Winterdream

by Chantal Gadoury

  “You should go find the prince and Lady Irina. I apologize it took me so long…”

  “No, don’t be silly,” I said, shaking my head. “The wreath is beautiful. I’m sure Marzipan will love it.” It didn’t matter how long I had been away.

  “I’ll go wake them now,” Hyacinth murmured as she took a step onto the staircase. “It’s probably about time we’ve shown our faces around the palace.” She gave me a small, sad smile and tilted her chin to the door.

  “You should go on to them, Lady Clara,” she said again.

  My hand lingered on the marble railing as I darted my gaze between the stairs and the nearby door. Something in my stomach twisted with uncertainty.

  “Give Marzipan a few moments longer,” I urged Hyacinth. “After all, she just lost her brother. And I can always find another room to sleep in tonight.”

  “You’re too kind,” she replied, shaking her head.

  “It’s what she deserves,” I reasoned. “It’s what you all deserve.”

  Time. They all deserved to hold onto their sweet and happy memories for as long as possible, before everything was lost.

  She crossed the small space between us as she brushed her hand over my shoulder. As she peered at me with her strange, green eyes.

  “It seems, Lady Clara, we don’t deserve you. But we are glad to have you here. We hope you’ll stay once this business is done with the Mouse King.”

  As she took my hand in hers, she glided a finger over my palm. A delicate white etching of a flower appeared on my skin. The magic swirled on the skin as each tiny petal unfurled, creating a full blossom. I had never seen such beautiful magic before. I stared at it with amazement.

  “What is it?” I asked, lifting my finger to trace the skin.

  “Hope,” she replied tenderly. I stared at it for a moment before peering back up at her.

  “Thank you,” I managed as she nodded. Hope.

  “Lady Clara, the prince is a good man,” Hyacinth began softly. “He believes there is good in everyone. Even those who appear ripe and sweet, but are rotten and sour to the core.”

  As she said the words, I followed her gaze to the half-open door. Through the parted wood, I could see Lady Irina standing extraordinarily close to the Nutcracker. They were talking over the long, oak table. The Nutcracker was gesturing to the map of Winter Dream as Lady Irina watched. They were undeniably discussing the plans to trap the Mouse King.

  “Do not allow appearances to deceive you, Lady Clara,” she continued as I turned to look back to her.

  “You cannot trust everything you see here. Sometimes, you must look with your heart and your mind, not with your eyes.”

  Chapter 25

  As I allowed the words to sink in, I realized Uncle Drosselmeyer once warned me of the very thing in my dream. Clenching my teeth, I gave a firm nod in understanding. Hyacinth pulled away and began climbing the stairs, back toward my room. Exhaling, I willed myself to join Lady Irina and Anton.

  As I opened the large door, hinges creaking loudly, Lady Irina whirled around to face me. She raised her brows in surprise, a twinkle of glee flashing in violet irises. I felt like we were playing a dangerous game of cat and mouse now.

  “Lady Clara,” she purred softly, just as Anton glanced over his shoulder. “His highness and I were just discussing plans.”

  “Clara,” he said as he took a step toward me. “We’ve been waiting for you.”

  Just beyond his shoulder, I could feel Lady Irina’s gaze watching me. Lifting my eyes, I tried my best to smile as sweetly as I could to her.

  “I had wondered if last evening had been too much for you,” Lady Irina continued as she traced her finger over the oak table.

  “I was tending to some very important matters,” I replied shortly as I took a step toward them. “It seems the man who had appeared at the gala last night was actually a brother to my maid, Marzipan.”

  “Ah, yes. I heard it was dear Macaron; how unfortunate.” Her feigned concern did not fool me in the slightest. “I spoke to Marzipan last evening. How very tragic for her and her family.”

  Only, Marzipan no longer had a family. Her parents were gone, and now her brother? She was the last of them to live. I felt disgusted by Irina’s carelessness. If she knew Marzipan at all, even in the slightest, then she would have known that they were orphaned.

  “Thank you,” Anton replied softly, squeezing my hand. “Thank you for tending to those who required your kindness.”

