First Frost (21 page)

“You’re very sweet to say such things,” he said with a soft smile.

At least it’s not that sad smile anymore.

She was glad she’d made him feel a little better. They sat silently side by side enjoying each other’s company. But there was something that had been nagging her the entire time they had been traveling. She changed her mind several times as to whether or not she should ask him or not. She took a deep breath and finally decided to ask her question.

“Terrance?”

“Yes?”

“What did he mean when he said I
smelled
like her? Who exactly? Did he mean my mother or Red Riding Hood since I was wearing her cape? What did he mean?”

“You wouldn’t believe me if I told you,” he replied.

Bianca laughed. After the rollercoaster her life had become in the past several weeks, she felt ready for just about anything. “Try me.”

“How much do you know about your family?” he asked.

“Before she was kidnapped, my mom showed me our family tree.”

“Then you know about your connection to Snow White?”

Bianca nodded. “But how do
you
know that? I’ve never said anything about it.”

“You look and smell just like her. It doesn’t take much to connect the dots.”

“Like Snow White?”

Terrance nodded.

“But how do you know? She’s before your time.”

“You’re not the only one with items from legends and days of old.” There was a twinkle in his eyes as he said this. He then explained that several kingdoms throughout Everafter had items that belonged to the famed princesses that the Brothers Grimm had written about.

“Like what?” Her curiosity was piqued. She immediately did a mental inventory of everything they had in the museum and began to compare the list of items Terrance gave her.

“Snow White’s clothes, for instance, they stayed behind in the cottage that belonged to the seven dwarves. Prince Ferdinand’s mother, Queen Felicia, has Cinderella’s glass slipper and the dress she wore to the ball,” Terrance said. “The other items, I’m not entirely certain what the other kingdoms have, they are very possessive of these items and they don’t share them with the public.”

“Wow. That’s so cool. Mom will love to know that.”

Bianca then fidgeted with her fingers and thought about some of the things that Terrance had said about her smelling and looking like Snow White.

I’m still me…aren’t I? At least…I sure hope so.

All of her thoughts seemed to jumble and stumble into each other, not a single one of them was a coherent and tangible thought. How was she supposed to know
who
or
what
she was supposed to be when there were people telling her that she was like someone else?

“You don’t think I’m her…do you?” she blurted out, finally getting some of her concerns off her chest. She didn’t sing everywhere, there were no dwarves or relatively short people following her around, and there was definitely no evil stepmother. She stared at Terrance and fidgeted with her fingers while she waited for him to answer her question.

“No.” He shook his head and smiled. “You are most certainly your own person, of that I am absolutely sure. And I didn’t mean that you are exactly like Snow White, but there is something about you that carries an echo of what she represented and continues to represent to the world.” He stretched his hand out and gently tucked a stray lock of hair behind her ear. “There’s a spark inside of you. Something no one can touch.”

He leaned over and kissed her on the cheek. Bianca closed her eyes and let herself enjoy the feel of his soft lips upon her skin. She let out a happy sigh when he parted away from her.

“You are a very special young lady. I know I will see many great things from you,” Terrance said.

“I hope I don’t disappoint you.”

“You could never do such a thing.”

Chapter Seventeen

“What’s going to happen after we rescue your mother?” Prince Ferdinand asked.

“I hope you guys don’t mind me speaking for you,” Bianca said, looking at her best friend and her father, “but as far as I know, Ming, my dad and I just want to get my mom and go back home.”

Ming nodded in agreement, and David just huffed.

“Terrance?” the prince asked, turning his attention to his friend.

“Go about our daily lives as usual…I suppose,” he muttered.

They sat there contemplating their lives for several minutes when Bianca excused herself and placed the third little pig’s brick down on the ground and chanted the spell that turned it into a sturdy, indestructible house. They had decided that there was no point in suffering out in the wilderness where they were vulnerable. Bianca could only hope that the magic inside the brick didn’t wear out.

Can magic get tired? Do magical items have an expiration date?

She stepped away from the brick and marveled once more over the magic block. It was as though a million invisible hands were building the house out of thin air. Once everyone was inside the house, Bianca remained outside.

“Aren’t you coming in?” Ming asked.

“No. I’m going to practice a bit of magic for a while,” she replied.

“Alone?” Ming arched her eyebrow. It was safe to say that she was still a little skeptical of Bianca’s magical abilities.

“Yeah, I’ll be all right out here.”

“Okay, but if you’re not back in an hour, I’m going out to look for you,” Ming said.

“Deal.”

For a long while Bianca stayed outside practicing some of the magic spells her mother had taught her in the short amount of time allotted to them before Rose had been kidnapped. Bianca was getting better at conjuring fireballs, ice walls, and water. She had even memorized a few spells from Mirabel’s book. She had a feeling they would come in handy at some point during their journey.

Eventually, curiosity got the best of her, and she decided to try a mirror spell to see if it would work in the little mirror she pilfered from the museum.

“Mirror, mirror in my hand,
Pray tell,
Show me where the witches dwell.”

