by Jen Calonita
“But . . .” Happy tried again.
“For now, we focus on getting to that mirror,” Snow said. “Stealing it may be the only way to convince the queen to release my father from his prison.”
“What are you going to do?” Sleepy asked with a yawn. “March into the castle and just take it off a wall?”
“The mirror will know you’re coming for it,” Grumpy said.
“I sense it already knows I’m alive,” Snow agreed. “Our time to act may be shorter than we think.”
“Which is why we must hurry,” Henri said.
Snow looked at him. “We?”
Henri smiled. “You don’t think I’m leaving now, do you? My people need this queen gone as much as you do. It’s the only way to bring our two kingdoms together again as allies. An evil like this must be stopped. Let me help you.”
Snow couldn’t help feeling a flush of excitement at the thought of him staying to assist her cause. “Thank you, Henri. We need all the help we can get.” She looked at the others. “We must go to your friends at once and talk to everyone in their villages about joining our cause.”
“We will leave at first light,” Grumpy vowed. “There is no time to lose.”
“Tomorrow morning,” Snow agreed, “we begin to make our way to the castle.”
Her overnight journey had been a fool’s errand; the wretched girl was not at the cottage.
After leaving her dungeon, she took the hidden passageway out of the castle by boat, then went the rest of the way through the woods on foot. She wasn’t alone. The raven from her dungeon followed her, leading the way at points. This shell of a body she was now taxed with made walking difficult, but she finally arrived after first light. And the cottage was empty.
She’d expected the men to be gone. (In truth, she was happy that they were already on their way to the mines. She appreciated the work ethic, especially when it benefited her.) But where was Snow? Why wasn’t she there? Ingrid walked around the cottage, swatting squawking birds away as she tried to peer in the windows. For some reason, several deer had come to graze nearby, too. She shooed them away as well and rested her weary body, but when the girl didn’t return after a long spell, she became agitated and forced her way inside.
The cottage was clean as a whistle: not a bowl out of place or a crumb on the long table with the little chairs. The sink was empty, the floors spotless, and the seven tiny beds made. She hobbled back downstairs, feeling her knees creak as she walked, and went to the fireplace. Embers still glowed softly, and a sinking feeling crept in as a thought dawned on her: what if the wretched little men somehow knew she was coming and had hidden Snow away?
Ingrid put her basket on the table and screamed angrily at the thought. Her voice sounded hoarse and weathered. If this was true, her elaborate hag spell had been for naught! The girl was still out there.
Her heart still beats, her skin is still fair. Without action, our future will tear.
The mirror? Her large eyes widened. The mirror had awakened? Immediately all anger she felt toward the object vanished. She needed to go to her companion and repair any fissures that had started after their last encounter. How could she have been so foolish as to leave it? She grabbed the basket and began the arduous walk back to the castle, cursing her old legs.
It took the entire day to get back to the dungeon, and by the end, she wasn’t sure she could take another step. She couldn’t wait to find a way to replenish the ingredients and reverse the blasted spell. She finally snuck through the castle to her quarters, knowing she couldn’t chance being seen in her hideous disguise.
Striding to the mirror, she ran her hand along the crack in the glass. She grabbed the renewal tonic she kept for just this reason and dabbed it on the cool surface. It lessened the deepness of the fracture, but did not repair it completely. She’d have to go to her lair again to create a stronger batch. For now, it did its job, the mirror springing to life, the colors of the glass swirling black and green before it started to smoke and the masklike face came into view. If it noticed her new appearance, it said nothing.
“My queen.”
“Mirror,” she demanded. “Have you led me astray? You said Snow White should perish, and yet she lives and breathes! And now she is gone from the dwarfs’ cottage!”
“My queen, you had the chance to change fate,” the mirror replied. “But instead you let that babe grow. And now it may be too late.”
“She was just a baby!” Ingrid said, feeling desperate.
