Chapter four - The Mirror of Magic
It's been two weeks since Wolf and Virginia came back from the nine Kingdoms. They stayed at the same apartment where Virginia used to live with her father. New York wasn't the perfect place for Wolf to live in, but he stayed there only for his love. Virginia noticed that he was sitting near the window all the time staring at Central Park and he was silent most of the time. Wolf wasn't a kind of a person who would sit alone without talking.
"Wolf?" Virginia said. "Is there something wrong?"
Wolf turned and looked at her, he managed to smile. "I'm fine cream puff."
"But you don't look fine to me. Tell me what's wrong, maybe I can help."
"Well, I miss the forest. I miss fresh air." Wolf said, turning his head back to look at Central Park.
"Wanna go out for a walk?" Virginia asked.
"Alright."
Wolf and Virginia went out and headed to the Central Park for what they believed to be a short walk. Suddenly Wolf stopped and sniffed the air.
"What is it Wolf?"
"I smell someone familiar." He said, "I think I smell Tony around here."
"Wolf! Virginia!" Tony waved at them and came running.
"Dad! What're you doing here?" Virginia asked.
"Well, I just came out of the portal and I was heading home to see you." Tony said. "Anyway, I missed you so much!" he gave his daughter a hug. And then turned to Wolf. "What was that grandpa thing all about?"
"You see Tone, you're going to be a grandpa." Wolf said with a smile.
"WHAT?! Since when?"
"Since two weeks ago." Wolf said.
"Virginia, how come you didn't tell me."
"Well, I…" Virginia didn't know what to say.
"We wanted it to be a surprise." Wolf jumped in.
"Yeah." Virginia said. "By the way dad, you're not here just because you missed me, aren't you?"
"Well, I did miss you. But I'm here because Wendell asked me to."
"What's wrong?" Wolf asked.
"Nothing. He just wanted to invite you two to dinner."
"Huff-puff! I'm starving!" Wolf said excitedly.
"Alright then, let go." Tony said.
"We will stay there for a night, okay?" Virginia asked Wolf.
"Alright. As long as I get to eat."
Virginia smiled. "You never change." She said.
They went deeper into the park until they reached the portal. Tony looked around to check if there was someone watching, and as soon as he made sure that there was no one around, they went through the portal after each other. Wolf was the last one to enter. He bumped into Tony when he got out through the Travelling Mirror.
"Watch it!" Tony said and turned the mirror off.
"Sorry Tone." Wolf scratched his temple.
"Don't start you two." Virginia said.
King Wendell came into the mirror room. "You're here already!" he said happily, "It's great to see you two again."
"Hi Prince!" Virginia said, "I mean.. Your Majesty."
"You can call me Wendell Virginia." Wendell said.
"Hi Wendie! How are you?" Wolf asked and gave Wendell a wolfish hug.
"I'm fine Wolf. So, are you two staying?"
"Only for a night." Virginia said.
"Excellent. Although, I wish you stay a little bit longer. We didn't spend much time together since my coronation."
"We'll have plenty of time Prin… Wendell." Virginia said.
"Dinner will be served in a few minutes, let's go to the dining room." Wendell said and they went out of the mirror room.
Before they leave Virginia noticed a strange shimmering on one of the mirrors. It seemed that the mirror was showing another world, but as soon as she looked at it, the image was gone. She waved that thought out of her head and left the room with the others.
Once they were in the dining room Wolf threw himself to the table. "Huff-puff! This is great!"
"Haven't you been feeding him?" Tony asked Virginia.
"I have. But you know that the food in New York is quite different than here." Virginia replied.
"Yeah, you're right."
They all sat around the table and started to eat. Wolf ate like he hasn't been eating for at least a month.
"Wolf, slow down. You'll choke yourself." Virginia whispered to him.
"I'm fine." Wolf replied and helped himself with a lamb chop.
"So, how is the life in the 10th Kingdom Wolf?" Wendell asked, and this time Wolf almost got choked.
