Spluttering and spitting out water, Grumpy gazed after the brothers as they raced for the table. He couldn't believe what they had just done. Still, while he was hurt by the unusual prank the brothers had played on him, somewhere in him he knew they were getting back at him for his rude behavior toward that princess. He also knew he'd pushed Doc just a bit too far. He'd been incredibly patient with Grumpy for so long, and perhaps he had been a bit too rude. Maybe he should apologize.
The thought had no sooner crossed his mind, when, as he scrambled out of the water trough, that girl came to the door to see where'd he'd gotten to. She took one look at him, dripping water with blue bows in his beard, and gave a high, tinkling laugh as she covered her mouth. Humiliation burned through him, and he snatched up his hat and stormed around the back of the cottage, his face blazing hotter than the fireplace.
"Oh, don't be like that! Come back! Supper's ready!" Snow White called, merriment still ringing in her voice.
Yanking the hat onto his head, he refused to go back as he tore the bows out of his beard and flung them away. He wasn't hungry anymore. His pride was wounded by her laughter, and he immediately determined that he wouldn't apologize to Snow or the brothers. When he sat on the bench in the garden, he stripped his shirt off and wrung out the water before laying it out to dry beside him. The air was still a bit chilly, but he used his magic to keep himself warm as he dried off. Steam began rising from his pants as his anger triggered a burst of magic, and he took a deep breath to calm himself down. His magic was leaking, more evidence he should have strengthened the barrier that morning.
As he sat there, he considered the past half hour, still smarting with humiliation. The panic of an intruder had turned to anger as soon as he saw the girl lying in the beds. If he'd known it was a female, he'd have gone in alone. There were two kinds of women in his experience, and the petite young girl could only be the viper kind. She pretended otherwise, but her laughter had sent him running, and he no longer trusted her. No chance would be given to her. No sir, not by him.
An hour later, after completely drying off and brooding over his humiliation, he heard Doc calling for him. He stood up at once, knowing Doc would head to the garden, and he slipped out the second gate to hide behind the chicken coop. He didn't even want to look at him, and he saw the light flashing as Doc searched the garden for him with a lantern. He'd made sure to leave no footprints.
"Grumpy, are you hiding?" Doc called.
"Come on, we was only teasin'!" Sneezy exclaimed.
Grumpy's face burned as he recalled their laughter, and he didn't move. Bashful called out next.
"Grumpy, please, it was jest a little fun. Come on in and eat."
"Yeah, the princess made a great soup," Happy added.
Silence. Then Sleepy spoke. "Is he still here?"
Doc, sounding a bit anxious, replied. "Ah, he wouldn't leave…" But he trailed off. "Grumpy, this has gone far enough!"
No reply. The brothers all knew that Grumpy could and would leave if they hurt him badly enough. Over ten years, he'd spent a total of four months camping out in the woods to avoid them when he was especially wounded.
"Grumpy!" Doc called, his voice rising. "Grumpy, fleas, er, sneeze—ugh!—please come out!"
Grumpy stayed silent. Let them panic. He wasn't about to jump out and announce he wasn't going to leave them alone with that girl.
"Dadgum it! Get the lanterns!" Doc shouted.
They scrambled away, leaving Grumpy alone in the dark. He leaned against the chicken coop and watched as six lanterns bobbed off through the woods a few minutes later, his name coming from five increasingly worried voices. When the lights were gone, he moved back into the garden then walked back to the front of the cottage. Before he rounded the corner, he heard the silly girl talking, and he paused to listen.
"Do you think you can help find him?" the sweet, gentle voice asked. No answer, but she replied as if there had been one. "Would you? Oh, that's so kind of you. I didn't mean to laugh at him. He just looked so funny. I didn't mean to hurt him." A pause. "Oh, I think they regret it now. I think it was rather mean of them. He didn't deserve that. He was the only one to admit I don't belong here. I just hope he won't mind me staying. I have nowhere else to go."
Grumpy's heart clenched at those words. Drat that girl! He couldn't kick her out now! And who in blazes was she talking to? He edged around the corner to see a group of animals gathered by the window, and he was stunned. She could talk to animals? That was a rare ability, especially amongst humans. Unless… The start from that morning came to him, and he remembered thinking that it could have been a similar feeling to brushing up against a natural magic user. And he knew at once that she had magic. He used his own magic to get right next to the animals as Snow spoke again.
"Well, let me know when you find him."
The buck turned its head to trot off then saw Grumpy. It froze then bolted. The other critters instinctually bolted, too. There was a startled pause then Snow poked her head out and looked around, expecting to see the lanterns coming back. When she saw Grumpy standing right by the window, her eyes went wide, and she didn't move.
"Talkin' ta critters," Grumpy said evenly. "Not exactly usual fer somebody your age, is it?"
