by A Lonergan
"Or you didn't have any power over her and she wanted to make a point." I said louder than I had intended.
The aunts looked at me and blinked for a few minutes before they sneered. "That's fine if we don't have any power over her now because we have power over you. I would mind your mouth if you want to eat tonight."
"Why don't you go clean up in your room?" Brunhilda laughed as she threw rags at me. "Try on your new dress! We will want to see it at dinner tonight." I clutched the pieces of fabric to my chest and retreated to my bedroom.
As much as I wanted to, I hadn't been able to clean up this part of the house first. The mattress had gaping holes in it and I was almost certain that there was an animal living in it. The walls had holes and cracks in them. Everything was gray. I felt like I was in a nightmare. As if when the magic left, so did all of the color.All of the life. The cleanest part of the room was in front of the fireplace. It was where I slept each night as I tried to stay warm. I now understood why my mother had gained the name she kept. The dress was beautiful, even though it was worn and tattered. In its prime, it would have been a stunner. But now all it had were a few pearls and tons of holes. The worn pink material was a stark contrast to the rest of my life, but it gave a warm feeling that I didn't know I still had inside of me. It gave me a little sparkle of hope. I slid the rough dress over my head and the sleeves slipped down my arms. I did the absolute best I could with what I was given. It was a bit snug in the waist but everywhere else, it fell off of me. I looked down at the hand stitching and marveled at how it had held up all of these years. I tugged on the seams. It was easily the strongest thread I had ever encountered.
The decrepit door swung open and I held my head high as I walked to the dining room. There were only two seats at the table and on the floor there was a bowl of something white. Steam rose from it in puffs and my stomach growled. The women were nowhere to be seen.
"Well, you look the part now, doesn't she Hildie?" Priscella said from behind me. She had startled me, but I wouldn’t give her the satisfaction of knowing it.
I turned around slowly and kept my eyes on the floor. I was too timid now and I hated it with every fiber of my being. Brunhilda snapped her fingers and food seemed to unravel from thin air onto the long oak table. Different kinds of meats, cheeses, and fruits were spread out before me. My mouth began to salivate even though I knew I wouldn't be enjoying any of it. Brunhilda frowned and pointed to the bowl of slop on the floor. "Enjoy your porridge. It came all the way from the castle."
I swallowed. "Does that mean Madame Tremaine has had an audience with my parents?" I knew the answer even as the words slipped free.
The sisters threw their heads back and laughed. "All of those years, we had to watch while we couldn't touch your mother. We had to be content with her cleaning and doing just about whatever we wanted. Unfortunately, because of your grandfather still being alive then, but out on business, we could never show her how we really felt. Cinderella managed to evade us long enough and then she was gone. Mother will not be coming back, little Arabella. She has taken the castle like she has planned for the last twenty years." Priscella held up her hand to stop Brunhilda's words. "All our mother has ever cared about is Cinderella. Ruining her life, and in turn, forgetting all about us. You will now see just what it's like to not be loved or cared for."
Even though I had come to hate them, I knew why they were the way they were. I knew why they hated me so much and all it did was break my heart. And it wasn't for my sake, it was for theirs. No matter what my parents had done, they had always showed me in some way that they loved me. Growing up in the shadow of another didn't sound like a way to live. I bowed my head and swallowed before I spoke. "I am so sorry that you both lived like that. Neither of you deserved that treatment. It's not too late to make the wrongs right." The sisters' frowns deepened. "There is nothing we want to make right. All we want to do is make you miserable. Eat your porridge then go to bed."
After a few spoonfuls of the slop, my stomach started to revolt. Nausea washed over me and I doubled over in pain. I clutched at my belly and tried to find my footing to stand. I couldn't bear the thought of being sick in front of the two people that hated me more than anyone else. Priscella noticed me first. I felt her hand rub circles on my back but I recoiled from the comfort. Nothing was given for free and I couldn't risk letting her get close to me. They had already hurt me too much.
"It's going to be all right," Brunhilda whispered on the opposite side of her sister. "You will get some good rest for the first time in months." Months? Had it really been months? It hadn't felt like it. It felt like years I had been trapped here with them both. But I knew that wasn't true either. I couldn't comprehend the amount of time I had lost. My head swam next and I couldn't help but press my face into the grime on the floor. I gagged but wasn't able to throw up. What was wrong with me? Then Brunhilda admitted what they had done, "Maybe we shouldn't have drugged her, Pris."
"Shut up, Hildie. We had to. If she finds out what they're doing to her parents, she'll fight us." There was a frustrated grunt before everything went dark. The last thing I heard was, "It was your idea to tell her."
Fifteen
Arabella
Shivers wracked my body. I tried to wrap my arms around myself, but there was something holding me back. I yanked my arms down again but this time pain shot through them. I blinked the sleep from my eyes and hoped they would adjust to the darkness soon. I knew exactly where I was but I couldn't bring myself to accept where I was laying. A squeak from beneath me confirmed my suspicions. I was strapped to the bed in the room I had been 'gifted'.
