Wolf struggled to focus on the task at hand. He heard an announcement that Queen Cinderella had come to the coronation. He couldn't believe it. She would be nearly two-hundred years old! Wolf could hear the rumble of conversation coming from the Grand Hall. The guests sounded impatient, which made Wolf even more nervous. His mind kept slipping back to the look on Virginia's face when he had said he obeyed the Queen. He cursed himself silently for hurting her, but it was a necessary evil.

Suddenly Wolf heard loud fanfare. The dog prince's entrance was being announced. Wolf had to hurry! He switched the hemlock for Troll dust as quickly as possible and stirred it into the potion, thankful for his sleight-of-hand. The kitchen had gotten a little crowded since multiple chefs were now working on the entrees for dinner. It was almost time for the Royal toast. Wolf hurried to ladle the potion into silver goblets, careful not to spill a drop. He donned a Royal server's coat and placed all the goblets onto a rolling cart.

He pushed the cart down the hall and through the doors to the Grand Hall. Wolf gasped a little at the spectacle before him. All of the Royals were there! He walked up to the first person he saw and told them the Royal Toast was coming up. As he rolled past them, each Royal took a goblet from the cart. He was careful not to address them for too long, though. Wolf didn't want to seem disrespectful, and he knew the Queen was watching from somewhere.

"Royal Toast," he said, wheeling up to Bluebeard. The stout man picked up a goblet and nodded to him. When Cinderella approached the cart, it was all he could do not to kneel at her feet. She had always been an inspiration to him. A lowly serving girl, lifted to the status of Queen, all because a Prince had fallen in love with her. Stories with happy endings were always Wolf's favorites. He wasn't sure if this one would end happily. Queen Cinderella waved her hand to dismiss him. Once he was sure every guest had taken a goblet, he wheeled the cart back into the kitchen and left it there.

Another fanfare sounded. The dog imposter must have gone through the three tests of wisdom, bravery, and humility by now. Wolf peeked through the crack in the door and watched as the crown was about to be placed on the imposter's head.

"If no one else has any objects as to why this man should not be King, then I do solemly–"

"Wait," barked Cinderella. Every eye in the room turned to her. She stood up from her throne and approached the Prince. "I question him."

The dog prince let out a small bark and managed to turn it into a gasp somehow. Wolf rolled his eyes.

"Do you," asked the dog imposter, leaning forward on his throne.

"Are you really Prince Wendell White, grandson of the late Snow White, the man who would be King?" Wolf smiled. He knew there was a reason he liked Cinderella.

The dog prince lost his composure for a moment, sputtering that he was in fact the Prince.

"I. . . am. . ."

Wolf hoped that Virginia and Tony had found some way to escape, if they were still alive. Virginia would find a way. The dog prince stopped and frowned for a moment.

"No," he said. The whole room gasped in surprise. "No! I am an imposter!" The crowd gasped again. He stood up from his throne, holding his arms out in surrender.

"I'm not a Prince. I am. . . I am. . . ordinary. I will never be great like Snow White. Some are born to be great, but . . . I am a pack animal. I'm not a leader." The dog imposter kneeled. "I am a retriever!"

A Golden Retriever, thought Wolf.

"I do not want the job," said the imposter. "I will not take the job. I am not worthy."

Couldn't agree more. Come on, Cinderella. See through him!

Cinderella put her hands on her hips and studied him. Incredulous gasps and murmurs came from the audience. Cinderella took a step toward him and turned to face the guests.

"He has passed the third test," she said. "He has shown humility."

NO! Wolf banged his palm against the door frame in frustration and hoped again that Virginia had found some way to escape the dungeon. The cheers were deafening.

"He has passed the three tests! Now let him be crowned!"

The dog imposter stood up, grinning from ear to ear. He took his place on the throne once more and the crown was placed on his head.

"King Wendell! King Wendell! Happy Ever After! Happy Ever After!" The crowd chanted his name and called for Happy Ever After, not knowing that at any moment the Evil Queen would reveal herself. She had never told Wolf her full plan, but he was positive it had something to do with ruling all of the Kingdoms, not just the Fourth. He was having to improvise as he went along. Wolf approached the new King with a goblet tray and bowed.

"Time for the Royal Toast, Your Majesty," he said. The imposter took one of the goblets, his tongue lolling unceremoniously as he sniffed its contents. Wolf strained his senses for any sign of Virginia. Her scent was very faint, but it was there. He let out a little sigh of relief.

She's alright, he thought.

The dog King lifted his goblet for the Toast.

"To ever-lasting peace and all the bone we can gnaw!"

The crowd lifted their goblets in response and echoed the King's toast, a little confused. They all tipped their goblets back and drained the contents. Wolf smiled, scratching his temple. He hoped this would work.

"I think I did really well," the dog King said to himself before toppling to the floor. One by one, the Royals began to follow suit.

"Poison! Someone's poisoned us," yelled someone in the crowd. Some gagged and clutched their throats, others bent over with a whooping cough, but most just fell over after one sip until Wolf was the only one left standing in the midst of them. The Queen stepped out from her hiding place and addressed the unconscious crowd.

"Anyone for seconds," she asked sweetly. When no one replied, she smiled and descended the steps. Virginia was ordered to be brought in by the Huntsman, who was pushing her forward as she cried softly, one hand on her shoulder and the other clutching his enchanted crossbow. He hadn't bothered to dress for the occasion. Wolf stood there, torn. He tried to catch Virginia's eye to somehow signal that he had a plan. She didn't look at him. He supposed he deserved that. Virginia looked horrified at the sight of all the bodies scattered across the floor.

