© Summer Donnelly, 2018
This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, businesses, places, events and incidents are either the products of the author’s imagination or used in a fictitious manner. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, or actual events is purely coincidental.
Any trademarks, service marks, product names or named features are assumed to be the property of their respective owners, and are used only for reference. There is no implied endorsement.
For R.D. and J.B. Sisters are both mirrors and friends. A mirror never lies and a shadow never leaves.
Chapter one
Tristan
His bear senses were alive, absorbing every movement and sound. Despite the pressing need to prepare, Tristan couldn’t help but stop and watch as Snow and Ruby practiced. They were like poetry.
The clearing was warm and cozy, lit by the afternoon sun. The two women glared at each other with warrior’s intent.
Smack, crack, thud, pound.
Snow jumped onto a fallen log, using its height to charge her auburn-headed foe. “Yea-ahhh,” she cried as she jumped. Auburn hair flew as her opponent leapt and rolled out of the way.
Ruby rolled to her feet, tossing her waist-length reddish-brown braid behind her. Seeking a weakness. Eyes narrowing, she charged at her adversary. The two women fell down, rolling amidst pinecones and forest debris. Ruby took the mounted position, pinning the brunette’s arms and shoulders to the ground.
Snow, however, wasn’t done for. Using her right leg, she wrapped it around Ruby’s torso. She grabbed the redhead’s arm into an armbar and executed the hold.
“Enough,” Ruby cried, tapping out of the move.
Both women rose, panting and turned to their teachers.
“Better,” Sheriff Avery Wolfe complimented, his voice deep and gravelly. “Ruby, you need to concentrate. Just because you have the dominant position doesn’t’ mean you’re in charge.
Ruby glared. “I think we had a great sparring match. The best ever, in fact.”
“And I want you to be better,” Avery insisted.
“Then maybe you should help us instead of scolding us the entire time.”
Avery’s breathing grew heavy. “That’s why you’re practicing.”
Ruby sniffed in response to the Sheriff’s words. She tossed her auburn braid behind one shoulder and reached for her friend. “Good match, Snow,” she said.
Snow shook Ruby’s hand. “We’re getting better,” she agreed.
“Better isn’t going to do it.” Avery’s eyes were fierce as he tried to imprint how vital their mission was. “We’re fighting Wicked Witches here. The ones who defeated all the Fables and kicked us out of the Woodlands. Our lives and those of all our friends and family are on the line.”
“I know who we’re up against,” Snow said. Her dark hair slipped out of her braid, and she finished undoing it. “It’s my sister who we’re looking for.”
“And my brother,” Tristan said. Due to the fragments of magic he retained, the others were able to hear him in their minds.
“But we still need to be better,” Avery insisted.
“You don’t have to be so mangy about it, Sheriff.” Ruby narrowed her eyes.
Tristan watched with amused detachment as Ruby and Avery went at it again. The chemistry between them was palpable.
Unwillingly, Tristan's eyes turned to Snow. How he longed to shift back into human form and court her. Instead, he was stuck in the lumbering body of a bear. He missed his human height. His arms which would allow him to hold Snow close to him.
Before meeting her, he’d been prepared to never fall in love. Mate. Have children. But ever since seeing the bright spring green of her eyes, Tristan had been having second thoughts.
Soon, he mentally promised both of them. When their battle was through and Gaul and the Witches defeated, he would court Snow as was her due.
In the aftermath of the War of the Wicked Witches, the Witch Peace Accords were established. Paulina the Malevolent removed the residents of the Woodlands. Amidst much confusion, the Fables settled in a snug glen of a nearby mountains.
After establishing the village of Thistle Grove, humans and Fables lived side by side in the quaint hamlet. Shops were set up along the picturesque downtown, and they established new routines and new lives. By mutual agreement, neither humans nor Fables traveled deep into the Woods. All feared treading too closely to the boundary between Woodlands and Grove.
No one wanted to be caught violating the Witch Peace Accords.
