to hide his flushed face with his hat, “Thank you, Moomin. That’s...very sweet of you to say.”
“Haha...yeah…” Moomin awkwardly replied, rubbing the back of his neck and looking away.
They stay like that for a minute, unsure of what they should say next.
Moomin wondered what it is he should do now that he’s met Snufkin. Should he tell the others? How would he introduce them to him anyway? Would everyone be okay with him hanging out here? Would mamma-
Moomin had the sudden realization that it was already well into lunchtime and he sprung up, surprising Snufkin.
“I’m really sorry, Snufkin, but I have to go! I told Mamma I’d be back for lunch but I’m already late!” Moomin explained.
“Of course, of course.” Snufkin said, “I should continue my wandering as well. I heard that there would be a festival in a town not too far from here and I may be a mermaid, but perhaps I’ll get to see parts of it underwater.”
Moomin was happy for his new found friend, yet he couldn’t help but be worried about something, so he asked shyly, “Will you come back here? It’s been fun talking to you.”
Snufkin seemed to contemplate this for a moment, and Moomin might have been convinced the vagabond would say no until he answered, “I’ll see if I can make it back, say, next week? It’s been fun talking to you as well.”
“Really? That sounds great!” Moomin said and he happily shook Snufkin’s hand once again, “Off you go then! I’m already excited to see you next week!”
Snufkin laughed and Moomin felt a tinge of warmth surround him, making him blush a little, “I feel the same way, Moomin.”
Snufkin readjusted his hat and a worn out satchel that Moomin didn’t notice was there before. Snufkin swam a little farther into the sea and turned to look at Moomin, waving.
“Farewell, Moomintroll! ‘Til our paths cross again!” He yelled.
“Bye Snufkin!” Moomin waved back, watching the mermaid swim off into the vast ocean, free as ever.
Now that Snufkin was gone, Moomin would have thought that was all a dream had the shell not been in his hand after their conversation.
He made his way back to his jar, placed the shell in there as gently as possible, and lifted it up so he could begin his walk back to his house.
He wondered if Snufkin really would come back as Moomin would love to hear all about his adventures. And, now that Moomin thought of it, he couldn’t help but feel something warm and fuzzy at the thought of seeing Snufkin again, but he couldn’t find the right word. It might be a word that one does not say, but he wouldn’t know that, because he didn’t know the word at all!
As the rows upon rows of Daffodils Moomin passed swayed with the wind, Moomin quietly thanked them for helping him find his shell and, in addition to that, Snufkin.