Aria jolted awake, a damp cloth falling from her forehead. She blinked several times, trying to recognize where she was.
“Oh, good. You’re awake.” An elven woman in a white cloak smiled as she brought a tray with hot soup.
Aria stretched out her hand and the woman’s body froze on the spot, though not her face. The tray fell from her hands, dropping to the floor with a loud clang.
“I’m sorry to have startled you,” the woman said, though still not able to move her body. “I just thought you would be hungry when you woke up.”
Aria thought about replying, but she was too busy looking at her own hands. Her powers were back, and stronger than ever. But then she winced as her wound stung.
She touched her shoulder. It was bandaged. Who had done this? She looked at the woman again. “Where’s Jack?” she asked.
“He went to get some more wood for the fire,” a man’s voice came from the door, and Aria swung around in a defensive position.
A gray-haired man raised his hands in surrender. “There’s no need for that.”
“Who are you?” she asked, keeping only her good arm in front of her. “And where is Jack?”
“My grandson is fine,” he said with a smile.
“Grandson?” Aria echoed, giving the man a skeptical look. “His grandfather died.”
“Yes, I’m aware of that now,” he replied, motioning to the frozen woman. “Would you mind letting her go? I asked her to come and help me treat you. She changed your clothes and made you some food.”
Aria finally noticed the different clothes: a pair of light gray pants and a white shirt, then she glanced at the food that had fallen on the floor. Her stomach growled and she wished she hadn’t been so hasty.
Without another word, she waved her good hand toward the elven woman and the ice melted.
“Thank you.” The woman flashed Aria a grateful smile, though she was shivering. “Would you like me to make you another plate?”
Aria gave the woman a quizzical look. Why was she being so nice? It creeped Aria out. “Nah, that’s okay.”
The woman bowed then headed out the door. “Everything is ready, sir,” she whispered before leaving, and the older man gave her a thankful nod.
Aria scanned the room again. Where was she? But the more pressing question was another. “Who are you, really?”
“I’m Jack’s grandfather,” he answered, coming to sit on a chair next to the bed.
Aria crawled away from him.
“I came through the mirror many years ago.”
“Then how could you have raised him?”
“Though I have not yet returned to my land, I will,” he explained, “And when I do, I will continue my life where I left off.”
Aria shook her head, confused. “What do you mean where you left off?” she asked.
“When I left, my daughter was a young mother and Jack was still a baby. So, when I go back… I will return to that time.”
Aria wondered if he knew of his daughter’s passing, but decided it wasn’t her place. If Jack wanted him to know, he would surely share it. “Why are you telling me this?”
“Because I need your help.”
Aria wanted to laugh. “What could I possibly help you with?”
“We can’t let Jack go back to England.”
“What?” Aria felt a sting of betrayal. How could she ask Jack to stay? Not that she hadn’t thought about it, but she was leaving too. “Why would I do that?”
“Because he belongs here.”
“What do you mean he belongs here?”
“His grandmother came to my world… through the mirror,” he explained. “She stayed with me and we got married. But when she fell ill, she asked that her ashes be scattered on her parents’ grave. That’s why I came here.”
“So, she was from the Chanted Kingdom?” Aria muttered, and the old man nodded. She narrowed her eyes, battling with the nagging feeling that there was more he wasn’t letting on. “Then why did you keep all this from him?”
“Because I can’t interfere with his story,” he said.
Aria’s eyes widened. “He has a story?” Then something in her brain clicked. “You’re The Intruder.”
The old man nodded. “And I have learned the hard way that even the most honorable of intentions can have catastrophic consequences.”
“Why did you rumple everyone’s lives?” Aria asked, shocked.
“I never meant to,” he confessed. “I was simply trying to help. But all it took was changing one thing, and the ripple effect was pure disaster.”
“So… is that why you need Jack to stay?” she asked. “To restore the happy endings to their original fate?”
The man shook his head. “Jack won’t be the one to fix it,” he said. “You will.” He reached into her bag on top of the nightstand and pulled out the shard. Aria wanted to lunge at him and snatch her bag from his hands, then demand that he explain what he meant by her fixing the happy endings. But she was too curious to know what he knew about the mirror.
