And so the truth came out that night, with me pacing back and forth, worried over everything. Rebecca didn't believe me the first time, or the second. But I was in earnest and by then I was on my knees, desperately trying to get my story across to her.

But trying to get Rebecca to understand what happened to me before she found me in her father's mill was the least of my troubles…

/

"And then you found me sleeping in the mill." I finished. "Do you understand now?"

Rebecca nodded.

"Really?" I asked.

"No." She added, to which I sighed heavily.

"Alright…" I got on my knees before her. "There was the Queen, who isn't at all the sort of person you want ruling over a kingdom, and then there was Snow White and Wil…oh, right, I forgot about myself…a thousand years ago I was made by a wizard, he was very wise and powerful and he just conjured me into existence. I never asked as to the details. Then I was given to the first king and queen of this kingdom as a sort of gift." I was using my hands to gesticulate the wh0le story. "Now you can jump forward a good thousand years, and I'm now, or rather I was, in the possession of the current Queen. Snow White found me, we became friends, the Queen was always jealous of her for being so beautiful…is this making any sense?"

"I'm following it so far."

"Good. There a ball, Snow White wanted to go and so she did, everyone saw she was lovely, she became the fairest in the land, and this did not sit well with the Queen because she was always asking if she held that particular title, and when she had that taken from her she just went mad with jealousy. She tried to have my friend killed. She ordered her son, Wilhelm to do it, but he didn't. He killed a boar instead, and he fooled her into thinking that…" Rebecca made of face showing great disgust at the mention of a pig heart in a casket. "Never mind that detail." I dismissed it. "But she swore her revenge, and my friend had escaped , and I cried and then there was this little man that freed me out of the glass."

"And then you ran away…"

"Yes! Yes, yes Rebecca I did exactly that, right to your father's mill, where I sought out some shelter for the night."

"And then I found you." Rebecca said. "And a month later here we are, and it looks like this huntsman is now looking for your friend."

"Oh, I hope not." I frowned. Though I was beginning to suspect such was true.

"It's possible that he wasn't you know." Rebecca tried to soothe me.

"But the Queen must have noticed I'm gone by now, and it's been a month…whatever emotional crash she had afterwards must be over."

"But there was that strange beast."

"Yes…" I said. "Yes, he could have been hunting down that beast…" I paused. "That's the second time I've spotted that creature…I dare say it's begun to follow me…have you ever seen an animal like that before?"

"Never, I think that's why the huntsman was after it."

"It's eyes…" I mused. "They were oddly human."

"And everything else on it was something different." The mother cat in the house, a calico colored beauty, stalked by us. "Like a calico colored creature." Rebecca finished.

"A calico cat…a catskin creature."

"So what now?" Rebecca asked. "What will happen to you and your friend?"

"I don't know Rebecca, but I must act soon…we are running out of time."

/

"She's gone…she's gone…how is she still gone?!" The Queen sent a deadly glare in his direction.

"Well, after the week you spent lamenting over the matter, she could have gone any number of places." Wilhelm tried to keep from being too condescending on his mother. Sometimes he thought himself the parent out of the two of them. His mother had retained a very childish streak of jealousy and refused to let go of her ideas of beauty and youth. It made her unrational and too easily controlled by her feelings. A woman of her age and position should know how to reign in her emotions and handle her priorities with devotion.

Regardless, his hopes for his mother improving were dashed again by a displeased pout she displayed. He didn't twitch at all in response, having seen the look so many times it had long ago lost it's effect. She huffed, and then crossed her arms, shifting to a worried look. "Really, Wilhelm, it's as if the state your mother's in has no effect on you."

"To be frank, Mother, it doesn't."

"Oh!" She sounded hurt. "Not even my own child cares!" She smiled at him, just a little. "I remember when you'd run to side whenever I was upset, and smooth my hair, hold my hand…where has that dear boy gone…?"

"He grew up, and he realised that this kingdom needed a Queen."

"No one cares about awful an effect this will have…" She went on.

"We don't need the mirror Mother."