“Let’s get dinner on before it gets too dark,” Snow suggested with a sigh. “Ruby, can you help me with gathering wood?” She turned to Avery. “Sheriff, will you fill a pot of water from the stream? We can make a fish and potato soup.”
Tristan led the way down to the stream. As landed gentry, he never had to do much fishing, even in bear form. While in his bear form, Tristan was usually content to loll around Thistle Grove, chase bees for their honey, and find sunny spots in which to doze.
But finding himself trapped in his bear form gave Tristan a whole new appreciation for his bear self. Bears had amazing reflexes. Could run faster than humans. And they were expert fishermen. Well. Fisher bears, he mentally corrected.
“They need to learn to use the throwing knives next,” Tristan said to Avery.
“Tomorrow,” Avery promised as they got to the flowing water. “Let me get the water and put it on to boil. I’ll be back in a few minutes to help you carry the fish up.”
Tristan grunted and found a rocky area where he could look for fish. As a boy, he had hated being a Fable, one of the many people descended from the Woods. Was afraid of his shape-shifting gifts, and only shifted when the call of the bear was too much to resist.
A brightly colored river rock caught Tristan’s attention. He canted his head, looking at the swirl of colors and unusual design. I wonder, he mused. He’d been thinking about how he was going to hide the Knox family gold in the future. A place so secure, no troll, goblin, or witch could find it.
He placed his paw on the rock and thought of the day he’d first met Snow. She’d been baking all day, and faint wisps of hair had fallen from her plaits. A warm breeze blew in from the north, filling his nostrils with the scent of baking bread and blueberry scones. There, within the memory, he placed the brightly patterned river rock.
Without warning, the rock disappeared from beneath his paw. And reappeared within the memory. Perfect, he thought.
Being cursed by Paulina may even have been a blessing in disguise, Tristan thought. He was closer to his brother than they’d ever been as youths. He understood his bear and their needs better. And he had met Snow-White.
Tristan caught two trout in quick succession before waiting for more. They were only at the edge of the Woods, but already the air was growing thick with Paulina’s dark ozone. As part of the Peace Accord, Fables were not allowed back into the Woods.
What they were doing and where they were going was akin to declaring war on Paulina. But the power-hungry Gaul had set matters in motion, tying a Gordian knot he wasn’t sure he could undo. Gaul and Paulina’s sister Nora were working in concert to defeat Paulina, blame the Fables, and be able to take over both the Woodlands and Thistle Grove.
It shook him that he might have to fight on the side of Paulina, but so far, she had followed the Treaty. There was no guarantee that Gaul would. In fact, Tristan was confident in his assessment that Gaul wanted to instigate a war between the Fables and Paulina so he could take over wh
en both sides were exhausted.
Snow
As nineteen-year-old Snow cleaned her hands and face, she thought about how much she missed her sister. Her Mom. The cottage she shared on the edge of Thistle Grove. But when the Baron went missing, and Red took off to rescue him, the whole mess fell onto Snow’s shoulders.
Learning to use weaponry was all new to her. She’d been a sheltered girl before the attacks. Then children began going missing. Then Red got involved with the Baron. And like a neat link on a chain, Snow got involved next.
As she washed her hands, Snow’s once soft skin rubbed against fresh blisters and growing callouses. Each blister and callous were a visual reminder that she was changing. Growing up. Getting tough.
Ruby joined her to help with dinner. “Grandmother once told me three things happen when we’re put in hot water. We can be like an egg, a carrot, or coffee. One grows hard. One grows soft. One changes the water.”
“I’m not sure which one is happening to me,” Snow confessed. “But I’m glad you’re here with me.”
Ruby shrugged. “Not sure where else I’d be. Home pretending to be safe?” She waved her hand, indicating the small clearing. “I feel safer here with Wolfe and Tristan than I ever did at home. They’re teaching us to be strong.”
“We’re heading into almost-certain war,” Snow warned her. “I hope we can prevent it, of course, but you’d be a fool not to be afraid.”
