Rapunzel stirred the mixture slowly over the small heating device, watching the pale green liquid thicken as the herbs released their essences. The scent was sharp and medicinal—not unpleasant, but potent. She'd never made this particur oil before, and she wanted to get it right.

  "So where are you right now?" Rapunzel asked, gncing up at the magic mirror mounted on her b wall.

  Snow White's face filled the surface, but the view behind her was unusual. Instead of the pace's stone walls and tapestries, Rapunzel could see plush carpeting in rich burgundy, comfortable-looking couches upholstered in cream fabric, and people moving around in the background—servants, maybe, or guards. The space looked perfectly still, no sense of motion at all, which was exactly the point of vessels this advanced.

  "I'm on my way to Oz," Snow White said, adjusting her position. She was dressed more casually than usual, in a deep blue traveling dress with minimal jewelry. "We have a diplomatic meeting with the Wizard. Trade agreements and alliance discussions."

  Rapunzel's eyebrows rose, recognition clicking into pce. "Wait—are you in the Flying Starfish?"

  Snow White ughed, the sound warm and genuine. "You recognized it! Yes, same one you traveled in with me that time. It does look like a starfish, doesn't it? All those edges." She gnced around the cabin with an amused expression. "Charming insisted I take it. You know how he is—overprotective." Her voice softened when she said it, affection clear in her tone. "This thing has everything. Weapons systems, cloaking devices, can hit Mach 3 in the air, works on and under water, can even go into space for short bursts. It's one of Ariel's battle ptforms—Atntica makes the best ones in the world. That's why everyone just calls it the Flying Starfish, even though that's not its official name. It just looks so much like one."

  "And you still can't even tell it's moving," Rapunzel observed, noting the perfect stillness of the cabin behind Snow White. She remembered that from her trip—the surreal feeling of standing in what felt like a completely stationary room while traveling at impossible speeds.

  "Exactly. The anti-gravity systems are fwless," Snow White said. "If you didn't know better, you'd think you were standing in a room in the pace." She smiled. "Adrian makes sure I always travel in one of these when I'm doing diplomatic missions. He worries, but honestly? I appreciate it. These ptforms are as safe as it gets."

  "Yeah, but it still looks like a starfish from outside," Rapunzel said, her lips quirking into a smile as she continued stirring.

  "I know. I completely agree with you." Snow White grinned. "So how are you doing? Anything new?"

  Rapunzel felt her heart skip a beat. She kept her eyes on the mixture, watching the herbs swirl in the liquid. "Well, actually, I have some news for you."

  "Oh? What is it?"

  "Do you remember what I told you? That when I went on a date, you'd be the first one to know?"

  Snow White's eyes went wide. "Yes! Oh my gods, Rapunzel, are you saying—"

  "I have."

  The squeal that came through the mirror was so loud and high-pitched that Rapunzel winced, nearly dropping her stirring rod.

  "I am SO happy for you!" Snow White practically bounced in her seat, making the image jostle. "Tell me everything! What's his name? Where did you meet? How long have you been seeing him?"

  "His name is Donatello," Rapunzel said, feeling warmth creep into her cheeks. She focused very intently on her stirring. "And we've been on a few dates now."

  "Okay, okay—is he good-looking?"

  "He's gorgeous."

  "And—this is important—did you and him have sex?"

  "Snow!" Rapunzel's face went hot, and she definitely wasn't looking at the mirror now. The mixture required very careful attention suddenly.

  "Well? Did you?"

  "...Yes."

  "And?"

  Rapunzel bit her lip, fighting back a smile. "It was good."

  "Just good, or *good*?"

  "It was very good, alright?" Rapunzel finally looked up, seeing Snow White's delighted grin. "Are you satisfied now?"

  "One more question—are you seeing him again?"

  "As soon as he calls me, I'll be seeing him again."

  Snow White's expression shifted slightly, becoming more serious. "You know you could call him too, right?"

  "I'm old-fashioned," Rapunzel said with a shrug.

  "Well, don't be *too* old-fashioned. You've waited long enough already. If he doesn't call soon, you should reach out to him."

  "Okay, I get you. If he doesn't call soon, I'll give him a call."

  "Good!" Snow White's smile returned, bright and genuine. "I am so happy for you, Rapunzel. Really. And when I have time—once this diplomatic trip is done—we need to get together and have a girls' night out. I want to hear every detail."

  "I'm looking forward to it," Rapunzel said, meaning it.

  "Alright, I need to go prepare for the nding. I'll talk to you soon, okay?"

  "Safe travels, Snow."

  "Thanks! Love you!"

  "Love you too."

  The connection started to fade, Snow White's smiling face beginning to dissolve—

  And then it happened again.

  The mirror's surface didn't go dark. Instead, the view pulled back violently, as if reality itself had been yanked by an invisible hand. Snow White's face disappeared. The Flying Starfish disappeared. Everything dissolved into that sickening rush of perspective that Rapunzel had come to dread.

  But this time it was different.

  No stars. No pnet. No green lines and numbers cascading through space.

  Instead, she was looking at someone.

  A figure dressed entirely in bck and gray stood on a rooftop—she could see the tiles beneath their feet, the edge of a chimney, the darkening sky behind them. They were tall, lean, facing away from her. In their gloved hands was a bow, an arrow already nocked. They were aiming at something she couldn't see, their posture rexed and ready.

  Rapunzel's hands had gone still over her mixture.

  *What is this?*

  She said it out loud without meaning to: "What is this?"

  The figure heard her.

  They turned.

  Rapunzel's breath caught in her throat.

  The figure's face was completely covered—a bck mask like a ninja's, leaving only the eyes visible. And those eyes were looking directly at her. *Seeing* her. The gaze locked onto hers through the mirror's surface with an intensity that made her skin prickle.

  "Can you hear me?" Rapunzel whispered.

  The figure's mouth moved beneath the mask, started to form words—

  The mirror snapped back to its normal reflective surface.

  Rapunzel stood frozen, her heart hammering. The stirring rod was still in her hand, suspended over the now-cooling mixture. For several long seconds, she couldn't move. Couldn't breathe.

  Then she forced herself to speak.

  "Magic mirror."

  The surface rippled. "What is your request, Rapunzel?"

  "Did you just see what I saw?"

  "What is your request, Rapunzel?"

  The same phrase. Always the same phrase.

  "Of course," Rapunzel muttered. She set down the stirring rod and pressed her palms against the workbench, trying to steady herself. "Why did I even bother asking?"

  She took a slow breath, then another. Her rational mind tried to assert itself, tried to expin what she'd just seen. Not the space-glitch this time. Something else. Someone else. A person who had *heard* her. Who had *looked* at her.

  *Who are you?*

  Rapunzel looked down at her concoction. The pale green ghost oil had thickened nicely, exactly the consistency she'd been aiming for. At least something was going right.

  "Well, that's another one for the journal," she said quietly. She moved the heating device to a cooling rack. "I just hope this oil comes out the way it's supposed to. It's my first time making it, and I need to let it cool down before I can put it to the test."

  She waited, watching the liquid gradually settle and cool. Her mind kept circling back to that figure on the rooftop. The bow and arrow. Those fierce eyes looking directly at her.

  *They heard me. They actually heard me.*

  After a few minutes, she carefully bottled the oil and corked it, then wiped her hands on a cloth and headed toward the front of her shop.

  She heard the bell above the door chime as someone walked in.

  "I'll be right there!" Rapunzel called, composing herself. Whatever was happening with the mirrors—whatever that vision had been—she still had a shop to run. Still had customers to help.

  She pushed through the curtain that separated her b from the storefront, putting on her professional smile.