Snow White Sorrow (37 page)

“That’s true,” he laughed. His laugh was majestic, echoing as if his chest was hollow. “Why would you want to grow up that fast, princess? You have the time of your life ahead of you.”

Snow White tiptoed and chopped through the air with her arms as if she was a fearless warrior. “I want to grow up soon so I can fight the enemy with you.”

The king laughed again. “By the time you’re sixteen, I promise you, my fairest, that I will have chopped their heads off one by one so you can rule the kingdom in peace and with prosperity.”

“Chop their heads one by one?” Loki mumbled. “No wonder your daughter went nuts later.”

“I have to go and rest now,” the king told Snow White. “Your mother and I will summon you after we finish our nightly discussions.”

“I’m finished eating,” Snow white shrugged her shoulders.

“Then go to your chamber,” the king ordered her. “I will call for you soon.”

Loki watched the servants ushering Snow White out of the dining room after her father had left. Hiding behind the armor, he hesitated, wishing for another time shift. He didn’t know if he should follow Snow White or her father, or if he should go back to the closet. He scratched his head, thinking it was funny that scratching one’s head only pulled the hair out and never brought new ideas—or hair—to it.

“Time to go,” a female voice said behind him.

Loki whirled around, thinking he was caught by one of the servants. To his surprise it was Snow White again; the sixteen year old, beautiful, fangless version of her. Loki
had
to scratch his head this time.

“Have I told you lately that I missed you?” Loki smiled, pretending to be calm.

Snow White laughed. It was the first time he’d ever seen her laugh, and he was sure she didn’t have any idea how magnificent and mesmerizing her laugh was.

“Too much wit will kill you, Loki,” she said. “And don’t look back for the younger version of me. There are two Snow Whites in this dream.”

“Are there other manifestations of you I should know of, my princess?” Loki bowed his head playfully. He felt safe with her after that laugh.

“No, and it’s only me and my younger self who can see you in this Dreamory,” she said.

“So why are there two of you?”

“I wanted to introduce you to my younger version so you don’t freak out and try to kill me before I get a chance to show you what I want you to see. I know you’re fond of staking me in the heart,” she threw an investigative look around her to see if someone was coming. “I also wanted to show you how closets work in the Dreamory,” she grabbed his hands and pulled him after her again.

They entered another room where she opened the door of another closet filled with the finest dresses, probably the Queen’s because of their bigger sizes. Snow White pushed him inside, hopped in and closed the door behind them. Although the closet was big, the plethora of dresses and shoes on the floor barely allowed enough room for the two of them. They were standing face to face, breath to breath, too close for people who wanted to kill each other.

“I once had a girl force me into a make out session with her in a broom closet,” Loki said, remembering Pippi Luvbug, and wondering if he’d end up being fooled again. He doubted Charmwill would come and save him this time, and he double-doubted he could bring himself to stake the beautiful princess.

“You better start whispering,” Snow White drew a serious face. “Or the Queen will find us and she’ll send you to an eternal
blackout
session.”

“Are you always so serious in the Dreamory?”

“Loki,” Snow White rested one palm on his chest, and suddenly he was about to forget all about the dream and the vampire killing business. He wondered why he felt at ease with her in this Dreamory. Or was it that he’d wanted to let go and feel that way since the first day he laid his eyes on her? For some reason, he doubted that those she laid her eyes upon didn’t live long enough to tell about it.

Those she laid her eyes upon, fell for her slowly, and forgot about her fangs and bad temper.

“You’re being ridiculous,” she added. “You need to learn as much as you can about me in this dream. Focus, please.”

“OK,” he grabbed her palm, held it to his face like a handkerchief and let it slide down again where it landed on his chest. “Back to serious face, my princess. What do you have in mind?”

“I need to show you my story in different periods and places as fast as I can, so you know how all of this started.”

“Why don’t you just tell me? I got a D+ in chemistry so I’m kinda smart.”

“I can’t, and I have my reasons why I can’t,” she sighed. “You don’t understand. You have to see with an open heart. We need to go back in time,” she explained.

“What do you have in mind? Renaissance? Dark ages? Dinosaurs and stuff?”

“Please. Please. Stop it.”

