Mirror, Mirror (Twisted Tales, #6)

by Jen Calonita

“But you shouldn’t be afraid to hold on to something beautiful, even if there are thorns in your path. If you want something, sometimes you have to take risks. And when you do”—she handed Snow the rose—“you reap wonderful rewards.”

You must look past appearances, Snow, she remembered her mother telling her. A person’s true worth is always found within.

“May I take a drink before I go?” “Of course,” she said, and she watched as he walked to the well and filled a canteen from his pocket. With a final nod, he headed back to the wall.

“Voice in the magic mirror, come from the farthest space,” the queen began. “Through wind and darkness I summon thee. Speak! Let me see thy face.”

“Magic Mirror on the wall, who is the fairest one of all?”

“Famed is thy beauty, Majesty. But, hold, a lovely maid I see,” the mirror replied. “Rags cannot hide her gentle grace. Alas, she is more fair than thee.”

“Lips red as the rose, hair black as ebony, skin white as snow . . .”

“Till Snow White’s heart beats no more, the people will look to her. And an end to your peace will be in store,” the mirror said, reading her thoughts.

Whoever lived there had power, and power was something she’d learned that she needed in this world. It was something she wanted with every fiber of her being. Once she had it, no one would ever be able to push her down again.

“Small acts of kindness are so important,

“Always remember your past, Snow, and let it help you make decisions on how to rule your future. But never, ever give up.”

Are you going to give up? No. You will carry on just as I did.

One voice can be very powerful when it is heard above the rest.

It dawned on her that the lovely places represented on this piece of paper—places she had never seen—made up her kingdom. It was beautiful, and slightly overwhelming.

Henri grabbed her hand. “Snow, I found your father.”

Being raised by the farmer had made her primarily concerned with the kingdom’s agricultural trade rather than the things that mattered to Ingrid, like mining. There was so much more money to be made if Katherine opened more tunnels, leading to more diamond trading. But no. Katherine deferred to Georg when it came to the diamonds. And he, too, worried more about mining conditions than mining rewards. He was an inefficient ruler.

Hearing Henri’s story reminded Snow of a moment she’d had with her father as a small child. A bird had fallen in the aviary and hurt its wing, and she’d tearfully rushed into one of his sessions with the royal court. He had stopped everything to listen to her story. Then he’d helped her make a nest in the aviary for the bird to see if it would get well again. One morning, when they went to check on the bird, it was gone. “We did all we could for him, till he could make it on his own,” her father had said. Was that what her father had done for her as well? Had he thought she was strong enough to make it on her own?

“Oh, brother,” she heard Grumpy mumble.

A man who cares for the creatures of this earth has to be a kindred spirit,

Rags cannot hide her gentle grace. Alas, she is more fair than thee, the mirror repeated, almost as if to mock her. Lips as red as the rose, hair as black as ebony, skin as white as snow. Snow White.

“Yes, my snowflower. You will wear it when you are crowned queen. My time has passed. You are this kingdom’s future. And if you rid the kingdom of the Evil Queen, as you plan to do, they will demand you become their new leader.” He clasped her hand. “I can advise you in the beginning, of course, and be there at your side, but your time has come now.”

“It’s as if she’s trying to help Snow take back what’s rightfully hers, even from the other side.”

“When Kristopher died, I felt a certain burden to take his place in the family, and yet, no matter what I did, I couldn’t step out of his shadow.” He smiled sadly. “Going on this journey with you, and helping you try to change your kingdom, has given me purpose. If this is where I die, I want you to know that.”

These people are scared. They don’t want to hurt me. They feel they have no choice. These folks weren’t evil. They were her people. Snow thought back to the beggar woman she’d met with her mother so many years before. Always remember your past, Snow, and let it help you make decisions on how to rule your future

“I may be one girl, but I have friends now, and that makes all the difference.

“Love is the key to her undoing,” the mirror advised now. “Harm her dear ones. That is the plan worth brewing.”

“Tomorrow you face the consequences that come with challenging the queen. You will need all your wits and your strength about you, so today you should continue to let your relationship blossom. You will need to draw on its power.”

“It’s too dangerous,” Snow protested. “You’ve done so much already.” He took her hand. “And I would gladly do more. I believe in you. Please believe in me and let me do this.” He looked her straight in the eye.

“Life is not fair, this you know,” the mirror replied. “Try to keep all you have obtained and you will lose everything—including me—to Snow.”

She wasn’t sure what to do. Hug him? Shake his hand? No. What could she say to the boy who had protected her and slowly become her most trusted confidant? Seeing him prepare to leave left an ache in her heart she’d never felt before. “Be careful,” she said. “You too,” he said with a soft smile. “I want you to have this.” Henri placed something cold in her palm. She opened her hand. It was his pocketknife. Her fingers brushed against the engraving of Henri’s brother’s initials. “To keep you safe while I’m gone.”

“You’re kind and clever, Snow. One of the best I’ve ever known. I feel safe in your care.”

How poetic that, in the end, Katherine was there for her. Her heart gave a sudden lurch as she realized all that could not be undone.

“True love saved you,”

After years of spending their days in the darkest mines, they deserved to live in the light.

Snow couldn’t help laughing. He made her infinitely happy, and she was so thrilled he’d agreed to stay in her kingdom. His official duty was acting as a trade liaison between neighboring kingdoms, including his own, but unofficially he was her heart and soul, and she wouldn’t be surprised if a day came in the not-so-distant future when they announced their intentions for marriage.

And if it wasn’t quite “happily ever after,” it was pretty close.