“There’s being afraid, and there’s pushing through.” Ruby stared at her hand’s quietly. “May we be strong enough to give peace to our children and our children’s children.”
Snow took her hand in a solemn gesture of solidarity. “Agreed.”.
As they prepared the potatoes and carrots for the soup, Snow looked up at her friend. “This isn’t your fight. Not really. We’re going after my Red and Baron.”
Ruby bristled at the suggestion. “Thistle Grove is my town, too. I lost people I’ve cared about since these sneak attacks began hitting us again. If a twenty-year peace is about to be shattered, I’m as able-bodied as anyone else.”
Snow nodded, reaching out her hand to touch Ruby’s shoulder. “I’m sorry. You’re right.” Tears choked her voice. “I’m scared, I guess. I don’t want to lose anyone else.”
Ruby hugged her. “I know. We all are. But anyone wanting to take over our town makes it my business.” They were quiet as they enjoyed the last bit of solitude they’d have for a while. Tomorrow they were entering into Spellthrower Territory.
“Besides,” Ruby added as they got the food together. “You and Red are like sisters to me. I couldn’t live with my decisions if I stayed home and did nothing.”
Snow felt immediately contrite. “Of course! You’re like a sister to us, too.” She wiped at the tears that marred her cheeks. “I’m sorry if I made you feel like we didn’t want you. Please forgive me.”
Ruby smiled. “Nothing to forgive.” She held out her pinkie. “Sisters before shifters, right?”
Snow chuckled, the first honest laugh she’d had since her sister left. “Definitely,” she agreed.
Snow sat back as the four of them hunkered around the fire. She knew she should eat. They had hurdles to overcome and an angry queen to defeat. They would all need their strength.
“Tell us a story,” Snow invited. “From when we controlled the Woodlands.”
“Hmm. How about the story of The Wolf and the Seven Young Goats,” Ruby asked with a smirk.
Avery grinned, as only he could. Rather wolfishly. “I get so tired of being blamed for everything that went wrong in the Woodlands.” He spread his hands innocently. “Am I really that big and bad?”
Snow smiled and ducked her head. “Why don’t we let Ruby tell the story, and we can find out.”
<<<>>>
The hour grew late as they each took turns telling a familiar story.
“We should sleep now. Who is on first watch?” Tristan asked.
“I’ll take it,” Snow offered. She thrust her two throwing knives in their sheaths and picked up her staff. She left the relative safety of the fire circle and paroled the clearing while her friends slept.
“Don’t go too far,” Tristan warned.
Snow smiled, feeling the bond build and extend between them. Their relationship was complicated by him being stuck as a bear, but all would be well once they defeated Paulina the Malevolent. It just had to be.
Chapter two
Tristan
Ruby woke them all at dawn. “The last of the boiled eggs are by the fire,” she said as she touched each of her friends in turn.
Snow nodded, rubbing the sleep from her eyes. “I’ll make some camp biscuits,” she offered.
“Make a double batch of biscuits. We may not be able to have a campfire after we cross Grimm River.”
Snow turned to look at him, her dark eyes widening. Growing up, food had been plentiful. Doing without was a new concept to her. Snow nodded, a raven curl falling across her delicate porcelain skin.
Not for the first time, Tristan thought Snow was too good. Too pure to be on this journey. She didn’t have the killer instincts of either a bear or a wolf. Tristan watched as Ruby cleaned up the camp. Maybe Ruby wasn’t a warrior, but she understood the danger they were up against. Doubt flickered within him. Did Snow?
After a breakfast, Avery took care of the fire. Snow and Ruby packed up their provisions. Tristan rolled around in their footprints, blurring their tracks.
“Ready?” Avery asked. Each took a look around before nodding. “Okay. Let’s roll.”
With Avery leading the way, they began their journey in earnest. Miles fell behind them and soon they crossed an invisible barrier.
The travelers gazed up as they entered Paulina’s territory. The woods didn’t look any different. Trees still grew tall, seeking the elusive sun. Pine cones and leaves from autumns past littered the forest floor. A rabbit darted into its warren.