"Yes we do!"

"For what? To be told you're beautiful every day?"

"It's important." She said it with such a serious expression he could almost laugh at her. As it was he let a smirk pass on his face. She stiffened. "And for several other things besides."

"Such as…?" He prompted.

"You've heard how helpful it was when this kingdom was at war."

"Ah, but we're not at war now, are we?" He gave her a hard look. "And I don't plan on letting you start one to prove a point either."

"It was also remarkable for working out debt."

"That one I may believe, what with some of the lavish spending I've seen you doing…but despite not being much a prince I have looked over the books, and by some miracle this kingdom is not facing any of those troubles."

"I need that mirror back!"

"You've gone mad."

"Where have we looked?"

"Really, Mother, I wish you would give up on this…"

"Where have we looked?!"

He sighed. "Every chamber in this castle, every hall, every passage."

"Do you think she may have left the grounds?"

"It's possible. She may not know her way around the halls but it's possible."

Her face stiffened and she gave an order. "Have every horseman assemble. Search the forest. Go into the village if they must. I want that mirror found."

/

"She's gone!" Rebecca burst into the shop.

"Who?" Elias looked up from a half made table.

"Mirror!" Rebecca cried out.

"She can't be gone." Elias said. "She said she was ill. She went home to rest. The Master's youngest son took her home himself."

"I know, I was the one to put her to bed to rest." Rebecca fretted. "Then I went to the mill for a few hours, and when I returned Mother said she had been gone the whole day. She must have slipped out after I left and before Mother returned from the market." She looked at him, worried. "I think she may have gotten use of a horse and gone looking for her friend again, by herself."

"Why should we be worried? That was her goal all along wasn't it?"

"But there are huntsman and Catskin…."

"Catskin?"

"A strange beast with a many-colored coat. It reminded us of a calico cat so we've been calling it Catskin. I've seen it only once, but Mirror has claimed to have come across it before." She then gave him a rather pleading look.

"What on earth is that gaze for?"

Rebecca huffed. "You're going to go looking for her, right?"

"What? Me? Why?"

"Because you could borrow the master's mare, and I can't."

"Rebecca, I'm sure she's fine…I trust she's intelligent enough to stay away from strangers and wild animals."

"Please. Elias, she's running out of time?"

"Time for what?"

"You wouldn't believe me if I told you."

"Try me."

A heavy sigh passed from Rebecca. "If she doesn't find this friend of hers, she'll miss her chance, because she traded the memories of-"

"Please tell me this obvious child's-story doesn't end with Mirror being a real…"

"A magic mirror." Rebecca clarified.

"Rebecca you're too old and sensible to believe in that sort of thing."

"Believe me, I had a very hard time trying to believe it…but I think it actually makes sense…she's so…intrigued by everything, as though she's never seen it before, and she's so desperate to find this girl, as if she were the only friend she ever had."

"And somehow that all adds up to being a magic mirror?"

"If you go looking for her now, and find her, she will tell you everything herself."

He frowned in response, eyeing over the table in need of building.

"Go now." Rebecca said more sternly. "Or I will tell Father you let that poor girl risk breaking a leg, or being mauled by Catskin."

Begrudgingly, he listened.

/

This was it. No more gentle trotting. No more calling out for her as though someone was listening in. No more glancing back and forth between meadows. Today I would find Snow White, even if it meant searching all night long.

Which I certainly hope it didn't. This new part of the forest had a very thick canopy and the shadowy landscape was sending unpleasant shivers up my spine, though it was not cold.

The horse was running at a brisk speed and I scanned everywhere for signs of a household.

"Snow White!" I screamed. Why had I called so quietly before? I no longer cared if a huntsman could hear me, whether he was Wilhelm or not.

It went on like that for hours. I made the horse go on running until the poor thing was breathing heavily with foam emerging on it's lips. By then I was desperate, loud, and emotionally exhausted with the month I had spent looking for my friend without success. "Snow…Snow…" I hiccupped, eyes watery. "Snow…" I tried to call for her again. "Oh Snow White…why do you have to be so difficult to find…I may never find you at this rate…"

"Tears don't become such a lovely young woman." Someone said. "Why are you weeping again?"

