He has only to look into her eyes to see that the birds are singing the truth. He doesn’t look down. He stares at her hypocritical face, her eyes like empty spoons, shining at the thought of her title, her father-in-law, the throne. Two eyes that, the prince realizes, are blind to him. They don’t look at him the way they looked at him the previous night.

The carriage returns to the woodsman’s cottage. They ask the young lady to be so kind as to get out. She leaves dark, nearly black footprints on the stone floors. The birds from the peach tree surround the carriage, singing:

There are unscathed feet in this house.

Here’s the one that wears gold,

Her foot as lovely as her soul.

For some unexplained reason this verse is accompanied by music. Where are the guitars, harps, and lutes? But this is no time for the prince to worry about such things. He gets out of the carriage, avoiding the bloody footprints, and crosses the woodsman’s threshold again.

The family of four looks at him in horror. Not realizing the prince is there, Anna enters the room, her hands still wet from washing the slipper once more, singing, “Here you are, I’ve washed it for you again, the gold fabric is so fine, it’s easy to clean.”

Everyone turns to look at her. Anna sees the prince. He recognizes her eyes. Anna puts on the slipper. The cloud of birds enters the house, draping the golden dress over her. The prince’s footman brings her the other slipper, which they have put in his hands, and the birds arrange Anna’s hair.

That night, once again, she and the prince dance, but not like the previous night, because Anna begins to feel pressured. At midnight she remembers the Illuminata, certain that she’s going to come for her. She’s filled with regret, then fear. And her fear grows throughout the night. Although she no longer sleeps in the ashes, but in the room her mother slept in, it makes no difference. Her fear continues to grow. She thinks her mother will come too. That the birds have betrayed her. That they’ll attack her body. But she doesn’t have the body of a giant, and no dogs will spring forth from her blood to protect her. She has no choice. She must confront the Illuminata before returning for her prince.

At the first light of day she walks into the forest to find the path to the Illuminata’s palace. There’s a tiny hole in the purple door. She pokes at the hole with a stick. Both her hands become covered in fine gold dust. The hole turns into a lock; Anna slides the key in and opens the door.