Chapter 4
The light touch of long fingers trailing slowly up and down her bare arm roused the sleeping woman from her dreams. Warmth flowed into her from the touch and a tingling sensation spread throughout her body. The corners of her mouth twitched slightly as she tried to suppress the smile that threatened to cross her mouth. She knew once her lover realized she was actually awake the stroking would stop and she wanted to bask in the sensation just a little while longer.
The bed shifted slightly beneath her as a warm body settled against her back. The wandering fingers trailed down her arm, over her hip, and down to her knee before following the same path back up. She was barely able to contain the moan that threatened to escape when soft lips made a slow journey up her neck before coming to rest at that spot right behind her ear. Sharp teeth gave a gentle tug on her earlobe before a sleep roughened voice whispered in her ear.
"I know you're awake."
No longer seeing a reason to pretend, she rolled over and pulled the strong body into a deep, hungry kiss. A warm tongue thrust past slightly parted lips, invading her mouth and tangling with her own questing tongue. Her back arched in an attempt to gain contact with the body hovering just out of reach. She needed to feel the familiar weight pressing into her to help keep her grounded as the overwhelming sensations coursing through her body threatened to carry her away.
Legs twined and hands roamed as lips, teeth, and tongues continued to dance and collide with each other. The hand in her hair loosened its hold and raised goose bumps as it forged a path over her cheek and chin, down the column of her throat and followed the curves of her body before coming to rest just under her naval. She growled in frustration as teasing fingers slipped just under the elastic of her pajama pants before retreating again. The husky chuckle that followed barely registered as the torture finally stopped and long fingers found the one place that made her see stars every time.
The brunette gasped as she sat up in the early morning light; panting breaths echoing in the otherwise silent room. Even the birds, if any ever dare come near, would have been silent in these predawn hours. The pounding of her heart filled her ears and her right hand curled protectively above her left breast as if to keep the racing organ from escaping its cage. She shivered in the cool air as the sweat clinging to her skin slowly dried. Her skin tingled where feather light touches and soft lips had traveled across her body as if it had all been real and not just a dream.
Lust and desire turned into anger and frustration as realization cleared the fog from her sleep addled mind.
Another fucking dream, she thought as a deep growl rose from her chest.
The steel grey bed coverings were thrown aside and the black and maroon material of her night dress swirled around her legs as she pushed herself out of bed. She barely took the time to slide her feet into the slippers by her bed and toss a long robe over her shoulders before storming across the room. Enormous flames burst from the fireplace at the negligent flick of her wrist; their intensity reflecting her agitation.
"Mirror!" she all but shouted as she came to stand in front of the object in question.
A ghostly blue light emanated from the smooth surface of the glass as smoke swirled inside like liquid silver. Wide black eyes set over sunken cheeks appeared from the mist and regarded her evenly from behind low, dark brows.
"My Queen," the surprisingly deep voice spoke and awaited instruction.
"Show me who is manipulating my dreams. Now!" her voice never rose but the steel lacing through it spoke volumes.
"I'm sorry, Your Majesty, but I can only show what has been seen. The magic protecting the caster is far beyond my ability."
Short, blunt nails coated in black polish bit into the soft flesh of her palm as her fists clenched in frustration. Each night the dreams became more intense; more real. When they started over a week ago, she had woken filled with anger, rage, and even a little bit of fear. At what, or whom, she still wasn't sure, but as they continued, the feelings changed from anger to frustration to attraction and, finally... desire.
The dream figure always remained cloaked in shadow; never allowing her to garner any detail other than feeling of soft flesh against hers and the sound of a warm voice in her ear. She had the vague sense that the person was female. The body was too soft and the hands too delicate to belong to a male.
Ultimately, gender didn't matter. Her curiosity lay more in who the person was, if she was even real, and who was using these dreams against her.
After the third dream she had known they were not the random ruminations of her sleeping mind, but a curse cast to slowly destroy her sanity. Over the next several days she'd consulted all the texts and cast every spell she could think of to discover hidden magic, but it had proven futile. The Mirror had been her best hope in uncovering the culprit, but so far it had given her the same answer each time she asked.
