Chapter 3

Red-Rose had set Moon-Light free for the day. He had run off toward the amber forest. She wrapped a scarf around his neck to keep him warm. Snow and Rose wrapped up in warm clothes and petticoats for their walk to the village market. More snow was starting to fall and the radio forecast said only more was to come.

“Aren’t you so excited Rose?! Maybe the handsome young man in the bakery will talk to me now that I’m sixteen.”

“Yea, yea, yea. I hope Phillip and his family are warm”

“Ugh, even becoming an adult doesn’t make you grow up.”

“Look over there Snow.” Rose pointed. A tree had fallen from snow build up and in the crevice of the tree was a short old man. His beard appeared to be stuck. He was jumping back and forth uncontrollably trying to get loose while grumbling under his breath.

“It’s a dwarf and his long beard is stuck, we have to help him.” Snow proclaimed.

“Of course.” Rose replied. They jotted over to him.

He stopped jumbling around and gave them a black look. His eyes were a fierce red. “What is your problem? Don’t you see I am in peril and you don’t have the decency to help me instead of standing there like two gaping holes.”

“What were you doing that ended like this?” Snow asked.

“You nosey fool! I was here to split the tree in order to use the wood for cooking. Though as it turns out the wood was too smooth. I was about to leave when the tree collapsed upon me. I was able to escape but my poor beard was not.”

Snow-White and Red-Rose tried everything in their power to free the dwarf from the tree but it was to no avail. The dwarfs white beard was stuck tight. ‘I’ll go fetch someone from the village!” Rose said.

“You senseless goose.” The dwarf snarled. “There are already two too many I can deal with here. Why should you fetch someone? Can’t you think of something better?”

“Why are you so angry and impatient dwarf/” Snow questioned. “And what is your name?”

Did I ask your title? That is none of your business!”

“Oh I have an idea.” Snow snarled. She searched through her petticoat pocket and pulled out a pair of silver scissors. With that she cut off the end of the dwarfs beard that bonded him.

The dwarf hastily grabbed hold of a bag that lay amongst the roots of the tree. He grumbled to himself. ‘The nerve of these folks, to cut off a piece of my fine beard. Bad luck will befall them.”

“What in---“ Rose questioned, but the dwarf stomped off without once glancing back at the girls. A small piece of gold tumbled from the bag into the snow. Rose picked it up and looked at Snow-White. They both shrugged and went on their way to the village.

#

“What took you girls so long? I thought you had gotten lost.” Charlotte said.

“Lost on a path we’ve token a million times? We stopped to help an ungrateful dwarf. Snow responded.

“And he dropped this.” Rose hand her mother the tiny piece of gold.

“Oh heavens! This could buy us groceries for at least a month.”

“I guess there was an award after all.” Rose shrugged.

“A simple thank you would have suffices.’ Snow mumbled. She placed the bag of materials on the table.

“Come on girls, we have so much to do before our guest get here.”

“Guest!” Snow exclaimed. “What kind of guest?”

“Just some people from the village. Everyone thinks you two are darlings.”

“Did you invite the baker?”

“Yes and his family.”

“Oh thank you mama! Thank you!” Snow hugged her mother then dashed up to her room.

“What’s gotten into her?” Charlotte asked catching her breath.

“Nothing ma.” Rose brushed it off. “Let’s get to cooking.”

#

Rose and Charlotte had just finished cooking when their first guest arrived. Charlotte answered the door cheerfully. “Oh hi Mrs. Patricia, happy to have you here.’

Mrs. Patricia was an old widowed, stout woman with short gray curls. “Oh Charlotte I remember your girls were just this tall. Oh how they grow so fast.”

“Yes they most certainly do.” she guided Mrs. Patricia in.

“Oh beautiful beautiful Rose. Happy birthday,”

Rose smiled. Snow hurried down the stairs. “I heard the door, is it the bak---” She saw the old woman. ‘Oh it’s Mrs. Patricia.”

“Oh Snow just as breathtaking as your sister.”

#

Time passed by and more guest arrived. Soon the small village in the field was roaring with chatter from discussions over the twins’ future pans. When asked Snow said she wanted to be a good wife and mother to her future husband and children, all the while eyeing th bakers son.

Roses answer was different. She wanted to explore the world and gain new experiences through her journeys before settling down. Some people looked at her strange while other just blatantly ignored her.

“But you don’t want to have children young so you have the energy to play and run around with them?” asked the village blacksmith. He was a bulky middle aged man starting to bald.

“No I want to gain experience so I can tell my children all the things I’ve learned and experienced. I want to give my children knowledge of the world before they set out for it themselves.”

The blacksmith walked away uncomfortably. Rose looked around for her sister. She caught sight of Snow giggling with the baker’s son. Rose had nothing against the boy. He wasn’t bad looking with a good build, cute green eyes, and scruffy brown hair but his personality was just a bit dull and he always talked about baking. Rose wished that Moon-Light was here. He would understand her.

Soon the party depleted from a warm hummer of a house in the wood to a small clatter of dishes being piled for cleaning.

“Ma?” Red-Rose asked as she wiped dry the dishes and put them away. “What do you think is on the other side?”

“Side of what dear?” Charlotte asked curious.

“The world. I have dreams almost every night of packing my stuff on a little boat and setting sail I bet there are all kinds of people and strange new animals to discover, maybe even magic.”

“Ah Red-Rose your imagination is something I wish I had.”

“Why mama? So you can daydream about discovering things that don’t eve exist or ramble on about how stars in the sky are really stories placed by the gods.” Snow-White said. She was wiping down the table. “It’s better to just settle down and be happy.”

“Snow-White do you always have to but your pretentious pretty little nose into everything. What makes you happy doesn’t make me jump for joy. We may have been born on the same day but we are not the same person.”

“I would never want to be you anything. Your nothing but a lousy fantasy bound bimbo who will never amount to anything!’

“Snow!” Charlotte exclaimed.

“It’s true. She’ll always be stuck in her dream world and she’ll live a lonely miserable life!” Snow tossed the rag and stomped upstairs.

Rose and Charlotte continued to wash and dry the dishes in silence. After a few moments. “I believe in you Rose.”

“I know ma.”