The coat fell around Sneezy. Above, Dopey held onto the rafters of the ceiling, wiggling his ears. The room erupted into laughter. Snow White laughed and fell into a chair as the dwarves laughed and slapped their knees.

  “That was fun.” Snow White said as she drew a long breath.

  “Now you do something!” Happy said as Dopey slid down the support beam back down to the ground.

  “What should I do?” Snow White asked. The brothers started to close in around her chair by the fireplace.

  “Tell a story,” Sleepy yawned. Leaning on the firewood.

  “A true story! Like from when you were in the castle!” Happy suggested.

  “But a sweet story, like a love story.” Bashful suggested. Snow White thought and put her finger on her chin as she considered what to say.

  “Once there was a princess” She started.

  “Was the princess you?” Doc asked, Snow White nodded and smiled.

  “And she fell in love,” Snow White continued.

  “Was it hard to do?” Sneezy asked, walking over to one of the forgotten chairs.

  “No, it was very easy!” Snow White said. Moving her hands as if she were going to demonstrate but didn’t know how. “Anyone could see that the prince was charming, the only one for me.”

  “Was he, uh, strong and handsome?” Doc asked, pressing his fingertips together to help him speak.

  “Was he big and tall?” Asked Sneezy, climbing onto the chair and sitting in it backwards.

  “There’s nobody like him, anywhere at all.” Snow White answered patiently. Her own imagination filled with images of her charming prince. She sighed wistfully as she smoothed her hands over her knees.

  “Did he say he loves you?” Bashful asked, braiding his beard nervously.

  “Did he steal a kiss?” Happy asked but his smile faded slightly at the glare from Grumpy.

  “Well did he?” Grumpy asked angrily.

  “He was so romantic, I could not resist.” Snow White sang, her heart was too high for her not to. She looked around as the dwarves found their places in a semi circle around her and the dying coals of the fireplace. Snow White sat up right in her chair and smoothed her skirts out.

  “Someday my prince will come, someday we’ll meet again.” She sang, her voice like the warmth that came from the coals of the fire. It settled like a spell over most of the brothers. “And away to his castle we’ll go. To be happy forever, I know.” Alone in the corner Grumpy leaned against the organ his back to the nonsense that was happening on the other side of the room. He shook his head is disgust.

  “Mush.” He rolled his eyes and went back to staring at the dark corner.

  “Someday when spring is here, we’ll find our love anew.” Snow White rocked side to side as she came up with her little story. The window was filled with woodland critters all curled up with one another peacefully. “And the birds will sing, and wedding bells will ring.” Snow White’s voice hit the highest notes it was capable of hitting. Even Sleepy fought off the urge to sleep to avoid missing the story.

  “Someday when my dreams come true.” Snow White sang, pouring all her wishing into it. Folding her hands against her heart and hoping.

  The dwarves all collectively sighed. Even Grumpy turned.

  “That’s fine and dandy. But how d’ya know he’s your true love?” He snapped.

  “Oh hush. I-I-It’s lovely.” Doc said. “Isn’t it, men?” The brothers all agreed though Grumpy only rolled his eyes again. The clock suddenly began to chime eleven o’clock. A carved cuckoo clock with a squirrel tapping a bell in the shape of an acorn and a door where a frog popped out and croaked chimed the hour.

  “Oh, my goodness! It’s past bedtime!” Snow White stood up. “Go right upstairs to bed.” She started shooing them toward the stairs.

  “Wait!” Doc shouted and stopped Snow White. “Hold it there men!” He snatched the back of Dopey’s shirt and stopped him from going up the stairs.

  “The, uh, princess will sleep in our beds upstairs.” He said. Tapping together his fingers. “T’aint right for a young lady to sleep in a room without a door.”

  “But where will you sleep?” Snow White asked.

  “Oh we’ll be quite comfortable down here in ah. Uh.” He began to stutter again.

  “In a pig’s eye.” Grumpy snapped as he passed Doc to go up to the room.

  “In a pig’s eye. Uh sty uh. No!” Doc shook his head and grabbed Grumpy and pulled him close. “I mean. We’ll be quite comfortable. Won’t we?” He looked at every one with a stern look.

  “Oh yes. Quite comfortable.” All the dwarves, sans Doc and Grumpy, said. Doc let go of Grumpy and parted his brothers.

  “N-n-now you go on up to bed. Like you said” Doc ushered Snow White toward the staircase. “It’s past red line, uh said mine. Ah. Bed time.” Dopey backed away from the group, spying a cushion on the couch.

  “Well if you insist.” Snow White said as she passed the men and headed up from the stairs.

  “Goodnight princess!” The dwarves called. Snow White paused and turned back.

  “You sure you’ll be comfortable?” She asked.

  “Oh, yes, very comfortable.” The brothers said all as one.

