My parents abandoned me when I was more than a child, but not yet a woman. They left on an errand, promising to return that evening. I never saw them again.
The neighbors assured me that it was no fault of my own or theirs. Surely my parents had never intended to leave me alone in the world. They had no doubts met with an accident, perhaps at the jaws of a wild animal or the hands of robbers or the spells of a sorcerer.
I set off to find them. If they had abandoned me, they would at least tell me why. If not, I would finally have certainty about their fate.
I walked through the forest until the soles of my shoes had worn through. My hair was a matted nest of tangles, and my alabaster skin had turned into tanned leather from wandering the woodland. I often heard the howling of wolves, but as it wasn't their nature to attack a human, they left me in peace.
Whenever I entered a village, I scavenged for food. However, I had not seen the slightest sign of a town for days. Briars had torn my flesh, and I knew I would not live much longer if I didn't find my way out of these woods.
Just ahead was a dark, foreboding cottage. The aura of evil was nearly tangible, but I was desperate, so without a moment's hesitation, I knocked on the door.
An old woman answered. "Come in, my child!"
I didn't trust her, but I allowed her to serve me some food, which I gulped down ravenously.
"What brings you to see Granny?" she asked kindly.
"I seek to know the fate of my parents."
The woman threw another log on the fireplace, and the entire cottage was filled with cerulean smoke. Images began to take shape from the billowing clouds. I saw my parents dangling from the gallows by orders of the king.
"A murrain on him!" I exclaimed. "I would sell my soul to punish the royal family!"
"Would you, dearie?" The witch cackled and began mixing powders in the pot of boiling water that set in her hearth. "I don't really need an apprentice, but I've been after the royal family for the last two hundred years! Now I'm getting too old."
"Why haven't you done anything in two centuries?!" I demanded.
"Oh, but I have, dearie! I've locked their daughters away in towers and fed them poisoned fruit and all the usual, but true love's first kiss always prevails. There's always a prince willing to save a beautiful princess, even if he's never met her before!"
"What about casting a spell on a prince?" I suggested. "Women are taught to be helpless, naïve creatures. No princess would be able to save a prince."
The witch poured liquid from a flask into her cauldron. "I've tried the princes as well. Turned them into statues or frogs or whatever turned my fancy. You'd be amazed what some women will do for a man!"
She added a few herbs to the mixture and dipped a ladle into the horrific brew, sprinkling a pinch of something on top. The witch then began chanting a spell that caused the liquid in the ladle to swirl on its own, turning a vibrant shade of pink.
"Drink up, dearie!" she exclaimed. "You're one sip away from your own happily ever after!"
I drained the foul liquid in one gulp. As soon as I had done so, I was surrounded by colors I had not previously known existed. When the strange colors finally ceased whirling before my eyes, I saw I was alone in the forest. No trace remained of the old witch or her cottage, yet I somehow knew I no longer had a soul.
My new powers amazed me. When I put out my hand, I was instantly holding whatever I wished. I could take any form I wanted, and I could also transform others. I already had all knowledge of how to use my powers.
I started small. I would change the weather to annoy or bless the peasants, whichever took my fancy. However, I soon realized I had the power to create a perfect society.
When a child annoyed me, I would turn the little brat into a rodent, enjoying the snap of a trap that shortly followed. When men flirted with me because of my beauty, only to ignore me because they feared commitment, I turned them into stags and gleefully watched hunters end their miserable lives. When other women seemed to rival me, I cast a spell that instantly turned them old and gray.
However, I was not yet satisfied, for I had not taken my revenge on the royal family. If my predecessor had been seeking vengeance for two centuries, surely they were deserving of whatever fate might befall them.
I didn't want to end up as another failure, so I carefully evaluated why the witch who had granted me her powers had not yet succeeded. After a hundred years, I finally realized one small but crucial detail: Everyone loves a prince or princess, even complete strangers.
I would never succeed in bringing the royal family to its knees unless they produced an heir so unlovable that no one noticed his or her disappearance, and those who encountered my victim had no desire to end whatever curse I had placed.
That night, I took the form of a harmless dove and flew into the queen's chamber as she slept. Her form was heavy with child. If I were going to act, I must do so quickly.
I lightly touched the queen's ears, making her unable to hear the spell I was casting. I then touched her eyes so she would not wake before I had finished.
"Wormwood to make him bitter," I began, mixing the ingredients in a bowl. "Cayenne pepper to make him angry. The blood of a wild boar to make him violent and beastly."
When I had finished, I had a ghastly liquid mixture, which I poured over the queen's swollen waist. It was nearly dawn, so I transformed into a dove once more and flew away.
Blessed success! Prince Adam was born shortly afterwards, and even as a newborn, he was already as ruthless as his father! (It's nice to see that royals never change.)
He was perfect! If he disappeared from the face of the Earth, not one tear would be shed! If anyone found him under my spell, he would drive them away with his own personality!
"Spells may be powerless against true love," I muttered to myself, "but no one shall ever love the prince!"
There was one last problem. I visited the queen again as she slept one night, and this time, I cast a spell of barrenness over her. Many princes have been rescued by the efforts of heroic brothers, or sometimes sisters, but Prince Adam wasn't going to have the chance! I then repeated the spell over the king. After all, if he divorced the queen and took another wife, they might have borne children, and I couldn't have any of that!
When Prince Adam was finally of the age to live in a castle apart from his parents so he could begin practicing the art of overseeing his own household, I knew the time had come. Children often died of diseases, so no one would find it suspicious if the young prince ceased to exist, and he was no kindred spirit capable of earning love to break the spell. If he died, the dynasty died with him and passed to the extended family of barons, but I could deal with them easily enough. I could destroy one royal family at a time until none dared claim the crown. I'd have my revenge at last!
I made myself as suspicious as I could. No doubt the child had been taught not to speak with strangers, so I would approach him directly. It was the middle of winter, so I carried a blooming rose with me. A strong man in the forest might easily be dismissed as a poacher, but an old woman alone in the woods at night was definitely unusual, and I purposely made myself as ugly as possible. Everything about my visit would suggest I was no ordinary woman, but an old hag with magical powers. His fear of my abnormal presence and his natural sense of inhospitality would cause the prince to dismiss me at once.
When I offered him the enchanted rose in return for shelter from the bitter cold, Adam failed to disappoint me. He immediately ordered me to leave. Things were turning out better than I thought! Now anyone who saw him would believe he deserved his punishment for being rude to a poor old woman! Everyone would hate him at first sight!
I couldn't resist messing with his mind. "Do not be deceived by appearances, for beauty is found within."
He dismissed me again. Oh, this was too perfect! The spoiled, selfish prince was turning away the poor beggarwoman! Yes, he deserved everything he got! The beautiful enchantress was a victim of circumstance, not an evil witch who had been plotting the prince's demise many decades before he was even born.
I wasn't satisfied cursing the prince. I decided to place a spell over his entire castle. I didn't care who lived there: kindly widows, young children, innocent babies…Let them all be cursed! Let no one be able to send for help! Let no one be able to testify to my cruelty!
Let the forest be foreboding and uninhabitable by even the hardiest of men! Let danger abound! Let no one be able to reach the prince! Let no one from the castle be able to reach the outside world!
Of course, my spell will be broken if the cursed prince finds love before the rose dies, but no one is able to come to his castle, and he is unable to send for anyone. His own parents think he no longer cares for them. No one misses him enough to go looking for him, and if they found him, his temper is just as bad as ever, and he's hideous, so no one will stay around to break the spell.
I have won!