"It's… umm… fine. Yeah, it's a nice place." Wolf said without looking at anyone and continued to eat.
Virginia looked at him and then she finally understood. Wolf never liked closed places. He always loved nature and freedom. He needed to run in the forest, to hunt, to swim in the river. How couldn't she notice that when she was still in New York? He was sitting at the window and staring at the park. The portal was there. He always wanted to come back to his home because he would feel like a wolf here. He never said anything about returning to the nine kingdoms to her. He always acted like he liked living in New York. He never complained. How couldn't she notice that he stayed in New York just to be with her?
"You know, I was thinking about moving out." Virginia said.
Wolf stopped eating and turned to her. "What do you mean with moving out?"
"You're not comfortable with the apartment there?" Tony asked.
"It's not that. Well, I was thinking about moving to live here." She turned to look at Wolf, whose eyes were shining now.
"Virginia, do you really mean it?" wolf asked.
"Of course I mean it. Wolf, I can't stand seeing you sad all day, staring at Central Park and not talking. I know that you miss your home, and let me tell you, I'm not connected to my home as much as you are to yours."
"But you wanted to be back home! To New York!" Tony said. "What made you suddenly change your mind?"
"Dad, I love Wolf. And I don't want to see him sad all the time. Besides, I think that this place would be better for our baby. What if it was born with a tail? We all will turn into some lab mice."
"What mice?" Wendell asked.
"I don't want to turn into a mouse!" Wolf said.
"Wolf, I didn't mean turning into a mouse." Virginia said and turned to Wendell; "Laboratory mice are used for several kinds of researches and experiments. If the baby is born in New York and the doctors find out about the tail, which I'm sure they'll notice even before the baby is born, they will start doing several experiments on Wolf and the baby. I don't want that to happen." She turned to face her father now. "Dad, I'm sure you don't want your grandchild to spend all his life in a lab."
"Of course not!" Tony said. "I'm glad that you decided to move here honey."
"You can stay at the palace." Wendell suggested. "It's huge. And I have many free rooms. You can choose the one you like."
"Thank you Wendell." Virginia said.
"Yeah, it's so nice of you Wendie." Wolf said.
"I guess I'm going to sleep now." Tony said and got up. "Good night everyone."
"Good night dad." Virginia said.
"Sweet dreams Tone!" Wolf said and winked at him.
"Shut up Wolf." Tony said and went to his room.
"Let's go and find a room for you two." Wendell said.
"Okay." Virginia said and they got up.
Wendell showed them the free rooms of the palace. One was so big it could fit a whole family, the next had a single bed. The other had red walls. After a long search they found a room that they liked. Wendell wished them a good night and went to his room. Virginia opened the wardrobe and saw that there were nightgowns inside.
"Is this the guest room or what?" she asked.
"Maybe." Wolf replied. "If the owner of the house has his own room, then the rest are supposed to be guest rooms."
"I guess you're right." She took out a nightgown and changed her clothes. "But we have to go back to New York to get our stuff."
"We can do that tomorrow." Wolf said. He also changed his clothes and let his tail out, and then he jumped into bed. "I'm exhausted."
"You should be. You ate like a… well, a wolf." Virginia got into bed too.
"Just as I always should." He said with a smile. "That's my nature."
"Just remind me to keep an eye on you, so you wouldn't choke."
"Alright." Wolf kissed her and they fell asleep.
Virginia was in a white cave. It was covered with ice and snow. She looked around. She knew this place. She has been here before.
'Hello Virginia'
Virginia turned and saw the source of the voice. It was Snow White.
'Snow White! Hi! How did I end up here? I was at the palace a moment ago.' Virginia said.
'And you're still at the palace Virginia. You're just dreaming.' Snow White said. 'A great danger is threatening the kingdoms.'
'Not again! Who is it this time?' Virginia asked.
'I couldn't find out. There's a strong kind of magic covering it.'