The horse and I were both startled by the sudden appearance of the little man with pointed features, who seemed to have popped right out of the tree stump he was seated on. "Where did you come from?" I asked. "Why are you here?"

"You're weeping again, and very genuine tears." The little man said. "What is troubling you this time? I thought you would be skipping through the hills right now, being free of your glass."

"Well I would be right now if I had been able to find Snow White when you set me free."

"So that is what you want?" He raised an eyebrow and seemed to ponder. "You wish to find your friend? A push in the right direction perhaps?"

"I wouldn't mind that." I said. "In fact I would be very grateful." I rethought over the words. "You know where she is?" I asked, suddenly hurt that this information was withheld from me.

"I can figure it out." The man waved his hand casually. "The way can be easily found."

"So you do not know…?"

"Not at the moment, but snap my fingers, and you'll be on your way to your beloved friend."

"Then yes." I nodded vigorously. "Show me the way."

"Of course, I never work just for nothing…"

"I had money, but I used it all for the horse." I tried to argue. "And I can't give you the animal, it's not mine, I've only use of it for the day." I thought. "I could save more money to pay you, I do bookkeeping in the village now."

"I've no use for your currency."

"I have nothing else of value, you'll have to accept it."

"Perhaps I could take some of your…"

"No more memories." I was firm. "You will already take those of me from Snow White but I refuse to let you take the memories of her from me."

"Very well then, no more memories."

"What is your fascination with them anyhow?"

"Powerful thing, memory…makes for good fuel, like a dry log for a fire."

I imagined my memories being burned in a tiny hearth, while the little man warmed his feet in front of them.

"And so that leaves us with…" He pondered. "You have acquired nothing? No keepsakes? Nothing with any great sentimental value?"

"No the family I am boarding with is not very…" I searched for polite words. "They are of more humble means than some."

"I could solve that as well."

"With magic?"

"Naturally."

I thought this over, but knew it would not solve everything, and would likely alter the memories of Rebecca and her family, which I did not take kindly to. "We're at odds to find payment for one miracle, let alone two."

"You're right." The little man remained casual. "No memories, no sentimental objects…that leaves time?"

"Time?"

"Why of course, have you never heard the phrase that 'time is money'?"

It had passed my ears in the last few weeks. But I remained cautious. "You're going to take away…part of my life?"

The little man burst into laughter. "Heavens, no!" He wiped a tear from his eye that had fallen in his snickering. "Just a portion of the time I gave you with your friend."

I gasped. "How…how much of that time do you want?"

"I require…a month. Yes, a month should do."

"A month!" I cried out. "But that's half of what I have left!"

"But, you will find your friend within this hour."

"This hour?" I said. "And I'll be able to find my way back home, if I want too, and the way back to her again?"

"You wish to return to the village?"

"There are some people I wish to say goodbye too." I looked at him. "Is that alright?"

"It's your time, do with it what you want."

With that, my decision was made. "If you swear to show me the way, and within this hour I do find Snow White, then yes, you can take back the time you gave me before."

"Agreed." The little man nodded. "Now, let the horse have a rest, and use your own legs for a bit."

Then they were gone. I blinked an horse and man both vanished and I was standing alone. "What do I do now?" I shouted. A twig snapped, and my head jerked in the direction of the sound. There was another, louder snap, less conspicuous than the first. The shadowy surroundings made my worries all the more stronger. My heart fluttered in my chest.

My feet flew.

Up until that moment I hadn't minded the forest. But now it seemed darker, and grimmer, and everywhere I looked I could swear I was seeing shadow figures, and faces in the trees, and other fearsome creatures.

I mistook one tree root for a large, grey snake, and took a sharp turn. My pursuer followed me. I ran faster and the world around me blurred with my pace, only making the landscape seem more shadowy, more confusing. A stray branch whipped across my face as I past a tree. Where was the horse? Was the horse the creature following me now? I dared to look behind me, but the animal was no horse.

