Once upon a time there was a beautiful kingdom. And in this beautiful kingdom lived two little girls. Now the girls were very best friends but they were different as could be! Edmonda was gentle in nature and very soft spoken and Narissa was dramatic and very emphatic. Unbeknownst to Edmonda, Narissa had a secret. Narissa's mother was a witch and was teaching her and her siblings magic. Narissa hid her secret very well. However, Narissa had another quality trait: jealousy. Her mother obviously favored Narissa's older siblings, Mindy and Sable. The old witch always sang:
"Mindy and Sable
my girls that are able
to turn handsome princes to toads.
My poor Narissa
even the toad wouldn't kiss 'er
My unfortunate sweet little girl."
Edmonda met Narissa at their secret place one day and Narissa looked so cross.
"Whatever is the matter, Narissa?" Edmonda said, taking Narissa's hands in hers. Narissa scowled angrily down into her lap.
"Can you keep a secret?" Narissa mumbled. Edmonda hesitated a second and nodded. Narissa continued. "I'm practicing magic and no matter how hard I try, my sisters are always better than me!" She exclaimed louder than she should've. Edmonda went wide eyed, "Magic?" Narissa nodded vigorously, she then showed her a small spell. "Transmosis Formosus!" She shouted at a dandelion weed. It turned into a small toad that croaked and hopped away. Edmonda kept her secret.
The girls grew with the trees and years passed. On a special day, it was announced that the king was looking for a bride. He threw a ball and invited all the eligible young ladies. Narissa was enamored and so excited she could hardly eat or sleep, while Edmonda calmly smiled and helped Narissa pick out a gown.
On the night of the ball Narissa put on her elaborate and beautiful dress. It was made of rich silks and embroidered with even finer threads. Edmonda put on a simple flowing gown that surely would not capture anyone's attention. But it did. At the ball, no matter Narissa's efforts, the young king was always asking about Edmonda, looking at Edmonda, and everything to him was Edmonda, the girl in the simple dress. Narissa grew jealous and fled the ball. The king danced the rest of the night with Edmonda and announced that they'd be married in the morning. Narissa swore her revenge.
A year passed and a prince was born. The king insisted they name him Edward, after his beloved wife. Though Narissa wanted to carry out her plan immediately, she was still unprepared.
The prince grew with the trees and three years later, Narissa had enough skill to carry out her plot.
News travelled fast. A ferocious dragon was terrorizing the peaceful land, burning crops, and slaughtering livestock. The king was uneasy but chose not to aid the neighboring kingdom. He would not risk the lives of his people in this futile battle. Until, that is, the dragon launched an attack on his kingdom and its first move was unsuspected. The dragon kidnapped the queen. The king sent his troops to the dragon's cave but there was no queen. Only a lifeless toad lie on the cave floor.
The dragon came back, burning crops and slaughtering live stock. It's song was that of joy, singing:
"The queen is dead!
The queen is dead!
Hey Ho!
The queen is dead!"
And she was indeed.
The king mourned the death of the queen for months on end, until his advisor suggested that he remarry.
So once again he held a ball. The king was the only one not making merry. Until a woman entered the ball in a simple dress. The bittersweet memory of his wife prompted him to dance with the woman. Her name was Narissa. He announced that they'd be married in the morning.
The prince grew with the trees and another year passed. Narissa had been unhappy with her marriage to the king. He was detached and full of melancholy. She realized he didn't love her and never could. Narissa began to poison his food and drink, making him terribly ill. While he lay on his death bed, Narissa came to him.
"I once had a friend who stole the man I loved. Do you know what I did to her?", she whispered, "I turned her into a toad and killed her," she breathed, "Do you know what I did to the man I loved?", she wrapped her hand around his neck, iridescent scales forming on her fingers.
"You returned him to his true love in death", the king wheezed with the last bit of air in his weak lungs. Before Narissa could reverse what she had done, the king died, happy at last. Narissa pulled her hand back in anger and horror.
"I killed him…He's dead!", she sobbed. Little did she know, Edward had been watching from the door. Frozen with fear, he began to cry. Narissa looked sharply at the small boy and rushed to his side. She loved the boy despite herself. How could she not? He was her bestfriend's son.
"Edward, how much did you see?" He went into hysterical sobs.
"You killed them both!"
Narrissa hated to see him crying, so she made the memories go away. Her magic filling his mind with lovely thoughts. She took him in her arms and vowed:
"I will never let anyone hurt you like they hurt me! You will take care of yourself and only yourself!"
And thus Edward grew with the trees in ignorant bliss, only concerned with himself. Until he heard a sweet maiden singing in the forest…