The mirror flashed a bright green light that stung Bianca’s eyes. She covered her eyes until the light vanished. When she lowered her hands, the mirror revealed a dark and filthy room. The bed was unmade; the once-white bed sheets were gray with dirt. On the wall, right above the headboard, was a portrait of a woman who could only be described as serious and handsome. Bianca had forgotten her glasses so she couldn’t get a good look at the woman’s face. The night table was covered with black wax and crows’ feathers. Everything about the room screamed darkness and desolation.

“Who is there?” a familiar yet chilling voice asked.

Bianca’s heart stopped beating momentarily in her chest.

“Who dares spy on me?” she snarled.

Then…Bianca saw Lenore sneering into her mirror. That was when Bianca realized what happened. The mirrors were connected, allowing Bianca a one-way peephole into Lenore’s depressing room.

Bianca whispered, “Enough,” to the mirror and then all she could see was her own reflection. She quickly covered the mirror with a white piece of cloth and placed it back inside her backpack.

She studied the apple-shaped bruise in the palm of her hand. Bianca could’ve sworn that it was getting bigger and darker with every day that passed. She was terrified over what was happening to her without her knowledge.

Once more she found herself inside a dark room. Her heart rate shot up as she felt herself being overtaken by fear. She fought to wake her body up, but no matter what she did she remained trapped in the nightmare.

She knew what would come next…the mirror.

What is it with that mirror?

She couldn’t help but admire the designs carved onto the frame. It seemed as though the artist had taken his time with every single detail and made sure he left nothing out. Each petal looked soft enough to touch and fool one’s self into believing it was real. There were also vines, thorns and snakes that looked real enough. At the head of the frame was a regal crown. At the base were four crosses pattée alternating with four fleurs-de-lis.

She took a step toward the ebony-framed looking glass and saw her own reflection in the mirror. She couldn’t help but reach out to see if she was real—at least as real as things could be in a dream. Her reflection mimicked her movements although it wasn’t enough to make her relax.

“God, why can’t I just wake up?” she groaned.

She looked away to see if there was anything else strange going on around her, when out of the corner of her eye she saw movement.

“What is going on?” She frowned as she studied her surroundings. She looked into the mirror once more and found her reflection screaming as it pounded on the glass. Bianca gasped in fear and jumped back a few feet. Mirror Bianca looked nothing like her. This bizarre version of herself looked as though she were a wild creature. Her eyes were feral and bloodshot. Bianca shook her head in disbelief.

That’s not me. That will never be me. God, I have to wake up!

Mirror Bianca was still pounding on the glass with all of her might, still struggling to break free, when Bianca heard strange hisses and whispers all around her.

“Stop it,” she whispered as she covered her ears. “I said STOP IT!” she screamed and took her hands off her ears. Bianca turned her back to the mirror and took a few steps away from the horror she had just seen.

At that same moment the glass behind her exploded, and Mirror Bianca was finally free. Bianca covered her face to avoid getting cut with the shards of glass that torpedoed toward her.

“Finally…free…” the voice said. Mirror Bianca smiled wickedly as she gazed at Bianca with strange bloodied eyes. She tilted her head from side to side as though trying to decide what to make of her. Mirror Bianca stepped out of the ebony frame, the glass crunching and clinking beneath her feet. She grabbed Bianca and tried to pull her inside the frame.

“No!” Bianca shouted as she struggled with Mirror Bianca with all of her might.

Yet no matter how hard she fought, Bianca was dragged inside the mirror. The glass reassembled itself with Bianca on the other side of the looking glass. Mirror Bianca smiled and made faces at the young witch as she screamed and fought to be released from prison.

“No, no, no!” Bianca shouted as she pounded her pale fists into the unbreakable glass.

Bianca woke up with a loud gasp. She touched her forehead; she was covered in a cold sweat. She turned to her left and there sleeping peacefully beside her was Ming. To her right was Terrance, his chest rose and fell slowly and rhythmically. David and Prince Ferdinand were also close by, sleeping. She envied the serenity on their faces. Everyone was in a deep and peaceful slumber except for her.

What was that all about?

Chapter Eighteen

After walking for several miles the following morning, they came across an amazing castle, the likes of which none of them had ever seen before. It was a castle built on a promontory on a cliff side. There was no curtain wall to speak of, and only one modest tower with several windows and a crenellated crown, which had been roofed over in modern times. A large keep combined with a chapel overlooked the drop-off. Several smaller buildings were joined to the keep, and a couple of towers at the corners, with an unfilled moat.

“Wow. Who lives there?” Ming asked.

“I haven’t the slightest clue. I didn’t know this part of our world was even populated,” Terrance replied.

“Really?” she asked, taken aback.

“I thought you knew everything there was to know about Everafter,” Bianca said.

“Believe me, I know plenty about our world, but what this castle is or who lives here escapes me. Your Highness, what say you?”

“Terrance, if
you
do not know, then
I
most certainly do not. I say we go and knock on the door and sate our curiosity.” Ferdinand had a wicked grin that let everyone know that he wasn’t going to take no for an answer. Before anyone could convince him to stay with the group, he ran off toward the mysterious castle.