Let me tell you a story, a story about a young girl and her mothers. The fair girl's name was Snow White, and her mother and father couldn't have chosen a better name for their beloved daughter for Snow White was indeed pale with skin as white as freshly fallen snow.

There have been many poems written about the bloody tale of that child but none spoke of the beauty that she had beheld. Yes, she was beautiful, so beautiful in fact that the people of her father's kingdom named her fairest in all the land. She had hair that bounced on her shoulders, black as ebony. A well rounded face, holding none of the weight, with a petite button nose that gave her the appearance of a porcelain doll. There was one poem though; it spoke of the likeness of the bloody color of her lips and the blood on her hands. It was true that the colour of her lips were as red as the deepest blood but the princess never had blood on her hands, because all of the stepmothers died without a single drop of blood on them.

Snow White was only a girl of fourteen and not yet a woman grown, this was in both body and mind for little Snow White had the mind of a young child of eight years old. She could never recover from loss or indeed jealousy for her father loving another. And this, you'll find, is where our story begins.

It was all well in their happy little kingdom, that was until their queen died. Some claim that her own daughter had done the deed or that she had killed herself out of despair of what her daughter had become. However, her death was not so near as gruesome. The queen had died of an illness, it had struck fast and no doctor or indeed no physician could heal her. After the queen's death the illness had spread to the household, however the illness knew no boundaries and soon the entire kingdom had succumbed to the disease. Many died but Snow White only cared for the death of her mother, she never got to say goodbye because her father forbade her from going to the funeral in fear that she too would die from the same illness that had claimed her mother.

For all the crying in her father's kingdom Snow White's was the loudest and most mournful, but as her sadness grew so did her hatred. She had begun to hate her father for she believed that her father was disgracing her mother and her last memory of her by hiding her away in a solem coffin when she should be with her daughter in the gardens that they both loved to tend together.

Soon the illness had subsided and vanished, and the long, harsh months of mourning ended. Then all the people wanted nothing more than to move past the tragedies that had beheld each and everyone of them. No more so than the King himself who, in his darkest moments, had indeed found love and solace; a nurse who watched over Snow White and her father, and had comforted and cared for them both. The King and Catherine, who she was named, fell deep in love and vowed to marry come the new year. The whole kingdom soon fell deep in love for the nurse who had caught the King's heart.

They rejoiced for the new year wedding for they believed it to be a symbol for a new beginning and new life, free from the hardships of the previous long months.

Hence came December but there was one person who despised the King's bride: Snow White. She hated Catherine for she believed that she was taking her mother's place in her father's heart, and hers. The King, who had grown close with his daughter in those terrible months had become, as she believed, stale and distant towards her and visited her less often.

Now all of the poets and authors alike never tell this part of this story for they never knew, but I do and I fear that if I do not tell it then I shall burst. One evening, during a private supper, Snow White had confronted her father about his treacherous proposal to the nurse. But when the King pleaded with his daughter that he loved both women in his life Snow White grew angry and began to shout manically, until Catherine herself had intervened and made the fatal mistake of calling Snow White her daughter. Then she went quiet as she was infuriated beyond words to fully comprehend. Silently, she left the table but with a fierce hatred bubbling over.

When the King and his bride Catherine left to go to their separate chambers, Snow White was on top of the grand staircase to meet them. She appeared out of breath, red either from running or her anger but it did not matter for she revealed her utmost fury upon both her face and actions. She ran at Catherine and pushed her down the staircase. King Leopold was no King at that moment but merely a man who had to watch his love crumble down the stairs, frozen in horror. He ran after her but when he met her at the final few steps he saw her eyes. Dull and lifeless. He cried out the most horrified and mournful sound but no one was there to hear for there were no servants and Snow White was gone.

I would like to say that this is where our story ends and that Snow White had repented her actions then all was well. That everyone lived happily ever after.. But this is not that kind of story.

In almost every story about royals they mention only a princess or a prince but they always forget the King and Queen. You see a King has duties which all writers seem to forget when they are telling long tales of dragons or love struck marriages, these all cause a ripple effect. A ripple effect that affects not only themselves but their entire kingdom. The King saw the first ripple and was terrified. Hastily, he sought to stabilize the tidal wave coming their way, by arranging a marriage with a nearby country. Now this marriage was hoped to remain a well kept secret until the day of which they were to be married but this was not to be. Rumours spread and soon the entire royal household and kingdom had knowledge of this arranged marriage. Now to you dear reader, this may not seem at all odd but to the King not only was this odd but also deeply disturbing. For if the entire kingdom knew of this union, then so must Snow White. The King's heart still mourned the tragic loss of his beloved Catherine and fear of what his daughter would do, her actions would define the nation and stamp their future into the dirt.