“This is truly one of the most extraordinary inventions of the elves,” he muttered, staring at the shard as if it were a picture of an old friend. “I tried collecting all the shards once.”
Aria lowered her guarded hand and edged forward. “Did you get to?”
“No.” He looked up to meet her eyes. “I even tried asking the elves to make another, but they vowed to never recreate such a powerful object. In fact, they were planning on taking it high up in the sky and shattering it, but…” The man chuckled as if he was the only one in on the joke. “That would’ve been a bad idea.”
“So, you want my mirror?” Aria asked, glancing at the shard he was still holding. “Is that how you get back home?”
“Yes.” He nodded. “But I won’t leave without first making sure my grandson will be cared for.”
“I thought you couldn’t interfere.”
“I can’t. That is why I’m making sure to do everything just as it’s supposed to be. As hard as it may seem.”
“And what is that, exactly?” she asked.
“You will find out soon enough. Now…” He stood, and Aria perked up. He was still holding her shard, and she would not allow it out of her sight. “Shall we?”
Before Aria could reply, he turned around and walked across the room. Aria stood and followed slowly after him. He reached for a curtain and pushed it aside, revealing the Mirror of Reason with only one shard left to be completed.
Aria gasped. “My mirror!”
He stepped away, allowing her to stand protectively in front of it. “How did you get it?”
“I hired someone to get it from your hiding place,” he said with a shrug. “But what’s important is that it’s here. And moments away from being completed.” He handed the last shard to Aria, and she took it.
He raised his hands and took another step back. The extra distance eased her sudden tension. “You said I would be the one to help restore the happy endings…” she reminded him. “How could that be if I’m leaving to another world?”
“And what world is that?” he asked, more amused than curious.
“Well, the United Kingdom, of course. A place where everyone lives in peace.”
The old man laughed, and she frowned. “The point is…” she cut him off, annoyed. “I’m not staying. So, you’re gonna need to find someone else to clean up your mess.”
“The choice is certainly yours.”
“And I’ve already decided,” she said firmly. “There is nothing for me here.”
The man nodded. “Then go ahead,” he said, motioning toward the mirror. “Put in the last piece.”
Aria gulped, beads of sweat suddenly forming on her forehead. “I will. As soon as Jack comes back.”
“He’s not coming back.”
His words sent an icy chill down her spine, and she peered into his strangely calm eyes. “What are you saying?”
“I’m saying…” He motioned to the mirror again. “Complete the mirror and see for yourself.”
Aria turned around and pushed the shard into the empty space in the center, then hovered her finger over the gaps, filling them with ice. Once the last shard was fused, the outer frame of the mirror began to glow a bright light, and Aria stepped back, covering her eyes from the blinding glare.
“Open your eyes,” the old man said, and she did. Though the golden frame was still glowing, it had dimmed slightly. She shifted her attention to the mirror. It was still cracked, merged only by her ice particles. Her reflection was slightly distorted, but she could still see her blue eyes and blonde hair as it cascaded over her injured shoulder.
“You know something else that’s special about this mirror?” he asked, coming to stand behind her. When she looked at his reflection, he had white hair. “If you just ask… it will show you.”
Aria’s stomach twisted as she thought about what he wanted her to ask. “Mirror…” Her voice shook. “Show me Jack.”
Her reflection vanished and Jack’s face appeared behind a set of iron bars, and she gasped. Two guards stood to the side, and she recognized their uniform. They were The Queen’s men.
The vision faded and the mirror returned to her reflection. “No!” She grabbed onto the outer frame with her eyes wide in panic. “Mirror. Show me Jack again!” When nothing happened, she demanded a third time.
“Shocking, isn’t it?” the old man said, and she turned to face him with the darkest glare she could muster.
“Why?” she asked through gritted teeth. “Why did you give him up to The Queen? The bounty on my head was worth a lot more than him.”
He took a seat on the bed then looked up to meet her eyes. “Why I did it is not important. The real question is… what are you going to do?”
Aria clenched her fists. “You know if I go through that cracked mirror, I will be stuck for seven years.”
“It appears you have an important choice to make.” He stood and took in a deep breath. “Will you run away and save yourself? Or will you finally face The Queen and save Jack?”