Through the Mirror and Into Snow (7 page)

“T
HANK
Y
OU
A
GAIN
F
OR
T
HE
R
IDE
, Wilhelm,” said Samantha as they once again travelled down the road together.

“No problem at all. The pleasure is all mine. I can’t imagine your father will be too happy about your servants leaving you though, young Highness.”

“I can’t blame them for being scared when that nasty witch showed up. I’m sure they thought I would be fine with my aunt. I really couldn’t bear to stay and add to the turmoil.”

“I’m sure things will calm down in a bit.”

Valerie sensed Wilhelm believed they were stretching the truth. She was grateful he didn’t push the issue…yet anyway.

“I hope you’re right,” Snow said, “but just the same, I would like to go to the next kingdom. There is really someone I must find and I need to start looking somewhere. That is as good a place as any to begin.”

Wilhelm was surprised at the determination of the young girls. He didn’t have any children himself and felt he needed to look after them if there was no one else to do so. The forest held far too much uncertainty to leave them alone. He knew Snow had no servants with her. No servant, no matter how low in rank, no matter how scared, would simply leave a ten-year-old girl on her own, especially when she was a princess.

The girls were sound asleep on the straw bed of his cart when they reached his humble cottage. His wife had been waiting up for him like she always did, despite his repeated pleading for her to settle in bed without him when he ran late. She came out to help carry them in after he briefly explained how he came across his little friends. After getting them tucked in, she gave Otter a drink of water and some scraps. She is one spoiled pooch; even in the middle of nowhere she manages treats.

“I’ll head out for Sequoia Kingdom tomorrow after they have gotten some rest. They are certainly determined to find whoever it is they are looking for. I don’t know how they came to be traveling alone. My common sense tells me I should take them back the way I found them, but something else makes me want to continue helping them along. I’m not sure what it is, but I sense something has gone wrong and they are running away.”

“I can’t imagine these three angels could have possibly done anything wrong. Look how peaceful they are.” Like her husband, she longed for children of her own and gazed upon them adoringly. She took great care in tucking them in once more, pulling the blankets up just a little closer to their chins.

“I know,” Wilhelm whispered. “If we had children, I would like them to be just like these three darlings.” He and Dorothea went to their bed in the corner of their small cottage and tried to fall asleep. Wilhelm worried about who or what the girls were running from and who they could possibly be looking for. He was sure, however, that his wife was once again dreaming of a house full of children.

Dorothea made sure she was awake before the girls the next morning and got up before the sunrise. She didn’t want them to wake up afraid because they were in a strange place. She went out and collected eggs right away then got a fire going and got busy preparing biscuits for breakfast. Samantha was again the first to stir. She walked over to the lady who smiled at her. She had an apron on, her hair neatly tied up in a bun, and had a little bit of flour on her face.

“Good morning, Samantha.”

“Good morning,” she replied back as she sat at the table in the kitchen area, rubbing her eyes. “Where’s Wilhelm? Are you his wife? Is that why you know my name?”

“Yes, dear, we carried the three of you in last night. You must have been exhausted. Wilhelm went out to take care of the morning chores. He’ll be back in shortly. Are you hungry?”

“Yes, ma’am, I am.”

“Well, good. I have biscuits in the oven. There’s enough to feed a small army. The chickens weren’t stingy this morning either. They must have known we had company. I found almost double the eggs that we normally get in a day. I’ll get some bacon going too as soon as your friends get up.”

“Oh, Val will get up when you start the bacon, that’s for sure.” Sam smiled widely. Of all the things they couldn’t agree on, bacon was the one love they shared. A glass of fresh milk was placed in front of her. “Thank you.” After a few long swigs, Sam placed the cup down. She was almost embarrassed as ‘yummy’ escaped her lips. Both Sam’s and Val’s mothers only bought skim milk. This ‘fresh from the cow’ stuff was pretty amazing. “You know, it’s really not fair.”

“What’s not fair, dear?”

“You know my name, but I don’t know yours.”

