The princess nodded, so the queen stood up and took a seat on the bench, while maintaining an appropriate distance from the princess. The woman from the north of the continent had much to tell the princess of Arran—a country that remained as ignorant as many others regarding the calamities that would threaten the entire planet. The only way to make sense of it all was to start from her past, from when she had been abandoned by her birth family at the age of 8.
"I lied, you are right... I know you won't believe me right now, but it was for your own good."
The blonde sought the eyes of the woman beside her, but she was forced to continue the story without the comfort of the person she loved. She deserved such treatment; she knew she had hurt her, despite everything.
"The day I was called upon to summon a demon, my powers flared up and went out of control. Shortly after, unintentionally, I freed Astrael and became a threat, a monster, in the eyes of my family. I was so little... I was abandoned in the woods, I almost died without food and water, until some people found me and took care of me. The first few weeks away from home were so confusing, I didn't remember much of what had happened..."
Snow White raised her tear-filled eyes at that point and stared at Grimilde. She hadn't expected such a tragedy.
"The people who found me in the woods were part of a tribe. We traveled together to their camp, and they brought me to meet their hersir, the chief. It was from that moment on that I forced myself to forget my previous life, to grow and mature in a new reality. After all, to my loved ones, I was supposed to be dead. The hersir told me that his tribe knew of my family and had received a request to take care of a new threat, for the good of everyone."
Grimilde took a moment to breathe deeply: even though many years had passed since it happened, she still remembered the terror and pain she had felt when she discovered that her family had wanted her dead.
"They were hired to kill you?" The princess whispered, finally moving closer to the queen. "Why didn't they do it?"
The girl with ebony hair carefully took Grimilde's hands and squeezed them gently in her own grip. Despite their argument, she loved Ilde and couldn't bear to see her suffer.
"The hersir told me he had seen a different fate for me. He told me about his visions, about the sensations he felt when he learned of me. I was the chosen one, I wasn't a threat, I wasn't a monster."
Grimilde looked down at their intertwined hands and began to regain the control and peace she needed to recount everything.
"From that moment on, I stayed with their tribe. I grew up with them, following them on their travels across the continent. I learned what they knew, the truths they guarded, deciding to fight for the same cause they fought for. The hersir decided to send me on a mission at the age of 14. He said I had to commit myself to protecting the continent, and to do so, I would have to prove to everyone that I was up to the task. That is how I was given in marriage to your father..."
"You..." The princess's voice broke, but before she could misunderstand, Grimilde stopped her.
"Your father knew about it..."
At that, the princess fell silent again, far too confused to speak. Astonishment had rendered her mute.
"He agreed to take me as his wife, both because of my noble origins and to guarantee peace in Arran. Only by his side, as regent, could I watch over the land we live in."
"Grimilde, what dangers are you talking about?"
Snow White had the feeling that everything was about to change. She had been warned by the queen: this was a truth far too massive, one that would shake anyone's world. Yet, she had learned it as a child. How had she managed to grow up with such a weight on her shoulders? How did she pretend there wasn't a calamity ready to kill everyone at any moment?
What Grimilde told her sent shivers of terror down the princess's spine. A battle between good and evil had been raging for centuries: the figures of the shadows, the demons, wished to conquer the Earth to dominate human beings. For a century, the dark figures had retreated underground and to other places hidden from sight, to prepare for a new attempt at domination. They had suffered severe damage following the spread of cults that opposed them, especially due to the Order that had been hunting them for decades.
"The tribe I grew up in is made up of protectors, that's what they call themselves. They are tasked with maintaining the balance and do not actively fight demons."
"The balance?" The princess asked, trying to organize all the information she had just acquired.
"Yes. Everything needs its opposite to exist, and the lack of balance breeds Chaos... today, demons are gaining more and more power, and if order is not maintained, our very existence will be put at risk."
"Astrael... Morfeus... they are both demons, but they fought against each other. Is it possible there is no cohesion among these creatures?"
Grimilde brought a hand to the princess's face to caress her cheek.
"Unfortunately, when it comes to demons, we cannot use logic to understand them. If they wanted to dominate the world, each one would think only of taking their own slice. If they actually came into conflict, it would only be after having already destroyed everything."
"Why did they send you to Arran, then?"
Bianca was terrified, but she gathered her strength: she had to know everything before she could completely trust Grimilde again.
"My role as a demon keeper allows me to have a bond with demonic creatures. I can sense things that others cannot see or hear. The Mirror was entrusted to me by the hersir so I could use it to monitor a great calamity..."
At that point, even the queen seemed to struggle to speak. She gritted her teeth and looked down at the ground.
"It's beneath us. Beneath Arran."
"Are you saying that underneath the kingdom there are demons ready to come out and kill us?"
"Not exactly... it's a demonic force. The Mirror has only been able to show me this: a massive dark vessel whose origin and purpose are unknown to me."
"Can I see it too? Through the Mirror."
