Work Text:
Emily and Jan were building the best snowman ever. He had a huge body, which had taken up most of the snow in the playground outside of their little apartment complex to make. They were now rolling around a second ball, trying to make it the right size for a head. Eventually when it was done, they both stood staring and suddenly realised their problem.
“We can’t lift it,” Emily groaned.
Jan nodded, hands on hips, as he’d seen his papa do. “We could try.”
They did try. But they were too little, and the snowman was too great.
“Do you want a hand?” a voice called across the park.
They both turned and smiled. It was the Shovel Dude. He and his wife had just moved into the building this year.
“Yes, please,” they chorused, because their papa had taught them manners.
Shovel Dude laid his large shovel with the worn handle against the wall and tottered over like a penguin. He lifted the ball of snow easily for an old man, and placed it on the body.
“Is that okay?” he asked.
Emily and Jan both looked carefully. “It’s a bit squint,” Jan said.
Shovel Dude moved it a little and looked back down at them. “Now?”
“Yay,” they both cheered.
“Excellent. Now you had better go and find them some eyes and a nose.”
The children nodded seriously. “Thanks, Shovel Dude,” Jan said and then stopped with his hand over his mouth, but Shovel Dude just chuckled.
“It’s okay.” He smiled at them. “My wife, Vilde, told me that that’s what the kids all call me. I don't mind. I like shovelling snow.”
“Oh, it’s not just the kids,” Emily said seriously. “My papa calls you that too. He says we would never make it out to school if Shovel Dude wasn’t constantly clearing all the paths. He says you deserve a certificate.”
Shovel Dude just laughed. “Call me Magnus,” he said.