'And what am I supposed to do?'
'You must find the-girl-who-lived.' Snow White said.
'Who's that? And where can I find her?' Virginia asked.
'You have to search for her. You can find her beyond the Northern Sea.'
'Northern Sea?'
'Find her Virginia. You can save the kingdoms only with her help.' Snow White said and disappeared.
'Wait! You didn't tell me what's going to happen!'
"Snow White! Where are you?"
"Virginia, wake up." Wolf was getting panicked.
Virginia opened her eyes. "Where is she?" she sat up and looked around. It was morning and she was back in her room at the palace.
"What's wrong Virginia?"
"It was Snow White." Virginia looked at Wolf. "She told me that there's a great danger threatening the kingdoms. Wolf, we have to do something."
"What danger? Everything is fine over here."
"She didn't say anything Wolf. She just told me to find a girl. She called her the-girl-who-lived."
"Cripes!"
"What?"
"There used to be a legend about a boy and a girl-who lived. They were relatives and survived death. The legend says that the world they live in is beyond the Northern Sea." Wolf said.
"That's exactly what Snow White told me."
"Oh cripes! We have to tell Wendell." Wolf said. They quickly got dressed and went out. They didn't know where was Wendell's room located, so they just went to the dining room to meet him for breakfast.
Wendell was already sitting in his chair at the head of the table. "Good morning. How did you sleep?" he asked.
"Wendell, Snow White came to Virginia's dream!" Wolf said and sat near the table. Virginia sat next to him.
"How nice!" Wendell said.
"Well, it wasn't that nice Wendell." Virginia said.
"What did she say?" Wendell asked.
Virginia told Wendell about her dream. For a while Wendell seemed to be thinking about something. He sat there his arms folded on his chest.
"Wendell, say something!" Virginia said.
"Let's go to the library."
"Is that all you can say?" Wolf asked. But soon enough, he found out that Wendell really meant to go to the library. He got up and walked out of the room. Wolf and Virginia followed him.
"There used to be a legend about a magical world which is located on the other side of the sea. You remember about the third Travelling Mirror, which is in the sea. Don't you?"
"Yes." Said Virginia.
"Well, the dwarves wanted to take it as a present from our world to theirs, but they didn't make it and the mirror sank in the sea. They say that no one can go to that side of the sea because it's being protected by strong magic." Wendell said.
"What about the girl and the boy?" Wolf asked.
"Well, I don't know if they really exist. But we'll read about them now." Wendell said.
They entered the library. It was huge and the walls were covered by rows of books.
"Where should we begin?" Wendell asked himself.
"Don't tell me we're going to read all these books until we find the one we need!" Virginia said.
"That's a wonderful idea!" Wolf said. "Maybe we can find some self-help books here too. I really liked the ones I brought from the 10th kingdom. They were so helpful."
"We don't have to read all the books." Wendell said finally. "We can only search one section."
"Which one?" Virginia asked.
"The magic of Merlin." Wendell said. "I just can't remember where is it located."
"Merlin really existed too?" Virginia asked, and then she remembered that she was in a fairy tale world and everything was possible. "Then let's search for it together." She quickly added and they started to search for the required section.
"Look up there!" Wolf said and pointed to the top of the shelves near the window. "There! 'The Magic of Merlin' Cripes! There are ton of books there." He added.
Wendell pulled the ladder and climbed, he pulled some books and threw them down to Wolf to catch. Wolf caught the books and put them on a table near him. Wendell got down from the ladder and took a book.
"Let's start." He said.
"What are we supposed to search for exactly?" Virginia asked.
"Anything concerning the-girl-who-lived." Wendell said.
They looked in all the books that were on the table. Wolf climbed the ladder again and brought several more books. None of them contained anything of interest for them.
"Nothing." Virginia said, frowning. "We are going to spend the whole day here searching for something that doesn't exist in books!"