“Now she is fully grown and ready to take her crown,” the mirror told her. “If action had been taken, this future would not have been found.”
“What do I do now?” Ingrid asked. Why did the mirror have to rub her failure in her face? “I have concocted the strongest of spells to throw her off my scent and created a poison apple that will finish her with one small bite! But if I can’t find her to fix things, my work will have been wasted.”
“Her death would be mourned, and the people would rally en masse. But to have a deeper impact, perhaps it is her love that should be dashed.”
The girl had found love with that insipid boy? She should have dispatched him when she first spotted him. Ingrid let out a scream so primal she wasn’t surprised to see the fracture in the glass begin to grow. She quickly stopped shouting, her heart racing, her hands suddenly feeling very weak. In her withered state, if she wasn’t careful, she would fall over. She held the wall and peered into the darkest corner of the room.
Katherine and her master were watching her. Her master looked angry, but Katherine did not appear alarmed. In fact, she looked quite smug. What did Katherine know that she did not?
“Her hope grows like a weed,” the mirror replied. “As does her resolve. Learning her father lives has given her new vigor to proceed.”
Ingrid tried to steady herself at this unexpected information. “She found him? How?!” Her eyes went to Katherine and her master, both watching her with interest. She quickly looked away again.
“The prince you dismiss showed her the way. Armed with this knowledge, a spark in her has been reignited. And a new path is being forged straightaway.”
Forget about reversing her hag spell. If the girl was attempting to reach the mirror, that meant she was coming to the castle with that boy. She needed to buy herself some time. “Show me the girl,” she told the mirror.
The mirror’s smoky view cleared and there were Snow White and her handsome prince, leading the group of little men through the forest. They were nearing the mines. Ingrid smiled to herself. An idea was slowly forming. It was a complicated one, and in her condition, she didn’t know how easy it would be to pull off. But it was of the utmost importance that she did. “Perhaps there is a way to bury the girl alive after all . . . along with her prince and the little men!”
She was on her way back to the castle, but this time she wasn’t alone. For the first time in her life, she had friends by her side. Friends, and maybe someone who could be more . . . someday. But there were more pressing things to focus on now.
“What are you thinking about?” Henri asked as they rode side by side through the countryside.
Snow lowered her blue hood. “Too much,” she admitted. “My mind is cluttered with thoughts.”
The dwarfs had bartered an illegal diamond or two to gather enough horses to take them all to Kurt and Fritz’s village, but they’d had to pick the animals up at a farm half a day away. The time spent had been worth it. They wound up making camp and speaking to the farmers—a man named Moritz, and his wife, Lina—about their quest. Lina actually cried in relief when Snow told her who she was. “We need you now more than ever, Your Highness,” Lina told her, explaining how difficult it had been to make a profit in the fields when the queen demanded more and more of their supply. Within the hour, Moritz had returned with several workers in the area, and together, Snow, Henri, and the dwarfs told them what they were up against. The others had immediately agreed to gather supplies and wait for w
ord to storm the castle. Snow was so grateful for their service she could have wept.
But the unexpected delay at the farm meant they were now a day behind. The queen could be watching us, Snow thought as she saw a raven fly overhead. Time was of the essence, and they needed to get to Kurt and Fritz’s village to gather more reinforcements. The dwarfs had first suggested they take the more rural roads and passes to the hamlet, to avoid drawing attention to themselves. But since a party of nine was sure to draw attention anyway, Grumpy insisted they travel as close to the route they took each day to get to the mines as possible. “At least if we have to turn around, we know exactly where we’re going,” he’d told the others, and they’d agreed.
They’d been riding for hours now and were finally nearing the mines. Snow should have been used to so much travel by now, but she found it tiresome. It didn’t help that she was so on edge. She felt her breast pocket, where her mother’s necklace was safely secured, and wondered why her mother had led her to the mirror in her dream. Did she want Snow to kill her sister? Or was she just helping her find a way to stop Aunt Ingrid? Without her mother there to confer with, there was so much she was unsure of. But what she remembered about her mother was that she was always concerned with doing what was good for all people. She would want Snow to find a way—as peacefully as possible—to take back what was theirs. Of that, Snow was sure. Of course, when it came to the Evil Queen, things never went as planned. . . .
