Chapter 21

A s soon as she'd said it, a sense of relief pounded through her. She had never admitted it to anyone. Master Harwin had guessed, but she had never said she was the missing princess. She had never acknowledged that he was right.

It was as though saying it aloud would conjure Seraphina's dark magic. She knew the queen had the Magic Mirror, but not knowing how it worked, she wasn't sure if she was able to see her at this very moment with Roderick. She assumed that was the case. And if it was, then telling Roderick the truth—her truth—would be no surprise to Seraphina.

Still, she needed to be careful and choose her words.

Roderick waited patiently for her to tell her story. He had one hand pressed against the tree trunk, the other still clutched the sheathed dagger.

"My mother died when I was quite young," she said. "I don't remember her. My father remarried when I was six because he was certain I needed a mother in my life. He married Seraphina. When I was eight, my father died. Seraphina killed him because she wanted to rule the Mystic Vale. What she did not know was that my father's title passed to me. She would not rule as regent. She had no power there.

"To gain control, she told me everyone in the castle hated me. She told me I was nothing but a useless child and the best thing for me was to leave and never return. That if I returned, she would make sure I would live out my remaining days in the dungeons under the castle."

"And you believe her?" Roderick asked.

"I was eight. Of course, I believed her. I ran away. I ended up here in the Wyldwood. As soon as I stepped foot into the forest, I understood it. And it understood me. I was connected to nature in a way I had never been connected before. Eventually, I found my way to the foot of Faradill. The elves found me the following morning and took me in as one of their own. They raised me. I've lived in the eleven village for ten years."

"Do they know who you are?" he asked.

"They do not." She sighed. "I suppose I will have to tell them in time."

"Why don't you?"

"Yirrie, my surrogate mother, would be devastated if I left. Elator is her husband. He understands me more than she does," Snow said.

"You mentioned a Master Harwin and a dark wizard. Who are they?"

"I'm getting to that."

She told him about the first night of festival and how the Shadow tried to kill her, how she heard the woman's voice in her head telling her she was coming for her. She understood now that voice was Seraphina's, that the queen controlled the Shadow. That she intended to kill her that night.

"Ardan's enchanted blade saved me from the Shadow," she said. " Your enchanted blade."

"It can cut through dark magic?" he asked, a hint of wonder in his voice. "I had no idea."

"Neither did Ardan until he did it. After that, I decided to visit the Master of Archives, Master Harwin. I wanted to find out more about the enchanted blade."

She told him of visiting the archives and finding the three mirrors missing and about the dark wizard. How he had helped Seraphina gain access to the kingdom and rise to power from a peasant to the queen she was now. How the dark queen turned on him and used his magic and his knowledge to steal the mirrors from the elven archives. How she was sustaining his presence deep within the woods in his cabin through a Magic Mirror curse. How the Magic Mirror must be destroyed to eradicate the queen's magic, release him from his imprisonment and allow him to rest at long last.

Roderick did not reply for a long moment as he sat there, his hand still against the trunk of the tree. He released the dagger, letting it fall into his lap.

"That's quite a story," he said.

She thought she heard a twinge of doubt in his words. "It's all true."

Skepticism crossed his features. "You expect me to believe a dark wizard lived in these woods?"

Before she could answer, Faradill's voice floated through her mind.

The dark wizard gave us life.

Startled, his head snapped toward the tree, then he glanced upward at the leaves rustling in the faint breeze.

"What does that mean?" he asked.

"It means the dark wizard used his magic to enchant the forest. He brought the pixies and the sprites and all manner of magical creatures here. That's why the elves drove him out. He was using the nature around him to try conquer the forest," she said.

"He was an elemental," Roderick said.

She nodded. "Like us."

As she said it, she saw the flickering light of iridescent wings and smiled. Annilen had joined them. She held out her hand to allow the sprite to land. When she did, she looked Roderick up and down with a critical eye.

"Who's this?" he asked, leaning closer to get a better look at her.

"This is Annilen. She's a forest sprite."

"Who are you ?" Annilen asked. "And what are you doing in our forest?"

Roderick's brows rose. Snow giggled.

"She's rather protective of the forest," Snow said. "Annilen, this is Roderick. He's come from the village of Bridgefort."

The little sprite put her fisted hands on her hips. "If he's come to do you harm, my lady…"

"Not at all," Roderick said. "I've come to help her reclaim her throne."

"Throne?" Annilen's little face upturned to her, question written all over it. "What does he mean by that?"

Snow bit her bottom lip. There was no sense in trying to hide it now. Faradill heard the story. Likely it was moving through the rest of the forest. By morning, all creatures within, even the plants, would know her true self.

"She doesn't know?" Roderick asked.

"Know what?" Annilen tilted her head to one side, peering up at Snow with her brows knit together.

"No one knew until tonight," Snow said. "I am the heir to the throne of the Mystic Vale."

Annilen's eyes went wide with shock. "You're a…princess?"

"Rightful queen," Roderick corrected.

Annilen curtsied low. "Your majesty."

"Don't call me that," Snow snapped. "I'm not."

"You are," Roderick said.

Indeed, you are , Faradill agreed.

