Rules of a Fairytale

Creepy. That was the only word adequate enough to describe the Evil Queen’s section of the Blanche Forest. Gnarled tree limbs reached out to snag at my hair and the tunic Castella had given me. Brooke, in a pair of short denim shorts, had giant welts on her legs, Ryder’s face was scratched, and Tate had brambles in his thick hair. Navigating the woods was a good distraction from worrying about how Bo’s group was doing. I’d spent the whole journey yesterday thinking about when I’d said goodbye, how Grandpa had been barely awake but lucid enough to wish us safe travels, but now I had to concentrate on not getting attacked by any of the Queen’s defenses.

“Watch it,” Ryder warned. “There’s a swamp to the right. If you step in the marsh, you’re never getting out.”

Brooke shivered and clung to the prince’s arm. My brother and I got around more easily than they did thanks to our heightened senses and agility, but it was still a pain in the butt.

Tate sniffed. “I smell... apples, but the scent is bitter.”

“We’re getting close. Poisoned apples are her last ward.”

Brooke stumbled and she clung tighter to Ryder. “But we’ll be fine if we don’t eat any, right?”

“Supposedly,” he answered as he moved a branch out of her way. “But Enrick was telling me that the poison in these apples is more potent than what she gave to Snow White. It’d be best to just avoid them completely.”

Seven minutes later, we found the apple orchard. From the looks of it, it went all around the perimeter of the Evil Queen’s refuge in a protective ring. The bitter smell made my nose itch and I went into a sneezing fit only a few yards in.

“Are you okay?” Brooke asked. She had her bow ready, an arrow already notched in place.

“Yeah. The smell’s just getting to me. This poison is really strong.”

“You think? It smells like the apple ale my mom drinks at barbecues for my dad’s work.”

Tate yawned and stretched his back so it cracked. “Our noses are just more sensitive. It’s a wolf thing. It’s not something you’d want to have when Tasha gets home after a run.”

“Oh shut up,” I said around a giant yawn of my own. “You don’t smell like daisies yourself. And I mean ever, not just after you work out.”

He grinned mischievously. “Lady Versa said she liked my scent.”

From droopy eyes, I saw Brooke freeze but my brother didn’t catch it judging by his wolfish grin and glazed eyes. “Most girls aren’t as easy as Lady Versa- to impress, that is. These apples look too perfect,” I added to change the subject. “They look too red and too waxy. How is this a defense if no one would even be tempted to pick one?” My words were punctuated with another yawn.

“Oh no,” Ryder muttered, still holding Brooke’s arm. “I don’t think you have to bite it or even touch it. The smell is starting to get to you. Tasha, you and Tate are breathing in the poison. C’mon. Get up.”

I hadn’t even noticed that I’d slid to the base of a tree and nestled back into its trunk. My twin looked like he was a second away from a nap, too. “Aww fairy farts,” I cursed as I scrabbled to my feet. “Tate, hold your breath as long as you can. We’re gonna make a run for it. Ryder, we’ll meet you on the other side if the orchard.”

Even for a wolf, trying to run without breathing is hard. It was even harder when we both kept yawning. My eyes watered and my vision blurred behind heavy lids. “We’re almost there,” I mumbled trying to reassure myself more than him. I could see the cottage when I dropped like a stone.

“Tasha, get up.”

“I’m trying so hard to stay awake,” I moaned.

“Come on, sis. You said it yourself, sis; we’re almost out of here.”

“Ooh. You were so close. Too bad you’ll never make it past the orchard.” The gloating boy two feet away was pretty good looking. He wasn’t exactly handsome; he was too... pretty for that description. He had the world’s bluest eyes framed by dark eyelashes that almost touched his perfectly sculpted eyebrows. His nose was slim but complemented the narrowness of his square jaw. I envied his high cheekbones and his red cupids bow lips.

It was hard to keep my eyes open and through the blurry slits, I saw an elegant woman with the same black hair walk up behind the boy. “Enrick. I’ve told you about the taunting. It’s tacky. Besides, you don’t want to anger her. This is the wolf queen.”

He jerked back in shock. “The Alpha you talked about? No way. She’s too pretty to be a wolf.”

Ryder and Brooke came through the trees. “Well believe it.”

Enrick smirked and held out his hand to the Ryder. “Prince Ryder. To what do we owe this pleasure?”

The older woman huffed. “First, let’s get these wolves away from my apples. Up you go.” She waved her hand and I felt like I’d just had some 5 Hour Energy: bursting with adrenaline that was going to cause a massive crash when it wore off. But whatever. It was enough that I was able to haul myself up and even drag my twin to his feet.

I eyed the woman cautiously as we walked. She seemed nice enough, but her name had Evil in the title for a reason. Ryder gently touched my arm and I pulled half my attention to him as the dark-haired queen and her son led the way. “You okay?” he asked softly.