It's alright, he thought to her.

"You certainly are persistent," said the Queen to Virginia.

"Are you going to kill me, as well," asked Virginia.

"I was going to let you go," the Queen replied honestly. "I don't know why."

"You know why."

"Go. Leave me! Get out while you can."

Uh-oh. Wolf knew that look. Virginia had set her jaw.

"No."

Wolf smiled. He had never seen anyone disobey a direct order from the Queen.

"You were nothing but an accident," yelled the Queen. "You should have been killed at birth!"

A wave of pure anger crashed over Wolf, but it was nothing compared to Virginia. She marched forward and put her full power behind a blow to the Queen's cheek. Wolf blinked. Did Virginia really just slap the Queen? He held his breath for what came next.

"How dare you," hissed Virginia. "How dare you speak to me like that."

The Queen was angry, Wolf could feel it.

"Kill her now," she commanded the Huntsman. Virginia turned around, fear returning to her face. The Huntsman leveled his crossbow at her.

No, no, NO! It shouldn't have come to this!

"Kill her or I'll do it myself!"

The Huntsman lifted his crossbow and was about to pull the trigger when Wolf panicked and knocked him to the floor. The bolt flew up into the air, breaking the domed glass ceiling. The Huntsman was a worthy opponent. Wolf pinned him down and tried to bite his throat, but the Huntsman pulled his hair, forcing his head back. The Huntsman pressed his knee into Wolf's chest. It was getting hard to breathe. He struggled to push him off. He was heavier than Wolf thought he would be. The Queen had gotten her gloved hands around Virginia's throat.

"Stop, Mom," Virginia squeaked.

The Huntsman pulled out his knife and was about to deliver the killing strike when Wolf saw the glass break again as the bolt came down, searching for the heart of a living thing. The bolt shot down toward the Huntsman and pierced him in the back. His mouth formed a surprised O and his body went slack as his heart stopped. His body slumped and Wolf bore the full weight of the Huntsman. He knocked the knife out of his hand and struggled to get free so he could help Virginia, but it was too late.

Virginia had managed to pull the poisoned comb out of her mother's hair and scratched the Queen's face with it. She staggered backwards, covering the wound with her hand. Her white gloves now bore the red marks of blood. Wolf was able to roll the Huntsman off of him so he could stand up.

"You've drawn. . . blood," the Queen whispered.

"I'm sorry," Virginia whispered back as she clutched her throat. The Queen smiled kindly at her daughter as if she had expected it to happen. Wolf growled softly and ran to find Prince. The Queen turned and walked away, but she was only able to manage to take a few steps before she collapsed. Virginia gasped and ran to her side. Wolf found Prince tied up in one of the hallways and led him into the Grand Hall. Virginia was weeping over her mother. He kept out of sight so she could have her privacy.

"No, don't die. Don't die. Just remember who you are," she whined. The Queen reached up to stroke her daughter's face. No, not the Queen. Christine. Virginia's mother.

"It's too late," she whispered. "Don't cry. My little girl. My little girl!" Christine searched Virginia's face as if trying to find an answer. A faraway look came into her eyes.

"I gave away my soul," she admitted. Her hand fell from Virginia's cheek. She died with a smile on her face.

"Wait! No! Mommy," Virginia wailed. Wolf had never seen Virginia like that. He wished he could do something to help her, but he didn't think she would accept his help now.

"What happened," asked Tony from the balcony.

Suddenly the dog imposter yawned and sat upright, rubbing his eyes sleepily.

"Oh, I think I drank too much champagne," he groaned. Virginia looked up, startled, her eyes red and her face blotchy from crying. Another Royal sat up, and so on as the bodies that littered the floor of the Grand Hall began to come back to life.

"What's happening? What's going on?"

"Why aren't you all dead," asked Virginia softly. That was Wolf's cue.

He led Prince into the Grand Hall. Virginia looked up at him, confused.

"I thought you poisoned everybody," she said.

"No, no, no. Troll dust. I swapped the poison for a pinch of Troll dust, just to make it look convincing."

Virginia let out a small, relieved laugh.

"I'm sorry I had to trick you." She nodded.

"Go for it, Wendy," he told the dog with an affectionate pat. Prince rushed forward and put his paws on the imposter's chest. The crowd gasped once more.

"Magic!"

"What's happening?"

A golden glow filled the room and they began to spin around and around until no one could tell which was the dog and which was the Prince. Finally they broke apart.

Prince Wendell looked himself up and down in wonder. The dog barked and wagged his tail happily.

"I'm back! I'm back," he announced triumphantly. Cinderella's mouth gaped open, which Wolf thought wasn't very ladylike, but he could understand why she would be surprised, given the circumstances. Virginia looked at the Prince as if she had never seen him before. Wolf supposed she hadn't. Not in human form, anyway. She looked back down at her mother's body and began weeping again. Wolf wished everyone would stop cheering when Virginia was in so much pain. He put his arm around her, but he wasn't sure how much he was actually comforting her. Tony came down from the balcony to join them. He fell to his knees, stunned and with tears in his eyes. It hadn't seemed to hit him yet that his wife was dead.

"What is the meaning of this," demanded Queen Riding Hood.

"So sorry, my Lady," said the Prince, kissing her hand. "I have been a dog for some time. These three," he gestured to the grieving family, "helped me reclaim my throne. One of whom is my step-sister." The crowd gasped, but Virginia didn't look up.

The Prince called for servants and the crowd parted for them.

"Make up the best rooms for my three friends and draw them each hot baths. I expect to see them in places of honor at the banquet tonight."