Light in the dark (2017)

Illustrator/Photoshop

A gift for the sweet moominfriend  This took so long time and I rushed at the end... but I hope that you'll still like it!   



It had been a wonderful day finding treasures on the slopes of Lonely Mountains. So wonderful that the dusk had succeeded sneaking upon the three adventurers without any warning. It was Snufkin, who had noticed this mistake first and he immediately regretted not taking the tent and his usual camping stuff with him. The slopes of Lonely Mountains were hard to travel, especially on nighttime and they were running out of time. He had urged his friends Moomintroll and Snuffy to hurry back, but he already knew they weren't going to make it in time.

As the night finally spread out her veil upon the Moominvalley, the three adventurers were in the middle of climbing down a rocky cliff.
"I can't see a thing! It's too dark! Snufkin, what do we do?!" Moomintroll's voice sounded distressed, but he tried his best to not let fear take control. The green clothed vagabond took a long breath and sighed. He had only brought a piece of rope with him, that they had just used to climb down to a ledge. So it wasn't going to help them much.
"I think we have to stay put and sleep here, until morning comes. If we start wandering around in the dark, the risk of falling is too high." He finally admitted and looked really miserable. He should have been able to prevent this. Both of his friends counted on him.
"Mama's going worry..." Moomintroll sighed and looked towards the valley, not being able to see a thing. A long silence fell upon the group.

A cold wind hit them and Snuffy shivered quietly. "We should bundle up, that way it won't get so cold. If only I could get this rope down, we could tie it around ourselves, so no-one won't accidently roll over the ledge while sleeping..." Snufkin worried and took a hold of the rope, trying to pull it down. Unfortunately the knot didn't seem to be willing to open. The cold wind kept blowing and the heavy clouds started to slowly scatter. Suddenly Moomintroll gasped in surprise.
"Where's that light coming from?"

As the clouds parted, a beautiful full moon appeared on the dark sky. When the light from the moon touched Snuffy's hair, the brown melted away relieving a shining pure white color. A long moomin-like tail peeked under her dress, also glowing brilliantly. The girl blushed a little and looked quite embarrassed.
"Oh no! I forgot that it was full moon tonight!" Snuffy tried to hid her tail and looked really uncomfortable. She hadn't told her friends about this side of her yet. Both of the boys were dumbfounded and could only stare at her hair that shined so brightly that they could actually see around them.
"I'm sorry! This is so embarrassing! Mama said that it runs in the family or something, I don't really know why it happens. It's weird and-" Snuffy babbled nervously, but she was cut short when Snufkin laughed a little.
"Beautiful." Snufkin added with a smile that made the girl's cheeks turn red.

"Your hair and tail look really beautiful. They're nothing to be embarrassed of. You really are the prettiest girl I have ever met." He said and smiled at the girl. Snuffy didn't know what to say, she was so flushed and her heart beat faster than usual.
"One could say that your hair is our beacon of hope in this lost situation." Snufkin added. It took a moment for the words to sink in, but then Snuffy smirked back with a disbelieving face.
"Wait a minute... Are you sweet talking me just so you could use my hair to light our way down? I'm not your lantern, you silly!" Snuffy laughed heartily.
"Well it could actually work." Snufkin pointed out and nodded towards a small mountain path that had went unnoticed by all until now. The path probably led straight down to Moominvalley. Snuffy sighed with a smile and started to walk down the path, showing the way for the boys.

After a good stroll down the slopes, Moomintroll inched closer to Snuffy and whispered into her ear...
"You know, he doesn't usually lie... He really meant what he said. He really thinks you're the prettiest girl he has ever seen!"

 

Snuffy © 
Moomintroll, Snufkin etc. © Tove Jansson