Magnum Innominandum

"After that... well, I used to have an old nanny. She was the widow of a Swedish sea-captain. When he died, Mama and Papa took her on to look after me. She came from near here, and she used to tell me stories about the old spirits. Trolls and bear-spirits, all kinds. She said nature was full of spirits, and that they didn't care whether you believed in them or not."

Karin rumbled once again. "Does a hungry bear care whether you believe in it?"

Josephine nodded, shivered. "Ruth mentioned those myths too, but she never followed them up. I traveled to Stockholm, visited the libraries and talked to the professors there, trying to find out whether the old faiths still survived. They told me, if anywhere it would be in the far North beyond the reach of Christianity and even the old gods of the Edda.

"I was going to stay a little longer, but I had a close call one day... I was reading in the library and I felt someone behind me, so close and quiet, just waiting for me to look around. I closed my eyes and shouted for the librarian, I didn't open them until he promised me I was alone. He must have thought I was mad.

"After that I cut my hair and disguised myself in men's — I don't know whether I was trying to avoid Ruth's people, or my father's. Then I caught a boat north, and when I found nothing in Norrkvarn I set out to try my luck with the Lapps. And then I fell on the glacier, and you found me."

Karin was silent.

"Karin, do you know of these spirits?"

"I know something of them. But they are dangerous, child, very dangerous indeed. Some of them can pass for human, but they are no more human than a tree or a rock or a glacier."

"Can they help me? Can you help me deal with them?"

"What do you want from them? Do you want to forget your Ruth?"

"No! I loved her. I love her... at least, as she was. I don't know what she is now. But the love we had, that was sweet and good, and I'm not ashamed of it. No, I want to be free of... the other thing. The thing behind the veils. Karin, is it possible?"

Another long silence, then: "It is possible. Yes, if you wish it, I can do this thing. You will stay with me through the winter and dreams will not trouble you. In the spring I will carry you down to the town, and then perhaps you may return home. But there is a price, there is always a price."

"What is it?"

"Undress, and give yourself to me."

"I — I can't —"

"It is an old magic. Even older than your veiled lady. There is no sin here, and no unfaithfulness to your Ruth. You will lie with me in my bed, and we will become one. Eventually we will part, and you may go on to whatever awaits you. But this is the only way I can do what you require."

Karin's hold on Josephine loosened; there was an loud creak as she shifted in her bed. "Or you can go now. I do not compel you. Only if it is your will, you may stay."

Josephine considered. It was true: there was no sin in finding comfort in another's arms, no betrayal of Ruth. Even without love, there would be comfort and rest. Already she was feeling a flush of warmth as blood returned to her fingers and toes.

"I accept." Her eyes still stung a little, so she kept them closed as she sat up, unbuttoned her clothes, slipped out of them and set them down beside her. Then she lay back in the big white bed, and Karin was there, wrapping her all around, and at last her heart was quiet.

* * * * *

NORRKVARN, Sweden (AP), July 17, 2009 — A body found two months ago in a glacial moraine in the far north of Sweden has been tentatively identified as that of Josephine Hart, an American heiress who vanished from Paris in 1928.

The body was found naked, with clothes and personal effects nearby. It is speculated that Hart lost her way while attempting to visit a Saami village north of Norrkvarn and died of exposure on the Karin Glacier; the flow of the glacier would then have carried her body downhill to be released in the spring melt.

Initial identification was based on personal effects, and the body was in an excellent state of preservation allowing comparison to archival photographs. Police are seeking surviving relatives to confirm identification via DNA matching.

How Hart came to be in Sweden is the subject of (cont. p. 12)

The End

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Author's note: This story started out with a fragmentary dream of a scene corresponding to Ruth and Jo's final night together at Vesey. I put it aside for a couple of years because I didn't have the rest of the story.

Then one day I got to thinking about parallels between Lovecraft's "Magnum Innominandum" (i.e. "that [great thing] which must not be named", often identified with Hastur), and Lord Douglas' "the love that dare not speak its name", invoked at Oscar Wilde's trial. Lovecraft treats the M.I. in the same way the newspapers of the day treated homosexuality: a force of evil so dangerous that it can only be described in oblique language, lest it corrupt the listener.

This might not be a coincidence. After looking at what Lovecraft borrowed from Chambers' "The King in Yellow", and at how TKiY is influenced by Salomé and works by Wilde's associates, it seems quite likely that this particular nameless horror is an echo of real-life fears. It certainly wouldn't be the first time Lovecraft had done that!

On a side note: Ruth and Jo's attitude towards other cultures and religions should not be mistaken for mine! In particular, although the terms "Lapp"/"Lapplander" were in common use in the '20s, they have a problematic history and should be avoided in favor of "Saami". Jo uses them because she doesn't know any better.

Thanks to my partner for proofreading, and to NaokoSmith for suggesting some much-needed edits!