  “Well, all right. Pleasant dreams.” She said as she entered the room.

  “Pleasant dreams.” The brothers said. As soon as the door shut the brothers lunged as one toward the throw pillow Dopey had curled up with. Everyone grabbed the cushion and began pulling as hard as they could. Each demanding that the cushion should be theirs. Doc ran around the squabble yelling in a panic that the cushion was going to rip and so it did. Right down the middle with an explosion of feathers.

  “Well. Now. Heh.” Doc sniffed stiffly. “I hope you all are proud of yourselves.”

  “You should be just as proud! You gave away our beds!” Grumpy snapped. Throwing feathers all over.

  “We couldn’t let the princess sleep on the cold ground,” Happy said.

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  “She needs a bed.” Sleepy insisted.

  “We should make her one!” Happy suggested.

  “A big one!”

  “And a private room!”

  “Yeah!”

  “Hold it men!” Doc stopped the conversation and the mob from running toward the door. They fell in a pile before turning to look back. “It’s nearly midnight. Too late to get anything ah-eh- started now. Let’s sleep tonight and work on it tomorrow and bring it home as a supply-eh-repl-ah.”

  “Surprise!” The brothers yelled excitedly.

  “Shhh!” Doc hushed. “Lets get to sleep!” The boys all rushed around the room to grab whatever comfortable place they could find. Upstairs, Snow White looked at the seven beds and picked Doc’s to sleep in. Before she did, she went to the window and saw the wishing star.

  “Evening star, please grant the wishes of the men who have been so kind to me.” She said wistfully. “And please let my dreams come true.” She turned from the window to go to bed but stopped and ran back to the window.

  “Oh, also. Please help Grumpy to like me?” She said. Then she went back to bed and tucked herself in.

  Downstairs, the brothers had also gotten comfortable. Grumpy had gotten the soup kettle. He huffed.

  “What a fine kettle of fish.” He huffed. Trying to get comfortable and pulling a soup spoon out of the kettle. He threw it to the ground and spit into the fireplace. The smouldering embers hissed back at him. He glared at it and tried to get comfortable. Only to become aware of the snoring already filling the night’s silence. Bashful had pulled one of the drawers out and made it into a bed. Happy had found and crammed himself into the cupboard. The dishes that were supposed to be inside were drying on the rack. The cupboards doors opened and closed as Happy snored. Doc had made himself comfortable in the kitchen sink. His head tipped back under the faucet. A single drop of water teased lower toward his open mouth.

  Sneezy had fallen asleep with Dopey on the sofa. Sleeping up against his hips. Dopey’s sleepy contented smile faded and a frown suddenly covered his face. In the throws of a nightmare he began whimpering and kicking. Waking Sneezy up with a kick straight to his shoulder and throwing him off the sofa. Sneezy stood up and gave Dopey a firm poke in the side. Dopey froze but slowly relaxed back into a peaceful slumber. Sneezy then shoved Dopey back up into a ball so that he could lay back onto the couch. Getting cozy again and falling back asleep.

  Sleepy had found what could possibly have been the most uncomfortable place next to the fireplace in the firewood. The stack fallen and rearranged to make it somewhat comfortable. However Sleepy was known for being able to sleep anywhere and he’d found the position comfortable enough. The night fell easily over the cottage and all was still.

  _._

  The cauldron bubbled and hissed as the potion brewed. Though the sickly green sludge would certainly make you feel ill, it wasn’t deadly yet. It needed the final ingredient. The disguised queen appeared through the smoke, holding a plain looking apple. It wasn’t quite ripe and it wasn’t a particularly good type. But none of that mattered. All that was important was the apple and the cyanide laden seeds from within. The apple dangled from a string and the hag dangled it above the cauldron.

  “Now, dip the apple in the brew. Let the sleeping death seep through.” The hag said as she dipped the apple into the bubbling brew. The sickly green bubbling sludge causing it to churn violently and turn a grotesque teal. The hag pulled the apple back out. The bubbling sludge clung to the skin of the apple. Dripping in sour chunks back into the cauldron. The goo dripped off to make a skull.

  “Look, the skin!” The witch Queen cried as the skull became clearer. “A symbol of what lies within. Now turn red to tempt Snow White. Make her hunger for a bite.” As if on command the sludge sunk into the apple and turned it from deathly black to delicious mouth watering red. The hag cackled in glee as the poison was sealed fully in the fruit. She took hold of the apple and untied the string. She inspected the apple. The corner of her eye caught the crow watching her intently. With a grin she thrust it toward him.

  “Have a bite!” She yelled. The crow let out a scream and flung himself back into the alcove. Trying to get as far away as possible.

  “It’s not for you. It’s for Snow White.” She said, shaking her bony finger at the crow. She looked back at her prize and traced her finger over the perfect skin of the apple. “Once she breaks the tender peel to taste the apple in my hand. Her breath will still, her blood congeal. Then I’ll be the fairest in the land!” She cackled loudly but a sudden realization stopped her cackle cold.

