The day started out like any other, she was woken up at precisely six in the morning. She rubbed her eyes and stared out her window longingly, someday I will be able to escape was her one thought. She was brought back to reality as her father pounded on the door, “If I don’t see you in the training ground Angel, you’re going to regret it!” He all but roared.
Snow White looked over at her training gear that had been slung against a chair, she sighed before shouting back, “I’ll be out in a moment!” She turned away from the window that was calling out to her. She looked down at her gear in distaste, it was an all black form-fitting garment complete with a mask. To put it bluntly she looked like a ninja, she sighed again and hurriedly dressed this was one of those times that she wished her father didn’t make such a big deal over her training.
After dressing she pulled her short black curly hair back as best as she could, she couldn’t afford to allow even the smallest of curls to escape its confines. She could almost hear her father’s footsteps on the flagstone and checked her mirror to make sure that everything was in place. She hoped her father didn’t find anything out of order with her today, otherwise she was sure she would be lying down on her stomach for that night.
She gave her reflection one last glance before turning and heading out the door, she made sure not to appear too frantic as made her way to the training grounds. Her father had spies everywhere, she was pretty sure all of the kitchen staff were all on his personal detail. She wished that she could trust at least someone here, but one thing she had learned after Phillip had left was that you couldn’t trust anyone.
Her eyes scanned the hallways as she passed them, one of the things her father tested her on was her attention to detail. She passed the entrance hall and almost froze there was a woman standing there and next to her were two burly men. She was grateful that she had chosen a route that wouldn’t put her in their direct path, her father’s butler was greeting them and directing two servants to take care of their luggage.
The woman was beautiful, with long dark hair that almost looked like Snow’s, her eyes were a dark blue and were almond shaped. Her eyes though were every bit as calculating as Snow White’s own, however this woman’s eyes held no warmth. Her eyes were scanning the walls, taking in the portraits that hung there, “So where is Sir. Richard?” She asked, even her voice sounded dark and seemed to drip with iciness.
The butler seemed at a loss for words until the woman looked right at him with a glare that could rival Sir. Richard’s own. Poor Frank stammered until he managed to get out a few phrases, the woman sneered and straightened up haughtily, “I hope that Sir. Richard is at least more hospitable then his….well” She drifted off and gave Frank a cold smile.
Having seen enough, Snow crept away and headed straight for the hidden training grounds for once she was grateful that they were located underground. She hastened there and hoped that her father would be more interested in her story then her tardiness. She hesitated outside the door and tried to inwardly calm her mind down, so that when she retold her story she wouldn’t be babbling.
She bit her bottom lip and opened the door, the room was set out so that when you came in you were literally entering a huge space that was circular and vast. In here, you were cut off from the outside world, no distractions which meant more time to practice. Snow spotted her father lurking far away from the entrance, he was also clothed in attire that was pitch black. “I thought you said, you’d be here in a moment. Its been almost fifteen minutes, tell me what did you observe?” he asked, his voice was quiet, but in this room you could hear it as if he had been talking in his normal pitch.
Snow White kept her head up and relayed the events of that morning, she could tell that the arrival of the mysterious woman had her father’s interest. “And you didn’t hear why she had come?” he asked. Snow White inwardly cursed, her father would not be pleased that she hadn’t found that out. “I came in as Frank was putting her luggage away, so no I didn’t.” She flinched as her father neared her, and was grateful that the mask hid her reaction.
Her father looked down at her, “Do you think that she holds the final piece?” he asked, Snow kept silent knowing that if she said anything her father would hit her. He rubbed his chin and studied the door, “This bears further consideration, class is dismissed however you still have chores to do.” He said and suddenly stuck Snow across the face. Her vision was clouded for a few moments and she was pretty sure her jaw had cracked on impact. She kept her head down though and winced in pain as he grabbed her chin and forced her head up to meet his gaze. “That was for being tardy and for not getting as much information as you could have.” He growled before releasing her and striding off, she waited until the door had shut before slowly standing up and rubbing her jaw.
Snow White could already feel her jaw swelling, she grimaced at least her teeth were still intact. She took off her mask and allowed her hair to spring free from its confines, she shook her head and smiled as her hair sank back into place. She ran a hand through her short locks and pulled out a few snarls. She hoped that the woman wasn’t a scientist, otherwise she would be required to search her belongings to see if she had anything that could help with her father’s expieriments. She sighed and decided it wouldn’t hurt to get those chores done, she headed out and made sure to lock the reinforced door with the hidden lock that she had on her person.
The rest of the day was a blur spent doing odd jobs around the enormous castle and sneaking a quick bite in between. The moment she had been dreading arrived as she was changing into an outfit that only her father would consider fashionable. A note was slid under her door and Snow White knew that even if she opened the door, she would never see the messenger. She sighed and headed over to pick it up, the note was simple and to the point, Meet me at my office and don’t be late this time she could see the open end to be what her father intended and continued changing at a much faster pace. When she was done, she burned the note and threw the remains in the fireplace, before washing her hands and fixing a red ribbon in her hair.
She checked her reflection, much like she had done this morning and hurried off once again she had to modulate her pace and maintain a calm expression. She noticed that the servants were busier than usual to prepare for the banquet that her father was throwing for the woman and her two goons. She highly doubted that the two men with her were any relation, she reached her father’s study in short order. She took a breath before knocking on his door, “Come in.” her father odered, Snow White made sure to stop within three steps of his desk as her father had strict rules. She kept her eyes a little above his shoulder, “Yes, father?” She asked. Sir Richard gave a grunt, “It would appear that the woman is Madam Ravensaied, she is indeed a scientist, I want you to find out what she’s working on and if it relates to my field steal it.” Snow White knew better then to argue with her father so she merely inclined her head and backed out.