This made me quicken my pace even further. I thought I was seeing faces in the trees. I thought I was hearing voices in the air. Whisperings, and rather sinister ones. "Wait…please wait…stop."

I had no idea where I was going, what I was doing, who was following me, or if they wanted to hurt me, and then…

The ground, sudden and painful, collided with me and the side of my body that had sustained the fall cried out in protest. I flinched, curling up into as small as I could, and prepared for whatever fate was coming for me.

Something jumped on me, and I screamed. Somehow I had thought my imagination would fool me, and I would be saved by the exaggeration of my worries. But no. I had not imagined something chasing me. And it was too late now to keep running. I just shrieked hoping that there was a hunter or a wood cutter who could hear me.

It shook my shoulder and I continued to cry out, my screaming turning to sobs. I thought the animal was biting or clawing into my shoulder, and it took a few minutes for my frenzied mind to collect it's thoughts and realise I was not being harmed.

I opened one of my eyes, slowly, unsure. A pair of hands gloved in rabbit fur greeted my view. My gaze traveled upward. Badger fur, mink, otter, what looked to be the soft, smooth hide of a cow in certain patches.

The shoulders bore thick patches of what looked like moose, and then the face…was covered by a black handkerchief, save for a sliver where a pair of very blue, very human eyes were looking back at me.

"Catskin?" I asked.

There was no verbal response, but the creature held a finger to where it's mouth would be, and then grabbed my hand, and dragged me up from the ground.

"You're human under all that fur…aren't you?" I almost didn't know what to believe.

Catskin pointed ahead, and I saw something that I had been looking for over the last month. A cottage, tucked away behind the trees. "Snow White!" I gasped. I shot ahead, and threw myself at the door, and commenced pounding on it, so eagerly I felt it shaking on it's hinges.

"Snow White! Snow, are you in there?"

"Who's that?"

"Don't let it in. It's sounds crazy."

"Goodness, look at how the door is shaking."

"Should we move a table in front of the doorway?"

Men? But the little man said I would find-

"Mirror?"

Snow White.

I thought I truly did break the door down, but Snow White had only opened it as I threw myself against it again.

Reuniting with my friend was as blurry as my incredible running to get to the doorstep. Only much less frightening. I was overjoyed and Snow White was (understandably) quite surprised.

"Mirror!"

"Oh, Snow White, I can't believe it's you…you have no idea how long I've been looking for you, a month, a whole month!...and I had to learn to ride a horse, and I had to find a place to live, and I've learned so much…and I bookkeep now."

"You're here…what are you doing here?"

"To find you, obviously!" I laughed a little, embracing her. "Oh…" I noticed a smear of mud on the side of her dress, and saw that it had come from me. My fall a few minutes ago had left half of me quite dirty. "You said you'd tell me all about that party you sneaked off too." I sighed. "Goodness that seems like it was ages ago. The Queen was so jealous, deadly so, but you've probably figured that out on your own. I'm so sorry you had to go through this by yourself."

"Excuse me?" I heard and glanced down a one...three…six…seven little men. "Who are you?"

"My goodness, this forest is full of little men." I mused. "I'm Mirror."

"Mirror, what are you doing here?" Snow White repeated.

"Well I'm here to help you escape…" I tried to explain again.

"No not why …how?"

"What do you mean 'how'?

"Mirror, you're not in the mirror anymore." She gestured to my person.

It surprised me for a brief second, all over again, and for a moment I was as giddy as when I had been first thrust into the true world.

Snow White probably wanted an explanation, but I found myself laughing.

"She seems a bit breezy, this one." One of the short men whispered to another.

That had me laughing all over again.

Catskin is actually completely silent in most renditions of her story, at least while she wears the fur cloak. It's supposed to make her appear more animal like, and also correlates with themes of silencing people. In some versions of the story her cloak and other fur clothes cover so much of her body that those who find her can't tell if she's male or female, or even fully human (again, adding to the whole animal identity and disguise) which I quite like so I added that detail.