Snow White

I hummed to myself as I took the clothes down from the line and put them in a woven basket.

“Snow?” I turned around to see Henry standing behind me in his hunting gear. The queen must want meat for dinner.

“Yes?” I answered, moving down the line.

“Come with me,” he said curtly. I put the basket down and walked over to him. As I got close I saw the edges around Henry’s eyes were red and his cheeks had a pinkish hue around them. He only looked like this after he cried.

“Henry, what’s wrong?” I asked, running over to him.

“Nothing. The queen wants you to pick flowers out in the meadow for her dinner table tonight,” he said before handing me a small basket and walking past me. I ran in front of him and put a hand on his chest to stop him.

“No, something is wrong. What is it?” I asked stubbornly. Henry always confided in me before, why should this be any different?

“Nothing is wrong, Snow White!” he nearly yelled at me. I stepped back in shock before he let out a sigh and pushed past me. I bit down on my lip before turning and following him out to the pasture.

When we got to the meadow I glanced at Henry to see he was staring off into the deep, dark woods that surrounded the meadow, an upset look on his face. I looked upward to see dark storm clouds rolling in over the hills, and they were coming quickly. I better hurry or Henry and I would get caught in the rain on the way back. I turned around and walked to the middle before I began picking flowers.

When I’d picked a couple dozen red flowers I looked up and spotted a bright yellow flower in bloom by the trees at the edge of the forest and rushed over to it with a smile. I plucked it from the tree it was growing in front of and put it in my basket. I should have enough flowers now…

I suddenly felt someone grab my shoulder roughly and spin me around before pushing me up against the tree. In my surprise I dropped my basket and looked up to see Henry standing in front of me, an intense look on his face. He leaned forward until he was only a couple inches from my face.

“Listen to me, Snow, you are in danger,” he whispered and I could feel his breath on my face, making mine hitch in my throat. Suddenly a streak of lightning lit up the dark sky and a soft rumbling followed.

“How?” I managed to ask.

“The queen wants you dead. She called me into her room and told me to take you out to the woods and to bring back your lungs and liver,” he whispered, leaning in closer. My eyes widened and a cry escaped my lips.

“She gave me this to kill you with, and this to bring back the lungs and liver in,” he said. His hands left my shoulders and he pulled a small dagger out of his boot and a circular box out of his pants.

“Y-you’re not gonna kill me, right?” I squeaked. His eyes narrowed at me and I could see hurt flash across his eyes.

“Of course not, Snow,” he said, shaking his head. “Why would you ever think I would, or even could, do that to you?”

“You acted so cold earlier,” I said, and I could see his eyes soften.

“I had to, Snow. The queen was watching us through the window, but she can’t see us here,” he said. It was quiet for a moment and the only sound I could hear was the distant rumbling of thunder.

“What will you do?” I finally asked.

“I’ll kill a boar and bring her the lungs and liver of the animal,” he said. “And you must run away and never come back until the queen has died.”

“No!” I protested. My arms shot up and grabbed onto Henry’s shirt. “Come with me, Henry. The queen will never be able to find us.”

Henry reached up and twisted a lock of my raven black hair around his finger before looking back into my eyes. “I can’t, Snow.”

“Why?” I shot back.

“She threatened to kill my whole family if I didn’t bring her back your lungs and liver,” he said.

“But…but you’re best friend-my only friend…I don’t want to be without you,” I cried, my eyes tearing up. He leaned his forehead against mine before taking a deep breath.

“I promise you, I’ll see you again someday,” he said before taking a step back.

“No!” I cried, reaching out and grabbing his arm before pulling him back to me. “Go get your family and we can run away together.”

“You know she’ll hunt us down, Snow,” he said with a sigh, looking down at the ground. “You must leave-now.”

My lower lip shook and I could feel tears welling up in my eyes. I’d always taken Henry for granted because he’d always been there, and I thought he always would. Now the prospect of living a life without Henry seemed bleak and I could feel a hole growing in my heart. For the first time I finally realized why I wasn’t interested in Prince Edmund, or any other man for that matter.

