When she was done, they got ready to look around. 

Pandora threw the blanket over their shoulders once again, and they began walking. 

The mountaintop was covered in snow just like they had suspected. The ground was mostly rock, not a single tree in sight. The cold breeze cut across the raw skin of Pandora’s face. Her hair, despite being fixed by Inge just a minute ago, carelessly rippled around in the wind.

They held hands as they wandered over the top of the mountain. “I- Inge,” Pandora’s lips trembled from the cold when she spoke, “I have to tell you something.” 

Inge eyed her from the side. “Oh, and what is that?” She raised her bushy eyebrows. The hairs of them were a few shades darker than her hair, which made them stand out on her face. Pandora took a deep breath. The oxygen leaving her mouth turned white in the cold air.

Just when the brunette was about to open her mouth to speak, a loud rumbling startled both of them. It made them step even closer to each other. “What the Hades was that sound?” Inge shrieked. Pandora shrugged helplessly. “I guess we’ll have to find out,” She said. She forced a cheerfulness into her voice.

From the corner of her eye, Pandora could see Inge lick her chapped lips, that way getting the smallest bit of moisture on them. Unintentionally, her tongue slipped out of her mouth and licked her lips as well, practically mimicking Inge’s actions. The blonde noticed this and a soft smile spread across her face. 

They walked until their legs were sore. They ended up on the opposite edge of the rock. Both of them gazed down, and couldn’t believe what they saw. 

Two giants were passionately making out by a huge campfire. The flames lit the faces of the large beings. One was a female with long braids down her back. Her hair was a grayish color. It was the kind of unnatural gray that you’d never suspect the person to get just by growing old. When Pandora focused on the giantess even more, she was met with a beautiful, young face. Not an imperfection in sight. She would’ve never expected giants to be so attractive. The giantess’s eyes shone an icy blue color like the surface of a frozen lake before she closed them as the kiss deepened. Her cheeks were red from the long-lasting kiss between her and her giant partner. 

One of his hands was on the cheek of the giantess, his thumb caressing it. His hair was a row of jet-black braids. They ended right past his soft jawline. The ends twirled upwards like the heads of little serpents. That comparison made Pandora uneasy. His eyes were closed, meaning Pandora couldn’t see their color. Still, she suspected they were the color blue since that was quite common amongst the snow giants from her research. A faint sign of a dark beard could be seen on his chin and lower cheeks. He wore a pair of shorts and a plain white tee, which matched the outfit of his partner perfectly. She wore a long white dress and sandals the same brown color as his shorts. 

“Wow. I’d never expected to see two snow giants making out in my entire life, but here we are, I guess,” Inge muttered. Pandora tore her gaze away from the giant couple. “Okay, but what was that sound we heard earlier?” She asked a reasonable question. She had to nudge Inge’s arm with her elbow to make her stop staring at the two enormous beings. “Oh, um … Why are you asking me? Should I know that?” 

Pandora face-slapped herself. She pulled her friend away from the edge and over to a large rock. They sat down with their backs against it. 

When Pandora looked up, the sun was already setting. “We found the lair just like Artemis told us to. She didn’t say what else to do. I suggest we stay the night here and wait until we get more orders,” the brunette spoke. She looked to her side at Inge, who was staring somewhere into the distance, at nothing in particular. Pandora nudged her softly with her finger. “Are you listening?”

The blonde flinched. Her gaze snapped to Pandora. “I- I was just thinking,” she mumbled. Pandora could barely hear what she said. She leaned in a bit and put an arm around her friend’s waist to pull her closer. 

“Thinking ‘bout what?” She wanted to know. What could she possibly be thinking about? Her fingers traced small circles over the skin of Inge’s waist and hip. 

“I don’t know … I just feel like this quest isn’t-” Her voice was cut short when a wolf’s howl pierced the air. A ripple of light appeared in front of the rock they sat against and spread across the whole top of the mountain. A tall figure walked out of the light. A young, smooth face hovered in the air for a second until Pandora’s eyes adjusted to the brightness and the pale body of a petite woman revealed itself. Her auburn rippled in the cold wind. The figure was dressed in a long white dress and combat shoes which did not go together at all. A dozen bracelets and necklaces hung over the figure’s neck and wrists. A silver bow was strung across the being’s back. It shone like the stars in the sky. Two large, white wolves stood at her side. 

“My lady,” Pandora said first. She scrambled to her feet and bowed. A soft smile spread across Artemis’ face as she regarded the brunette girl. She gestured for her to get back up, and Pandora did so right away. She nudged Inge, who looked at her with confusion. “Bow, idiot,” she whispered as she didn’t want the goddess to hear. Inge rolled her eyes and got up. She performed a casual bow. Artemis looked satisfied. 

“I am here to inform you about your ongoing quest. I see you have found the giants’ lair as I told you to. Very well, my brave fighters.” 

Pandora couldn’t help the wave of pride that washed over her. A small smile tugged at the corners of her mouth. She looked to see Inge’s reaction in hopes she wasn’t the only one who felt joy from the words of Artemis. Instead, she was met with the blonde’s frowning face. Pandora didn’t understand what got her to frown like that. The goddess of hunt didn’t say anything wrong, did she?

