Macster - The Last Dragon

Hypnotically, rhythmically, the spinning wheel whirled before Virginia's eyes, its spokes a blur of motion driven by the pumping of a foot upon the treadle. An aged but still strong woman's hand held the distaff, from which coarse fibers unwound, guided by the spinner's other hand over the wheel, where it wove together to form thread upon the spindle. Smooth, unhesitating, the thread played out, strong and taut. From time to time her eyes strayed along its quivering length, but they always returned to the rotating wheel, which gave off a creaking hum.

"Hello, Virginia."

Tearing her eyes away from the wheel, she looked up into eyes as bright and blue as her own, set in a full face, grown heavy and lined with age, but most of those lines were derived from smiles. Jet-black hair streaked with gray framed the soft, beautiful countenance, as familiar to Virginia as her own.

"Your Majesty!" she gasped, stunned anew by the regality and presence this woman exuded. In spite of herself she curtsied.

Snow White smiled and shook her head gently in admonishment, but she did not otherwise rebuke Virginia. With the practice and ease of years she continued to handle the fibers and thread, directing the path of the weaving even as she kept her eyes on her visitor. "Sit down, Virginia. I must speak with you, and my time is short."

Bemused and amazed, she looked around to discover they were in the cottage of the Seven Dwarves. It looked exactly as it had when she, her father, and Wolf had stayed the night there, except now all of the Troll graffiti was gone, and it no longer seemed so lonely and deserted. The thick layers of dust remained, silent and still, but now that had more of an air of expectancy, of waiting for someone to come and stir the atmosphere to new life. Feeling strangely as if she had come home, Virginia sat down on a chair small enough for a child to use, but still sturdy and strong, of excellent and skilled craftmanship. For the next several minutes she watched Snow White spin thread in a regular, cadent beat, until at last the old woman sighed and stopped pumping the treadle, letting the wheel slow and groan to a stop.

Setting down the distaff, she fingered the thread as she glanced askance at Virginia. "Lovely, isn't it? I always enjoyed spinning when I lived here, so many years ago. There is something so comforting and soothing about it, a machine so simple and single of purpose, knowing exactly what it is expected to do, and never faltering from the task. And all you must do is supply the force and the raw material, and guide it as it plays out, and it does the rest." Snow White turned and placed her hands in her lap, folding them neatly. Her eyes were a mystery, filled with wisdom and secrets Virginia found herself longing to know. "There is a lesson to be learned from the spinning wheel, Virginia. The threads it weaves form a pattern, one not as easily seen as in the threads of the loom, but it is there...for each thread knows where it has been, and where it is going is a path laid out for it. Destiny chooses us, my dear, whether we wish it or not. But we must never forget, however much we doubt it, that we have the courage, the knowledge, and the strength to do the deed. It is ingrained into us, part of who and what we are. It is no accident that the fairy who cursed Sleeping Beauty used a spinning wheel as her instrument...she too knew the inevitability of destiny."

The mention of Sleeping Beauty, who lay slumbering in the Sixth Kingdom that was her goal, made Virginia sit up abruptly. It reminded her sharply, by the longevity of the spell, of the magnitude of the task before her...for in the dragon she faced a similar resistance to change. Shaking her head, she sighed. "What do you mean?"

Snow White reached out and took her hand, feeling as warm and alive as she had that first time in the ice cavern. "I mean, Virginia, that you are bound together, you and Wolf, and Prince Colin, and even Red Riding Hood, although she does not know it. Your threads are interwoven, and all threads lead to the same purpose, one which you cannot evade. You did well before when you helped my grandson, but your destiny has many facets and remains unfinished. You must defeat the Ice Queen...you and the dragon."

Recoiling in shock, Virginia blinked. "But...how can you say that? It was a dragon who nearly destroyed the Dwarves, and your Kingdom--who killed your dearest friends, the ones who saved your life and raised you for so long!" The words spilled out, ones she had been thinking subconsciously ever since speaking with the Seeking mirror--that it was somehow wrong to beseech the aid of a firebreathing monster.

The disapproving and reproachful stare the old woman gave her, however, made her wish she had held back the words. "Virginia...are you listening to yourself? Do not judge a species by the actions of a few members. What occurred in the past is not the fault, or the responsibility, of those who follow. You of all people, with your ancestry and mate, should know that."

An intense coldness surged in her heart at the oblique reference to her mother and Wolf, and at once she lowered her eyes in shame. "I'm sorry...I wasn't thinking."

