The Sleeping White of the Woods

The Plan

       Queen Elizabeth and Papa had devised a plan. The Queen still wanted to be Queen. Papa still wanted to be wealthy. So they came up with a plan to fit both their needs.
       The two would get married, and papa would be sent a large sum of money. This is a gift given to the bride after marriage. Then, on their honeymoon, the queen would have her guards murder the horrible girl. The two young adult had no idea what was going on behind their backs.
       They continued to meet in the clearing. They thought they were alone. The queen had sent guards out a few times. The guards reported back saying that you laughed with each other, and had much in common.
       Eventually, the guards felt bad for spying on the two. They told the queen. "Oh, you must keep watching them," she said, a worried look on her face, " I worry about him. I don't want his heart broken." The guards agrees to continue watching them. Once the guards left, the queen broke into and evil smile. She called her scribe over, and told him to write a letter to Papa. She wanted Papa to know that the two were getting along very well. They would only need a little more time.
       The next day, the guards congregated in the courtyard to discuss who would go spy. They still felt bad about spying, so they thought they would trick the queen.  Two guards would leave, as usual, but they wouldn't go to the forest. They would wait for the prince to come back. Then, they would report what they "saw" to the queen. When the prince returned, the two guards came back. When asked what the had seen, they told the queen nothing new had happened. She was skeptical of their wanswer, but decided to overlook it, as she had much bigger things to worry about. Completely unaware of the deadly plot happening behind their back, the young couple had, in fact, celebrated something big. Their one year anniversary. They had celebrated it with their first kiss.
       The next day began as any other would. They met in the clearing. He on his horse, her on her feet. They spoke of her childhood. She had never really opened up about it, but after sharing their first kiss, she had  opened up about it more. They spoke of where she had come from, who she was, where she wanted to go. She had only ever told him her first name, but she finally told him her full name. Rosella White. She came from a rich family, but her parents died so she was stuck with her stepdad. She said her stepdad was unkind, and made her do all the chores in the house. He spent all her education money on drinks and gambling. She then started talking about her parents. She looked like her mother abound her father was a wealthy merchant. She talked about how her mother got got sick and her father became depressed. Suddenly, she started crying. It was quiet, but obvious.
     Her shoulders were shaking and tears were running down her cheeks. She turned away, realizing that he had been watching her. He reached for her hand, but she pulled away. "I have to go." She said. "Why?" She wouldn't look at him. "Why?" I repeated. She still wouldn't look. She shook her head and ran into the woods. "Are we meeting tomorrow?" He shouted after her. She didn't answer, just kept running.
     The prince returned to the clearing every day for weeks. She never returned. He eventually stopped going as well. He had given up. She ran because she was embarrassed. No one had ever seen her cry before, and she didn't want anyone to now. Especially not him.
     Month passed, and there was no sign of her. The prince had fallen into depression. He spoke to no one. He rarely ate anymore and no one ever saw him  leave his room. He was always looking out his window at the gate of the castle, hoping, but no one came. Until one day, he spotted a small figure arriving at the gate.