Kay sat quite alone in all those many miles of empty ice halls.  He looked at his bits of ice, and thought and thought, till something gave way within him.  He sat so stiff and immovable that one might have thought he was frozen to death.

Then it was that little Gerda walked into the Palace, through the great gates in a biting wind.  She said her evening prayer, and the wind dropped as if lulled to sleep, and she walked on into the big empty hall.  She saw Kay, and knew him at once; she flung her arms round his neck, held him fast, and cried, ’Kay, little Kay, have I found you at last?’

But he sat still, rigid and cold.

Then little Gerda shed hot tears; they fell upon his breast and penetrated to his heart.  Here they thawed the lump of ice, and melted the little bit of the mirror which was in it.  He looked at her, and she sang: 

    ’Where roses deck the flowery vale,
    There, Infant Jesus, we thee hail!’

Then Kay burst into tears; he cried so much that the grain of glass was washed out of his eye.  He knew her, and shouted with joy, ’Gerda, dear little Gerda! where have you been for such a long time?  And where have I been?’ He looked round and said, ’How cold it is here; how empty and vast!’ He kept tight hold of Gerda, who laughed and cried for joy.  Their happiness was so heavenly that even the bits of ice danced for joy around them; and when they settled down, there they lay! just in the very position the Snow Queen had told Kay he must find out, if he was to become his own master and have the whole world and a new pair of skates.

Gerda kissed his cheeks and they grew rosy, she kissed his eyes and they shone like hers, she kissed his hands and his feet, and he became well and strong.  The Snow Queen might come home whenever she liked, his order of release was written there in shining letters of ice.

They took hold of each other’s hands and wandered out of the big Palace.  They talked about grandmother, and about the roses upon the roof.  Wherever they went the winds lay still and the sun broke through the clouds.  When they reached the bush with the red berries they found the reindeer waiting for them, and he had brought another young reindeer with him, whose udders were full.  The children drank her warm milk and kissed her on the mouth.  Then they carried Kay and Gerda, first to the Finn woman, in whose heated hut they warmed themselves and received directions about the homeward journey.  Then they went on to the Lapp woman; she had made new clothes for them and prepared her sledge.  Both the reindeer ran by their side, to the boundaries of the country; here the first green buds appeared, and they said ‘Good-bye’ to the reindeer and the Lapp woman.  They heard the first little birds twittering and saw the buds in the forest.  Out of it came riding a young girl on a beautiful horse, which Gerda knew, for it had drawn the golden chariot.  She had a scarlet cap on her head and pistols in her belt; it was the little robber girl, who was tired of being at home.  She was riding northwards to see how she liked it before she tried some other part of the world.  She knew them again, and Gerda recognised her with delight.