  “It seems you were busy,” I continued, turning to glance over the map that had been outlined with red ink. Sugarland Forest had been circled several times, as had Flora Fallal.

  “It seems the Mouse King has retreated,” Lady Irina said, pointing at the map. “We plan to go after them at dawn.”

  “Retreated?” I asked, darting my confused gaze between the two of them. “But—”

  “There’s been no sign of him,” she explained quickly. I looked to Anton, who stood quietly off to the side. Why wasn’t he saying anything?

  “But, after last night—”

  “I have guards diligently keeping watch over the palace,” he finally said, nodding slowly. “We’re ready for anything.”

  “And the trap?”

  The Nutcracker slid his finger over the area of the Sugarland Forest.

  “We’re going to dig holes in the ground tonight, and station our first line of men around them. As the mice are caught, we’ll destroy them.”

  “But I thought—” I began, shaking my head. “I’m still going to help, aren’t I?”

  “Of course you are,” Lady Irina said with a soft laugh. “You’re so eager to do so, aren’t you?”

  I darted my gaze to Anton, waiting for his reply. His word was all I cared about.

  “I have an idea or two,” he murmured. “I know you want to help, Clara. I just…” He paused as he exhaled. “If I can keep you from having to bait the Mouse King, I want to try.”

  “So much talk of bloodshed does ruin one’s appetite, don’t you think?” Lady Irina interrupted, pressing a hand against her stomach. “And it’s nearly lunch. Perhaps we should put this at a rest and eat before we talk any further on battles.” Her gaze lingered on me, as if she hoped I would agree.

  Instead, I shook my head. I knew what she was doing. They had spent plenty of time together, without me, going over their plans. A conversation I should have been a part of, and now she wanted to push me out.

  “I’m not hungry.”

  “At least we could all enjoy a hot cup of tea, hmm?” Lady Irina held out her hand to me. I stared at it a moment, trying to understand what it was she was trying to do. But as the Nutcracker watched us both, I began to quickly realize she was trying to make up for the night before. Had he spoken to her?

  Just then, a guard dashed into the room and bowed slightly before directing his full attention toward Anton.

  “We need you outside, your highness.”

  “Is everything alright?” he asked, turning quickly.

  The guard turned his gaze back toward the doors; his body was trembling.

  “We thought we saw…” But the guard didn’t finish his reply. The Nutcracker looked to the two of us.

  “Stay inside,” he stated firmly. Lady Irina raised a brow and nodded.

  “Of course. I’ll keep Lady Clara safe.” The words rolled from her tongue. I didn’t believe she would try if it came down to it—in fact, I was sure she would leave me to my own devices.

  “I’ll be back as quickly as I can.” He followed after the guard, leaving us in the room alone.

  “Come,” Lady Irina purred as she extended her hand again. “We can go to the other room. At least the doors lock there.”

  I wasn’t sure if that was meant to make me feel better. Locked doors. But I nodded in agreement. As I lifted my hand to hers, she carefully turned my wrist, exposing the new white etching of the flower on my palm.

  “How lovely,” she replied. “What a sweet gift you’v
e received, Clara.”

  I tugged my hand away from her grasp and slid it behind my back. I didn’t know how to respond. Her smile was predatory as she turned and began to march out into the main foyer again. As I trailed behind her, I glanced up to the balcony, where I could see Hycinth still lingering. I wondered if she heard the commotion with the guard and Anton. She watched as I crossed the room, following Lady Irina. As I lifted my chin, I saw her give me a quick nod, urging me on.

  Hope. She had given me hope. Now I knew why.

  “No need for worry, Lady Clara,” Lady Irina said as soon as she latched the door behind me. I felt more in danger alone, in the locked room with her, than I did out in the open. She crossed the room to a small table where a pot of tea and two teacups awaited us. As she took a seat, she gestured to the other plush chair with a raised brow.

  “Please. We can wait for his highness here.”

  Carefully, she lifted the pot from the table and poured the steaming brew into the teacup before me.

  “I’m sure his highness will be safe,” she continued.

