The Snow Queen's Shadow

them out in the earth?”
    “What bodies?” Noita demanded, too quickly. “What stories have you been listening to?”
    “I saw you.” Gerta’s courage seemed to grow as Noita shrank back. “Snow brought me. We watched as you planted your seeds in their bodies, pushing them deep into the flesh. Snow . . . she knew one of the boys, from the palace”
    Noita sighed, sagging inward to lean more heavily on her crutch. “That was a long time ago. A different time.” She shoved tangled hair from her face. “You do share her features . . .”
    “I am Snow’s sister.”
    Noita hobbled closer and reached out with one hand. “May I?”
    Talia raised her sword in warning. Danielle drew her own weapon.
    “I’ll not hurt the girl. I only want to understand who she is.”
    Gerta nodded, but stayed close to Talia. Talia’s nose wrinkled at the sharp scent of spellcasting.
    Noita grunted in surprise. “Well that’s impressive.”
    “What is?” demanded Talia.
    Noita stepped back. “There are spells to split the soul, to send a part of yourself away. Dangerous, but useful for sending messages, digging out secrets, and so on. I’ve never heard of anyone casting such spells in quite this fashion, though.”
    “Snow liked to bend the rules,” Talia said.
    “Little Snow White,” Noita whispered. “Not so little anymore, I imagine. I’ve not seen her in a lifetime. I’ve often wondered what became of her after she murdered her mother.”
    “Murdered?” Talia’s hand tightened around the worn leather grip of her sword. “Rose Curtana ordered her killed. She hunted Snow down, murdered the man Snow loved, and would have done the same to her.”
    “Yet when they faced one another, Snow White was the one to walk away. How did she manage that? The girl had talent, but lacked discipline. Even with the best of luck, to defeat a witch like Rose . . .” Noita clucked her tongue.
    “Snow beat her twice,” Talia said. “The first time, she killed Rose’s body. The second, Snow banished her spirit. Luck was not a factor.”
    “Luck is always a factor.” Noita hunched her shoulders, her head poking forward like a turtle’s as she turned her attention to Talia. She poked her crutch at Talia’s cape. “What do you want from me?”
    Talia swatted the crutch away.
    “Please,” said Danielle. “We need your help.” Her words were slow, her tongue stumbling over the foreign words. She was far from fluent, but knew enough of the language to make herself understood.
    “What do you know of Rose Curtana’s magic mirror?” asked Gerta.
    “Ah.” Noita rested both hands on her crutch. Her body slumped, making her appear even older. “I should have known. You’d best come inside.”
    Talia went in first. If this was a trap, she had the best chance of overpowering it.
    Noita stopped to stomp her feet on a woven mat in the doorway. Her home was small and sparsely furnished, but had a cozy feel. Thick blue curtains covered the windows. The fire in the hearth crackled merrily, but without smoke. Split firewood lined the wall beside the hearth, making Talia wonder where it had come from. Noita certainly didn’t look strong enough to gather it herself. Dried flowers hung from the ceiling. A few of the withered, papery petals fell to the floor as Noita shut the door behind them.
    With four people, there was barely room to stand. Noita made her way to a rocking chair beside the fireplace, the only chair in the cabin. A square wooden table sat against the wall, a bowl of ripe cherries near the edge. A scattering of pits and stems explained the dark red stains on Noita’s fingertips. “Please, help yourself.”
    Gerta started toward the table, but Talia caught her arm. “Ripe fruit in the middle of winter?”
    Noita smiled. “You thought witchcraft was only good for cursing beautiful maidens?” She popped a cherry into her mouth and spat the seed onto the table. “So Snow White took her mother’s mirror when she fled Allesandria. And now it’s turned on her, yes?”
    “She’s taken my son,” said Danielle.
    “Never trusted that mirror.” Noita pursed her lips. “Rose believed she could control it. She was arrogant. Convinced she was smarter and stronger than everyone else. Usually she was, but not this time. That mirror killed her, you know.”
    “What do you mean?” asked Gerta.
    “ ‘ Who’s the fairest of them all?’ A simple enough question, right?” Noita bit another cherry, and a rivulet of