Snow White regarded her sadly, but with understanding. "That is a fault all of us suffer from at some point in our lives. Some of us fall prey to that mistake more often than others. But you must combat it, Virginia, in yourself and others, or you will become as cold as the Ice Queen, your heart held hostage."

Virginia wanted to ask what this had to do with her quest, but Snow White seemed to read her mind. "There is more going on than you know, things that will affect the future of the Kingdoms for years to come, and you must succeed in all that lies before you. Wendell and your father are not the only ones who must be freed."

"I don't get it." Virginia tried to stop the confusion swirling in her mind. Why did everyone have to speak in riddles?

"You will, Virginia. You will." She smiled. "In the meantime, all I can do is caution you to not be fooled by appearances. Beauty conceals hate, and ugliness conceals love, but both are plagued by insecurity. Show them the way, and the rest will fall into place." Snow White rose to her feet and took Virginia's hand again.

Furrowing her brow, she allowed herself to be guided, but just as Snow White brought her to the cottage door, she turned back, realizing what was bothering her. "But how can I do anything when I'm in a dungeon? I'm trapped, I can't get out! And my baby..." Tears began flowing unchecked.

With a gentle touch and a knowing gaze, Snow White wiped away her tears and caressed her cheek. "Remain on watch, Virginia, and stand on your own two feet. Then a solution will present itself." There was a special stress laid on these words, as if they had another meaning, but Virginia could not fathom what it was. "Remember what I have said...break free of your prison, and release the others from theirs. Believe in yourself, as you did before. Take your insecurity and doubt and make them hostages for your safe running..."

Slowly she began to fade away, dissolving into mist and light, her final words echoing again and again. Virginia reached out futilely to hold Snow White close, needing the sense of peace and calm that her presence brought. "No, wait! What do you mean...?"

But Snow White had vanished with a final smile, and with her the cottage too began to be swallowed by darkness. The spinning wheel was the last to go, a strange silhouette with a gleaming spindle that slowly vanished into obscurity. Then Virginia too was engulfed, sinking into the endless night...

Gasping, Virginia cried out instinctively as she sat up on the hard bunk. Clutching her chest, she gulped and panted, trying to catch her breath as she fought the same horrible feeling of being choked she had experienced before. It was the same as in the Deadly Swamp, and even as she shuddered and coughed, she kept expecting Wolf to come to her rescue as he had then.

But he didn't come, and as her breathing subsided to normal, she leaned against the cold stone wall and remembered why he could not.

She was in her cell, deep in the dungeon of Red Riding Hood III's palace, where she had been dragged after the horrible confrontation with the queen, and while the Piper had been brought with her, Wolf had not. Howling in despair and whimpering in agony, he had fought the guards as they forcibly separated the prisoners, but however much he had struggled, he could not stop the soldiers from taking him down a dank, smelly, completely lightless passage in the opposite direction. The signs at the intersection indicated two wings to the dungeon, for WOLVES and NON-WOLVES, the former more crude and simplistic, but Virginia could not imagine how Wolf's accommodations could be any worse than her own. The only improvement on the jail in Crookedtown was a slight increase in space. Otherwise, the smell was ten times worse, and the food and drink were identical--moldy bread and brackish rainwater.

Weeping softly, she pressed the heels of her palms to her eyes.

Suddenly a pair of arms surrounded her, and she nearly shrieked in fright. But it was only the Piper, holding her somewhat awkwardly and uncertainly, as if he were afraid of being too forward. He needn't have worried, for right now someone, anyone, was what she needed. Collapsing into his embrace, she cried into his shoulder until no more tears would come, simply glad she was not alone.

"There, there, milady," Colin whispered. "It's all right. You were only having a bad dream. I don't blame you, in a place such as this..."

"No." Sniffling, she wiped her nose. "It wasn't a bad dream, just a..." She trailed off, not certain what word adequately described it. Then she shook her head. "Nevermind, it's over now."

Pulling away from the Piper, she rose shakily to her feet and crossed to the bars separating her from her freedom. On the other side, a single guard dressed in red stood raptly at attention, his armor shining in the torchlight.

Turning back, she walked about the cell, pacing its length as she recovered her nerves. Wrapping her arms around herself, she shivered as she finally stopped in the middle of the room. "How long have we been here?"

From the shadows of the bunk, the soft, aristocratic voice floated back to her. "All afternoon, milady. It is now early evening."