“What do you want me to say? We’re already in the 19
^th
century, right? How far back in time is
back in time
from here?”

“I will take you back, five years before I was born. I was born in 1796, so we’re going to 1791.”

“That’s interesting.” a surge of seriousness hit him.

“Why?” she looked puzzled.

“It means you were exactly sixteen years old when the Brothers Grimm wrote your story in 1812,” Loki thought Axel was actually useful all of a sudden.

Snow White smiled, looking satisfied, “1812,” she nodded. “It’s the first version they wrote. It was a bit closer to the truth, unlike the 1857 version which was filled with more lies and hidden messages.”

“Lies?” Loki frowned. “Are we really talking about you being the real Snow White here?”

“Of course, I’m the real Snow White,” she seemed insulted by the question. “How can you even doubt that?”

“I have to be honest with you,” Loki said. “I don’t know what I should believe. Just hours ago, I was here to kill you and go home, but now everything has changed.”

“That’s because you resist opening up to your Chanta,” Snow White said.

“You know about the Chanta, too? Is that some kind of a
new cool
catch phrase?” Loki said. “I don’t get it.”

“Please stop being stubborn.”

No one had ever mentioned to Loki that he was stubborn, but now that she’d pointed it out, he knew it was true. After all he’d been through the last couple of days; he still detested Minikins and believed he was superior to them, even after meeting Axel and Fable and caring for them. And he also still wanted to kill Snow White, even after finding out the castle imprisoned her and she asked him to save her. Loki thought it was funny how people hung onto the things they were taught first, not the things that made sense.

You’re born, you’re told you’re a half-angel, that the world sucks, and that if you kill someone you’ll be a hero and find your way home. Then the idea sticks with you forever. Never mind how everything around you is screaming, ‘no, you’re wrong. There are other things about this life, more beautiful things. You’re just too blind to see, possessed by the ideal future that may not come. Why not live in this moment, and see where it takes you from here?’

“Are you alright, Loki?” Snow White said.

“Never been better,” Loki pretended he was, unable to open up and show her his confusion.

“I have a question. Since you’re sixteen now, I assume it’s the same year you died, right?”

Snow White smiled again.

“Why the smile? You should know I have a weakness for demon girls when they smile,” he avoided her eyes, and for the first time he was sincere about his emotions.

“I know about your weakness. I’m smiling because your question shows you finally care, even if it’s just a little bit. Yes, someone tried to kill me when I was sixteen years old, but I didn’t die. I found a way to stay immortal.”

“Immortal?” Loki frowned.

“Most of the fairy tale characters are,” she said.

“Say that again? Fairy tale characters? Are you saying they’re all real and alive?” he said, remembering Charmwill saying the same thing. “So who tried to kill you, your Wicked Stepmother?” Loki never thought he’d be asking such a question.

“That’s a complicated subject, but I’ll get to it later.”

“I can’t help but wonder why you just can’t tell me,” Loki sighed. “Why is it that no one can tell me anything I need to know? Everyone has to keep things from me, and then ask me to
see
.”

“I can’t answer that, but we can start with going back in time to learn about my father.”

“The king?”

“Yes,” she bowed her head a little. “Angel von Sorrow. That’s his name. Angel Night von Sorrow.”

“Nice to meet you, Snow White von Sorrow,” Loki said sincerely. “Von means ‘from’, right?”

“Yes, we’re from German descendants, and my father was a very important man,” Loki sensed how proud she was of her father. The way she stressed the word
very
was as if she was pleading for the innocence of someone who was wrongfully convicted.

“Of course, he was important. He was king. I don’t remember him showing up in your fairy tale, though.”

“I told you the tales were forged.”

“So he wasn’t an absentee father who didn’t know how to control his new wife or daughter?”

“Stop being rude,” she hit him on the chest again. It was a playful gesture, and Loki liked it.

“I’m serious, that’s what everyone in the Ordinary World thinks of your father.”

“There is a reason why the Brothers Grimm forged his part,” she said.

“Since this is turning into a friendly conversation between fairy tale characters and half-angels, why don’t we get out of this closet and get some coffee. You’ve had coffee in the 18
^th
century, right?”

