The moonlight was shining on the courtyard, on the lovely well that stood in the middle. The august night was hot, as was to be expected, and you could taste the aroma of the flowers in the air.

"Her room is above the well?" I heard someone ask, in a gentle tone.

I simply nodded. I didn't want to make too much noise. The mistress had become very paranoid in the years after her prince had left, and the guards were sure to be out. She had much power in her lands since the death of the last queen. Many reports say that she is fair, as fair as her skin, but we knew that this was a lie. The information had been blurred, and the reports tampered with. The new queen of the lands had gone crazy, they say, in recent times. Once again, the departure of her prince is the main blame.

The main complaint is that the one called the fairest has been seen with many a man. The dwarves were seen entering through the main gate, and often did not leave until the curtain of night had fallen. A couple of men from the forest were also seen, and left along the same schedule. It was rare to see the same man twice, besides the dwarves. Many speculated that they were there to console the woman, while others had darker thoughts. Either way, the ruler had not kept her image clean in any way or form.

The worst offense, and the reason why we were here, was when the man named Prince Phillip visited the lands. He was on a routine trip of the political sort, and he was alone as his princess had fallen ill the days prior to the trip. Because of this, he wanted the trip to be short; he had always been the type of man who cares for his lover. The queen, however, did not care. She saw him as she saw the men from the forest, and treated him as such. She threw herself at him. When Phillip resisted, she was taken aback. The queen had to insist for him to stay a night. He reluctantly accepted, but only because by the time he was to return, night was near. That night was when the queen, as the prince reported, snuck into his chambers in the late of night dressed in nothing. Phillip had been asleep, but he awoke to the sound of his sheets being drawn from the bed. At the sight of the queen, he shielded his eyes and left the room at once. He dressed and left that night. Upon his return he told his lover of everything that had occurred.

Of course, Aurora was furious. She sent for her friend, and the other princess arrived within days. She told her of everything that she had been told, and her friend agreed. The castle guard was alerted, and that was when I was called on. I woke from my slumber, and walked into the quarters of the princess in the middle of the night. One of greatest friends, Jasmine, was with me. The princess immediately told of the situation.

"Do you think you can do this?" She asked, her voice still carrying the grace that had made her popular in recent years. "It is not as though we want to do this, but that vile woman has crossed the line for the final time. She couldn't rule her realm properly, and she couldn't keep the one man who saved her life from leaving. Now she does this, and I feel it is time she is dealt with."

My voice quiet, I answered. "I didn't think it would come to this, but I am prepared to do what I must. A tyrant has developed, and it is time she is put down."

"Yes. Yes it is." That was all the princess had said before we had left.

Now, with my Jasmine at my side, we sat at the edge of the courtyard. Jasmine's husband had gone ahead, trying to distract the guards. He had always been good at that. That is mainly why Jasmine and I had been chosen for this. We were the best at being stealthy, and the best at trickery. Though we hold high positions, we still held onto our roots. Our fathers had scorned us for it, so long ago. It still brought a mile to my lips.

"Do you see anything?" I asked.

"We have one guard, coming up on the left." I was still amazed at how gentle her voice was, even at a time like this.

The guard was walking lazily, his exhaustion clear. I pushed Jasmine deeper into the bushes, hoping to conceal us a bit more. The leaves rustled, and the night wind carried the sound to the ear of the guard. He snapped up at once, and his eyes turned to the edge of the courtyard, where we were hiding. I felt my knife grow heavy on my hip, and I reached for it. The man was carrying a pike, and he leveled it with the underbrush. He moved it forward slowly. The point was about it reach us when the man fell suddenly, toward the side. I looked at his head, and saw the small throwing knife poking out of the side of his skull.

I pulled Jasmine out of the bushes, and waved to her husband who stood on the rooftop. "He sure is quick." I said.

"Yes, he is. Now come on."