Virginia looked up in surprise at a tiny barred window near the ceiling, on the back wall of the cell. Through the grille she could just make out the half moon, gleaming against the encroaching darkness, and the pinpricks of a few stars emerging, like a seamstress poking a needle through cloth, leaving tiny holes.

She sighed, putting a hand to her forehead. "What are we going to do?"

Colin leaned forward so that his face came into the torchlight from the hallway. His expression was frightened but falsely hopeful. "Do not worry, Lady Virginia. Contrary to the queen's opinion, I am certain my advisers will search for me when I am found to be absent. And once they have sent messengers and inquired until they have learned my location, they will come to my rescue. I know I can persuade them to release us all."

Snorting, she rolled her eyes and turned away. "I wish I had your confidence." She knew it was unfounded; there was no guarantee any of what the Piper had described would ever take place. Even if the prince's advisers did come looking, what was to keep Carmine from concealing any evidence as to his whereabouts? No, the only hope they had for escape was if they could somehow lay their hands on the magic shoes or the pipe, and that was manifestly impossible.

Feeling the tears well up again, she moved morosely back to the bunk and sat down in a heap beside the Piper, not even noticing when he put his arm around her once more. For a long time they only sat in a brown study. If her companion was devising wild plans of escape, she had no way of knowing; her only thoughts were of Wolf and the cub. She was going to lose them both; she could feel it. She had failed her father and Wendell, and now Snow White...and without her mate and her baby, she had no reason to go on living. That thought scared her; never before had she contemplated suicide, it was too alien to her thinking. But then she had never tasted such a glorious wonder as true love and happiness before...or had it thrown into jeopardy, soon to be irrevocably taken away from her.

"It's over."

"What?" the Piper murmured sleepily.

"Everything. The quest, my life, my happiness...everything." Her voice sounded like someone else's, listless and weary.

Colin stiffened, coming fully awake. "No! What are you saying, milady? It is not over, it is never over! Happy Ever After cannot end."

She chuckled, but it was a dry, hollow sound, without amusement. "Don't bet on it. Besides...we never really had Happy Ever After. We couldn't have. If we did, we wouldn't have ended up here. I guess I just...don't deserve it. I'm not worth it." Virginia stumbled over her last words. She had said them so many times, yet now she seemed almost incapable of saying them, as if to do so was tantamount to lying down and expiring.

Suddenly she found herself grabbed by the shoulders and thrust into the light. The Piper was staring at her as if he didn't know who she was. "Did one of the guards strike you a blow to the head? Or is it the deplorable cuisine around here? Because those are not the words of a great heroine like yourself! You are Virginia the Fair, one of the Four Who Saved the Nine Kingdoms, and there is nothing you cannot do, if you but try."

Virginia laughed in spite of herself. The words were so ludicrous she couldn't help it. All her life she had been controlled by circumstance, by family and heartache, by the world. If there was one thing she had been certain of, secretly, it was that she would never gain what she truly wanted, no matter how hard she tried. Oh, she fooled herself into thinking that if she was independent and strong enough, she would make it, but look at where her willfulness and stubbornness had landed her now? With bitter sarcasm, she answered him. "What do you expect me to do, wave my hand and conjure us out of here?"

Colin sighed and looked away. "No, of course not. More's the pity, that would be a most useful skill in this situation. But we should not bemoan what we lack, we should be glad for what we possess."

"And what do we have, huh?" Suddenly angry, Virginia began stalking around the cell again. "Nothing, that's what! My husband is going to be burned, my baby is going to be murdered. Meanwhile, the Ice Queen is consolidating her power and threatening all the Kingdoms, and you expect me to be confident in my abilities! Which are nil, I'm sorry to inform you!"

"You sell yourself far too short, milady." The Piper frowned. "You have wits, intellect, courage, and determination, as far as I have seen. And you also have destiny on your side. Whatever happens, destiny will ensure everything and everyone achieves their proper end."

"Oh, yeah, I forgot! Destiny!" Virginia laughed mockingly. "You all set such store by it, it makes me sick! Well if this is where I'm 'destined' to be, then fine, I accept it." Crossing her arms, she sat down on the floor in a huff.

For the next several minutes there was only the sound of water dripping somewhere in the darkness, and the far-off rumble of a wagon on cobblestones, traversing one of Incarnadine's nearby streets. Then the Piper spoke, his voice tinged with disbelief and admiration. "Milady...I have never met anyone with such anger as you, especially a lady."