A look of relief came over Dorothea’s face. “How rude of me,” she said with a chuckle. “I don’t get a lot of visitors. I’m afraid my manners are a little rusty. My name is Dorothea but you can call me Dot or Dottie. Aunt Dot if you’re too proper to call an adult by their first name, dear.” Samantha giggled. “What’s so funny?”

“Val’s other dog’s name is Dottie.” Upon hearing the name, Otter perked up and ran outside. They laughed.

“I suppose she’s looking for her friend.”

“I guess so. Dottie likes to stay with Val’s mom so she didn’t come with us.” The other two girls began to stir, which was a good thing. The distraction avoided more questions. Val and Snow wandered over to join the conversation at the table. Samantha took care of introductions. Again they tried to stick with small talk; they didn’t want to be caught in any lies. Dorothea sensed she shouldn’t pry and make them uncomfortable. She wanted them to feel as if they were in a home away from home. As she cooked, she kept to safer subjects like the weather and pets.

Wilhelm came walking through the door, smiling at his guests. He chuckled as he watched Valerie give Samantha the whites of her eggs and Samantha returning the trade with her yolks.

“Good morning, little ladies. Did everyone sleep okay?”

“Like rocks. Thank you. I guess I didn’t realize how exhausted the trip had made us,” replied Snow.

“Well then, it’s a good thing we don’t have far to go today. Sequoia Kingdom is less than a half a day’s ride. I have the wagon loaded up and ready to go to market. When you darlings are done with breakfast, we can get on our way.”

They finished eating and asked Dorothea if they could help clean up when they took their dishes to the washbasin.

“I’ll have none of that. Thank you, but you are guests here. I hope you can stop again on your way back.”

“We’d like that very much, thank you,” said Snow as she went in for a strong hug. Even though they had just met, she felt a tender bond with the kind woman.

The other two said their goodbyes and climbed in the wagon. With a click of Wilhelm’s tongue as a signal to the horses, they were once again on their way.

Snow looked back at the small cottage that was her new friends’ home. She was suddenly sad thinking about what wonderful people they were and what a shame it was that they had no children to share all that love. Life could be so cruel sometimes. She once had the love of a wonderful mother and now she was gone. Her stepmother deserved no more than to rot away in a dark, cold, lonely dungeon let alone be responsible for a child. Snow watched Dorothea walk outside with a laundry basket, then stop at a tree stump.
Could it be?
Snow thought. Dorothea was squatting down next to a stump. On the stump was a frog.
Was she talking to the frog?

As the wagon went around the corner, Dorothea and the frog gradually disappeared from her sight. A slight smile returned to Snow’s face. She recalled the story her father had told about her aunt, the Queen, claiming a frog had told her not to be sad anymore, that she was with child.

How wonderful!
She didn’t say anything to the other two girls; she did not want to appear silly. Snow remembered how she felt when her father first told her the story. Fairy godmothers and spells were one thing, talking frogs were something else altogether. She should have told them. The talking frog thing would come in handy later on when…how about I just wait and let you find out for yourself. That’s for another story altogether.

After a few hours, they stopped for a quick picnic lunch that Dorothea had packed for them. They also took the opportunity to stretch their legs. Otter used her time wisely and enjoyed a nap in the sun. Apparently she couldn’t decide whether it was more fun to ride in the cart or run around after it while stealing chances to chase an occasional squirrel up a tree along the way. She did a little of both during the entire ride and was rightfully tired when the wagon finally came to a stop.

They were soon on their way again and entered the kingdom before long. Unlike when they first entered Snow’s aunt’s kingdom, the feeling here was a lot less joyful. There was no celebration about to take place; instead there was a heavy sadness about everyone.

Wilhelm tied his horse and wagon up next to an empty wooden stand that belonged to him. It was easier for him to build a few stands and leave them in the towns he frequented, rather than haul one back and forth between towns. It was much easier on his horse as well, even though you’d never hear her complain. “Something feels horribly wrong here, girls. Don’t wander away too far.”