13. The Princess
We made camp at the base of the mountain, the setting sun bathing the snow-covered ground in an amber hue as we gathered what dry firewood we could find. My hands were itching to delve into my pack, and not just for more apples. It had been too long since I’d checked…
I pushed the forbidden object from my thoughts, worried my friends would notice my furrowed brow and notice I was hiding something. There were always so many secrets to keep.
But I couldn’t risk sharing this one. It was too dangerous.
Even so, I had to look at it. I had to see.
“I’m going to check for wood on the east side,” I said, pointing to the opposite direction from where Theron, Mauro, and Frisk were scanning the trees.
Theron frowned. “Why?”
“I want to get away from you, okay?” I said, crossing my arms. “I’d just like a moment to myself.”
Theron scoffed. “Fine. Don’t get yourself killed, please.”
I laughed. “Wouldn’t that just make your day?”
He rolled his eyes and turned from me, but not before the corners of his mouth lifted. I was really getting to him. The thought made me feel satisfied and nervous all at once.
Shoving aside these confusing feelings, I turned and headed toward the other end of the mountain base, drumming my fingers along my leather trousers as I walked.
Just a few more steps.
I had to physically refrain from quickening my speed, just to escape. I didn’t want to arouse suspicion. And knowing Frisk, who could easily follow me without detection, he would want to know what I was hiding.
To keep up pretenses, I ducked under the branches of a tree, testing some of the fallen debris for anything dry. I would need firewood when I came back, to prove I hadn’t been up to anything suspicious.
I counted to one hundred in my head, looking for wood all the while. I found a few good branches and cradled them in my arms before continuing my search.
After I counted to four hundred, I ducked behind a thick evergreen tree and dropped my branches, then hastily dug through the contents of my satchel. I cast aside a few sparkwood apples, spare clothes and daggers, and finally found the rolled-up towel. With shaking hands, I peeled the layers away to reveal my hidden treasures: an iron blade and a crystal hand mirror.
My breath caught in my throat at the sight of the mirror. It glinted innocently in the light of the setting sun, as if it were nothing more than an ornament. A piece of glass with an elegantly carved frame. An accessory for a princess.
But it was so much more than that.
Ensuring the iron blade didn’t touch my skin, I eased the mirror off the towel and held it up to my face. All I saw was my own pale reflection staring back at me, my eyes wide with fear and my cheeks and nose pink from the chill. My wavy black hair was strewn messily about my face.
It was the reflection I knew well. But it was the magic lingering under the surface that I was most concerned with.
My breath shook as I whispered, “Mirror, mirror, whose glass I see, reveal and reflect the truth unto me.”
The mirror quivered in my hand. Warmth spread from its handle, seeping into my palm and shooting up my arm. A white glow formed around the glass, shining so brightly I had to squint against it. My pulse raced as I waited.
The glow faded, and my reflection changed. Still the same woman, a scared and feral princess. But my skin was no longer pale. It was covered in sickly green spots.
I swallowed bile as I angled the mirror to inspect the rest of my body. Instead of showing my clothing, the mirror reflected the poison surrounding my body.
It hadn’t overtaken me completely yet. The juice from the sparkwood apples was keeping it at bay. There was truth in the myth that fae magic repelled the sparkwood trees. But the opposite was also true. Sparkwood trees repelled fae magic.
Including the magic that had poisoned me.
One at a time, I lifted my hands to inspect them. One arm was covered in spots, but the other was not. And patches of my left cheek were still clear.
But that was it. The rest of me had been claimed by the poison.
I didn’t have much time left. The apples weren’t doing enough.
“Blood and ice,” whispered a voice.
I yelped, jumping nearly a foot in the air and tucking the mirror behind my back. Frisk emerged from the brush, his dark eyes wide as he stared at me. “Snow, what happened to you?”
My heart still racing a mile a minute, I deflated, dropping my arm and exposing the mirror I was failing to hide. I should have known Frisk would follow me anyway. Even if I hadn’t been hiding anything, he always liked to stay close.
“I’m dying,” I whispered.
Frisk’s head reared back. “Dying?”
“Shh!” I flapped my arms urgently, glancing around the wood to ensure the hunter wasn’t lurking nearby. That was just what I needed, for the queen’s assassin to learn all my secrets. “You were right, Frisk. There’s a reason I haven’t tried to get back to the castle. It’s because even if I can seize the crown from Calista, I won’t be able to rule for long.”
Frisk sank back on his hind legs, his dark eyes pinned on the forest floor. For a moment, he had nothing to say, and I didn’t want to fill the silence. There was too much to explain, and I couldn’t do it here. Not with Theron close enough to eavesdrop.
It had been risky for me to pull out the mirror. But I had to know. If I was about to die tonight, I needed to know. By my calculations, I still had a week at least.
But not much longer.
“The apples,” Frisk said suddenly, raising his gaze to meet mine. “That’s why you eat them. To try to cure you.”
“Yes. But it’s not working.”
“Why didn’t you ask the pixies?”
I shook my head. “It’s not that kind of ailment. It’s a curse, Frisk. Nothing will stop it but my death or a reversal from the one who cast it.”
“And who cast it?”
I laid the mirror on the towel and carefully wrapped it up alongside the iron dagger. “Who do you think?”
“Calista.”
“Yes.”
“I don’t understand. If she cursed you, and you’re dying, why does she still want you killed? Why did she send Theron?”
I said nothing. I couldn’t tell him everything. It was too dangerous. Calista already wanted me dead for the secrets I knew. I couldn’t implicate anyone else in her deception. I couldn’t risk having her hunt my friends.
“We need to get back before the hunter gets suspicious.”
“Too late,” said a voice.
My blood ran cold as a familiar figure stepped into view, arms crossed and expression lethal. Theron. Behind him was Mauro, his dark eyes curious as he appraised us.
A satisfied smile spread across the hunter’s face. “What is it you’re hiding, princess?”