Snow looked around the rolling countryside. Since they’d left Moritz and Lina’s homestead, they hadn’t seen a home or a person for miles. They had passed the men’s mine entrance ages ago, but Doc explained there were several caves in which miners from different villages could enter. She’d had no idea there were so many mountains in this part of the kingdom. How could Aunt Ingrid have said the diamond mines were all dried up?
“Are you all right?” Henri asked.
“Yes, but there is so much to worry about,” Snow said. “I feel responsible for all of you and my people. I don’t want any harm to come to anyone.”
Henri smiled kindly. “It’ll be all right. We know what we signed up for on this quest.”
And what of the huntsman who had spared her life? Snow couldn’t help thinking about him. Had he given his life to save hers? An eye for an eye, in a way, considering what his own father had done.
Snow shuddered, then took a deep breath. It was time to refocus. No good would come from all that worrying. “Okay, let’s tackle one thing at a time—today, it’s getting to the village. Tomorrow, it’s gathering more fighters. Before the queen tries to stop us.”
“I doubt she will leave her castle to search for you,” Henri said. “Her castle is her fortress and where her mirror is. Hopefully we have nothing to fear till we reach the gates.”
“I see smoke up ahead!” yelled Doc, pointing to the tree line in the distance. “Should we go another way?”
“No, stay the course,” Grumpy told the others. “I’m sure it’s just someone making camp. No one lives in these parts. We won’t get to Kurt and Fritz’s village for miles yet. We’re only just reaching the entrance to the mines.”
Henri and Snow looked at one another as if they were both thinking the same thing. There was something about the smoke that looked odd. It didn’t billow up in a single line, or spiral like a twister. It seemed to be spreading wider and wider, becoming darker with each plume. Soon it spread clear across the tree line, till it filled the sky with darkness.
“I don’t think that’s smoke. . . . They seem to be dark clouds,” said Happy. “I think a storm is coming.”
Suddenly, the horses they were riding grew restless. Doc’s stood on its back legs, almost tossing him off. The wind picked up, sending tree limbs flying with the sudden gust. Branches bent and twisted in their path, as if they were trying to scoop the riders up. One tree’s limbs seemed to stretch out toward Snow as if it were trying to grab her. Snow had a flashback to her time in the Haunted Woods. Something was definitely wrong.
“We need to find shelter immediately!” she shouted over the wind.
But it was too late.
The clouds spun toward them like a venomous fog and soon overtook them, turning the sky pitch-black. The wind’s howl made it almost impossible to hear what anyone was saying. A giant crack of thunder sounded as a lightning bolt struck the earth mere feet from Bashful’s steed. The horses took off in various directions. Dopey’s took off so fast he was almost thrown from the horse, but he clutched his stirrups.
“Hang on!” Henri yelled over the wind.
Snow looked desperately from Dopey to Henri and dismounted, knowing she could do more good on the ground. The rest of the men did the same, and they helped Dopey untangle from his steed. The horses disappeared into the darkness. The air was too full of debris to even see her hand in front of her face. Rain came down so fast and hard it felt like hail. They needed to get inside . . . but where?
“Into the mines!” Grumpy shouted over another clap of thunder. “This way!”
Snow followed the sound of his voice, struggling to move forward in the wind. She looked for Henri but couldn’t see anyone, so she kept her eye on the rocky mountain in front of her, hoping she’d find the entrance to the cave.
A bolt of lightning hit a tree next to her, and the large limbs began to fall in her direction. Someone reached out and grabbed her, pulling her out of the line of fire before it was too late.
She looked up. “Henri!” she said, holding on to him for dear life.
