"Anyway, long introductions and mess-ups aside, is your name really Snow White?" asked Lux with a sly grin as if trying to find another good laugh.
"Y-yes. My father named me Snow White after my mother's wishes." Snow White began to bite her lower lip, hoping this 'wingless harpy' had some standard. To her dismay, Lux almost keeled over laughing and muttering how stupid the idea was to name a child after a color. Snow had never thought about it and had accepted the name as her own; she never questioned the oddity of being named this way. Surely, there had to be others with equally strange names; though she had never heard of anyone else named after a color. Though, thinking about it, Maliss's name was strange too and so was Lux's. "Well, your name is odd as well, Lux."
"Lux isn't even my name you dolt." Quipped Lux while trying to catcher her breath from laughter. "Weren't you listening? I am a harpy. I do not really have a name. I just picked Lux out of a list of words and names. I could have easily been named Barbara or Bunny while I am stuck in this form." She then sighed and whipped some tears from her eyes. "Welp, it was fun meeting you, pretty face, but Maliss and I gotta get back to his castle and interview a certain magic mirror." With that, she turned on her heel and began to head for the exit with Lord Maliss in tow.
"Wait, you are leaving me here alone?" Asked Snow in panic and gestured to take in all the chapel and the surrounding kingdom. Fear grew in her chest at the thought of being left alone in a place full of human statues frozen in mid-breath. The fear could only be compared to being trapped in a boneyard at night.
"Nah, I figured you would at least have the brains to follow us without being asked." Replied Lux without looking back.
"She is what?" was Maliss's response. "Why should we help her?" he was clearly of an opposite idea then Lux.
"Cause with her, we can bring this whole, 'Murdered Sister' shenanigans to rest. Besides, she knows of Lennore's castle in the woods."
"Mountains!" corrected Maliss.
"Whatever," Shrugged Lux, "Besides, I just want to take her along so I can see your face when the magic mirror cooperates my theory. I really need the laughs until I get my wings back. Now make yourself useful and turn into a dragon for the ride. I hate walking."
"And you expect me to carry her as well?"
"Well, we could try and send her by mail, but I do not have the coins or time to pay for postage." At this point, Lux wasn't even trying to funny with her replies. "Now quit complaining and get going, we are losing daylight and therefore time." Now, she snapped her fingers at Maliss. Snow White was surprised that Lord Maliss, the man who wanted to turn her to stone for being part of his sister's demise, would let anyone talk to him like this. Then again, if she could grant wishes after getting her wings back, then he was probably biting his tongue. Though she was not eager to have another flight in his claws, Snow would rather go with Lord Maliss and his wingless companion then be left alone here. Begrudgingly, Lord Maliss took his cape in his hands and lifted it; within a flash of red, the man before Snow White turned into a massive winged beast with red scales. Taking each woman in claw, he flew into the skies with ease.
Filled with fear, Snow White clung onto the claw holding her for dear life while clenching her eyes shut. The wind whistled in her ears as did Lux's howls of joy and, despite being covered in layers of fabric, Snow felt the chill of the air against her skin as if it crept through the stitching of her dress.
"Open your eyes and enjoy the view!" shouted Lux over the howling of the wind, "You have no idea what you are missing!"
Despite the fear she was experiencing, what Lux said planted the seed of curiosity in Snow and she dared to open her eyes, ever so slightly, and saw Lux with the expression of pure joy on her face as wind thrashed her hair. Tentatively, Snow began to peer down at the ground, several feet below. From so high up the trees, houses, farms, and animals appeared no bigger than ants and rocks; that is when it hit her. She was flying. The more she saw go past her on the ground, the more she became comfortable where she was. Carefully, she opened one hand and felt the wind rush through her fingers like water.
"I told you, you were missing out!" Lux had noticed Snows growing appreciation for flying.
All too soon, the scenery changed from lush green to darker earth tones and the vegetation became sparse. Rolling hills were replaced by jutting rocks and the blue sky turned dark grey. They had returned to The Land of Doom. The closer they came to the castle, the more Snow felt her stomach sink to her knees and by the time they landed on the tower, where Maliss attempted to turn her into a statue, Snow White felt her knees shake like a naked leave in the winter.
"Don't worry, Pretty Face. He is not going to hurt you. Except for turning into a dragon, he can't do much since you turned him into a hideous lawn ornament."
"What?" Snow White had trouble understanding what Lux was coming off with and why she was saying it.
"You heard me."
"You did not have to reveal this to everyone in the world." Hissed Maliss as he strode past the two women and into the castle. With a shrug, Lux followed Maliss, and Snow White followed Lux while trying to keep as far from Lord Maliss as possible without being left behind. After passing a large archway and through a hallway, the three were in the middle of the throne room where Snow had woken up to Maliss in her Prince's form. After approaching a set of velvet curtains, Lord Maliss turned to Lux and Snow White. "May I present to you, the Magic Mirror."
Pulling the curtain aside and to Snow's surprise, it was a mirror with a human face on the top of the frame, happily snoring away. Annoyed, Lord Maliss cleared his throat, "Magic Mirror on the wall, on my command you will show me all."
With a jolt, the face stopped snoring and gave Maliss a snobbish look. "Go away you creep. You are ruining my beauty sleep."
Snow couldn't help but chuckle at the mirror's response as did Lux, which was no surprise at all. Instead of letting Lord Maliss loos his temper over the mirror's rude response, Lux approached the mirror.
"Looking Glass upon the wall, on my request, you will show me all. Show me the truth of your Queen's plight and the role of Snow White?"
"The magic mirror is asleep, please leave a message after the beep."
Immediately, her face fell from joy to annoyance. Anything between her and her wings should have feared for its life. With a raised brow, she lifted her right hand and set her pointy nails against the mirror's glass. "Alright, I was nice enough to play your game and addressed you in rhyme. Now, I want you to tell me what I want to hear, or I'll break you into so many pieces, a beach would get jealous!"
At the sound of threats to his life, the mirror woke with a jolt and apologies to Lux before clearing his throat and changing the image of the mirror part to that of Snow White. "The fair queen met her plight trying to harm the fair Snow White."
"I know that part, but what was Snow White's role. Did she physically kill the Queen? Did she stab her or clubbed her over the head? Did she force the woman to wear red-hot iron shoes and dance until she falls dead?" with annoyance growing in her voice, Lux ran her nails across the mirror's reflective surface, inducing thing scratches, barely visible, and inflicted great pain onto the poor mirror.
"EEK! Alright! Alright! I shall tell you what happened that fateful night!" he let out a sigh of relieve when Lux took her nails off his surface. Again, the image changed to Snow White, however, this time she was in her glass coffin "Asleep at though dead, fair Snow White laid on her mourning bed. Blind with glee, the queen began to flee, but fell far and now is no longer fair."
At that, Snow looked over at Lord Maliss. The look of utter sorrow on that man's face sent a shot of pain to Snow White's chest.