"Well, there's a first time for everything." Virginia glared at the floor, sullen. The Gypsy Queen had said the same thing about her anger. At last she looked up at the Piper. He was watching her with a mixture of curiosity and evaluation. She didn't like that at all. "You want to know why I'm so angry?" she snapped in challenge.

Colin replied without hesitation. "I most certainly do."

She told him then, intending to lay out all the pain and resentment and broken dreams of her life, to show him why she knew, without a doubt, that she was not meant for greatness, that all she could hope for was more of the same anguish and ruin. That the brief respite she had gained from her adventure in the Nine Kingdoms--from Wolf--only served to illustrate how transient her happiness would always be. Nothing was fixed, and no matter how she tried, here or in New York, she possessed nothing to make it last. Yet as she spoke to the Piper, something shifted inside her, and instead of merely giving him an earful of vituperations, she found herself telling her life story. All of it. And the more she told, the faster it rushed out, and she began to cry yet again. Her mother, her father, her grandmother, her empty drudgery--it all poured forth in a torrent of truth, even as a part of her writhed in fury and horror at confiding such personal secrets in a man who was nearly a stranger.

By the time she was finished, she was soaking the Piper's chest in her tears as she clutched the particolored cloth. It was more copious than the tears she had wept in Snow White's lap and at the edge of the Royal Estate, and rivaled the tears she had wept in the ballroom over her mother's body. It was as if she was crying for her very existence.

Slowly, gently, Colin began rocking her back and forth, shushing her as he rubbed her back. But when he spoke, the words were gut-wrenching, staggering in their import. "Virginia, you need to stop blaming yourself. As far as I can tell, your problem is that you try so hard to be independent, to do everything for yourself, yet you are still dependent on, and controlled by, those you love."

Lifting her blotchy face, Virginia stared up at him incredulously. "What??"

Apparently he could hear the underlying anger in her voice, for he quickly became conciliatory. "Hear me out, milady. I am a royal, so I know of what I speak. From what you have told me, your mother abandoned you, and you feel it is because she did not want you. Your father sank into depression and wasted his life away, while expecting you to maintain his household and keep him satisfied. And your grandmother dictates to you constantly concerning what sort of lady you should be, and how you must uphold her expectations for a society lady or you will amount to nothing in her eyes. But do you not see how this has affected you? You are determined to rise above them all, yet because your mother did not want you, you fear nothing you do will be good enough. You fear the only people you have left, the only ones who love you, will abandon you as she did. And so you let your father turn you into his maid, essentially, even as he held onto the one piece of your mother that was left to him--you. And your grandmother had held such high hopes for your mother that when she left, all your grandmother's sights were set upon you. She made you the focus of all her dreams and aspirations, not even caring what you felt about the matter. It is your fear of disappointing her, and of failing to be a good daughter in the wake of your mother's disappearance, that makes you a thief of your own self-worth. And now that your mother has died, you cannot even prove to her you were worth wanting."

Virginia let her jaw drop. "Colin, I..." How could he see through her with such astounding clarity? All of what he said was true, whether she wished to admit it or not. She had always worked to please her grandmother and Tony, to be whatever it was they wanted her to be. She denied it on the surface of course, insisting on standing apart from them, earning her own way, choosing her own path, but underneath it all she was indeed afraid they would turn on her and leave her if she didn't do and say what they thought was right. She was always second-guessing herself based on their perceptions, or her mother's, whom she had often imagined as watching from somewhere far away, judging her, waiting until the right time to come back. And in a flash of insight, she realized that fear of abandonment was why she had initially rejected Wolf in Kissing Town - anyone who professed such deep feelings for her became a prime candidate for potentially running out on her. His use of the money to pay for the expensive evening instead of for the mirror had just provided the perfect excuse for her to run away herself - it simultaneously implied he was not really in love with her (or he would have helped her go home) and suggested he too would be another to please and satisfy (as any who lavished such gifts upon her must expect a great deal in return).

The wash of emotions inside her was intense, and the play of them across her face must have been visible to Colin, for at the moment she finally accepted in her heart that she had been spending her life living in isolation in preparation for being left in the lurch, the prince reached up and stroked her cheek. "Do you see, milady? You have been living apart from your family, and yet living for them at the same time. But you do not have to be their Christine. You can be Virginia, someone who is wanted and loved, someone who has bravery and tenacity and skill, who can fulfill her destiny easily and make everyone, even the naysayers, proud...by being who she is."