Tears filled my eyes and I shook my head to clear them. Emotions wouldn't get me anywhere right now. I tested the bindings on my wrists again and tried to replay what had happened in my mind. Something was happening to my parents. Something bad enough that would make me want to fight. Instead of tears and sadness, anger filled my body. I pulled on the restraints again. My wrists ached already and I wondered how long I had been out for.
The door swung open and Brunhilda stood in the door. Her face was grim, but for the life of me, I couldn't understand why. Until she spoke, "I didn't want it to be this way." All I could do was stare at her like I could make her disappear with my mind. "We could have been a happy family, but my mother was obsessed with destroying yours. There was no happy place for us. There was always jealousy and rage." She leaned against the crumbling doorframe. "I always wanted a niece, but I never felt like I could have one. I could never accept you, especially with how much Pris hates you."
"Why won't you let me go?" My voice cracked.
"Because they'll kill us both. There is no hope for you and me. Please, don't try to escape. I will have to choose a side and you won't like the side I pick."
"What is happening at the castle?" I had to know, even if I didn't want to.
"I don't know for sure. Mother sent the food and a little magic. I would assume things aren't going well. There are guards in the village, but they aren't your parent's guards. These guards are the undead kind." Horror washed over me then grief. I would never be able to fight back against someone so powerful. I would surely lose. But I would die trying. They had been right, I would fight.
"How do I stop her?" I whispered into the darkness. I could no longer see my aunt, but that didn't mean she was gone.
"You can't. Only magic can kill her. How do you think we have managed to stay here so long? Your mother tried to send us away for years with all of the threats my mother sent her. The walls were reinforced with magic. Your mother and father thought you would always be safe there, at the castle. The wall is on fire, just like everything else."
I awoke with a start. Something was scurrying across the floor. My skin crawled at the sound. I needed to get out of here. I yanked on the bindings once more, but it was no use. All I would have was infections in my arms if I kept it up. A glittering material shone its way across the room. I swallowed back my disgust and let what
ever was happening unfold before me. Then I noticed the tail. I could have sworn it was a mouse with a piece of the broken mirror on its back. It managed to get up the bedpost and scurry up the side of my body. I tried my hardest to keep my body from trembling, but it was no use.
"Gus Gus is here," the fat, brown mouse said. I blinked in surprise. Just when I thought things couldn't get any weirder, they did.
"Hi," My voice shook. "Gus Gus, are you here to help me?"
"Yes!" the rodent squeaked.
"What's the plan?" I whispered back. The mouse held up the piece of mirror triumphantly. "Are you going to cut the ropes?"
The mouse nodded before he looked at my arms with permission. "That looks like the best way for you to get up there."
Gus Gus looked at my body and seemed to frown. "You look like Cinderellie before the ball. Sad night. We worked hard on dress for her." I glanced down at the pink material and sadness washed over me again. I bit my lip to keep me from crying. Strong. I had to be strong. If everything was on fire, I had to be the one to put it out.
The ropes holding my wrists to the bedposts weren't as easy to cut as we thought they would be. Gus Gus would go for a few minutes, just sawing away before he would have to stop to take a deep breath. "Gus Gus, who saved my mom?" I asked during the longest break he took.
"Fairy Godmother." Of course, I didn't know why I hadn't thought of that before. Why hadn't I tried to summon her? Gus Gus answered my internal question for me. "She only come for pure of heart." He continued to saw away like he hadn't insulted me. No matter, I knew my heart was far from pure and I knew that was why I would be left here to suffer.
With just a few tiny pieces left on the rope, I was able to jerk my hands free from the bedposts. Gus Gus cheered quietly before he scurried off of the bed and into the darkness.
"Wait!" I whispered as I rubbed my raw wrists. It was no use. The little mouse was gone. Now that I was free from my bindings, what could I do? I could lay in wait here and take them by surprise. Pretend I was still strapped to the bed. But how long would that be? And was it friendly creatures living in the mattress or things that I didn't want to discover?
Sixteen
Alister
The branch beneath me groaned under my weight. I was pushing my luck being up in this tree, but it didn't matter. My merry band of misfits needed me just as much as I needed them. I couldn't see them in the trees around me but I knew they were there. It had been months since Princess Arabella had gone missing and weeks since Queen Tremaine had taken over. If I hadn't been stuck in the tree waiting on our trap to work, I would have spit at the thought of her. She had infiltrated the castle and led me to believe precisely what I didn't want to.
Arabella had been kidnapped and there was no telling where they were keeping her now. All of the royal staff had been killed within seconds. The only reason my mother had been kept alive was because she was one of the only ones in the castle that knew medicine. Tremaine had magic on her side, but I had to imagine that magic only did so much. She used my sister to get to my mother and fortunately for me, I knew where the break in the wall was. But after a few days, it was sealed tight. There was no going into the castle or out. It all seemed quiet until the guards started to make trips outside of the walls. I had thought it was a good sign until I noticed the rotting flesh falling off of their bodies. The stench that floated around them. Somehow Tremaine had managed to bring them back from the dead to serve in her army. It was cunningly terrifying.
