When I arrived at the castle, the guards told me that I could find King White in his office.
I walked over the wooden draw bridge the triplets had put in to replace the stone one, and found myself in front of the office door.
Suddenly becoming nervous, I took in a deep breath.
"Come on, Merlin. You've faced much worse than this. You can do this!"
After psyching myself up, I raised my hand, took another deep breath, and knocked on the door.
"Who is it", I heard King White ask.
"It's Merlin", I replied.
"Merlin", I heard King White say happily. "Please come in!"
With this, I opened the office door, and found King White sitting at his desk.
"I'm sorry to bother you, King White", I apologised as I walked into the office and closed the door.
"It's not a bother at all, Merlin", King White reassured me. "If you're here to see Snow White, I'm afraid that she's in town today."
"I know", I revealed. "I actually came here to talk to you."
"You have? What did you want to talk about?"
After King White asked me this, I sat in front of his desk, and took another deep breath.
"King White, I have come to ask you for your blessing to ask for Snow White's hand in marriage."
King White's reaction to my request was surprising calm.
"Is that so", he asked.
Then, he sat up from his chair.
"Merlin", he started. "Before I give you my answer, I have some questions, and I want you to answer them honestly."
"Yes, your majesty", I replied. "Fire away."
"When you discovered what Show White's true appearance was…how did you honestly feel?"
"How did I honestly feel", I asked myself, before thinking about it for a moment. "I felt…conflicted, and then…disappointed."
"Disappointed", King White asked.
"Yes", I replied. "But not in Snow White. In myself."
"You were disappointed in yourself", King White asked.
"I was", I replied. "Because…Snow White was right. If I had seen what she truly looked like from the get go, I'm not sure that I would've been as eager to help her as I was when she was Red Shoes."
"I see", King White said. "Now, answer me this. How do you feel about Snow White now that you've gotten to spend some time with her?"
I didn't need to think about my answer to this question.
"She is kind, and caring", I replied. "She doesn't immediately judge people on first impressions, and instead gets to know them first."
Before I continued, I looked down at my lap, and smiled as I thought about Snow White.
"I don't have to worry about how I come off in front of her. I can just be myself when I'm with her. When I think about her, I get this warm feeling in my chest. When I'm not with her, I'm desperately waiting until I can see her again."
After I said all of this, I looked up at King White.
"I love Snow White", I declared. "The thought of not being with her makes my heart ache. I want to be in her life for as long as I'm breathing. I'd give up my life for her if it came to that!"
With this, I got up from my seat. Then, I went to King White…before kneeling down in front of him.
"King White, I vow to you here and now that I will care for and protect your daughter until my last breath. So, I beg you! Please grant me your blessing to marry Snow White!"
After my plea, I looked up at King White…and saw that he was crying!
"King White, are you okay", I asked in concern.
"That was so beautiful", he stated.
Then, he wiped away his tears and looked back at me.
"Please sit, Merlin", he instructed. "I would like to tell you a story."
"A story", I asked as I stood back up.
"Yes", King White replied.
Then, we both sat back down, and he began his story.
"When I was younger, many woman would approach me. However, I always wondered if this would still be the case if I was not a king. After all, I'm not what most woman would consider attractive.
I've always enjoyed the pure beauty of snow. One day, I decided to go to the forrest to admire the snow, and when I got there…I found a beautiful woman building a snowman. When she saw me, she asked me to join her. We had so much fun together, and when it was time to say goodbye, she asked me to meet her again.
Because I had such a wonderful time with her, I completely forgot to tell her that I was actually a king! I meant to tell her the next time we met, but once again, we had such a good time together that it ended up completely slipping my mind!
This continued to go on for some time, but I knew that I had to eventually tell her the truth about who I was."
"What did she say when you finally did tell her that you were a king", I asked.
"These were her exact words", King White started. "Oh, so you're a king. Neat."
"Wait", I started. "That's all she said to finding out that you were a prince?"
"I was just as surprised myself", King White replied. "I asked her why she didn't have a really big reaction to finding out I was a king, and she told me that it didn't matter to me if I was a king or not. In her eyes, all that mattered was that I was a kind guy who didn't find it odd that she was a grown woman who still liked to build snowmen."
When I heard this, I couldn't help but let out a little laugh, before smiling.
"She sounds like she was a wonderful woman", I said.
"She was. She didn't care about my appearance, or that I was a king. She just accepted me for who I was."
After King White said this, he suddenly got up from his chair and started making his way around the desk.
"My wish for Snow White has always been that she someday find someone like that. Someone who will accept her for who she is."
After King White said this, he put his hands on my shoulders.
"Merlin, That person is you. You have fulfilled my wish for my daughter. Therefore, I grant you my blessing to marry Show White."
After King White said this, I became overcome with joy as a huge smile came to my face. Then, without thinking, I jumped out of my seat and pulled him into a tight hug.
"Thank you, thank you", I exclaimed. "Thank you so much, King White!"
"Merlin, why are you hugging Papa?"