You may recall the night of which Catherine had died but not recall that no one, apart from the King and his lost daughter, saw the tragic event. For even this was a blessing in disguise. You see, after the event the King hushed it all up, all in a round ball of fear; fear of what his daughter had done and fear for his country. Snow White was his only child, young as she was she would rule after him. An entire country under a little girl's grap, a girl who had shown no sadness or indeed remorse for what she had done. Do you understand the man's fear now?

So yes, he was scared. Alas, the wedding ceremony came but there were no great festivities, nor a thousand invites. It was small, quiet but regal all the same. You may think that the King's thoughts were unreasonable or perhaps he was overreacting, if so then it may surprise you to know that the bride was not in the palace. She had never even seen the place in which she was to be married and spending the rest of her life. No. Instead she prepared for the wedding in another castle across a bridge.

Hence came the wedding day, and much to the relief and delight of the King Snow White had given her father her blessing and smiled. He believed her to understand his reservations of marrying someone whom he had never met. For an hour it all seemed well.

Then two…

Then three…

Until at last a messenger came drenched in sweat. He ran up the aisle to the groom to inform him that he was no longer a groom. The carriage of which had carried the bride had unfortunately been attacked by bandits. Whilst he ordered the guards to search for the carriage with the messenger in tow he could not help but look upon the face of Snow White who did not seem surprised by the news. But rather a smile with a jingle of coins as she walked out of the hall unnoticed. Dread filled his heart, more powerful than the sadness for the loss of the Princess. Though this was perhaps unwise as the consequences of this were far more disastrous for the kingdom than the torn king's heart, for the neighbouring country's princess had been killed and no amount of convincing them of his, or indeed his country's, innocence abated their anger and sadness.

In an attempt to rid himself of his daughter, he looked for boarding schools in the country where she would be educated, and counselled in grief. A place to start afresh for her. To move on. Her grandmother, the king's mother, broke through her doubts and conceded that it was time for Snow White to learn more about the world and people around her. So whilst Snow White was in the garden tending to the large apple tree the king called upon Snow White's tutors, thankful for their services and they were dismissed. Then he faced the task of telling Snow White of his plan, of her leaving, omitting his hope for a kinder future and mindset in his daughter. He left for the garden but found it more occupied than he had hoped. He heard voices beyond the doors, his mother congratulating Snow White on her cooking skills.

His mother hearing his approach turned, smiling. Then he realised in his mother's hand was a small apple pie with a small portion missing, with Snow White's eyes large and expectant. In a quick motion by the King the pie crumbled to the floor. She looked at him shocked for his poor manners. Then shocked at her trouble to draw breath. The king caught his mother as she fell and watched in horror as her face turned colour. When she died Snow White was calm as she stated that she had no intention of leaving home and her mother. A fact she had proven to be true as her grandmother lay dead in his arms. Unlike the other events, the guards of the palace had been witnesses, heard her confession and escorted her away.

Then he was left alone in the garden, his tears watering the weeds by his feet.

For you dear reader this worsened turn of events might not be at all shocking, though saddening, and you may wonder how Snow White had known of the plan regarding the boarding school, for that I do not have an answer though I have strived to come up with one. It seems to me that looking at why or how Snow White had achieved what she did was like planting a tree in water - hopeless and out of your depth. I suppose she thought it poetic in a sickening way as her mother had requested to be buried under the very same apple tree, the same one they had both planted in Snow White's infancy. A poet might make a deep and complex metaphor regarding the balance of life and death but I'll leave that to greater literature. Those who will have time.

Instead I will focus on the inconsequentiality of his actions had he succeeded. Snow White would be far away from the palace indeed yet the armies from the mourning and vengeful country grew ever closer. A threat he could not overcome. They were a proud country yes, yet small compared to the monsoon coming and as a consequence of his actions he had no familarial support nor political due to Snow White. His actions, though well intentioned, were in vain and in hindsight foolish.

Supposing he knew of the coming events from the very beginning I suppose he would have been stronger in mind and heart, putting his people before his shame and fear. Through all of his fear for his daughter he could not or perhaps would not see past the ebony hair, red lips and white skin she had since birth. When she was his little girl.

I begged not to see the monster within only to doom my kingdom and my family to the spears of the monster's victims.