  I wondered if my face gave away how fearful I was. If another mouse had been seen. . . What did that mean for the subjects inside of the palace? Would another innocent courtier lose their life? Hyacinth had said that the mice had killed off countless servants before our arrival; for months, even.

  Her fingers delicately lowered the teapot onto the table between us and carefully began to spoon silver grains of sugar into our cups. After the second spoonful, she lifted the cup and offered it to me. I took it, keeping my gaze fixated on her, until she sipped on her own.

  The tea was perfectly warm; the flavors, robust. It reminded me of a ripened peach, sprinkled with a sort of sugary cinnamon. As the flavors lapped over my tongue, she lowered her teacup to the nearby side table and watched me.

  “You intrigue me,” she said suddenly. “His highness is completely infatuated with you.”

  I swallowed the tea hard and lowered my own cup to the table, placing it beside hers. In the close proximity, I could smell the sickeningly sweet scent of her.

  “That’s rather blunt,” I coughed.

  “Many pardons. Only, I cannot help but notice that he’s brought you here in hopes that you will break the spell he’s under. The very one the Mouse King placed upon him.”

  “Yes,” I replied, nodding. “I know.”

  “You must know that killing the Mouse King is going to be an impossible feat for a girl like you.”

  I wrinkled my nose, unsure what she meant by that. I had fought against the Mouse King before. I had even braved a surprise attack in the Sugarland Forest, with Anton. We had done it together, both times, to beat the King at his own game. Even if I didn’t appear strong enough to destroy the Mouse King, I would certainly try.

  “He’s one of the most feared creatures here in Winter Dream,” she chuckled. “And a simple slipper to the head will hardly save the Nutcracker a second time.”

  “Then what would you have me do?” I asked.

  Lady Irina leaned back in her chair, positively at ease. As she crossed her fingers over her torso, she shrugged lazily.

  “Perhaps it would be best for you to leave Winter Dream, Lady Clara. You simply cannot save the prince as he presumes. You’ll only distract him and cause his untimely death. He needs someone powerful. He needs—”

  “You?” I replied, shaking my head. She tilted her chin as her lips curved into a sly smile.

  “Me? Do you think so?” Her violet eyes glimmered with amusement as she sat up straighter.

  “You think he needs someone like you,” I rephrased. “It’s clear that you think so.”

  Narrowing her gaze, she pursed her lips.

  “You are quite the clever girl, Clara,” she sneered as she bit down on her bottom lip. Formalities seemed to be set aside now. It appeared I had spoken the truth; her truth. In order to obtain what she most desired, she wished for me to disappear completely.

  “I could offer you safe passage back to your land,” Lady Irina said as she rose from her chair. “And you’d never hear from any of us again.”

  I knew that could never happen. Not with Uncle Drosselmeyer. I would always have a connection to Winter Dream; to the Nutcracker. To Anton.

  “You’ll only keep him trapped in his spell,” I said, shaking my head. “Lotte even told me that he must be saved by someone not of Winter Dream—”

  “You’re a fool,” she sneered, turning on her heel away from me. “He doesn’t need to be released from what he is. He is still very much a man.”

  “But he wishes—”

  “It doesn’t matter what he wants,” she retorted, turning back to look at me. “I shouldn’t spoil the ending for you, dearest Clara. But I’d hate to string you along with false hope as some would.”

  I watched her, circling me like vulture. My skin felt cold, and as a thin sweat prickled against my body, I could not help but feel like her prey.

  “You should know I have no plans to free the prince. And certainly no plans to keep you here. As soon as you’re gone, I’ll be sure he’ll forget all about you. And then, well, let’s just say I have my own set of plans for the Nutcracker.”

  I pushed myself up from my chair immediately. “You can’t!”

  She tsked and shook her head. “Sit,” she commanded.

  “You want him, don’t you? I see the way you look at him. The way you look at me.”

  Lady Irina laughed, but the sound of her voice was no longer as sweet; it changed to a rough sort of cackle.

  “Want him? I thought you’d be cleverer than that, Clara.”

  “What?”