Snow sighed. "I know, but it feels strange to say it out loud. For the last ten years, I have denied my true identity. I kept it buried deep down. I did not expect to ever return to the castle. I was content to live here among the forest and the elves."

"Then Seraphina wins," he said. "Seraphina has won long enough. It's time to dethrone her."

"How? I have no army and only a dagger as a weapon." She nodded to the dagger still in his lap.

"An enchanted dagger," he reminded her, a glint of humor in his eyes. "We can raise an army."

She lifted a brow. "You're mad to think that."

"We can," he insisted.

"How?" she demanded.

"We visit every village between here and the castle. Once they know you're alive and ready to take back the throne, I have no doubt they will follow you."

"All those who live in the forest will follow you, too, your majesty," Annilen said.

And you have all the power of nature behind you , Faradill added.

A tingling sensation went up her spine as she glanced from the little sprite to the old tree. It meant a lot to her Annilen was willing to stand with her. If she knew her friend, then Snow knew Annilen would tell everyone.

Faradill was right. She did have the power of nature behind her. She glanced at Roderick, who waited for her to respond to his suggestion. He was an Artificer. He had even more power than she did. He was a blacksmith. Perhaps he would be willing to help make weapons for those who would follow her into battle against the queen.

She immediately shoved all those thoughts aside. It was nothing but a dream.

"You have doubts," he said. "I see it in your eyes."

"Of course, I do," she agreed.

"You have the power of nature, as Faradill said, and all those in the forest. The villagers, too. And I would bet the elves would help," he said.

She scoffed, thinking of Tasnia and her snooty ways. "The elves have no interest in human affairs. They are content to remain in their forest village hidden away from the rest of the realm."

Aside from that, the last person she wanted to tell was Yirrie. Snow gave a silent blessing to Faradill, then dropped her hand from his trunk. It suddenly occurred to her she wore nothing but her shift and dressing gown. She got to her feet.

"Where are you going?" Roderick asked.

"I must return before I'm missed."

Annilen stifled yawn. "Me, too. Good night, Snow." She fluttered off, leaving a trail of pixie dust shimmering in her wake.

"What about—"

"There will be no more talk about reclaiming the throne. You should return to Bridgefort," Snow said.

"You're not even going to try?" He clutched the dagger within its sheath.

"I'm afraid it would be a fruitless effort. Good night, Roderick, and farewell."

With that, she picked up the edge of her gown and headed home.

Roderick watched her walk away, leaving him there at the foot of Faradill. He knew without a doubt he could not return to Bridgefort. He also knew that if he didn't do as the queen bid within the fortnight, then he would fall into the sleeping curse. The queen was not generous enough to disclose how to break the curse. Already two days had passed while he journeyed to the forest, so time was of the essence.

Perhaps the curse could be broken by shattering the Magic Mirror. Snow said it would break the curse on the dark wizard, releasing him and ripping away the queen's magic.

You must convince the princess . The evil queen's reign must end.

It was Faradill's voice that floated through his mind. "How do I do that?"

Go to the elven village in the morn. Find her there.

"I don't think she wants me to do that," Roderick said with a shake of his head.

It is the only way , the tree said.

Roderick leaned back against the oak, stretched his legs in front of him, and crossed his ankles. He still held the sheathed dagger, the one with which he was supposed to kill Snow White.

Faradill was right. He had to convince her before the sleeping curse took hold of him. He was running out of time.

How he would convince her, he did not know. In the morning, he would find her in the village and try.

Snow made her way back to the village, her senses on high alert and her ears attuned to every sound within the forest. Roderick's words weighed heavily on her mind. Though he was sent to kill her with the enchanted blade, she decided he was no threat. He had many opportunities to do it and hadn't. Instead, he had offered her the weapon.

She hadn't seen Seraphina in a decade. Likely the queen hoped she had perished within the forest, never to be seen again. Now, it seemed, rumors circulated about the missing princess in the villages. She had no proof that Roderick told the truth, but she did wonder how the villagers remembered her.

Her father, though, had always taken her with him when he visited the villages. Before he'd married Seraphina. Before she murdered him for his throne. Perhaps the villagers remembered her from those few visits, even though she was a child. She, herself, barely had the memories. They were nothing but fragments at the edge of her mind.

She slipped back into the village and hurried home, unnoticed by anyone since the village was sleeping. At the door, she paused, her heart in her throat and her hand shaking as it hovered over the knob. The fire pit was nothing more than embers now. Taking a deep breath, she twisted the knob and pushed open the door to darkness.

She paused in the doorway, waiting for Yirrie to chastise her. When there was silence, she breathed out a sigh of relief and closed the door, then hurried to her room. In her room, she pressed her back against the door. A gasp escaped her.

The board over the window was gone, allowing shafts of moonlight through the dirty panes. She smiled, hot tears springing to her eyes as she hurried over. The window opened and closed with ease.

Elator did this. He removed the board to give her back nature and moonlight. She pressed her forehead against the cool glass, smiling.

"Thank you, Elator," she whispered.

Then she shed her dressing gown and slipped into bed. It wasn't long before she was fast asleep.