Snow's cheeks went red, and she shut the window and hurried to the door, trying to pretend that she wasn't bothered. Grumpy went to the door and pushed past her. She hurried to fill a bowl with soup and grabbed one of the small loaves of fresh bread, setting it on the table. He stomped over and sat down to eat, saying nothing. She was just as anxious as Doc, obviously trying to find an excuse as to why she was talking to animals. She came up with nothing.
When his bowl was empty, Grumpy sat back and looked at her. Her wide, brown eyes were afraid, and she was a bit pale. She finally opened her mouth, but Grumpy cut in.
"Doc and them don't like magic," he said gruffly.
Snow looked ready to cry, and she sat down weakly on the bench. "I have nowhere else to go," she said softly. "My stepmother will kill me…"
Grumpy didn't soften his posture or his voice as he spoke bluntly. "Ya don't hafta go nowhere. Jest don't tell 'em."
"That would never work," Snow said, her cheeks coloring slightly.
Grumpy took a bite of bread and chewed as he watched her face. He wanted to be sure. "Is it natural?"
Snow looked up and hesitated. "I don't know what you mean."
"Did ya study it? Or were ya born with it?"
"I suppose I was born with it," Snow replied quietly. "Father didn't mind it, but he insisted we keep it secret. Because…"
Grumpy finished the sentence. "Magic is fer bad people. I know."
Snow looked up at him, questions swimming in her eyes. But just then the door burst open to reveal the brothers, who were all frantic. They froze when they saw Grumpy sitting calmly at the table. Doc relaxed, relieved that Grumpy wasn't gone. and he walked forward to greet him, but Grumpy glared venomously at him and he faltered.
"Grumpy," he begged softly. "It was just some fun."
"Would ya have done it ta Bashful?" Grumpy asked icily, already knowing the answer. The brothers would never have subjected their shy brother to such ridicule. And they knew that if Grumpy was saying that, they had royally messed up. They hadn't meant to shame him like that, and they hung their heads and shifted uncomfortably. Bashful was especially ashamed, acutely aware of how embarrassed and humiliated Grumpy was from the incident. They said nothing as Grumpy snorted and turned away. Snow watched, aware that things were not being said because she was there.
"I'm sorry for any trouble I've caused," she said faintly.
"No, my dear. We… It's not you," Doc assured her. He approached Grumpy. "I'm sorry."
Grumpy crossed his arms and didn't reply. The others echoed the apology, but they, too, received no response. Doc shifted and reached out, but Grumpy swatted at him and moved far enough away that Doc couldn't reach him. Doc cringed, and Snow silently picked up the bowl and began to wash the supper dishes. Doc took off his spectacles and looked desperately at his brothers, who shrugged helplessly. They knew he wouldn't listen to any of them. Dopey walked over and poked Grumpy.
"No," he said sourly.
And that was it. If even Dopey wouldn't be forgiven, there was no hope for the rest of them that night. They slumped and slunk off to sit across the room, saying nothing. The atmosphere was awkward, and the soft clink of the dishes was the only sound to be heard. When she was done with the dishes, Snow turned around and leaned against the sink, looking around. She was desperate to relieve the tension, so she walked over to the odd piano and tapped a key. The same strange trill came out as when she'd been cleaning.
"What's this?" she asked.
"Whistlin' piany," Sneezy replied.
"It's so funny," Snow said, pressing another key. "Where did you get it?"
"I made it," Sneezy replied. "Fer Grumpy," he added.
Snow turned to smile at Grumpy, who stared balefully at her. "Can you play it?"
Grumpy grunted and nodded.
"Would you?" Her bright eyes were hopeful.
Grumpy pursed his lips and studied her. She looked so earnest, so sweet. And she had gotten through the barrier. She was young, only fourteen, and she seemed truly innocent. He refused to ask for forgiveness from her or forgive the brothers, but that didn't mean he had to make her suffer for Doc's bad decision. Spitting into the fireplace, he stood up and walked over to sit on the pedals that made up the seat. He played a scale, and Snow lit up like the sun.
She giggled. "I've never heard anything like it."
"It's a Dwarf instrument," Sleepy said, sitting up straight.
"It's very handsome," she praised.
Sneezy flushed with pleasure. "Ya think so?"
"Of course." Snow turned back to Grumpy. "What can you play?"
Grumpy shrugged and began to play a tune. The brothers perked and, after listening for a few minutes to the delightful music, scrambled for more instruments. Snow settled in to listen as the brothers jumped in with their own instruments. Grumpy continued to play, changing the song to something a bit more jaunty. Snow got up and began to dance as Doc began to sing. He was still angry at the brothers, but he could set that aside for now. However, he would not forgive them or forget what they had done. They would regret humiliating him like that. He just didn't know what he'd do yet.