  “I don’t want the Nutcracker, no…” she said, shaking her head. “I wanted to gain his trust. I wanted him to think I wanted him. Men are such fools when it comes to women and their hearts. And I knew the prince was no better than the old king.”

  The king.

  “But I have no intention of loving that piece of carved wood. I’m here to help the Mouse King gain control of Winter Dream, and then I’ll deal with him by myself.”

  Irina was working with the Mouse King? But how? Why? If that were true, then she was responsible for the death of her people—for Macaron.

  “I don’t under—”

  “Of course you don’t understand,” she cackled maniacally. “I’ve welcomed the Mouse King and his men onto the grounds, and into the lands. And once he takes control, I plan to do whatever necessary to have him and his men bow to me.”

  Chapter 26

  I didn’t understand.

  As the words left Irina’s mouth, I knew without a doubt that she was serious. If it meant that she would be queen, then she would leave as many bodies in her wake as she wanted. I glared at her as I took a step. I couldn’t allow this to happen. Her violet eyes grew wide as she watched me, a silent rage seething behind them.

  “I said sit!”

  She reached across the table, shoving me back down into my seat and knocking the air out of me.

  Before I could counter back, a set of cries came from the main foyer of the palace; the sound of glass shattering filled the air. Irina turned her violet gaze to the door and moved briskly toward the sounds. She unlatched the door and opened it soundlessly. As soon as I managed to find my breath, I pushed myself up from my chair. My pulse quickened as I peered at the scene from the doorway.

  Courtiers fled in a mad rush of bright fabric and panic. They pushed through doorways, crying out in fear as mice trailed after them, their claws bright red and dripping with blood. I looked to the balcony, which appeared untouched. I only hoped that Marzipan, Rumtopf, and Hyacinth were safe.

  Amidst the action and fallen bodies of soldiers and mice, I saw Anton, swinging his sword gallantly. He was fighting them back. We watched as the guards drove shimmering swords into the large, gray mice, their piercing screams tearing through the air.

  There were so many, too many.

  For a moment, I lost sight of Anton, who had b
een consumed by the sea of man and rodent. Then, finally, I saw him pushing back two ferocious mice. To my horror, he was too concentrated on the smaller mice to realize a large shadow had approached him from behind.

  I screamed for him. “Anton! Turn ar—”

  Irina’s hand snapped around my mouth, cutting me off. Just as he slid his sword into one large, red-eyed mouse, he turned and thrust the sword into another.

  “I’m going to kill you, you stupid, foolish....” I tried to push her hand away with my hands, but she caught them.

  “Anton!” I screamed his name again. His bright blue eyes locked onto mine; they grew wide with astonishment as Lady Irina pulled me back into the room.

  “He trusted you!” I shouted at her. “He trusted you and you betrayed him!”

  “Quiet!” she snarled as she pushed me up against the wall near the door. I could feel her hand tighten around my neck, drawing the air from my lungs. I tried to push her off of me; tried to scratch and claw at her hand and arm. But her eyes—those strange, violet eyes flashed red.

  “I told you to leave,” she sneered. “But perhaps this is truly the only way to be rid of you.”

  From the corner of my eye, I could see Anton running in my direction. He was concentrating on the battle at hand. For each step he took, it seemed another mouse reached for him. There was a flash of his silver sword, plunging into the bellies of the Mouse King’s minions. If he could fight, so could I. I couldn’t allow Lady Irina to win this way. I had come to save Winter Dream, and I wouldn’t leave without doing so.

  I dug my nails into her arm until I saw a drop of blood pool from her skin. She hissed, drawing her hand away.

  “You!” she cried as I gasped deeply for air. My lungs burned, and I tried to catch my breath.

  “Clara!” Anton shouted over the roar of heroic battle cries.

  But before I could answer, I felt Irina’s hands on my shoulders as she slammed me into the wall harder. My entire body trembled from the brute force and the shiver of pain that ricocheted down my back. Yanking my arms up against the wall, she held me there just as Anton approached. With his sword in one hand, he carefully lifted his other as a sign of peace.