Her first suspect, prior to consulting the Mirror, had been Maleficent. It was a standard trick the blonde witch employed whenever someone caught her fleeting fancy, herself included. In those dreams, though, the blonde had never tried to hide in the shadows. She had placed herself in the starring role as she played out every fantasy she could unlock within the mind of her victim.
The woman was known to be patient and would continue for weeks until her target broke, but the Queen was not some common royal. Her magic easily rivaled that of the blonde and she was ferocious once she set her mind to something. Four nights of having that vile woman writhing on top of her had been four too many.
No, this time the dark haired woman was positive the blonde had nothing to do with it. She had barely survived her short existence as a bright yellow rabbit in the grey woods of the Wilderness the first time. The annoyingly persistent witch had learned her lesson after that, she was sure.
That left only one other person.
Her lip curled in an unconscious snarl as her thoughts centered on the one woman she loathed more than anything; Snow White.
She turned back to the Mirror who had been silently awaiting further instruction.
"Show me Snow White," she demanded in the lowest, most dangerous register reserved solely for the petite brunette.
More smoke obscured the mirror and when it cleared, the wraith-like face had been replaced with an image of the young woman peacefully sleeping in her bed. The strong arm of her husband, her Prince Charming, curled protectively around her from behind.
Hatred boiled in her veins as she stared into the contented face of the sleeping woman. The familiar feeling surprisingly had a calming effect on her. This was all she had known for the last decade. Countless ways of exacting her vengeance had played out before her eyes. Yet, none were ever quite perfect enough to satisfy her. She knew her time would come. Until then, she amused herself with minor spells and incantations cast more to annoy and disrupt than to cause actual harm.
If what she saw a few days ago was any indication, though, her patience may be paying off sooner than she thought.
"Mirror, show me the girl we saw with Snow White."
The image before her was replaced with that of another sleeping woman. This one with long blonde curls fanned out over her pillow as she lay resting on her back. Her strong, angular features were tucked into the arm flung carelessly over her head while the other reached for the edge of the large bed. Brown eyes tracked the long, toned leg that had escaped the confines of the bedding until the bare thigh disappeared back under the heavy material.
Unbeknownst to her, a small grin tugged at the corners of her dark red lips. Never before had she seen someone sleep with such abandon and the pale moonlight shining through the large windows highlighted the blonde's natural beauty and made her seem so… enchanting.
That thought brought her up short, but she quickly pushed it aside and brought her focus back to the matter at hand. This woman was important, that much she knew, and was apparently a very dear friend to Snow White. That in itself was enough for blonde to earn the Queen's everlasting hatred. If she could just uncover the exact relationship between the two women, she knew she could twist it to her advantage.
The Mirror had proven completely useless at providing an identity for this mysterious stranger, however, and the inquiries she had made had turned up nothing. It was as if the woman had not existed at all until recently. She knew the timing could not be a coincidence, but the Queen had thus far been unable to discover the connection between the blonde and her dreams.
The rising light of dawn reminded her that she had more pressing matters to attend. While maintaining her realm took up much of her time, she made it a habit to check in on Snow White from time to time. The girl was smart and had those around her eating out of the palm of her hand. It would take nothing for her to raise a substantial army to do her bidding. Though the threat of that happening was minimal, it never hurt to be prepared. Besides, watching the short brunette never failed to inspire her with new wicked ideas and she had a few unruly guards on which to test her... creativity.
A/N: Alright, you guys asked for her and now here she is. Hope you're satisfied. This one's not quite as long as previous chapters but I'm going out of town for the next several days to visit family and friends and I wanted to update before then. Also I don't know when the next update will be. I do plan to work on it some while I'm gone, but I'll be kinda busy and there is a Rizzoli & Isles fic I want to write before V-day. (It was supposed to be a New Year's fic, but it'll work either way). It shouldn't have any spoilers so even if you're not that into the show you should check it out. Once again, thank you to all of you who read this and especially if you review and/or add me to a watch list. You guys really are the best.