Snow white empties her lungs. With her left index finger against her left nostril she places the straw to her right, leans down toward the mirror and draws the line straight to her head. Her eyes water as she reels from the sting. The mirror that once championed her beauty is no suffocated by mounds of snow white powder. She sits back with her eyes closed and her teeth clenched. There are nicotine stains on her fingers. Her eyes are sunken and dark with pale, pillowy skin underneath. There is no light there. Her matted dark hair hangs heavily around her sallow cheeks and deep creases surround her mouth and line her brow.
The castle is cold and silent…still. The walls that once insulated her with love now exhale a cold clammy breath. She hollowly glares down at the clouded mirror. Why didn’t the mirror warn of this? Why didn’t the mirror speak of this horror? Now it can speak no more…the magic has faded along with all life in this place. She smashes her fist down on the glass. The sound of it’s shatter is accompanied by a faint screeching wail of a death rattle sending clouds of white dust into the air and shards of silvery glass spraying the floor. Laughing she licks the powdered residue and blood from her hand. The metallic warmth of her blood mingles with the bitter powder in her mouth creating an intoxicating cocktail. She swoons back in to her throne.
Sitting there overlooking this vacant hall she realizes she has nothing and is surrounded by everything that is filth all at once. She begins to cry. Warm salty tears cleanse her cheeks leaving meandering streaks down her face. She rises from her seat and falters. Tripping on her gown she lands prone on the stone floor. Her dress is tattered and stained with urine and blood among other bodily fluids. And the pungent sour smell in the great hall is saturated in every thread. She rises again only to stumble her way to the main gate.
Staggering out into black the forest she is greeted by nothing…not a peep or a chirp. The woodland creatures that used to sing to her hide quietly in her presence. She is the storm. She howls into the night, “GRIMHILDE! FINISH ME!” Her plea is unanswered.
The Evil Queen waits in her tower. She watches Snow White in the dark water of her cauldron. Her insides percolating with seething delight at the anguish of her once bright nemesis. “How beautiful she was. How clear and cool she was…her breath as sweat as her soul. Now look at her…crawling through the mud and stinking of her own contamination. She begs me to snuff out her barely flickering light. But I won’t. She can suffer to the last. My wrath is to kind for her. The putridity that she has created is her perfect hell. Her corruption is my salvation!”
Grimhilde watches as Snow White claws her way to the river’s edge. Blankly she looks down at her reflection. Tears flowing down her muddy cheeks she plunges her face into the icy water. A rush of bubbles surface. Her head remains immersed and more bubbles come. Still she stays with her head under water. A minute passes. One big rush of air bursts through the surface of the water. Then…nothing. Silence. And nothing still.
The Evil Queen rejoices spinning and dancing around her cauldron. She takes one last glance at the still body before she flees her secret chamber to announce, “SNOW WHITE IS DEAD! RING THE BELLS! SNOW WHITE IS DEAD!” She leans out of the tower window and releases a loud squawk and in a moment she is greeted by a large grackle. ”Go to the river and find Snow White. Pluck out her eyes and bring them back to me.” Without hesitation her winged servant soars into the night. Grimhilde waits patiently. Sitting by the window she leers out at over what is now her kingdom. A land free of Snow White lies below and is all hers. She cannot wait to spread the word. But not without the eyes. She must have the eyes first.
She rises when she spies her winged beast gliding toward the tower. Her heart races in anticipation of holding those eyes in her hands. Almost dizzy with disgusting delight she holds out her arms to the bird that lands on the window’s ledge. He opens his mouth to release a shrill screech but there were no eyes inside. He continues to squawk and rattle his message to her. She releases a cacophonous, “NOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!” It fills the air and trees outside. Fuming she scurries back to her chamber to scrutinize the water in her cauldron. Where Snow White’s body once laid there was now nothing. She smacked the water with her gaunt fingers feverishly as if the image were hiding in it somewhere. But nothing surfaced. No Snow White reappeared to her.
In a wild rage of furious anger she flutters back to the window and shrieks, “Snow White, this is not the end of you and me! You have not suffered! You have not tasted the anguish and tears of true pain! No, you have not suffered. But you will suffer me! You will suffer me!
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