"Look at this!" Wolf said. "Hogwarts, A History. It's about a school that teaches witchcraft and wizardry."
"We don't need that Wolf." Virginia said.
"Oh, alright." Wolf put the book aside and took another one.
"This might be interesting." Wendell said. He was reading a thin red book:
Merlin predicted that evil will rise and only two will survive. One will be marked as equal to the Dark Lord and another will be marked as symbol of hate.
"I think this is about them. Only two will survive. Yes, it is about them." He kept reading:
They will be separated for many years until their time comes.
"So that means they will meet each other again?" Virginia asked.
"Maybe." Wendell said.
"Huff-puff! Is there anything about where they live in that book?" Wolf asked.
"It says that the magical world of wizards is in England." Wendell said. "A mirror will show the way to the people who are in deep need to be there."
"A mirror?" Virginia asked.
"Maybe it's the mirror in the Northern Sea." Wolf said. "Maybe it was the only way to get there."
"I don't think so." Wendell said. "It says here that the mirror can only found with its brothers. And it's called 'The Mirror of Magic'."
"I never knew that mirrors have brothers." Wolf said.
"The mirror room!" Virginia said, suddenly remembering the strange mirror she saw there.
"Let's go then." Wendell said.
The three went to the mirror room. The queen has left a huge amount of mirrors there, and each one had its own purpose of use.
"Which one is it?" Wolf asked.
"The names of the mirrors are usually written behind them." Wendell said.
"You mean the name of the manufacturer. And they are all made by the dwarves of Dragon Mountain." Virginia said.
"I don't think that one was made by the dwarves. It must be a special mirror." Wendell said.
They began looking behind every mirror in the room. All of them seemed to be manufactured at Dragon Mountain.
"Virginia, did Snow White tell you anything else?" Wendell asked.
"No. Only that there's danger and she can't tell what it is yet."
"Look at this!" Wolf said. "Manufactured by the Goblins of the Northern Sea. I think we found it!"
"I never thought that goblins are capable of making mirrors." Wendell said.
"You can expect anything from Goblins." Wolf said. "They aren't ordinary creatures."
"When we left this room yesterday, this mirror was shimmering." Virginia said.
"Are you sure of what you saw Virginia?" Wendell asked.
"Yes. It seemed to be another world. I didn't look at it carefully, so I don't remember what I saw exactly."
They stared at the mirror for a while, trying to figure out how it worked.
"There must be some way to turn it on." Wolf said.
"Wolf, this is one of the mirrors of the queen. Maybe it works only for her." Wendell said.
Virginia walked in front of the mirror and looked at it. "There must be a way." She said.
The mirror started to glow and shimmer. "Hey look!" Virginia said. "It working!"
"What did you do Virginia?" Wolf asked.
"I just stood in front of it." she replied.
The mirror showed a huge castle surrounded by large trees in a mountainous area. The trees seemed to form a forest on one side, and a big lake was visible on the other side.
"Maybe that's where their king stays." Wendell said.
"But how can we go there?" Virginia asked.
"Read the book." Wolf said.
At that moment Tony entered the room. "There you are! I've been searching for you all morning!"
"Morning dad." Virginia said.
"Good morning sunshine." Tony said and kissed Virginia's cheek. "What are you doing here? Were you going to leave without telling me?"
"No dad. We're here because Snow White told me to search for a girl. The kingdoms are in danger again." Virginia told her father about her dream and the mirror that they found.
"Why don't you just try and go through it?" Tony said.
"Good idea." Wolf said.
"But we don't know what is waiting for us there." Wendell said.
"We'll find out when we get there." Virginia said. "I'm going first."
"No, I'll go first and you come right after me." Wolf said. "I don't want you to get hurt."
"Oh Wolf, you're so sweet." Virginia said and gave him a kiss.
Wolf touched the mirror surface and it felt cold, just like the Travelling Mirror. "Alright magical world, here I come." He said and stepped through it. Virginia followed him, as did Wendell and Tony.