As they made their way out of the castle, they were surprised to see it empty. The sleeping folk had disappeared into thin air.

"How can we make our way back to Dukeville in less than a day?" asked Hazel.

" We will travel by the winds." said Cindy, " Just like the youngest daughter in East of the Sun,West of the Moon  and the prince in Garden of Paradise. It is a rare means of travel, but fast, nevertheless."

An image of Mary Poppins hovering in the air with her umbrella, popped into Hazel's head.

"We will have to call upon the winds for assistance." said Cindy.

" Why don't you let the faerie do it ? They are supposed to be better at it." Ced offered.

" This faerie does have a name. Since I am a changeling, I did not grow up with the faerie tribe and receive the same training as them." Amber said.

" You're a changeling ?" Ced flinched.

"You can hate me more, now." Amber rolled her eyes.

"You must know that the winds seldom heed one's call." Cindy said, "Nevertheless, I shall try. Which wind should I call upon?"

"Not the South Wind, please. I have heard it's really hot tempered." Amber said , " And the North Wind they say , is  cold ..."

" The West Wind." Cindy said. Amber agreed.

" O West Wind, Father of Spring and Autumn. Destroyer and Preserver, I summon thy power. Come to my guidance, for I seek solace."

There was no stir in the air.

" Try the East Wind." Amber encouraged.

" O East Wind, brother of West Wind. I summon thee. Come to my guidance for I seek your pacifying solace."

Yet again, there was no response.Cindy sighed.

"We have never been fortunate throughout this quest, so a stride in our favour would have been too much of a surprise." Ced said.

" Wait! What is that ?" Hazel asked pointing upwards. A carriage without wheels, horses and a coachman gently propelled and carried by the wind, came their way.

" The East Wind heard our call !" Cindy said.

"Some good luck at last." Ced said.

****

" We must get off here !" shrieked Cindy.

" What ?" Hazel asked.

" Get off me, Hazel !"  Amber cried.

" Oh, I am sorry." The wind had tossed Hazel in Amber's direction. She fell back on her seat, only to be thrown sideways, bumping her head against Ced.  The coach rattled with immense force, as the winds pushed it ahead, thrusting it up and down.

It was like a roller coaster ride, without the seat belts.

All of a sudden, the bottom of the coach disappeared to reveal an endless chasm; the land beneath was hidden in the cover of clouds.

Hazel's legs felt a sudden lightness as they landed on nothing.

" Jump !" Cindy cried, as she did the same, urging them to follow. Ced went after her.

" Are you kidding me? There is no way !" Hazel shrieked, fear welling up inside her, as she looked down.

" It's going to be fine, Hazel." Amber urged.

" I can't !" Hazel said, feeling so dizzy that she wanted to cry.

" Okay." Amber said, " Look at me." Hazel met the green ones, which looked abnormally kind as they stared into hers.

" You are one hell of a brave person. And I believe that this is nothing compared to what you have faced in the past few days. Are you going to let it scare you so easily ?"

" Yes." She shuddered.

" Fine. Just hold my hand real tight and close your eyes. Trust me, it will all be over in no time." Amber soothed her. Hazel put her trembling hand in Amber's.

" Now close your eyes." she said. Hazel obeyed. She shut her eyes tight, like a child scared by a horror movie.

" And here we go."

She felt a weightlessness, as she fell into the abyss. Hazel felt as endless as the sky; her stomach churned and turned into a bottomless pit. It was both a horrible and exciting feeling. She wanted it to end, but not, at the same time.

"Open your eyes, Hazel ! Look, it is beautiful !"

" No ! If I do, I will fall."

" But we are falling already. This is so much fun !" Amber shouted and hooted, ecstatic with joy.

Suddenly, there was something below her feet, cushioning them not. It was a gentle breeze that slowed down her free fall.

Hazel opened her eyes as she floated in air, gracefully descending onto the earth.