“But…I love you,” I whispered. He looked back up at me in shock before a small smile pulled at his lips.

“And I love you too. I love you enough to let you go,” he said before pulling away and running across the meadow. A few tears escaped my eyes as I watched him walk away before I felt a water drop hit my nose. I looked up at the sky to see it starting to rain.

With one last glance at Henry I turned and set off into the ominous looking woods. I climbed over fallen trees and waded through streams as rain fell through the cracks in the foliage and soaked through my clothes.

My leg suddenly caught on an tree root and I fell face-first into the mud. I got up to see a long tear in my dress and a cut on my knee. I slowly got up and pressed on. I had to keep moving, for Henry.



I walked up the castle stairs with blood staining my clothes and the box in front of me, droplets of blood dripping down the side. Snow’s tearstained face was still fresh in my mind, but I had to let her go. I had to lie to her and tell her I’d see her again one day, it was the only way she would have left. It was the only way to save her, so I had to push my own feelings to the side. I was startled to find out that she loved me. All these years she’d always seemed so indifferent to me. She was a great friend, but it never seemed to go beyond that for her. I walked up to the queen’s door and knocked on it.

“Come in,” came the reply. I opened the door and walked inside with the disgusting box in front of me. It was a shame a boar had to die so the witch could have the lungs and liver of what she thought was Snow White.

Her eyes lit up when she saw the box and quickly got up and snatched the box from me. When she looked inside her lips curved into a wicked smile and she let out a laugh.

“I knew I could count on you, huntsman. I wondered for a while if I would have to kill that little family of yours.”

“I did what you asked, now leave them alone,” I growled, my hands curling into fists at my side.

“Don’t worry, I’m a woman of my word,” she said, before handing the box back to me. “Oh, and don’t worry too much, I’m sure you’ll find another lovely lady.”

My eyes widened in surprise. Did she know how I loved Snow White?

“Yes, huntsman, I knew how you were in love with her. It wasn’t hard to see it with the way you looked at her,” she said with an evil smile, thinking I had lost my only love.

“Take that box to the cook and tell him to cook it for my dinner tonight,” she said with a wave of her hand before walking back to her reclining couch. I scrunched up my nose in disgust before turning and walking out. She may only be the second most beautiful woman in the land, but she was certainly the most cruel and demented.



I pushed the leaves away from the tree branch in front of me and let out a cry of delight when I saw a small cottage in the middle of the woods. I almost cried in joy as I ran up to the house and looked for a light on inside. I tentatively reached for the door and was surprised when it creaked open a little when I knocked on it, like it hadn’t been closed all the way. Maybe it was an abandoned house.

I pushed the door open and peeked inside to see smaller than usual furniture in the living room and a table in the middle of the dining room to the right with seven small chairs seated around it. The house was dirty, but I could tell it had been occupied recently. Maybe the owners were away for the day. Surely they wouldn’t mind if I came in. After all, I was so exhausted and hungry…

I walked in and closed the door behind me before walking into the kitchen and grabbing a loaf of bread from the counter. I bit into it and let the taste fill my mouth before swallowing. I walked out of the kitchen with the bread and decided to see if there was anyone upstairs. I slowly ascended the stairs to find seven bedrooms upstairs, each with a small bed in the middle and a name on each door. Harold, Luke, Paul, Harry, Aaron, George, and lastly, Adam.

I walked to the window at the end of the hall and saw a small outhouse in the back. I leaned against the window and looked down the hall at the seven doors lining the hallway. If I had any chance at staying here I would have to give them something in return, but what?

I chewed on the piece of bread as I walked down the stairs and back into the kitchen. I let out a sigh when I saw the pile of dishes just sitting in the sink. After years of cleaning the castle for my stepmother I’d come to hate a mess when I see it. I walked over to the sink and began to pump some water into it before grabbing a scrubbing brush and washing the dishes.

Suddenly an idea hit me. If the owners came home to a spotless cottage they might let me stay in exchange for cleaning their house and maybe even cooking if they needed it. With a smile I started scrubbing the dishes with a new determination.