We ran to the balcony. It was on the second story, so we stood a good few feet short of being able to pull ourselves up there. I looked around, and saw the condition of the stonework. They were rundown and rough, neglected. I tapped Jasmine's shoulder and pointed over to the wall. She nodded, and we ran over. Jasmine was the first to scale the wall.

We were lucky that she and her husband had decided to leave her desert city for a while to help with the building of my own palace. I was staying with Aurora for the time, and Jasmine was the best at castle design. Her home could be seen for miles around. I had hoped she would do a good job, and from what she had shown, it was going to be a fabulous castle. It was during this time we became friends. She taught me many things, as I was not used to regular life at all. Climbing was one of the things I was best at.

I jumped onto the wall, catching the rough surface easily. Jasmine may have had a good head start, but it didn't last long. I passed her and leaped onto the balcony, landing softly. Jasmine landed a second later, and she gave me a look. I read it as 'showoff'. I giggled a bit, but covered my mouth. We were close now. We both looked at the doorway, which was covered by a veil. Jasmine led, pushing the silk aside, and I followed.

The room was dark, with nothing to give it light but the moon outside. The bed was large and fancy, and the queen of the land was asleep in the covers. Jasmine was the first there on her light feet, and she pulled back the veil of the bed. I saw her draw her curved knife, indicative of her homeland, and look down at the woman in the bed. She was silent as she raised the blade. I saw her pause at the top, and then she went to bring it down when she froze. I looked at her, and saw the split in her eyes. Finally, she put her knife away.

"I can't." she said. "I can't do it."

The figure rose from the bed, her own arm raised. "Then do not intrude!"

The queen had a dagger in her hand, and swung it at Jasmine. She was able to jump backward in time, but she bumped into a bookshelf behind her. It was heavy and tall, as if it was meant to be able to tip over. I watched I fall right over onto my friend's small form. She couldn't resist the weight, and she collapsed. I heard her emit a sound of pain, and a few sobs. The queen laughed, and then turned to me.

"I will take care of her after you." She stated simply.

She crossed the room quickly, her dagger whipping toward my throat. I took a step back, pulled my own knife out, and parried the swing back. The queen's deep eyes were full of rage and insanity. I blocked a few more strikes, backing rapidly. Her energy was intense, and she seemed bent on murder. She swung once more, and the blade ripped through my sleeve, drawing blood. I put my hand to it, feeling the deep cut. The queen seized the opportunity to cut at my neck again. I was force to keep moving backward, until I tripped on the veil that hung from the entryway to the balcony. My fall ripped right through it, and my knife fell from my grasp. I felt the queen follow, placing her hand and knee on one wrist each.

The rumors were true about one thing. Her skin was still as pale as the moon in the sky, and her face seemed to glow in the night. Her eyes, however, and seemed to change from rage to confusion. She picked up a few strands of my bright red hair and looked closely at my eyes.

"Ariel?" she said, confused.

I took the opportunity to lift my feet and throw the queen off of me and over the railing on the balcony. Her scream was loud, until I heard her crash to the ground below. I pushed myself to my feet and climbed over the railing myself, falling to my feet. The queen lay on the ground, motionless, only a few moans escaping her lips. I picked up her dagger and walked over. Her dark eyes looked into mine.

"Why?"

I was very stern. "Snow White, you have been accused of adultery and the neglect of your kingdom. From the council of the princesses, including Cinderella, Aurora, Jasmine, and myself, we have issued the warrant for your death."

Her eyes were serious again. "It is because of that wench, Aurora. If she was good enough for her husband, we would not have this issue. And you, acting to kill me. You are a villain and deserve death!"

She pulled another dagger out, from a strap on her leg. I looked at her pale face once more, feeling pity. She was claimed to be the fairest of them all, but her actions have proved her wrong.

I plunged the dagger down into her chest, the red liquid flowering across her white blouse. She shuddered a few times, her breaths ragged. Then, at last, her final gasp escaped her and she grew silent, blood still flowing from her bosom. I stood, and with one last look at the fallen queen, left the courtyard.

ument here...