The next day was a bit different. The family wasn't sure why, but Grumpy appeared to be waiting for something. He continuously glanced at the door and was very distractedly answering Empathy's new round of questions. It was just after dinner when Grumpy abruptly stood up and began to get dressed to go outside. Everybody looked at him.

"Where are you goin'?" Honesty asked.

Grumpy gestured at the door and pulled his cap on then tromped out into the snow as he shrugged his coat on. Curiosity had the others scrambling into their own coats to follow him. He wasn't walking very fast, but he was heading down the path toward Folkheim. They didn't understand exactly what he was doing. Then he froze and stared forward toward a group of human women who were coming toward them. They caught sight of him, and there was a scream.

"It's Ivan!"

Most of the group suddenly ran forward toward him, and the next thing the clan knew, a dozen women were crowding Grumpy and chattering over each other. There was suddenly an explosion of silver and green, and Grumpy appeared by the one woman who hadn't run to greet him. It was only then that they realized they knew one of them.

"It's the queen!" Empathy shouted, and she ran forward, past the group of laughing women to Grumpy. She gazed up at Snow with big eyes and grinned. "You're Snow White, ain't you?"

"I most certainly am," Snow said. She turned to Grumpy and smiled. "Surprise. I was going to wait until after the Dwarf holidays, but they simply wouldn't stay behind."

Grumpy shook his head in disbelief as the women laughed again.

"Who's all them, eh?" Diligent asked suspiciously.

"We're his girls, of course," one woman said.

Silence. "Like, in what way?" Belligerent asked.

"Nothing like that," one said acidly.

"This is the family Grumpy made for himself," Snow said, peering at Grumpy curiously. "Why aren't you talking?"

Grumpy made several vague gestures.

"Kofi! He's speaking sign again!" one woman called.

Kofi, a very dark-skinned woman, came forward. "You can't speak again?" she asked, and to the Dwarfs' surprise, she used gestures in sign as well as speaking out loud.

Grumpy shook his head and made several gestures.

Kofi pursed her lips. "My dear Grumpy, who exactly stole from the queen?"

Grumpy didn't move for a moment then rolled his eyes and touched his left shoulder. He grimaced as they all went silent.

"Emil?" Snow asked sharply. "You didn't say it was Emil!"

Grumpy made a face and several gestures then crossed his arms defiantly.

The entire group burst into angry conversation with each other. Empathy stared at them then glanced at Grumpy. "This is your family?"

Grumpy considered this then nodded. "Only one I had growin' up," he managed to say quietly.

Empathy heard him and squeezed his hand. "Grandmama always says she's glad there's so many boys in our clan. But you sure went the whole other way."

Grumpy chuckled and tugged her braid gently. The women were still talking when Honesty came over and peered at them, her focus finally latching onto Snow. When they noticed her, they stopped laughing and stared curiously at her. When she had their attention, she spoke formally.

"I'm Honesty, head of the Estodian Clan, Branch of Goldmane. What brings you to our home, your majesty?"

The Dwarfs all bowed or curtsied to Snow who watched them carefully. "You may rise. Where's Doc?"

"After that human you're all riled up about. They should be back soon."

"I see. Well, then I'll stay until they get back. He stole something very valuable from me."

"He did?" Empathy asked. "Gosh, he's stupid."

Grumpy snorted, and most of the women burst out laughing.

"Kid," an amused Bella said. "You have no idea just how stupid he is."

"We should introduce ourselves," Snow said.

"But we all know who you are," Empathy said.

"True, but I know none of you, and you know none of them," Snow replied.

The Dwarfs were quickly introduced by Honesty, stepping forward and bowing to Snow when their names were called. Snow smiled, scanning each face so she could commit it to memory.

Grumpy stayed back, glancing occasionally at his girls. They all grinned at him, and he rolled his eyes. Out of all the surprises in the world, he hadn't expected to ever see his girls all together. Ranging in age from Clara, who was almost his age, to Snow, who was just about seventeen, they stood there, different parts of his life and heart all staring at the Dwarfs who were his family. Suddenly, he wondered if Snow had told them about him being actually related to Doc and them. He hoped not. It was bad enough the holiday was tomorrow. But even if they weren't back, Grumpy had already decided that he would keep his promise to Honesty, even if it scared him.

"Well, that's everybody here, I think," Honesty said. The Dwarfs all turned expectantly to the women. "And who are you?"

They launched into it at once. There was Clara, who had bright green eyes and curly black hair shot with grey, and Kofi, the one who could speak sign, with her dark skin and mysterious smile. Bella with her bright personality curtsied to them, winking slyly at Grumpy, who made a rude gesture, much to the shock of the family. The women only burst out laughing again and continued to introduce themselves.

Laila was as bubbly as a brook, and she talked loud and fast, and her chestnut hair shone and her blue eyes sparkled with glee. Mabel had short red hair and brown eyes, and she was much more serious than the others. Anna was next, with her ornery attitude Grumpy remembered so well. Her blonde hair was braided down her back, and her grey-green eyes watched the Dwarfs carefully. Then came Johanna, with her spectacles and dark hair and pale, freckled skin, and Lilly and Rosa, who were a set of twins. They were from a kingdom several kingdoms over, and they both had golden skin and thick black hair that they kept tied up. Their eyes were almond-shaped, and they smiled and curtsied in the exact same way when Snow introduced them.

"Wait, which is which?" Belligerent asked, looking between them.

They both grinned, and Grumpy snorted. He waved his hand and golden letters flashed over their heads, spelling out their names. They looked up and laughed.

"Can still tell us apart, eh?" Rosa asked.

Grumpy nodded and tapped his temple then scowled at them. They burst into gales of laughter before Snow restored order again to introduce the last three women.