She had a bad feeling about this job, she couldn’t shake the feeling that something would wind up going wrong. Her hand went to the locket that she wore around her neck, she wished that her mother was there, but she might have wished for the moon to come to her. Her mother was dead and never coming back, all thanks to her father. She hurried away, she only had an hour, so she wouldn’t waste it. She had to make an appearance at the banquet as it was no secret that Sir Richard had a daughter, she had two options she could arrive at the beginning and feign sickness or she could arrive midway through complaining about her servants incompetence. Her father preferred the second option as it gave him grounds to complain about the common help, she sighed and headed back to her room. Once there, she changed into a simple gown that would help make her blend in with the rest of the servants. She removed the ribbon and continued to alter her appearance using ashes from the fireplace to dirty up her face. After that, she grabbed a broom that she had in a closet for these types of things and headed out.
She spent that hour collecting information from the servants and spying on Madam Ravensaied’s room. After, she was able to determine how often she changed guards, she hurried back to her room and changed into her thieving outfit. Thankfully it didn’t make her stand out like her training outfit did. Her thieving outfit was simple and loose so she could slide things easily out of their compartments without making a lot of noise, her hair was held back with lock picks designed to look like hair pins. The sash around her waist had hidden pockets in the inside so that she could store documents neatly and crisply without drawing attention. Strapped to both thighs were knives that could open sealed documents that had been waxed shut, the knives were also sharp enough that she could cut through human skin. However she would only use that as a last resort, she also had some secret weapons on her person that she used only in a emergency.
With that complete, she snuck out through a passageway in her room that led to the room that Madam Ravensaied was using. The banquet had been going on for ten minutes at this point and from what the note under her door had read, You’re clear Snow White knew she only had roughly ten minutes to go through her Madam Ravensaied’s belongings. She waited briefly outside the corner passage and then ducked inside. Her eyes scanned the room and soon found what she was looking for, there nestled against the bed was a suitcase. Snow White frowned, it was almost too easy her eyes took in the suitcase. Most people would ensure that it was hidden under the bed or something, she wondered why this Raven person hadn’t. The clock was ticking and she didn’t have much time to think about it, so she hurried in. She picked up the suitcase and carefully opened it, she froze as she saw each paper only had two words on them, NICE TRY she gulped and carefully set the suitcase back down.
Her mind racing, she hurried back out the way she had come and changed as fast as she could back to her fancy dress and hastily pulled the ribbon through her hair. She checked to make sure that she didn’t have any ash left on her face from earlier before bolting down the stairs. She came into the banquet hall hoping that her face wasn’t as red as she thought it was. Her father, made a big show of greeting her and had her sit at the place of honor next to him. Snow White’s gaze met Madam Ravensaied’s and she almost gulped again but stopped herself. The woman gave her an icy smile before looking back down at her plate and picking out a watercress from her salad.
Snow White looked at her father and saw him talking quite merrily to the two burly men Madam Ravensaied had brought with her. One of them kept sliding his gaze over to Snow, and Snow White had to bite her tongue to keep from saying something rude. She picked at her food that the servants eventually brought around to her and pushed it around her plate. As soon as everyone had finished eating and the talk had lessened to a dull buzz, her father stood up “It’s a pleasure to have you with us Madam Ravensaied and-“ but before he could continue his speech, Madam Ravensaied smoothly stood up “I do believe it’s our honor to have such a fine host as yourself Sir. Richard.” She said in dulcet tones, Sir Richard gave her a strained smile that looked unnatural on him. Madam Ravensaied glanced over at Snow White before her whole posture suddenly changed, as if on cue the two burly guys stood up. “Now then, Sir. Richard.” Madam Ravensaied said mockingly, “About that recent expierement of yours, do you mind telling us where it is?” She asked and made a motion to her goons.
Snow White watched nervously as one of them held her father’s arms in a vice like grip while the other pulled out a long butcher knife. “I really don’t want to make a mess of things Richard, but if you don’t tell us I’m sure your lovely daughter here will.” Her father snorted and fought against the man’s hold. “You’ll never find out, not in a million years.” He finally managed to bite out. Madam Ravensaied sighed and approached Snow’s father, her expression was almost pitying before she took the knife from the first goon. “I really wish you hadn’t pushed my hand, but now you leave me no choice.” She gave him a vicious smile before stabbing him in the stomach, Snow White screamed in horror as she watched the woman twist the knife in deeper before savagely yanking it out. Blood was everywhere, she had no idea that so much blood could be in your body. She whimpered as the woman turned to look over at her, still holding the knife that was dripping blood. Before she could think twice, Snow White raced for the door, she distantly heard the woman snarl something before somehow making her way out. She shoved her way past servants and finally made her way out through the hidden passageway that she had found when she was five. She darted through a maze that she had long ago memorized and hoped that the maze would slow them down. Her mind kept replaying the moment where she had seen her father killed, hot tears were making their steady way down her face. She was starting to tire but all she knew was that she needed to escape, so her feet kept her running. She finally fell in a clearing that she didn’t recognize, and waited for her pounding heart to slow down before slowly getting up. She spotted the outline of a cottage in the distance, maybe she could stay there for a few nights…….