" We owe you our gratitude, O wind of the East. Please accept our offering, a token of gratitude." Cindy tossed a coin towards the parting wind and bowed down.

Ced sat down on the grassy ground to shrug off the dizziness, which came as an epiphany of the entire adventure.

" Where are we exactly ?" Hazel asked.

" Outskirts of Dukeville." Cindy replied.

" Now, how are we going to get in ? They must have soldiers everywhere, searching for us." Ced said.

" We must disguise ourselves." Cindy said .

" How can it be convincing enough ?" Hazel asked.

" I can help you with that." Amber said. 

" Goodness!" Ced exclaimed, his jaw dropping several feet below him.

" This is ..." Cindy gasped, wide eyed , as she stared at Amber with amazement.

" What ?"  Hazel asked.

" Don't you see it ? Amber has turned into Jack Frost !" Cindy shook her head in disbelief, pointing at Amber.

"I don't see Jack. She still looks like Amber to me." said Hazel, perplexed.

" How is it possible ? This is what she did at the inn. She crafted an illusion, so that we could escape. Look at her, carefully."  Cindy said.

Hazel obeyed, but she saw Amber standing in front of her; freckled cheeks , uneven hair and the same green eyes that had encouraged her into a leap of faith, minutes ago.

" It is possible."  Amber said, " Illusions deceive outer senses.They always have a flaw. Some are able to see it. They are the clear sighted ones."

" But not everyone has this sight , so this has to work." Cindy said. Everyone agreed.

"Who should I disguise you as?" Amber asked.

" Residents of the chateau. It would make it easier for us to get in." Hazel suggested.

"But I have never seen them." Amber said.

" I have a portrait of all the descendants of Cinderella, together. Since I am , or was , the head of the female descendants, I was entrusted with the responsibility to keep it and hand it over to be framed." Cindy said.

"And you carried it with you throughout this journey ?" Ced asked.

" Yes." Cindy said, her eyes growing moist, "I miss them terribly, sometimes."

She took it out of her satchel and handed it over to Amber.

"This will do." She nodded.

****

"We must go through the details again." said Cindy, " Hazel, you are Cecily, twelve years old. Amber is Cynthia, a fifteen  year old and Ced ..."

"Cicero, who could not have had a stranger name." Ced replied.

"And I am Cedar." Cindy said.

They stood at the entrance of the chateau, away from the soldiers' eyes.

" Cin, we are going to be alright. Don't worry. Let's go." said Hazel.

Cindy took a deep breath. "Follow me." 

" Lady Cedar !" The guard bowed down to her, " Lady Cynthia, Mr. Cicero and Lady Cecily. But I didn't see you all leave."

" We went out in the morning, before your duty started." said Cindy.

" Yes, my Lady."  the guard said, bowing down and opening the gate for them, "Pardon me."

Hazel felt a weight lifted off her chest. She wanted to find Snowflake as fast as possible. They entered the chateau, keeping to the shadows.

" Cedar !"

The lady with a hawk like nose and unwelcoming snobbishness, greeted them. "Madame Rosalind !" Cindy bowed down.

" May I know where you are off to, in such a hurry ?" the instructor enquired, " And what might be your business in the female descendants' castle, Cicero ?"

" We were running an errand for someone, Madame." Ced answered.

" And who might that be ?" Rosalind asked.

" Princess Snowflake." Cindy replied quickly. Rosalind's sharp gaze snapped at her. "But aren't you supposed to attend ballet practice? Don't you have a major role in the recital, Cecily."

Hazel nodded nervously. " Yes, Madame."

Snowflake appeared behind Rosalind.

" Ah, Princess Snowflake! Is it true that you sent this lot on an errand ?"

The princess inspected the party with an amused glance. "Indeed, I did."

Hazel let out a sigh of relief.

" Princess, it would be appreciated if you did not make residents skip their training."

" I am sorry, Madame." Snowflake said.

" Very well." Rosalind said, walking away.

As soon as she was out of sight, Snowflake said, " If you would follow me. I am afraid I have a lot to explain."

