Her decision had been indicated in an instant, but it had been made after days and nights of anguished deliberation. She had known she would be asked, she had decided what she would answer, and, without the slightest hesitation, she had moved her hand to the right.

She gritted her teeth in anticipation. She knew no matter what happened to him, he would never be hers again. But whom was she letting him go to? She could either let him live, but with the woman whom she detested so, or the vicious tiger, who would tear him limb by limb, before her eyes, before the eyes of the whole kingdom. She couldn't let either happen could she? But her decision was final. She wouldn't second-guess herself at the last minute. Part of her wished she hadn't made her decision, but there was no going back. She knew that either way, she would regret whatever choice she would make. The real question wasn't the lady or the tiger. Love or jealousy? Which would she let triumph? Which feeling was truly stronger? In the end, there had been no regrets. She watched as her lover approached the door. She noticed a slight hesitation as he reached for it. Perhaps he had guessed the internal struggle of the princess, and feared that she would betray him. But in the end, he chose to trust the only love of his life; the one he believed loved him enough to let him go.

But alas, he had been wrong. Instantly, the ferocious beast appeared, with his large teeth pointing out, and his paws ready to pounce, he snarled cruelly at the man. The man made no attempt to defend himself, to run away, or even to close his eyes and cringe in fear to make the fear seem less real. He stared blankly at the tiger, his face not stroked with a single tear. Even the tiger seemed to sense the mood, as he was still for a few moments. But he would not hesitate in attacking; he was quite hungry after all. Before facing his impending doom, the man gave his princess a betrayed, yet still loving look before the tiger pounced on him. It began tearing him limb-by-limb, blood everywhere, his intestines gushing out, and his body unrecognizable.

The king stared with vindictive delight, but the princess's eyes were running with salty tears. She dared not release the feeling of wanting to scream and die for her father sat next to her. Her heart swelled up instantly, as she had understood more than he had meant to convey to her.

He trusted her whole-heartedly and she had let him down, for her own selfish needs. He had not acted fearful in front of the tiger because after seeing it, he no longer wished to live, if it made her unhappy. And even after many years, the thing that bothered her most, was no matter how had she tried, she never regretted her decision.