“There is only one step left before the quest is finished and you are free to join my huntresses,” Artemis continued, not noticing the look on Inge’s face. “Only one thing you need to do and that is-” 

“We don’t want to finish your stupid quest!” Inge shouted all of a sudden, cutting off Artemis’ speech. “I’ve changed my mind. I don’t want to become a huntress like all those puny girls who thought it was a good decision to give up romance.” She glanced at Pandora with signs of tears in her eyes for a second before looking at the goddess again. Why was she crying? Pandora thought. 

“Inge?” She spoke quietly as if the other girl might lash out and push her to the ground at any given moment. Her voice got her friend’s attention since she immediately turned her head to the side to look at her. “What?”

“What … What are you talking about? We’ve done all of this so we could become the huntresses of Artemis. Why are you now saying you don’t want that when it’s all we’ve been working for this whole time?” Pandora spoke the questions that floated around in her head from the second Inge said those words. 

Inge took a deep, shaky breath to make the tears go away from her eyes. “I mean, I don’t want to give up romance. I just recently found out how it feels to be in love. I want to experience all those lovely moments with the person I love. I don’t think I could ever give up that beauty of life without feeling guilty,” she said. She spoke so calmly, it made Pandora long for this quest to be over already, too. 

Artemis cleared her throat. “You may have forgotten, but I’m still here with the information you seek.” The wolves circled their owner as if to remind the girls they were still there as well.

After a few seconds, Inge opened her mouth. “I have already made it clear enough that I do not seek any more information,” she looked at the goddess with certainty. Artemis pointed at me with her chin. “What about you, mortal? Do you wish to continue on this journey?” She asked firmly. Pandora could tell she was losing her patience.

The brunette looked up at the lit-up sky. The stars shone brightly as if the presence of Artemis encouraged them to show off their brightness in full beauty. She stared like that for another moment. It might’ve been a few seconds or a whole minute. She didn’t know. She was too caught up in admiring the sight above her to care.

“Pandora.” Inge put a hand on her shoulder with such gentleness she worried she was on her deathbed and Inge was trying to comfort her in that moment. “I know I can’t make you decide. That is yours and yours only decision to make. But first, I want you to fully hear out why I changed my mind, okay? I need you to know.” Pandora nodded, waiting for the other girl to speak.

“You two talk it out. I’ll be back once you’re finished. My wolves will make sure you don’t cause any trouble in the meantime,” Artemis said and in a zap of light, she was gone again. Both Inge and Pandora sat back down on the cold stone. The two wolves curled up at their legs and closed their eyes. So much for guarding wolves, Pandora thought bitterly.

“I don’t know how to say this without sounding cheesy, but … the reason I don’t want to give up romance is because you made me realize just how important romantic feelings are. I couldn’t go on for eternity without those feelings,” Inge said. She sighed once she was done speaking and looked at Pandora to see her reaction. The brunette blinked a few times in disbelief and confusion. 

“I made you realize that? I don’t get it,” she muttered and rubbed her eyes. Inge began fidgeting with her hands as nervosity took over her. 

“I mean that I love you, Pandora. I don’t want to join the huntresses if it means rejecting love and becoming a maiden forever,” she admitted. Her voice was quiet and hard to hear. Pandora leaned closer to her. “That’s the thing I was thinking about earlier before Artemis appeared,” she added. Pandora stared at the other girl, not knowing if she was being genuine. She leaned even closer and rested her hand on Inge’s lap. “Are you serious? Really, really serious?” She asked with hope glistening in her eyes. Inge smiled and instead of answering, she pressed her chapped lips to Pandora’s. They both might’ve enjoyed the kiss if both of their lips weren’t freezing cold and trembling from the weather. They clung to each other as if their life depended on it. Pandora’s arms were wrapped around Inge’s neck. The blonde’s hands cupped her face as she kissed her with all the energy she had left. 

The stars above their heads shone brighter than before. Pandora took it as a sign and kissed back. 

When they pulled away from each other, they saw that the wolves had already disappeared into oblivion. When has that happened? Pandora had no idea and nor did Inge. 

In the place where Artemis stood earlier, a piece of paper lay on the ground. Inge crawled over to it and picked it up. 



You had made your choice, brave ones. Though I am deeply disappointed since I was positive you’d make the best hunters, I do respect your choice and support your reasoning behind it. I will not torment you with this foolish quest any further. I made sure your town greets you as heroes who were chosen by the goddess of the moon, wilderness, and hunt and proceeded to go on a journey led by her. When you are ready to return to the place where I first found you, rip this paper apart. I’ll make sure you get there safely. 

Make your decision worth it, little fighters.



Inge smiled and handed the paper to Pandora. The two of them grabbed the leather bag they had carried since the beginning and stood at the edge of the mountain. They gazed down at the forest beneath them. “Ready?” Inge asked while gripping the other girl’s hand tightly as if she was scared to let go. “Ready,” Pandora answered and together, they tore the paper to pieces. The little particles floated in the air for a few seconds, apparently not intending to fall to the ground until the familiar lightning that Artemis appeared in sucked them in. Neither of them was sure what was happening, but when they felt the steady ground beneath their feet again, the square that they knew so well spread in all directions around them. Pandora smiled as the warmth of the place filled her. “Home.”