Dopey lit a fire, which made the room toasty. Then they all sat and ate. The men slurped loudly, but there wasn’t much talking. Grumpy kept watching her, but every time she made eye contact, he looked away. Between the fire and the lanterns glowing in various corners of the room, Snow suddenly realized that she felt quite safe and warm, a sharp contrast to how she had felt only a few hours before. Maybe that’s what continued to make her feel so bold.
“That was delicious, Princess,” said Happy, patting his round stomach.
“I’m so glad you liked it,” she said. “While we all digest, I was hoping you could tell me more about the diamond mining and how the queen has altered your original arrangement.”
Grumpy dropped his spoon onto the table with a thud. “See? Told you she had a motive.”
“If I’m going to stop my aunt’s reign, I think it’s important I know what she’s done to those in the kingdom. Don’t you?” Snow asked, looking at Grumpy, then at Doc. “As you said, I may be our kingdom’s only hope.” She hoped she hadn’t gone too far, but now that she’d gotten kernels of information about the happenings in the kingdom, she craved more.
Grumpy leaned back in his chair, tipping it so far she was sure he’d fall. He looked her square in the eye. “All right. We’ll talk. But we have some questions, too.”
“We do?” Bashful spoke up. Grumpy gave him a look.
“Fair enough,” Snow agreed. “If you would be so kind, could you tell me the true condition of the mines?”
The men looked at one another. “For years, the queen has ruined our commerce,” Grumpy complained.
“King Georg always had us meet a quota, but as payment for a job well done we could keep a percentage of our findings,” Doc added.
“But this queen wants it all! She is so selfish she has led the kingdom to believe the mines are dried up, when they are not,” Grumpy spat.
“We’ve heard stories up and down the land of the jewels she’s claimed as her own,” said Happy.
“The rugs and the gold that are meant for trade wind up in the castle, locked in her quarters, while in the streets, people are starving!” Sneezy added.
“And still she sends her henchmen to check our mines to make sure she gets it all,” Bashful told her.
Snow clenched her fists. “I had no idea this was happening. How has she gotten away with this?”
“Her guards keep her well protected and her court is afraid of her wrath,” said Sleepy. “No one will question her decisions.”
“We are honorable men,” Happy added. “We may not be family in the traditional sense, but we have stuck together for years, and we are barely scraping by.”
“Look around you, Princess,” Doc piped up. “Do we look like we are living beyond our means? No. We can’t afford her taxes.”
“We don’t touch the diamonds we’ve hidden away,” Sleepy added. “They’re only for a rainy day.”
“I won’t say anything,” Snow vowed. “It sounds like you are actually owed money by the kingdom. I won’t take away what’s rightfully yours. You can trust me.”
“Trust. Humph! You’re related to her!” Grumpy pointed out.
“But we are not family,” Snow said. “She certainly has never treated me as such. Even after my mother died and my father left, she left me to fend for myself.” She spotted a carving of a bird etched into the men’s fireplace. It made her think of her mother. She’d have loved this humble abode and the people who lived in it. She’d have wanted to hear their worries and their triumphs. She would’ve tried to help. If the former queen couldn’t be there to do it, it was up to Snow to. “The kingdom is falling apart, and as you said, people need help.” She thought of her mother and how she had tried to help everyone she met. She thought of her father opening the gates so their people could feel like family. Her aunt did none of that. “She isn’t running the kingdom like a queen should.”
“And you think you can defeat her?” Grumpy looked skeptical. “Why, before today, it sounds like you didn’t even know what was going on in your own kingdom! And she wants you dead! You don’t have a chance on your own.”
That could be true, Snow realized with a sinking heart. What good was an army of one? The queen had magic. What did Snow have? Maybe she was a