Princess Snow and the Empress

9: The Mirror & the Owl

Fourth Brother held up an octagon shaped mirror set in a bronze frame. Dark spots blemished the reflective surface but other than that, it was still usable.

"A mirror?" Snow asked, taking it and turning it over in her hands.

"It's a demon-revealing mirror. They hang mirrors like this, but big ones, at the temples to ward off demons in human form, like the fox demons or the snake demons, and–"

"Brother, you've got it wrong, people hang mirrors like these outside their houses to ward off bad luck," Sixth Brother said.

"Fox and snake demons? I didn't know you believed in such things, I thought they were just folktales meant to scare children," Snow said.

"Eh, we've seen some strange things in the forest. Really strange. I've not seen an actual demon in human form, but I don't want to be caught unawares."

"Come, let's eat, I'm starving," Third Brother said irritably. "Fox demon, snake demon, cow demon, who cares? We should be more afraid of humans!"

"Whatever it is," Fourth Brother said, gently taking the mirror out of Snow's hands. "We were meant to have it, so I'm going to hang it up outside."

Snow saw her opportunity. Before this, she had never dared to step out of the cottage for fear of being found by the huntsman, and the dwarves never let her leave in case someone saw her. But surely she could stand in the doorway when the sun has already set and all the dwarves were home?

"Let me help!" Snow snatched back the mirror and swiftly made for the door.

"No, don't! Someone might see you!" Third Brother yelled after her.

"It's alright! There's no one outside." She pulled open the door that was just high enough for her head. Despite what she said a second ago, she took a quick glance around all the same. She made to prop the mirror above the door frame and froze.

In the purple twilight, a pair of cat-like eyes stared back at her from the edge of the roof.

Snow recoiled with a shriek and nearly dropped the mirror. Fourth Brother rushed out the door when he heard her, and craned his neck to look at the roof.

"Shoo! Go away, you cursed creature!" He waved his short arms.

The owl puffed up its brown speckled feathers, appearing three times bigger than it did seconds ago. With a horrible screech, it flapped its wings and Snow ducked just in time when it flew over her head towards the forest.

The dwarves who were now gathered at the doorway, stared after it. The ominous sound of hooting echoed towards them from the darkness.

"That's never a good sign."

"That's bad, very bad."

"It's just a bird, nothing to worry about."

"Don't be a fool, everyone knows owls are ill omens–"

"Enough!" Eldest Brother said and everyone fell silent. "Let's go back in to eat, it's been a long day."

They all shuffled back into the cottage and closed the door. Snow sat at the table with her bowl of porridge, unable to bring herself to look them in the eye. She fervently wished she had listened when they told her to.

For once, the dwarves slurped their porridge quietly, with no stories of the day's events or their past lives to tell. Second Brother's hand shook as he brought his spoon to his lips.

"Brothers, I'm sorry that I–"

Eldest Brother waggled his hand and shook his head. "It's alright, Sis, it's not your fault." His expression was somber as he took a deep breath. "The herbs we gathered today are not enough to see us through the coming winter. We've seen through many harsh winters, but lately, our herbs can't fetch much in the villages. We've got to find a way to gather more, or else..."