I nodded. “I think so. I think I’ll be better when we’re out of these woods. I didn’t know poisoned apples were so effective; I really thought Snow White was just stupid.”

He grinned at me. “I’m sure the queen will agree with you on both.”

I smiled back. “Yeah, probably.”

We got out of the orchard and made it to the cottage in the very center. It looked like a cabin you’d see on the front of a Christmas card. It was made of logs wider than me, had a chimney puffing out smoke into the cold air, and a wraparound porch that housed two rocking chairs. The house wasn’t what I would expect of a fairytale villain.

“The female Alpha. I thought you were nothing but a myth.”

“Funny. That’s what people in my world say about you.”

The queen laughed delicately. “I can imagine. Now why did you come all the way out here? Not many would brave the journey.”

Hesitantly, I pulled the magic mirror from my pack. Her insanely blue eyes, almost lavender, widened and red lips parted in shock. She reached out one slender hand and then stopped, apparently thinking better of it. “One of my mirrors. I haven’t had a magical one in ages.”

I pulled the ornate hand mirror closer to my chest and her eyes flickered up to mine. “I think it’s broken. I’ve been trying to look for my mother by asking it to show me the fairest of them all, but it only shows my own reflection.”

The Evil Queen fell into a wooden rocking chair. She waved her hand regally toward the leather couch across. “Please, sit. Would you like some tea? Enrick can fetch it. Honey, bring the kettle, will you?”

I took the offered seat with Brooke on one side and Ryder on my other and Tate standing like a sentry. I was just as wary as he was, but I hid it better. The queen held my gaze until I wanted to squirm and only broke away when Enrick walked in with a tray of tea cups, which I declined. He frowned at me. “Sorry, but I’ve already had one witch try to poison me. Now, ma’am, what can you tell me about this mirror.”

Enrick narrowed his eyes and opened his mouth, probably to fight with me, but his mother spoke first. “Very prudent, little Alpha. I take no offense, but I assure you that it’s mint made from leaves grown in my garden and honey my husband collects from the bees. Other than my apples, I have no access to my magic and poisons. Now as for your mirror, I’d think the problem would be obvious.”

I wanted to growl at that answer, but she was being so hospitable. I didn’t want to start something when she was actually trying to help. Still, my response had a bit of a bite. “Well then could you explain it to me?”

She grinned. “Oh, I like you, dear. Such fire in you. But the problem isn’t with the mirror; it’s with the question. You are asking for it to show you the fairest, and it is.”

I crossed my arms over my chest. “No it’s not, it’s showing me and...” I trailed off, finally understanding what she was getting at and laughed without humor. “You think I’m the fairest? I’m a wolf. My mother is supposed to be the fairest in the land. Even Snow White’s descendants think she’s more beautiful than any of them. And if that wasn’t the case, why would the mirror show me as the fairest when I’m traveling with someone that looks like Brooke?”

My blonde companion jumped at the sound of her name, sloshing tea into her lap. She and Ryder had no problem drinking what the queen’s son had offered. I figured that since Ryder knew Enrick I didn’t have to worry too much over what was in the tea; the prince wouldn’t be dumb enough to drink something dangerous from his old friend.

The Evil Queen arched her perfectly sculpted eyebrows. “My mirrors know things. The fairest is determined by both beauty and power. No, you are not classically beautiful like me, or your mother, or your friend here, but you do have something that makes you pretty in a more interesting way. It’s not obvious, but you can be stunning once one notices your features enough to actually see them. Plus, you are the wolf queen. You are the first Alpha in two centuries, and the only female to boot. The magic of the mirror judged you as the fairest of them all.”

I knew I wasn’t a total troll- I’d already dealt with them to know I was definitely prettier than that- but I wouldn’t call myself stunning. I frowned at her observation but didn’t want to argue. She knew the mirror, so if she said it thought I was the fairest, so be it. “So how can I use its power to find my parents?”

She took a sip of her tea. “That’s up to you, my dear. The magic in the mirror is fairly simple. Once you assert yourself as its mistress, it will answer any rhymed request- ancient spells used to be cast as rhymes so old magic still follows that rule. This one seems to recognize you. It answered your question as best it could before, but that’s a pretty standard request. Anything harder, you will have to be very clear.”

I held the small mirror in my lap and stared at the smooth glass. Like always, it reflected back my own face. There were deep shadows under my brown eyes and a long scratch covered my cheek. My nose was still too big and flared out whenever I caught an important scent, but instead of looking gross, like I’d always thought, it balanced out the roundness of my large eyes. My eyebrows were just slightly wild and hung higher on my forehead than was considered cute. But for once it didn’t upset me that I didn’t look like the rest of the supermodels that inhabited Miami. I wasn’t plain, like I always thought and actually looked more unique than those Barbie dolls at school.

