Prologue
"If only I had a child as white as snow, lips as red as blood, hair as black as a raven's wings and all with the strength of one rose."
Once upon a time, a girl was born to the King and Queen of the kingdom, Tabor. She possessed the purest of beauty, and consequently, she was named Snow White. As the princess grew older, she attained an organic bond to the animals of the kingdom, befriending many creatures; some consisting of fairies and luminous birds. Along the shores of the ocean, she would ride a white horse whom waited for her by the castle's entrance. Every morning she would ride to the edge of the dark forest where she was forbidden to enter by her father, King Magnus. "In the forest, creatures are summoned that you wouldn't ever imagine," he warned her. "Not all animals contain goodness as you do, my love. Some are beastly, vicious monsters that shouldn't be reckoned with, especially by a young girl like you." Snow White's innocence got the better of her. She couldn't believe that a darkness could ever be within creatures, but she would never go against her father's word.
One morning, while riding through one of the nearby villages, Snow White came across a folk dance in the courtyard. All the townspeople had smiles upon their faces and swayed to the music played by the elders. Across the yard, Snow made contact with a curious boy who stared, mesmerized by her. She walked through the charade of dancing people towards him, and he towards her. They met in the middle and he said, "Would you care for a dance?" Snow white nodded in return and the young boy grabbed Snow White's hand as they danced in the crowds. He had light brown hair and a clean, freckled face, much like Snow White's herself. She wasn't too familiar with the dance, but he guided her as they went along.
That afternoon, the young boy accompanied Snow White home as they walked along the shores of the ocean. She learned that he was the age of seven, the same as hers, and that his name was William. He was the son of a duke in a nearby Kingdom who was on a trip with his father. As they approached the castle walls, William pulled out an apple from his pocket and offered Snow White a bite. They shared the blood, red apple, as they strolled through the gate. Once the apple was down to it's core, William dug up a hole and placed it there for an apple tree to one day grow. Snow smiled in return, admiring William's fondness for nature and he whispered something in her ear that she would never forget.
Over a year's time, a tree had sprouted from the earth, in the middle of the castle's courtyard. William would visit Snow White as often as he could and their friendship flourished. One cloudy night, Snow White entered the castle to go tell her father about her adventures with William, that afternoon. She recalled in her mind the fairies buzzing around them, dancing and humming beautiful songs as William chased Snow White through the fields of grass. She entered her father's bedroom, but what she found brought a sick feeling to her stomach and tears to her eyes. Her father was unconscious, laying on his bed, with a dead gaze in his eyes. She timidly ran to his side, and grabbed his shoulders. "Father!" She screamed, but there was no sound from his mouth. She then noticed a blade which was plunged into his heart, and a pool of blood that surrounded him. The humming of the fairies had turned into unnerving cries.
Snow White ran from her father's bedroom, screaming for help. She called for her mother, for the guards, for anybody, but no one came. She ran down the castle stairs until a hand grabbed her dress and pulled her down to the ground. The man who stood above her had white hair and a devilish smile. His cold eyes stared into Snow White's and he pulled out a dagger. "Finn!" A women shrieked from behind, and the frightening man looked back. Taking this opportunity, Snow White grabbed the man's dagger and shoved it into his shoulder. He screamed, falling back, and the strange women spoke again. "Get her! We need her heart!" She announced as Snow White ran for the courtyard, only seeing a glimpse of the woman's blonde, shining, locks.
Snow White ran through the courtyard which had now filled with cries, fighting, and a raging fire. She was scared and her vision was blurred from the tears in her eyes, but in the distance she saw a familiar figure which brought hope to her heart. Her mother stood by the dwarfish apple tree, helping people get through the gates to safety. Snow White ran to her side, and she could see her mother's eyes fill with anger and fear. "What are you doing here?" She screamed grabbing Snow White's arms. "I thought you were with William! You need to leave, you need to find him and go with him. It isn't safe here, there isn't any time!" Her voice was trembling. Snow White's mother guided her to the gates holding her grip tight on her arms. "I will find you once all of this is-," her mother wasn't able to finish. Snow White felt her mother's grip release from her arm. She looked behind her and her mother fell to her knees, blood spilling from her mouth and that deadly gaze in her eyes that her father had just held. She saw a blade glimmer through her stomach until it retracted and she fell to the ground, dead.
She had made contact with the man's devilish eyes once again. He had killed her mother and there was no one left. People ran through the courtyard in terror, tripping over dead bodies and slipping in the pools of blood. The man, who had been called Finn, approached her once again, his wound seemingly healed. She looked behind her and the gate was appearing to close. Snow White began to run but Finn grabbed her hair, and pulled her back. She shrieked in pain. "I have you this time little princess," he whispered into her ear and pulled his dagger back, preparing to stab her. Snow White let out one last breath until a rugged man approached, wielding an axe. He threw his weapon at Finn's wrist, slicing his blade-baring hand from his body.
The rugged man grabbed Snow White and threw her over his shoulder. He ran through the crowds of chaos fighting off black knights who shattered into tiny, iridescent pieces. "Once you get past the gate, you must run. Head for the forest, they won't find you there," the man informed her, his voice was harsh and deep. He threw Snow White underneath the gate and she slid through it, closing merely seconds after her departure. Looking back through the gate, the strange man was already taken in with the disarray of the crowd. She ran back along the shoreline with all the energy she could muster, but it wasn't enough. Her legs shook, and her body was weak. Screams and cries filled her ears. She was panting and knew she wouldn't make it to the forest without being caught. Her knees fell to the ground. She was ready to die.
Something off from the side neared Snow White's frail body. She tilted her head and recognized the familiar shape. The white horse came out of the shadows and Snow White found the strength to lift herself up, just as the sound of trotting horses manifested not far behind her. "You came for me," she whispered with a faint smile and wielded herself onto the horse's back. She rode off, not knowing if she should be thankful to still be alive or wishing if she could be dead.