Slowly Virginia nodded. "You're right...I can see it now...how can I ever repay you for helping me see the truth?"

"It was nothing, milady. Simply knowing you are at peace in your soul, and able to live again with confidence, is reward enough." The Piper smiled warmly.

Leaning against his chest, still reeling from the revelation of self, she closed her eyes and snuggled into his embrace, not even aware she was doing it. But after a while, she did notice how warm and strong his chest was, and how wonderful he smelled. Gazing up, she wondered idly why she had never noticed before how handsome he was, or how sweet his voice was, or how deep and brilliant his azure eyes were. He was just about her age, too, and had a great body, for that matter...

Another reward came to mind, and lost in the churning emotions, Virginia intended to give it to him. Lifting her head, she let out a shaky, husky breath and brought her lips up to his...

Suddenly her left hand jerked violently backwards of its own accord, wrenching Virginia away from the Piper and sending her tumbling in an unceremonious heap on the floor. Shaking her head to clear it of the ringing, she lifted her hand close to her eyes to see what was the matter. There, on its golden band, the precious pearl had lifted its sweet face, which was now pinched with horror and shock.

"My dear! your Wolf do not forget
Lest you do something you regret," it sang.

For a split second the meaning escaped her, and then all at once it rushed over her like a tsunami. "Oh my God!" she cried. "What have I--what did I almost do???"

The Piper looked equally horrifed, one hand pressed to his mouth. "Milady...forgive me...I never meant..."

Virginia nodded numbly, waving his apologies aside with her free hand. "No, it wasn't you, it was my fault. I just...got carried away with my emotions." Scrambling to her feet, she moved across the cell back to the barred door and gestured to the bunk. "But maybe you'd better...sit over there for the rest of the night. Okay?"

Colin was already moving, and as he settled into place on the pallet, he wrapped the blanket around himself. "Never fear, milady...I understand, and am the soul of gallantry." He paused thoughtfully. "But...if I have not already sullied our conversation, I hope you do not forget what I said. Be your own person, Virginia. You have been pretending to live, but you need do so no longer. You have everything inside you to survive this imprisonment, make good your escape, and complete your quest...I believe it." He rolled over and faced the wall.

For a long time she stood staring at his motionless form. Then at last she slowly felt her legs give way, and she sank to the floor weakly. You've been pretending to live. Almost the same exact words Wolf had once snarled at her. She had known they were true then, but not why, until now.

Wolf.

Guilt surged in her heart, and she folded her legs in a flurry of movement, burying her face in her knees. How could she even think...? Was it just the hormones? No, she was too far along in the pregnancy for it to be that. Then what was it? The magic shoes weren't here to bring out any suppressed feelings. And she loved Wolf, she loved him with all her heart. She just couldn't understand it. She was positive Wolf wouldn't either...yet she knew she had to tell him, she couldn't start lying to him now.

Another tug on her hand, this one far more gentle than the last, made her look down at the ring with watery eyes. Its expression now was sweet and kind as always, in fact deeply sympathetic. She had never thought an inanimate object could have feelings, but this one was magic and clearly did. It was special...like her love for Wolf.

"A moment's weakness can't break your love asunder,
Wolf shall forgive your unintentioned blunder."

Virginia bit her lip. "Thanks...I hope you're right." She stared down at it for a while, wondering why it had never sung before this, such as in the mirror chamber, during her meeting with the Trolls, or when the Piper had first tried to capture her. It must not have felt it was needed until now--and she could not fault its timing.

"What do I do now, ring? How can we possibly get out of here?" she asked it at last in a soft whisper.

The ring frowned thoughtfully, then brightened, giving off a sparkling golden halo of light that illuminated the cell.

"Don't you fret, let naught affright,
Just heed the words of Queen Snow White!"

Virginia jerked up in recognition. In the wild gamut of emotions of the last hour, she had completely forgotten the dream-vision. But even as she perked up, her hope began to fade, and she slumped back down again. It was all well and good to follow the ring's advice--but what use was it when she had no idea what any of Snow White's words had meant?

Sighing, she leaned back against the bars, letting the cold of the iron seep through the back of her shirt. Escape was hopeless, and now she had just made matters worse with that perplexing and upsetting near-kiss. One of her favorite songs by Styx came to mind, and she softly sang the words to herself, words that had a new meaning: "I know you feel these are the worst of times...I do believe it's true..."