“I should return home,” Snow said. “Before I’m missed.”
Annilen took flight, her wings moving so fast they were nothing but a colorful blur. Snow climbed to her feet, placed her hand on Faradill’s trunk and said her blessing.
Stay safe, my lady, the tree said.
Annilen flitted back and forth around her head with a sort of nervous energy. “Can I come with you?”
“You want to return home with me?” Snow asked.
She nodded her tiny head. Snow sensed her nervousness and underlying fear. She was afraid to be in the forest tonight. She understood.
“All right,” she said. “But just for tonight.”
“Just tonight, my lady,” she said with a nod.
Together, they headed back through the forest and into the village. Snow climbed back through the window, allowing the forest sprite to enter behind her before closing it with a snap. Then she settled back into her bed, pulling the blankets up to her chin.
Annilen curled on her side on the pillow next to her, her tiny wings curved around her back and her knees drawn up to her chest. Moments later, she was fast asleep. Smiling, Snow settled under the coverlet, allowing her eyes to drift closed.
Chapter 6
Seraphinastoodonherbalcony and glared out at the Wyldwood Forest with dismay, watching the sun rise higher and higher into the azure sky. At this elevation, the wind was cold and whipped through her hair, fluttering the many layers of her gown. She tried, unsuccessfully, to destroy Snow White with her Shadow spell. The only good thing that came of it was finding the girl deep within the forest.
What a fool she’d been to think the girl was dead after all this time. Her deepest hope was when she banished her to the forest years ago was that she would perish. Though she had to admit she was impressed the girl managed to stay alive and find a way to convince the elves to take her in as one of their own.
Even the forest creatures seemed to love Snow. It had taken a great bit of magic to flush out the forest sprite and convince her to call out to the princess. And when she did, she warned Snow of the impending magic. Clearly, she was loyal to her.
Seraphina clenched her hands into fists. There was something else troubling her, though. The elven boy somehow severed the connection of the Shadow to Snow, releasing her from the clutches of death. How did he do it? She had never seen anything that had the power to dissolve a Shadow’s connection.
She turned from the balcony and stepped back inside her chamber where a fire burned hot and bright in the hearth, the flames reaching upward so they disappeared within the chimney. She stalked across the room, shoved aside the tapestry and pressed the stone to open the secret door.
“Magic Mirror, in your silver sheen,” she began.
The face appeared in the oval.
“Tell me, mirror, what I seek.”
“By your command, my queen.”
“The Shadow spell did not work,” she said. “It was destroyed by an elven boy who used a dagger.”
There was a long pause as the face floated within the confines of the mist. Then, it said, “Tell me more about the dagger.”
“A shiny blade was all I saw through the Shadow.”
There was more silence. “The only blade that can sever the connection of a Shadow is an enchanted one.”
“Where would this boy get an enchanted blade?” she asked, more to herself than the mirror.
The mirror responded. “Seek the master blacksmith in the town of Bridgefort, my queen.”
“Bridgefort?”
The town was in the Feywood Kingdom and was on the other side of the Wyldwood Forest, which meant she would have to travel through the forest to get there. It was also the home of King Alfred. It would be quite the journey, especially since her home was far north in the Mystic Vale.
Unless she used a portal spell to transport her there. She had used one before when she stole the mirrors from the elves. The mirrors she shared with her soul sisters, Malvina and Gerda.
“There you will find him in his forge,” the mirror said.
