Sitting on her throne, the Queen admired the empire she had built for herself.

She marveled at the beauty of her kingdom, graced by the presence of a light snow dusting, making the air sparkle with an inviting glint.

She sat, self-assured, as the ruler of the land.

The Queen was a fierce leader, with a ruthless grip on her subjects, but she treated them with respect and kindness, showing them mercy in desperate times.

In return they remained loyal to her, acting as the epitome of obedience.

As the sun set and the day came to a close, she plied herself from her stiff throne, grateful to retreat to her quarters.

 

Her bedroom mirrored the landscape outside; a large white duvet thrown artfully over her white oak bed, with goose-feather pillows and a white sheepskin rug at its foot.

Once in her room, the Queen slipped on a comfortable white robe, and pulled her hair out of its elaborate up-do.

She sat down in front of her refurbished antique desk, white, to match the rest of her interior, of course.

On the wall above her desk, the Queen had a wonderful looking-glass, and when she sat and looked at herself in it, she saw the toll that ruling had taken on her. Her skin had started to turn a tad translucent from exhaustion, and her eyes looked back at her red-rimmed, holding a worn gaze.

Suddenly struck by insecurity, she asked--

 

"Looking-glass, Looking-glass, on the wall,

Who in this land is the fairest of all?"

 

To which the looking-glass answered--

"Thou, O Queen, art the fairest of all!"

 

She sighed in satisfaction and relief, reassured of her beauty and power, for she knew that the looking-glass spoke the truth.

 

Unbeknownst to the Queen,  somewhere in the nooks and crannies of the kingdom, Snow-white was growing up, and growing ever more beautiful.

 

One day, years later, when the Queen was struck by another moment of insecurity, looking for reassurance, she asked her looking-glass --

 

"Looking-glass, Looking-glass, on the wall,

Who in this land is the fairest of all?"

 

To which it answered--

"Thou art fairer than all who are here, Lady Queen.

But more beautiful still is Snow-white, as I ween."

 

The Queen was shocked, as she had not expected such a response.

She turned pink with embarrassment, and then green with envy.

From that moment, whenever she looked at Snow-white, her heart heaved in her chest, as she felt her own status had been threatened by the success of another woman.

 

She thought for days on end about how to fix the problem at hand, for how will she survive if there is another beautiful and capable woman in her kingdom?

 

Her answer came to her unexpectedly as she was mitigating a dispute between two neighbors in her kingdom.

Two women who had come to seek her judgment, as they were quarreling over a man, who had told them both they were the love of his life.

The women screamed at each other as they both believed to be worthier, prettier, and lovelier than the other.

And after hours of listening to their bickering the Queen had finally had it and yelled--

 

“For thou art both fair and lovely,

Why would you let a man convince thee

Thou art not worthy

Of love, power, and beauty?”

 

And at once, the Queen realized that the same applied to her insecurity as well; for it did not matter if her mirror presumed Snow White to be fairer than her, for she was still just as beautiful and powerful as before.

 

In fact, she was excited by the fact that her kingdom was home to wonderful people, such as Snow White.

 

And as this realization dawned on her, she concluded that her beauty and power could not be threatened by another lovely lady, as she was confident enough in herself to know her worth, regardless of others.