Grimilde didn't seem on board with the idea of showing Snow White more horrors, but she had already confessed far too many details to turn back now. And so the two women decided to head to the queen's bedchamber. The journey toward the wing of the palace where the bedrooms were located was silent and unsettling. It was obvious the princess couldn't process everything she had learned. It would take weeks, if not more...
The silence broke only when they reached their destination. Snow White waited for the queen to remove the black cloth covering the magic mirror, and when their reflections appeared, they both held their breath.
"Mirror... show me what lies dormant underground."
The mirror said nothing, but the reflective surface began to ripple, soon revealing distorted images: at first, the princess couldn't pick out any details that could explain the existence of a calamity, but then Grimilde began to explain.
"It's a large dark vessel. Nothing else is visible, but it's loaded with demonic energy. I think it's growing... over the years, I've noticed changes."
The princess listened to the queen's words as she stepped closer to the surface of the mirror. For some reason, she feared that dark thing would leap out of the reflection to grab her and hurt her. The idea flashed in her mind that the mirror might act as a door to another place.
"Is it possible to pass through the surface?"
Grimilde knew how to recognize fear, even when masked by curiosity. The princess's hands were shaking, and she was paler than usual. The queen decided that was enough: she had learned the most important and burdensome truth. Now she was a keeper of that secret just as much as she was.
"Sit with me, please."
The queen walked over to the bed and waited for the princess to follow her. When Snow White saw the blonde's serious expression, she complied immediately. As soon as she was beside her on the mattress of the large bed, the queen didn't waste a single second before hugging her tightly.
"Bianca, everything I told you tonight must remain strictly between us. It is a secret so dangerous that it threatens our very lives. It's not easy to explain, but there are people who do not wish to protect the balance, but rather follow the path of Chaos... if any of them knew about the calamity in Arran, they would do everything in their power to start a war with our kingdom and awaken whatever is beneath our feet."
Every word was whispered into Snow White's ear, and had they been in any other situation, it would have felt like a truly intimate and pleasant moment. The princess tried to ignore it with her mind, but her body was strongly attracted to Grimilde, and her proximity, her breath against her skin, aroused her.
"So peace will end sooner or later... is it just a matter of time?" The princess asked with a trembling voice.
"I'm afraid so. I'm sorry, darling. I promise you I will do everything in my power to keep you safe and protect the people you love as well. I will try to save the kingdom. I will never stop trying, resisting... but promise me one thing." The queen tightened her hold. "If something terrible happens... if you are in danger, promise me you will think of your own life, your own safety above all else."
"Ilde, how can you ask something like that of me?"
Snow White pulled away from her and stood up from the bed, creating the distance she needed so as not to show her tear-streaked face.
"How can you ask me to abandon the citizens of this kingdom?! I am just as responsible for the kingdom's safety as you are—"
The princess had raised her voice, unable to suppress the anger she was feeling. She was exploding inside: she felt powerless, vulnerable, and confused. It was a terrible feeling, and Grimilde's words only made the situation worse. What she was implying was unacceptable.
"How can you think I would abandon you?"
Pain and disbelief drenched her voice, breaking it, making it sharp. Grimilde shot to her feet: she had tears in her eyes too and looked just as heartbroken as Snow White.
"I know it's difficult. But I couldn't live knowing I put you in danger, that something horrible happened because I wasn't able to protect you—"
"I never asked you to protect me!"
Snow White's scream completely silenced the queen, who was left speechless and breathless. It was like a stab to the chest for her.
"Grimilde, do you think like the men who tried to keep me safe from the world all these years? I am not made of glass... I am human, it's true, but so are you. You are stronger than me, yet mortal in the exact same way as everyone else."
At that point, the princess began to calm down, coming back to her senses. Seeing the queen so bewildered and pale made her realize that arguing wouldn't solve anything; it would only bring pain to them both. And she loved Ilde, she loved her too much to hurt her like that, even if she didn't share her ideas.
"I never asked you to protect me, because I want to protect us. Together. It's something I want to do by your side, Ilde..."
She stepped closer to her, took her face in her hands, wiped away her tears with her fingertips, and then rested her forehead against Grimilde's. The queen began to breathe again: she closed her eyes, letting herself get completely swept up in the moment, forgetting everything—every danger or secret, every enemy, and every worry. In that instant, there was only her sweet and brave Snow White, her beloved who always managed to open her eyes when it would have been difficult to do so alone. She was wise, she was mature, more than she had believed. In this, she saw her father, the late king, a forward-looking and reasonable man. What she had said was insulting, she saw that clearly now.
"I apologize..." she whispered with tremendous sorrow.
"Ilde, you have to promise me you will stay by my side, that you will confess everything... don't keep me in the dark, don't let anything or anyone divide us. That would break me."
"I promise... I swear it."
"I forgive you, and I promise I will stay with you and help you through every hardship."
They stood in silence for a moment, holding each other, appreciating the feeling of comfort and warmth their proximity brought. Suddenly, something shifted, and it was the princess's words that opened another chapter of that long and exhausting night:
"I love you."