I wiped away a loose strand of black hair that had fallen in my face. The lock felt silky in my fingertips and looked glossy instead of the usual frizz that I always tied back. I had enough magic in my blood from both sides of my mom’s family and as a wolf. The mirror wanted to obey me, but it was my job to command it. I sighed.

“Mirror, mirror in my hand... show me how my grandpa fends.”

It wasn’t a very good rhyme, but to be fair, I understood computer jargon better than regular English. And I guess it was enough because the glassy surface rippled for a change.

The image was fuzzy at first, colors that blended together in a messy collage, before sharpening like a camera coming into focus. I could see the infirmary at Steven’s palace, a large room on the first floor of the castle lined with ten beds covered in white sheets. One bed near the door held a sleeping patient with his dark head wrapped in a bandage.

Across the room, several healers attended to the patient on the only other occupied bed and even the king stood nearby. The man in the bed was bone-thin and pale as the sheets he rested on. Bruises and cuts marked his exposed skin, and his wrinkles were deeper than I’d ever seen. For the first tone, my grandfather looked his 84 years.

Tate moved behind the couch and leaned over my shoulder to see. “He looks bad. ”

I swallowed back my agreement, and the knot on my stomach seeing him that way. “He’s with the people that can help him the most. Bo got him home and now we have to find our parents.”

“So what are you waiting for?” He gave my shoulder a reassuring squeeze.

I sucked my bottom lip between my teeth and bit down hard. After understanding how the mirror worked, I was starting to like my odds of finding my mom, but what would I find? My parents had been drawn back to the fairytale kingdoms for a reason, and it wasn’t for vacation. Who knew what they’d been put through in the last month? I let out a breath. “Magic mirror tell the tale… of how to find Lisette and Cale.”

The room went so silent that I could hear my heart pounding a rapid tattoo in my chest as we waited to see if it worked. My twin’s hand tightened on my shoulder and from the corner of my eye I saw Brooke nervously twirling a stand of golden hair. After an incredibly long second, the smooth glass once again shimmered.

Wherever they were at, it was dark. I could just make out the faces of my parents looking much worse for wear. Mom’s normally flawless porcelain skin looked shadowed in the low lighting and her eyes were sunken in. Dad’s left eye was swollen shut and several long red gashes left tracks on his square jaw.

The air whooshed out of my lungs. I hadn’t realized how desperate I’d been to see them, to know that they were at least alive. Tears pricked at my eyes, but I refused to let them fall, blinking hard against the onslaught of emotion.

“So how do we get there?” I asked no one in particular.

The image zoomed out until it gave an aerial view like Google maps. I couldn’t really figure it out for a second. Dozens of sharp-angled lines ran parallel to each other, each ending in little round nodes, some of which connected to more lines. Little black dots filled in a lot of the rest of the space while some of the picture was just a void. “It’s a circuit board!” I said at last.

“A what?” Brooke asked with a puzzled look on her face.

“The chip in computers and smart phones. Each line basically carries electrical currents and the little circles at the end of them regulates the currents’ flow. It’s what allows power to go through electronics to turn stuff on.”

“How do you even know that?” she asked, stunned.

I shrugged. “I like computers. But what does it have to do with finding my mom and dad?”

The queen smiled widely and I could easily see why she would be so vain about her looks. She looked maybe 50 with her blue eyes sparkling with mirth as deep black hair curled against her high cheekbone. Her red lips were open in a dazzling smile.

“It’s a map, dear. The lines are roads, the circles are cities and towns. Those smaller points are trees in the forests and the empty spaces are water, desserts, or canyons.” She leaned closer to get a better view. “It looks like the red is where you are supposed to go, and the shortest route is through the swamp lands.

“The swamp? That’s impossible,” Ryder argued.

“I said shortest, not easiest. Going through the swamps will be extremely difficult, but if you can make it through, it will be the quickest.”

My stomach clenched at her ominous wording. Going through this swamp sounded dangerous, but we didn’t have time to find the safe way. After seeing how badly they looked, I knew we had to get to my parents quickly. I pushed my dark hair back from my face and twisted it in my fists. “So what’s the quickest way to get through your apples and to the swamp lands?”

The queen leaned back in her chair and glanced over at the mini grandfather clock on the mantel. “It will be getting dark and my husband will be home soon. We have plenty of spare room. Why don’t you all stay for dinner and sleep. Enrick will show you the way in the morning.”

Ryder looked at me. I could see that he thought it was a good idea to take the Queen’s offer and wanted to know what I thought. I simply shrugged. If Ryder trusted them enough then I would, too. Besides, warm food and beds did sound good before venturing into this swamp they seemed so wary of. The prince turned back to our host. “That sounds great, thank you.”