Sofie had dark brown hair and black eyes, and she blushed when it was her turn, curtsying awkwardly before slipping back behind the group again. Lina had rich auburn hair and intense blue eyes, and she watched them like a hawk, her posture defensive. Finally there was Adele, his only other girl who'd been blessed with natural magic. Her long chestnut hair was put up in a braided knot, and she smiled, her dark eyes shining. When she straightened, Honesty peered at them curiously.

"What would you like to do, your highness?" Honesty asked.

"We haven't eaten yet." Snow supplied.

"Then allow us to show you some Dwarfish hospitality," Charming said.

"You'll have to stoop, though," Rationality added apologetically.

The women laughed. "After years of watching Ivan make do in a human world, I think it's the least we can do to not complain about that," Laila said.

There was a spark of green magic that tugged her hair and made her yelp. She turned to gaze at Grumpy. Grumpy stared at her until she smiled sheepishly. "Yeah, yeah, Grumpy, not Ivan."

Grumpy nodded and relaxed then glanced at Honesty, who turned the clan around and led them all to the house. They were all gracious, some more loudly than others, as the Dwarfs fussed over making the women welcome. Grumpy sat in his corner and watched them, unable to believe what he was seeing. His girls were all here, talking with the kin that didn't trust him, and he had the insane urge to laugh. He tamped it down, listening to the low murmur of voices. Kofi came over to sit beside him, smiling. He gestured, and she replied in sign. It was so much easier than speaking aloud, what with everything that had happened. So he sat and conversed with her while the rest of the room buzzed with conversation.

The rest of the day was a bustle of activity as the clan pulled out all the stops for the queen. They gave Snow and her guests all the hospitality she could want. Arrangements were quickly made for them to stay in town, and the clan would pay for all of it. They were also invited to the party, which would be held in four days. Everybody accepted, and Snow said that Florián might join them, a wicked twinkle in her eye. Grumpy had a feeling that the king had returned from somewhere to find his queen gone and a note telling him where to find her. He fought back a smile at that and asked Kofi to be sure. She only grinned back and told him that she really liked Snow.

It was quite late when Snow and his girls finally got around to leaving. Diligent and some of his sons escorted them to town while the rest of the family buzzed with the events of the day. Even if Doc and them knew the queen, they had never expected to host her themselves. Since she was staying for a few more days, they would do even more, after the holiday of course. They had told the women that it just wasn't celebrated with humans, and Snow had accepted that as graciously as she'd accepted a cup of tea.

"Of course. We'll come by day after tomorrow. And thank you ever so much for your hospitality."

Grumpy reluctantly left his corner to say goodbye and had to suffer being kissed and patted by his girls. When they were gone, he scuttled back to his corner, his face red up to his ears, just like Bashful. Rationality stared hard at him, and he wasn't the only one.

Diligent and his sons came in just as the clock struck midnight. When the last cuckoo faded, Honesty looked around.

"Happy holiday," she said. "Let's hope Doc and them are okay."

Grumpy had sent the raven out that morning with a note for his brothers, and he was sure they were okay. They had their magic jewels, after all. As Diligent settled in his chair, Grumpy glanced around then got up and headed into the bedroom. He got the chest from where Doc had stashed it and stared at it for several long minutes before he turned and went back. The others had clearly expected that he'd gone to bed, and they all went silent as he came back in. Honesty straightened when she saw the box.

"What are you doin' there?" she asked.

"Keepin' our promise." Grumpy said, his gruff voice soft but clear. Everybody was startled by the fact that he was speaking again. He walked over to Diligent and held out the chest.

Diligent stared at it. "What's this?"

Grumpy didn't respond, but he shook the chest a little. The Dwarfs all sat up at the tinkle of metal and gemstones rattling around. Diligent took the box and stared at it before he opened the lid. All the color drained from his face and he jerked his head up.

"How?" he demanded. "You stole them! That man said so!"

"Of course I stole them," Grumpy retorted. "I was cursed with gold sickness when my ma was carryin' me inside her still. I was cursed, Diligent, because they messed with Holda's business, but not in the way you think."

Diligent leaped to his feet, the box crashing to the floor. The treasures that had been stolen so many years before scattered across the floor, but he didn't notice. He stared at Grumpy with wild eyes, his expression terrified and angry.

"What the hell are you goin' on about?" he demanded. "Where did you hear that name?"

"Oh, she knew Calida," Grumpy said, waving his hand. His voice was gaining strength as some of the fight came back to him. "You know, the bitch who raised me. And you know what else they did, with the help of our former queen Grimhilde? They kidnapped me from my home and took me and raised me away from Dwarfs and made me too scared to even look at another Dwarf again because there was a prophecy about seven brothers ruining their plans for power and money."

Nobody spoke as what Grumpy was saying began to sink in. Rationality's mouth dropped open as a theory he hadn't considered plausible was suddenly looming in front of him. Constancy and Charming stood stock still, their eyes dashing from Diligent to Grumpy. The cousins were all speechless.

"You can't prove this!" Diligent shouted.

Grumpy reached down and picked up the treasure he'd made for Dopey then handed it to Diligent. Diligent didn't even look at it. He didn't have to. He was a Dwarf, after all. He sank to his knees, clutching the disk in his hands as the fire opal his brother had found all those years ago seemed to burn against his hand. He gazed at Grumpy with fear and something unreadable in his eyes.

Grumpy stared at him. "Happy holiday, Uncle," he said softly.

Diligent had no response as Grumpy went to his room to go to bed. He didn't want to know how they'd react. Honesty could handle them. He just wanted sleep. Feeling vulnerable, he chose Sneezy's bed this time and curled up under the blankets. Sleep found him relatively quickly, and he was grateful as his mind slipped into dreams.