Ever since the day I first beheld the comely young maiden at the castle, I knew the yearning of my heart would not be satisfied until I had her for my wife. I pledged my love to her, although she was naught more than a mere scullery maid, assuring her my one song and heart, which beat tenderly, were for her alone. She sent a kiss by a dove, but I would much rather have kissed her lips, rose petals accentuated by the snow of her skin.
For days, I pondered nothing but how I should go about asking her to be my bride, for I would have no other maiden. I finally decided I should ask Queen Grimhilde for permission. Surely the queen wouldn't object to the loss of a scullery maid!
When I entered the castle, there was no sign of the queen. Drawing my sword, I cautiously walked down the narrow corridors. Where were the servants? Where was the king? Above all, where was my lady, my one true love?
"What seekst thou?"
The unexpected voice startled me, but I boldly demanded, "Who are you?!"
"Ease thy grip upon thy hilt and ask of me what e'er thou wilt."
Although I hardly dared sheathe my sword, I would not rest until I had been reunited with my future queen.
"Where is the scullery maid?" I asked. "Her hair is a winter's night, ebony against the whitest snow."
"Hark, good prince; I know her well, and yet such grievous news I tell. She lies, the fairest in the land, murdered by the queen's own hand after a poisoned apple's bite; thus is the fate of thy Snow White, yet even death could never hide the beauty of thy future bride. Thou mayst have her if 'tis thy will; ride beyond the seventh jeweled hill. Beyond the first hill wilt thou see emeralds on every tree. Touch them not; accept from trolls naught offered thee from yon coals. Nigh the second, dragons creep; open eyes indicate sleep. Heed the serpents past the third, yet at the fourth heed not one word. If thou wouldst have thy life of bliss, thou must accept a villain's kiss. A word of silence thou must speak ere thou wilt find whom thou must seek. If she thy name shall gladly take, then with thy kiss shall she awake."
"I will find her!" I vowed.
"My prince, thy heart is kind and good. Go thy way through yonder wood. Thou wilt find where thy maid doth rest. Thou needst not prove thyself through quest."
"Where are you? I wish to see your face!"
"When thou seest me, thine own visage shall appear. Thou speakst to the slave of the magic mirror."
Slightly perplexed, yet determined to find my bride, I rode my horse until I came to a road where two paths split. One was through the forest, but the other led toward hills in the distance. I tried to remember what this mysterious advisor had said about going through the wood rather than over the hills, but try as I might, I could not recall a single word of his counsel. However, if my future wife was beyond the seventh hill, surely that was the direction I must go.
When I rode beyond the first hill, I was astonished to see a grove where every leaf was made of a single emerald! I couldn't resist reaching up to touch one.
"Do you often touch the leaves of trees?!" a voice demanded angrily.
I turned to see five hideous trolls staring at me.
"Forgive me," I began. "I simply wished to admire their beauty."
"No harm in that!" the troll exclaimed. "Are you hungry?"
Thanking the trolls graciously, I eagerly partook of the food they offered. When I had finished the last bite, they laughed and chanted:
"Liar! Liar!
Thief! Thief! Thief!
Gluttons always come to grief!
Greedy! Greedy!
Heart of stone!
Let us see how you atone!
Are we angry?
Not too much!
One for each emerald you touch!"
With that, I instantly turned to stone. I lost count of how often I saw day change to night. However, one day, I saw another man ride through the grove.
"What beautiful emeralds!" he exclaimed, reaching out to touch one of the tree leaves, but immediately drawing back his hand. "No, I have no right. These gems do not belong to me."
"Are you hungry?" one of the trolls asked, appearing out of nowhere.
"I had a good breakfast," the man answered, "but if you are hungry, I have some bread and cheese."
The trolls nodded approvingly.
"Good sir," a second began, "you are the first to come through here without thinking you had the right to our emeralds and our food! Continue your journey in peace, and when you arrive home, you will find our gratitude on your windowsill."
Their "gratitude" was more than likely a bag of gold or an enchanted object or some other useful item. If I hadn't been so eager to touch the emerald leaves, I might have received a similar present.
A few days later, I discovered that as soon as the first rays of dawn touched my face, I was able to move my limbs again. I was no longer made of stone.
"How long have I been here?" I asked.