“There are no birds,” Snow commented as they crossed the threshold. “My ears feel clogged.”
Tristan was on high alert. The sounds of the forest grew muted. Distant. Muffled. He cast his senses into a wide net, searching for scents that didn’t belong. Sounds that warned of an impending attack.
Tension grew between them all as yard after yard. They walked with no sign they’d been noticed. “This feels wrong,” Avery whispered.
“How so?” Tristan asked.
“Can’t you feel the eyes on us? Watching us as we approach the castle?” Avery asked.
Snow stilled. “I thought we were looking for our family members. Not going to the castle.”
“Shh,” Avery said with a sharp gesture of his hand. “Think about it. Where would Gaul and Nora hide Red and the Baron?”
“Not in the castle,” Snow returned tartly. “They want us to fight Paulina. Right? Why would they put their bait right under Paulina’s nose?”
“That’s exactly why. If they held their prisoners miles away, they couldn’t guarantee Paulina would see us violating the treaty.” Avery turned to Tristan.” Wasn’t there a cave about a mile from the castle?”
Tristan nodded slowly. “I haven’t been there since I was a boy, but yes, I think you’re right. A cave with a small tributary deep inside. Would be a good place to hide for a while.”
With each step, the ozone crackled around them. Tristan’s breathing reverberated within his skull. Emotions pulled taut with each step on the toffee colored leaf carpet.
“Incoming. One o’clock,” Avery called. With a quick jerk of his arms, his shirt and pants went flying. With a burst of energy, he shifted into wolf form. His dark eyes were as dangerous as his elongated muzzle. His grey fur was flecked with shades of brown as he streaked forward to ward off the invading hoard of coyotes.
A snarl burning in his chest, Tristan charged their attackers. Together, the two apex fighters kept Snow and Ruby in the center of their protective circle.
If a coyote got too close, Snow jabbed him with one end of he
r staff. Ruby turned her back on the group. “Snow, help me watch our flanks,” she said.
Tristan’s growl shook them all as he fought the enchanted animals. He tore throats out as they charged, sometimes three at a time. Dangerous six-inch claws raked across tender arteries and stabbed at undefended bellies, eviscerating Gaul’s army as he plowed forward.
Avery howled with anger. Dangerous teeth and fur went flying as the animals fought for dominance.
“Look! They’re more worried about guarding us than fighting off the coyotes. We have to help. Show them we are just as capable.”
Ruby nodded. “We aren’t as fast as Wolfe or as big as Tristan. What should we do?”
“We fight back to back. Protecting each other while fighting the enemy.” The women nodded as they approached the front line.
The coyotes were able to smell their fear. Ruby and Snow quickly found themselves surrounded by sharp teeth and flying fur. True to their word, they struck, jabbed, and thrust their staffs at the attacking animals.
Distracted by the scent of humans, the coyotes underestimated their bear and wolf opponents. So, while Ruby and Snow used their weapons to the best of their ability, Tristan and Avery were able to clear out the hoard.
Snow lost all sensation of time. Had it been an hour? Longer? Less? Crack, thud, sweep. The swing of their deathly dance was in harmony as each woman worked in time with the other.
“You’re pretty good at this.” Ruby panted slightly from the exertion.
“You’re not so bad yourself.” Snow chuckled with the joy of battle. “First time for everything, I guess.” She swept an attacker off his feet. Once down on the ground, she thrust with her staff. The coyote carcasses were disappearing as fast as they dropped to the ground, either in exhaustion or death.
“They aren’t working as a team,” Ruby noted as she crushed the skull of a remaining coyote. Their numbers were diminishing, but neither one wanted to take their eyes off the horizon.
“No, nor are they going for throat kills, like they usually do.” Avery shimmered and shifted back into his human form, fully dressed. The magic they still maintained from their time as Fables allowed clothes to follow them.
Snow: A Retelling or Rose-Red and Snow-White (Thistle Grove Tales Book Book 2) Page 1