They followed her silently, even though they had a hundred questions. Had Snow, whom Cindy trusted with all her heart, really betrayed them ? Could this be a trap that they were walking into?

The Snow White tower was dark and resembled a soldiers' den. Weapons hung against the wall that was made of pebbles ; the target dangled, as an arrow hit the bull's eye. The hearth fire gleamed with life, as two girls practised fencing in front of it.

A statue of black marble stood proudly in the centre, a sword gleamed in her strong grip. A stern expression on the warrior's face, she looked very much like Snowflake. Hazel recognised her as Queen Snow White.

They took a flight of stairs up to Snowflake's chamber.

"You may come out of your guise." Snowflake said, as they entered.

" How did you know it was us ?" Cindy questioned.

Snow smirked. " I was returning from ballet practice, when I came by you. It could not have been possible for Cecily to change out of her costume so fast and reach the hall before me."

She continued,  "You probably know that the Mirror is not with any of the evil hosts. It is with me."

Hazel saw tears flow down Cindy's cheeks, as she gazed at Snow accusingly. "Why did you do this, Snow ! Why did you do this to me ? I have no one to call my own, in my very home now. I have lost all my friends, all my respect. You have made me a fugitive, a traitor to the crown that I seek to serve. How dare you? You had no right, no right to ruin my life."

Hazel's own eyes grew moist as Cindy wailed and cried, overpowered by uncontrollable emotions. Ced caught Cindy before she could fall.

Snowflake stared at them grimly.

"She believed in you. You were her friend, or so we thought. We trusted you blindly, but you have left us with no life of ours." Ced spat out , " We have endured terrible fate, fought enemies more powerful than us, been wounded physically and mentally. But it was all a game that you played for amusement. Don't you dare give us that pitiful look, because I know that deep inside, you have nothing in you. You are heartless."

Hazel shared his opinion. In that moment, she wanted to stab Snowflake in the place where the absence of her heart lay, a void that could never be filled.

"You have the right to, Cedron. You all do. But you must hear me out." Snow insisted.

"I am quite eager to know why." Cindy said, glaring at Snow.

" Everyday, as we live in the lap of luxury, hundreds of innocents are forced to let go of their souls and be consumed by evil. You are familiar with the powers of the Evil Queen and the Wicked Fairy. They turned our common folk into those mindless creatures, condemning them to a painful existence. The Council knew, but like turned a blind eye to the matter. They refused to understand the urgency of the matter, they refused to look beyond their privilege.

"So, I took the Mirror. The Mirror cannot be stolen by someone who has evil intentions. My intention was pure and the Mirror recognised it. My motive was to save my motherland and its inhabitants from this plague that was slowly contaminating it. My fight was against the very rulers and justice bringers of the society, but to involve you in such a manner in this situation, was never my desire.

" Believe me, Cin, it was the last thing I wished for, the only flaw in my plan. But I knew that you had the capability to face  any danger in your path and do what I sought to, with greater valour. We must stand against this Council of fake fairness; I know I will. There are a few others who have agreed to follow me."

There was a knock on the door.

" Don't worry. This person is an ally." Snow said, opening the door.

A man with eyes lighter than gold and hair, darker than night stepped inside.

"NATE !" Cindy cried out.

He ignored everyone in his way and ran  up to her.  " Cin !"  he whispered, cupping her face in his hands. Cindy opened her mouth to speak, but was quietened by his sudden gesture. Nate held Cindy fiercely in his grip, as he kissed her with all the passion in his heart. She responded with an emotion too strong for words.

Cindy cried her heart out, as he gently stroked her hair.

Hazel felt her heart melt as she looked at them ; Snow and Ced smiled and tears of happiness found their way out of Amber's eyes. Hazel put a consoling hand on her shoulder.

Reunions are always a heart full.

*****

Author's Note :

The next chapter will be the last one. Can't believe it's ending already. A heart full and a tearful, really.