Enrick’s father, an older man with grey coloring his temples and crow’s feet digging into the corners of his unremarkable brown eyes, arrived about an hour later. He definitely looked older than her and I was surprised that someone that looked like a retired supermodel would have married a man so plain, as bad as that sounds. He was surprised to find us in their home, but seemed genuinely delighted to have us there, after kissing his wife and her guaranteeing that we weren’t a threat to their family. He and Enrick set up a picnic table outside, refusing help when I offered.

The dinner of wild turkey, homemade mashed potatoes, carrots, and fresh blueberry tea was amazing and the Queen’s family was more hospitable than some of the fairytale heroes I’d met. They offered us each separate rooms and mine had a bed so comfortable it felt like I was sleeping on a cloud. Not that I actually slept.

I spent several hours tossing and turning in the heavenly bed before restlessness finally got a hold of me. I got out bed and padded barefoot to the front porch with the peaceful swings. Dropping into one, I pulled my legs up and wrapped my arms around them. I stared toward the deceivingly beautiful apple grove.

“I guess that you couldn’t sleep?”

I jumped a mile high and looked up to see the Queen smiling gently in the doorway. She took two steps outside and sat gracefully in the other chair. “Yeah. Sorry if I woke you.”

“Not at all dear. This house is excited to have seven people once again within the walls. It wouldn’t let me sleep either. But I’m sure that you have a very different reason than anxious magic to be awake and looking out at such a lovely night.”

I didn’t want to answer her so instead I asked. “The house has feelings?”

She laughed. “Of course. It was built by dwarves. Some of the magic remains, which is more potent when seven come together. The cottage’s magic is finally back at max potential. Now, young Tasha, I’m here to talk if you’d like. We don’t even have to talk about you.”

I licked my lips and looked up at her. She definitely wasn’t what I pictured the Evil Queen to be like. “Why did you hate Snow White so much? How did you get made into the villain of that story?”

She pursed her lips and for a second I thought that maybe I’d crossed a line. I opened my mouth to apologize, but she cut me off. “I was the youngest of four girls born to a middle-class noble. My parents hoped to use my sisters to up their status. The better a girl marries, the better off her family is regarded. As the youngest, they didn’t think I could offer much in the way of marriage and sort of just cast me aside. It was hard, feeling like I didn’t matter.

“Then one day when I was 20, while I was off at the river with my horse, I ran into the king. It was right after his wife had died and he looked so sad. I shared my bread and we just talked. He told me how much he missed her and how he was afraid of raising a daughter on his own. Snow White had just turned seven and he didn’t know how he’d take care of her. I tried to comfort him and apparently it worked. We met there every day for the next year and soon we got close. I fell in love with him and he with me.

“Snow was nine when we married and she hated me right from the beginning. She didn’t make being her step-mother easy but I still tried. I hoped that one day she’d see me as at least a friend and maybe she might love me as family after a while.

“But then the king died. It was an accident. He’d taken Snow White hunting once- he was very progressive when it came to a woman’s role in society- and Snow wasn’t paying attention. She was playing around with her bow and shot a wasp hive. Those damn bugs attacked and the king was their closest target. 694 stings. That’s what the healers said he suffered when they told me they couldn’t save him. I became bitter and blamed Snow White. I still do.

“I got angry and banished her here, with the dwarves to keep an eye on her. She was too pretty for her own good. She learned to use her looks to manipulate men. The dwarves became enamored with her and her prince acted like a lost puppy around her, no offense. Everyone loved her. The kingdom wanted their ‘rightful’ queen on the throne and were too eager to follow such a beautiful princess into a fight against me. I’ll admit that I was jealous of the girl and I was still heartbroken from losing my first husband and wanted to spite Snow White so I fought back. I think you know the rest.”

“Why did the kingdom dislike you so much?”

“Like I said, I was bitter and heartbroken. The only person that had ever loved me until that point was gone. I’ll admit that I wasn’t a very good leader. I didn’t care about peoples’ problems and did nothing to bring our kingdom out of the desolation it had fallen to with the king’s death. Don’t get me wrong, I love my huntsman, but there’s just something about your first love.”

“I wouldn’t know.”

She grinned. “You will.”

I snorted. Even if I did manage to fall in love, I only got one shot. Wolves mated for life so there wouldn’t be a second love for me. Hopefully whoever I fell for felt the same about me, otherwise I was destined for a very lonely life, which based on the last 16 years, it looked like I was headed that way. “Thank you, Your Highness, for the talk and for everything else you’ve done for us. It is truly appreciated.”

She nodded, dark hair spilling over her shoulder to rest against the silk of her pale pink robe. “No thanks needed, but you are the only queen around here, little Alpha. I am simply Mandalyn. It means ‘worthy of being loved.’ Ironic, huh?”

A small smile tilted up my pink mouth. “Not at all,” I replied.