Suddenly, Snow White winced. Someone was calling for her outside; it was the deep
,
mysterious, and powerful voice of a grownup woman.

“Shew, where are you?” the voice summoned her. The woman’s voice was so demanding and acute that Loki felt a twinge in his body, and an uncontrollable urge to respond.

“It’s her,” Snow White said. Her eyes were a mix of horror and sympathy. “Don’t answer her. Her voice has an effect on people. You will want to answer her. You will want to obey her, and even sacrifice your life for her. Don’t let that feeling consume you.”

“How can she have such an effect on me?” Loki said. “Who’s she?”

“She Who Must Be Obeyed,” Snow White answered.

“That’s a pretty long name. I’m serious. Who’s she?”

Snow White nodded, grabbing the doorknob tighter. “It’s time to go back before she finds me, are you ready?”

“Wait a minute. Why are you afraid of her? Isn’t she your mother? Tell me about her.”

“Stop talking, or she will kill you in the Dreamory and you will never wake up again,” Snow White pleaded, listening to the woman’s voice approaching. “We have to leave,” she whispered.

“To where? How are you sure of what time and place you are taking us?”

“It’s my dream, remember?” Snow White whispered. “Shut up for a second.”

“But the Baby Tears—”

“The Baby Tears prevent me from controlling my dream so you can’t kill me, like when I made you enter it as a seven year old. But it doesn’t prevent me from showing you what I need to. When you used the word ‘Jawigi’, you gave me that power.”

“So Axel was right, again,” Loki told himself.

“Shew?” the woman’s voice was already in the room. Standing in the middle of it, the woman was alerted by the noise in the closet. Loki saw her from behind the small gaps in the closet’s door. “Oh there you are, darling,” the woman was approaching and Loki felt that a wicked witch was closing in on them.

“I agree. Better travel back in time. Do whatever you need to do,” Loki said, gripping his Alicorn. He’d never been afraid like this before. Even the creepiest demons couldn’t stir such fear in his heart like this woman. “Who is that woman?” Loki pleaded again as she was about to open the closet.

“You were led to believe that she is my Wicked Stepmother,” Snow White said.

“And the truth is?”

The closet was already shaking. Snow White was using her magic.

“The character known as the Wicked Stepmother wasn’t my stepmother,” Snow White said and pushed the door open to another dimension. “She was my m—“

22

“—oooooooom.” Snow White screamed, falling from the sky.

Loki’s heart darted up into his throat. He flung his hands out, trying to hold onto anything that might slow their sudden decent. He knew that the closet was some kind of portal that would lead them to a new time and place, but he didn’t expect to be falling from the sky when she opened it. He tried to grasp at the branches but leaves tore off in his grip as he hurled to the ground. His weight caused his body to sink deep in the snow. Stretching his neck out so he could breathe, he sucked the cold air into his lungs.

“I’d rather fall in love than fall like that,” he mumbled, sitting up straight. As soon as the words left his mouth, Snow White landed in his lap, knocking him down, flat on his back again. Their arms and legs tangled, and Loki coughed strings of her hair out of his mouth.

“Does it have to be hair in my mouth?” he complained, trying to wriggle free from under her. “Lips would be just fine.”

“Ouch!” Snow white whined, laying on top of him and staring at his face. “Couldn’t you just move? This isn’t the closet anymore, you know.”

“Sorry I didn’t bring my parachute, Miss I-control-my-dreams,” Loki said, leaning up on one elbow while she regained her breath from the fall. “Actually, you’re the one who should move; I‘d like to breathe if you don’t mind,” his forehead banged into hers accidentally. Their cold noses touched slightly, infusing an electric feeling into his body. His lips felt dry so he licked them spontaneously.

“Not in your wildest dreams,” Snow White banged his head with her forehead, knocking him back. Loki saw the blue sky behind the tree branches of yellow and brown leaves over Snow White’s shoulder. It was autumn wherever she had teleported them.

“Oh. Come on,” Loki said. She had a strong forehead, and he wondered if it represented her stubbornness. He also wished the bump had brought his memories back like it did in movies sometimes. “As if I really want to kiss a vampire in a dream; I was just trying to stand up and lick my dry lips.”