  “But wait!” She said suddenly. Looking around thoughtfully. “There may be an antidote.” The realization made her own blood go cold.

  “Nothing must be overlooked.” She said as she hobbled to her spellbook again. Flipping through the book until she found it.

  “Oh! Here it is!” She yelled in exasperation. She leaned forward to read the passage. “The victim of the Sleeping Death can be revived by love’s first kiss.” She scoffed and shook her head.

  “Love’s first kiss. Bah!” She slammed the book closed. “No fear of that, the dwarves will think she’s dead! She’ll be buried alive!” Her deranged laughter echoed around the dungeon. She put the red apple in a basket of other fresh picked apples and took up the basket. Hobbling over to a trap door on the floor. She lifted it and walked down the first couple of steps before turning back to the crow.

  “Buried alive!” She yelled again and began cackling madly once again. Slowly closing the trap door as she went down the stairs into the deepest parts of the dungeon. She hobbled down the stairs. Coming across a forgotten cell where a long cobweb covered skeleton reached for a jug that was just out of the poor wretch’s reach.

  “Thirsty?” She asked in her half crazed glee. “Have a drink!” She kicked the jug and it crashed into the skeleton, turning some of the bones to dust. Revealing the only thing in the jug was a spider. She continued her cackle until she got to the hidden and secret exit from the palace. A man-made moat went through the very depths of the castle and a gondola was waiting for an emergency for use. The hag stepped carefully into the gondola. Holding the basket tight to her chest. She put the basket down as gingerly as an infant then picked up the river pole and pushed the gondola away from the stone docks and into the mist of the lake. Pushing the gondola across the lake and into the reeds. Docking the gondola in the tall grass just on the other side of the lake. She took up the basket and left the gondola and pole behind and hobbled off deep into the night.

  ~.~

  Morning came to the dwarven cottage. Snow White woke up with the sun as the birds came in to cheer her good morning.

  “Good morning,” Snow White said. Yawning as she got out of the bed she’d slept in that night. She stood up and made all the beds in the room. She then crept downstairs and covered her mouth to stifle a laugh at the sleeping arrangements.

  “Good morning,” She sang. The chorus of snores coughed and sputtered as the men’s eyes opened.

  “Morning already?” Sleepy asked. Yawning and rubbing his eyes.

  “Why-ah. S-so it is!” Doc said. Looking out the window.

  “I was thinking about making some breakfast.” Snow White said, “Possibly hotcakes.”

  “Hotcakes!” The men cheered. Jumping out of their sleeping spaces.

  “Let me help ya, Snow White.” Happy said bringing the flat iron for the cakes.

  “I’ll get the fire lowing, sowing. Eh. Going” Doc said, slipping his shoes back on.

  “I can help with the recipe.” Bashful brought a large bowl to the table.

  “Thank you,” Snow White said. Bringing some ingredients. Grumpy huffed and set to work in the kitchen making coffee for the men. All together they made a tall stack of hotcakes that they divided up and ate with powdered sugar and fresh picked berries. On the wall a cuckoo clock chimed seven and the men looked at the clock.

  “Well. Work day’s about to start.” Doc stood up. “Let’s get ho-eh-going.” The men went upstairs to dress for the day and Snow White cleaned up the dishes.

  “All right men, get the measurements just right!” Doc said as they measured how long and how wide a bed for Snow White would need to be.

  “D’ya think she’ll grow?” Happy asked.

  “She’s tall as a weed already!” Grumpy snapped.

  “Is she full grown?” Bashful asked.

  “She’s got the face of a child.” Sleepy said.

  “But she’s already taking care of the house like she’s grown…” Sneezy said.

  “Wh-uh I-uh think the princess is probably done growing.” Doc mused.

  “Yeah? Just for that, she’ll shoot up another two feet!” Grumpy crossed his arms. “Make it twice as wide as she needs and give her an extra foot.” They finished taking down the measurements and grinned at each other.

  “This will be a mighty fine surprise!” Happy whispered.

  “I can’t wait to see how happy she’ll be.” Sneezy said.

  “Well we better hurry, ‘fore she gets the mischi-ah conniptio-ahem, suspicious!” Doc stuttered. Shaking his head compulsively.

  “Our home’ll never be done.” Grumpy frowned as deeply as he could.

  “It’ll be worth it to care for the princess.” Sleepy said. “Think how pleased our missus’ll be to hear why there was a delay.”

  “Yeah, if’n you can’t think about how happy it’ll make Snow White!” Happy agreed. Dopey hugged the measurements and nodded in pure joy.

  “It’s settled, c’mon.” Happy led them back downstairs. “And remember, don’t say anything!”

  “Right!”