“The entrance to the cave is that way,” he shouted. “Don’t let go of my hand!”
“Or you of mine!” Snow shouted back. It would take both of them to find their way in the darkness. She could hear shouting and her name being called in the darkness, but the wind was too strong for her to even turn her head and look around. The two of them held on to each other, making their way slowly toward the large shadow that loomed in front of them. Snow pulled her cloak over their heads, trying to keep the rain off their faces. It fell harder, hitting their backs and leaving welts. Lightning struck again and again, closer and closer as she and Henri pushed forward, hoping to find somewhere to escape the storm. Suddenly, she saw the entrance to the cave. Grumpy was already inside.
“This way!” she shouted, and they took step after painful step till they reached the entrance, collapsing against a cave wall in relief. She wiped her eyes and looked around. Doc, Happy, and Dopey were there, too. Two seconds later, Bashful, Sneezy, and Sleepy stumbled in.
“Thank the heavens, you’re all safe,” Snow said.
Another crack of thunder sent a tree limb falling toward the entrance of the cave. Everyone jumped back.
“Witchcraft!” Grumpy declared. “There’s something strange about this storm.”
“The queen! She’s following us!” Bashful shouted.
Snow feared they were right. “Let’s get away from the entrance. It isn’t safe.”
Grumpy grabbed a lantern in the cave entrance and lit it shakily. “Follow me below,” he said, and the group made their way deeper into the caverns, each man grabbing a lantern to help them see. They could hear the storm howling outside. It felt like it would be upon them at any moment. “Quickly! Quickly!” Grumpy said, seemingly sensing the same thing.
Snow took a lantern, as did Henri, and they hurried forward. The air was colder the lower they descended, and Snow felt her breath quicken in the darkness. Grumpy kept shouting out directions. There were so many passageways Snow feared they’d get lost.
“We will ride out her storm down here,” Grumpy said as they reached a hollowed area where mine trains full of diamonds glistened in the darkness. Pickaxes and small crates that served as tables were scattered about the cave as if the men had left in a hurry the night before. An assembly line of tables was set up along one rocky wall to clean the diamonds before they were placed in the carts. The space was musty and dank. Condensation dripped down the rocks and stalactites hung like daggers. Sno
w might have found these things beautiful if she hadn’t been so worried about the storm outside. Was this really her aunt’s doing? She could still hear the howling wind whistling through the cavern as if it were following them down the shaft. Snow and Henri took a seat on the crates at the edge of a nearby tunnel and placed their lanterns on the ground for light.
Doc smiled at Snow reassuringly from across the room. “We will be safe down—”
That was the last thing Snow heard him say before the ground started to rumble and rocks fell from above. Snow and Henri moved into the tunnel to avoid getting hit by falling debris.
“Cave-in!” someone yelled.
“Get to the walls!” came Grumpy’s muffled shouting.
Snow and Henri covered their heads and crouched against a wall, waiting for the avalanche of rocks to stop falling, but the debris kept coming, making it hard to breathe.
So this is where I die, Snow thought as the world around her turned to black. The Evil Queen finally gets her wish.
Ingrid stepped away from the mirror, the last of her strength leaving her body. She’d given more of her lifeblood to the mirror, and in her elderly state it felt more draining than it ever had before. The headache was instant and her aged hands were literally shaking, but it had been worth it. The mirror had given her the power she needed to conjure that storm. It was a storm like no other, designed to track the girl. And it had worked brilliantly.
The timing felt fated. When the storm struck, Snow, her hapless prince, and those little men had no choice but to take cover in the cave. That’s when Ingrid sent repeated lightning strikes to the entrance, till it finally caved in. The girl had been buried alive after all.
She let out a cackle that petered out as the headache she felt began to strengthen. She sank to the floor, unable to even find the strength to make it to her chambers.
“Magic Mirror on the wall,” she whispered. “Who is the fairest one of all?”