"One month for every emerald you touched without our permission," a troll explained.
In more of a hurry now than ever before, I hurried to the second jeweled hill, only to find fierce dragons guarding it. They lay on the ground with their eyes open. How was I to get past them?! As I was contemplating the situation, they closed their eyes.
The dragons were asleep! Now I could creep past them without being noticed!
No sooner had my horse taken one step than the dragons began chasing us. We were very fortunate not to have burst into flames.
For nearly a week, I repeated this pattern. One day, I decided I could stand it no longer. I would not live in cowardice; I would find my princess or die trying. Although the dragons' eyes were open, I rode my horse at full gallop past them.
Not one dragon stirred. It was as if they were all asleep when their eyes were open, and they woke up when their eyes were shut. Perhaps this hill was enchanted.
There were so many serpents on the third hill that the grass seemed alive.
"I can tell you how to find Snow White without you having to continue such a long journey," one offered.
"Keep silent!" I ordered. "A valiant prince does not heed the lies of a slithering snake!"
"I wish to warn you about the hill ahead," another stated.
"I will hear nothing of it!" I replied.
Ignoring them, I continued to the fourth hill. A pixie was sitting on a flower, humming to herself as she brushed her hair.
"Do you seek the fairest in the land, the maiden with skin white as snow?" she asked.
"I do," I answered.
"Ride to the path on your left. You will come to a beautiful meadow. Stop and pick the flowers, for you will see your bride shortly. Continue on your way for half a league, and you will find her."
Thanking the pixie, I rode off in the direction she had indicated. After riding through a bog for three leagues, I eventually came to a river with a swift current. The horse and I nearly drowned as we attempted to cross. At long last, I saw a clearing up ahead.
There was the pixie. I had spent several days riding in a complete circle in the woods around the hill.
Choosing the path opposite of the one she had indicated, I made my way to the fifth of the seven jeweled hills. To my horror, I notice a wolf larger than any I had ever seen before.
"You must decide," the wolf declared, its voice soft and beautiful like a young maiden's. "Will you judge me by the undeserved reputation of my species, or will you automatically believe me to be wicked?"
"You are a wolf; therefore you are evil!" I responded. "I have heard many tales of ravenous wolves who have eaten innocent villagers!"
"So you won't kiss me?"
"Never, villain!"
The wolf began cackling, suddenly turning into a witch. "You want an enemy?! Very well! If you expect the Big Bad Wolf to destroy you, then you'll have nothing less! I place a curse on the first child born to you and your wife! The child will be born with wolf's ears, which shall remain on its head until you can judge everyone you meet fairly rather than assuming that what's true for one person must be true for others!"
Before I could ask what she meant, she changed back to a wolf. Moments later, another rider came to the hill.
"Hello, wolf," he greeted politely.
"Do you hate me, sir?" the wolf asked.
"Some wolves have done cruel deeds," the other man replied, "but so have some humans. Why should I judge you before I know you?"
"Would you kiss me?"
"Dear lady, I would have no objections to a kiss, but just as I cannot assume you are evil, I don't know you well enough to assume you are good. How do I know this isn't a trick?"
"Please?" the wolf begged.
He thought a moment. "Very well."
As soon as he had kissed the wolf, she turned into a beautiful sorceress.
"Sir, I place a blessing on the first child that will one day be born to you," she stated. "Your firstborn will have the ability to understand the languages of all animals, for you take time to understand those you meet before you pass judgment on them."
At the sixth hill, I found myself surrounded by griffins.
"You will stay with us until you guess our riddle!" they announced.
"Very well," I answered.
"Name me not, and I remain; speak my name, and I vanish."
This time, I was determined to remember what my mysterious advisor had told me so long ago at the castle. What advice had he given me for this hill?
After giving the matter serious thought for several minutes, I finally replied, "The answer is silence."
Having given the correct response, I was free to continue my journey, and here was the fair maiden! I had found her at last! With true love's first kiss, I woke her from her slumber. Placing her on my horse, we rode away to my castle to celebrate our wedding. When I told Snow White about all I had done in order to find her, she seemed confused.
"Instead of riding over all seven hills, why didn't you just take the road through the woods?" she asked. "That's how I got to the dwarfs' cottage, and it only took me a couple hours."