She was beautiful. She was perfect. She was everything Eira wanted to be – a good dancer, and loved.
Giselle.
Eira's heart burned with jealousy. She had once had a childhood friend like this girl seemed to. And he'd been a farm boy, too. Except…he had left her. Left her for some dancer, until the great and benevolent Queen Nieve had turned him to ice, like he deserved, and appointed her to the Queen's highest court of snow faeries, the Wilis.
Nieve had sent Eira to spy on this girl, but as Eira observed her, she scoffed. Her, defeat the Snow Queen? Not a chance. She was like a little butterfly, graceful and delicate. She would not stand a chance against Queen Nieve. Eira chuckled softly. What a fool Kalmia was!
"Eira…"
Eira turned at the sound of the seething voice.
It was Myrtha, the leader of the Wilis; the first one Nieve had recruited.
"What have you been doing, Eira?!" Myrtha said slowly and coldly. "Messing around?"
"I'm sorry, I just –"
"What could have caused you to stare at a farm girl for an hour, Eira?!"
Eira felt her face grow hot with envy.
"I despise her, Myrtha. Look at her. So happy, so beloved, so perfect. She is exactly like the one he left me for. I hope our great and benevolent Queen Nieve freezes her into a rock!"
"Hush, now," Myrtha said softly. "I am sure our queen will do something to freeze the flower before it blooms and overthrows her. We must report back to Nieve."
The pair of them returned to Nieve's ice palace that she had built in place of the old one Katerina had adored.
"What of Giselle?" Nieve asked.
Eira immediately told of how the young maiden's dancing and gladness had sparked envy.
"I have no fear that she can do anything to you, but I implore Your Majesty to rid my eyes of the sight of her!" she shrieked.
"Ah, Eira," Nieve replied. "Do not fear. I doubt she will be dancing much longer."
In fact…
Nieve congratulated herself on her own cleverness. Perhaps the very fact that the girl spent her days dancing might be her downfall! Oh, how brilliant of her!
She closed her eyes and muttered something. A bolt of icy blue appeared between her hands. In the middle of it, an orb of sapphire color fading to white as it neared the center began to grow.
When the orb was big enough that she held it in her hands, the Snow Queen opened her eyes and gave a loud "HA!"
The orb whizzed out of the castle and into the distance.
"What did you just do?" Myrtha asked.
"It's a curse," Nieve explained delightedly. "When it hits Giselle, her heart will grow weak. No doubt that so much dancing will cause her to collapse before sunrise on her sixteenth birthday! Ha!"
"And what about the other girl, Odette?" added Eira.
"My sister said both of them would bring about my defeat. With one gone, it won't happen."
Thank you, OJSZ for the nice review. Trivia time! Myrtha is the original name of the leader of the Wilis from the "Giselle" ballet.