Page 174 of Happily Ever Witch
“Give me my husband!” Snow White screamed. “If you don’t give him back, I’ll hurt you, dragon. I’ll make you sorry. I’ll…”
Esmeralda lifted a hand and suddenly Snow White was inside of the club-shaped magic mirror. Imprisoned by the glass, she stood on the other side, flattened and helpless.
Trevelyan’s brows soared.
“See?” Esmeralda smirked. “Handled… from a distance.”
Snow White’s astonished, empty eyes flew around the interior of the looking glass. “How did you do that? You’re not allowed to do that!” Her palms came up to rest against the inside of the mirror, searching for a way to free herself.
Trevelyan made an impressed face. Probably, because Esmeralda had just invented the enchantment imprisoning Snow White. Magic was so much easier when she let loose and didn’t worry about the rules. “What spell did you use, darling?”
“Whichever one rhymes with ‘Don’t fuck with the Green Dragons.’”
He gave a rumbling sound of pleasure. “I so enjoy your poetry.”
“Let me go!” Snow White’s volume was muffled, as she beat against the ornate looking glass. “I’ll get you for this! I’ll tell my mother!”
Esmeralda stepped closer to the mirror, her eyes locked on the woman. “With or without your memory, you’re just a really lousy person.” She flicked a fingernail against the glass. “Be glad Trev and I are so damn kindhearted… or I’d make this hurt a whole lot more.”
The mirror fractured. One crack snapped into another, until it looked like splintering ice covered the entire surface. A heartbeat passed, as it all stayed frozen. Then, the mirror shattered into an avalanche of jagged shards. Snow White was reflected in all of them, screaming while the glass fell into nothing. As the pieces hit the floor, she vanished from them. Winked out of existence.
Gone.
Trevelyan stared at the destruction for a long moment. “Magic mirrors are expensive.” He said at last. “We could have killed her in a far more economical way.”
“This way was worth the cost.”
“Itwasa lovely funeral.” A moment ticked by and he swallowed hard. “Thank you, Ez.”
“Snow White shouldn’t have touched my mate.” She walked over to him and stepped into his arms. They wrapped tightly around her. “Thanks for de-handing Grimhilde.”
“She should have welcomed my wife into her silly club.” He arched a brow. “Hey, do you think one of these toads is jumping around with no paws?”
“Frogs. And no. The spell is about continuation of energy, not an actual one-on-one transference.” Although, two of the creatures seemed particularly keen on bouncing along together. The Mad Hatter and Queen of Clubs had been True Loves. Maybe those frogs were, too.
Or maybe they were just frogs.
Trevelyan made a face, scanning around the room. “These reptiles aren’t nearly as adorable as the hogs.”
“They’re amphibians, not reptiles.”
“Whatever they are, they’d look better with feathers.”
“No wings. I mean it. They’ll fly around and get slime in my hair.” She shook one of the wart-y creatures off her boot, careful not to smoosh it. “Is Marrok okay? You didn’t feed him to the brillig or anything, did you?”
“Of course not. We’re getting along famously.”
She looked around. “So, where is he?”
“I left him somewhere or other.” The words were breezy with unconcern.
Esmeralda frowned. “We can’t just abandon Marrok in some random place.”
“It’s not a random place. He’s by a lake. I’m sure he’ll be along soon. He’s very self-sufficient.” Trevelyan deftly switched topics. “You know, we’ll need to rehome these frogs to a swamp. I’m not about to make pets out of these flightless bastards.”
“We can take them to abog. Don’t worry. I accidently created one, back in the Heart Castle.”
His mouth curved. “Isthatwhy the bathroom is full of mosquitoes and crocodiles?”