Not being able to return to the castle gave me enough free time to gather up other villagers that had similar skills as I did. Some were good with knives, swords, and even a bow. So we laid in wait for the next carriage to come through our neck of the woods. It would be any minute now. The sound of hooves concealed the noise of me exhaling in relief. I counted down as the sounds got closer and pulled my recurve bow taut. I had my arrow ready to go and aimed. I exhaled and released.
The arrow whistled through the air before it pierced the throat of one of the guards. The other continued to stare straight ahead like nothing had happened. I frowned and nocked back another. It embedded itself in the eye socket of the other driver. They both fell from their perches and the horses stopped. The carriage rolled slowly before it came to a complete stop with the animals attached to it.
"Alright boys, masks up." I whispered as we pulled a piece of cloth over our faces and dropped down from the trees. No one made a sound as we circled our prize. I had no idea what our bounty would be today, but I hoped it was food.
The village could only survive so long and there were too many children without fathers now. Thanks to Tremaine. Everything and everyone had been cut off. If she hadn't set the fields ablaze, she was using magic to do other things to the crops. There was no way to win against her, but I was determined. I wouldn't let my family fall to destruction like the rest of the kingdom had. I had to rescue my mother and sister, then I would find the princess. I kicked the door open and my men surrounded me. I could almost feel their excitement. But this time, there was nothing in the carriage except for clothes. I narrowed my eyes at the expensive fabrics spread out in front of us. We should have followed this carriage instead of stopping it. Tremaine wouldn't have sent this out here for just anyone.
"Bring the carriage to one of the farms that has been burning. Let it light like the rest of it and the next carriage will be followed. I have a feeling we will find something more important than food."
Rink and Flick saluted me and hopped onto their black horses. The only good to come out of it would be the horses left over. They would catch a pretty penny in the neighboring town if they weren't effected by all of this.
I grasped Flick's forearm. "Ride to Edomon after all of this." I waved my hand at the elaborate carriage. "Sell the horses if you can or sell one of them and buy enough food for the women and children. Listen to the gossip in the taverns and find out if they know what is going on. If not, I want you to spread some gossip. Tremaine won't sit idle with just one kingdom. Make them fear her. We will need help. We can't let our home fall to this monster."
Flick's eyes turned down to my hand on his arm. "Alister, you were never one to pick a fight."
I looked down at my boots. "Sometimes we have no choice, buddy."
Flick nodded his head. "I don't like this side of you. The training, the fighting and the weapons. But I would rather it be you leading us than anyone else."
I held out my hand to Flick and he shoved his palm into my gloved one. I looked into his yellow eyes and felt a wave of emotion wash over me. "Be careful. I don't want to be the one to tell your mother of your death. This isn't one of the play dates we went on as children. This is war."
Seventeen
Arabella
It had been days since I had last seen my aunts. I was almost too scared to stop working but I was exhausted. I sagged against the weak wall and felt my eyelids droop. There was no use in fighting it. The sound of the front door slamming had me jerking awake. I pushed myself off of the floor with the broom and looked like I had been busy. I had worked while they had been gone, just not the caliber they thought they deserved.
"Oh good, our absence hasn't halted your duties. Though," Priscella paused in the doorway. "You were supposed to be strapped to the bed. What happened?"
The lie slipped off of my lips easily enough. "I had to use the privy and didn't want to be punished for soiling the bed."
"I guess that's a good excuse." She looked at the dirt pile in front of me. "Are you hungry?"
I nodded my head. "Yes, very. I hardly had any water left from when you last went to the well."
She sighed. "Brunhilda is on her way back from the castle soon enough. We were supposed to get a carriage of dresses a few days ago and it never came. We went to investigate. Brunhilda will be bringing back horses and food for the rest of the time we will be here in this hell."
"Are you moving into the castle?" I took my chances as I asked the questions that were burning
holes inside of me.
Priscella nodded. "Yes, eventually. We have to figure out what to do with you. We can't give the village any hope." Were the kingdom's villages rebelling? "I will be going to the neighboring kingdom for a few weeks. If I hear that you gave Brunhilda trouble, I will kill you."
Panic sliced through me. I had to do something to get out of here. My hand slid down my dress and into the front pocket on it. My fingers wrapped around the jagged piece of mirror I had retrieved from the floor in my room. Before I could mentally talk myself out of it, I jumped up and swiped the glass across her face. She was a mask of surprise as I crumpled to the ground. Her face now mirrored my own. I had planned to go for her neck and take her out of the picture completely, but it was no use. I hadn't had food in days and the water supply was running out. My energy was zapped.
Priscella grinned. "Did you honestly think you could best me?" I shook my head and cowered in the corner. My body trembled with exhaustion and hunger. If she didn't kill me now, I didn't know how I could manage to live much longer. I shook my head again. I didn't know what to say to her. She grinned as blood dripped from her face. "You will pay for this." She rubbed her chin thoughtfully. "I saw your mother and father in the castle. I am thankful that my mother hadn't killed them yet. How sweet will it be for you to watch them die. How sweet it will be to watch you when it all happens."
I spit at her feet. It was all the strength I had left in me. Her fist flew and connected with the side of my face. Pain bloomed where her skin connected with mine and everything went black.
