“What are you laughing at?” sniped Flora.
“Shhh, Flora, don’t speak to that creature! She won’t be laughing when she fails the exam,” said Fauna.
Maleficent ignored her, but the Blue Fairy shot Fauna a nasty look. “Fauna, leave her alone!” She took Maleficent by the hand and led her away from the trio. “Don’t worry about them, Maleficent. They’re just nervous you will do better than them. You were always a good student.”
Maleficent couldn’t stop looking at the Blue Fairy. Her skin was luminescent. Her glow seemed to come from within, as if her goodness was too awesome to be contained. “I wish you would have stayed in school. I hope you know not all of us hated you,” the fairy continued.
Maleficent smiled and squeezed the Blue Fairy’s hand as the two watched the Fairy Godmother and Nanny create additional paths for the students to follow. Finally, the Fairy Godmother commenced the exams.
“Choose whichever path speaks to your soul,” she advised. “You will only have your wits and magic to guide you. Good luck, my dears! Now begin!”
Taking a deep breath, Maleficent looked back at Nanny. Nanny flashed Maleficent one of her magnificent smiles and mouthed the words I love you, Daughter. With one last wave to her mother, Maleficent turned and walked down the path that felt like it might be hers. She soon found herself in a world that was very unlike the Fairylands.
Maleficent was standing near a small well that lay in the shadow of a beautiful castle with many spires. The castle’s roofs resembled red witch hats, and the surrounding lands were lush, green, and heavily wooded. There seemed to be all manner of forest creatures romping about, making the scene more picturesque than if it had been reality. Sitting on the edge of the well and kicking her feet was a young girl with black hair tied with a red ribbon. She was a pretty little thing, with her pale face and apple-red cheeks.
She was crying.
“What’s the matter, dear?” Maleficent asked. The girl looked up and gasped. “Shhh, I’m not here to harm you,” Maleficent assured her. “What’s your name?”
The little girl looked at Maleficent, terrified, but she managed to speak. “My name is Snow White.”
“Snow, don’t be afraid of me. I’m here to help you. What’s the matter, why are you crying?”
“It’s my mother. She won’t eat or drink, and she spends her days talking to someone who isn’t there. She has been ill and heartbroken since my father died…and…”
“Tell me, please,” Maleficent said, coaxing her.
“I’m afraid of her. She’s changed since my father died. I’m afraid she may kill me.”
“Where is your mother now?” asked Maleficent.
“She spends all her time in her room,” Snow replied. “I think she may be going mad. I hear her talking endlessly to someone who isn’t there. Sometimes I hear her screaming at something.”
Maleficent was concerned. “Has no one looked into this? Is she being tormented by someone or by something? Has anyone been to see her to lift her spirits? To help her through her grief?”
“No one except my father’s cousins. But she banished them long ago, along with her best friend, Verona. I’m afraid she is very
much alone,” Snow replied, wiping tears from her face.
Maleficent didn’t understand how the girl could leave her poor grieving mother alone to wither and suffer, but she remained sweet and understanding. “Stay here, my dear. I will see to your mother.”
As soon as Maleficent entered the castle, she could feel despair weighing heavily in the air. The home was cursed with sadness and something much worse, something sinister and unnerving. As she made her way up to the queen’s chamber, she heard a woman’s voice. How long has this woman been alone up here raving like a madwoman? And to whom is she speaking? Maleficent whispered a charm that allowed her to see through walls. The effect was much like creating a window. She could see whoever was on the other side, but they were unaware that they were being spied on.
Standing in the middle of the room was a beautiful queen, sobbing with despair as she screamed at a man’s image in her mirror. “I command you to tell me the truth!” she shrieked through tears.
A horrible wicked voice came from the man in the mirror. His face was cruel and twisted with hatred. “You killed your mother the day you were born, and your face reminds me of hers.”
“That’s why you despise me?” The queen was crying so hard she couldn’t catch her breath.
“I wish you had died that day, not her!” spat the man in the mirror.
Maleficent was horrified. The man was the ghost of the queen’s father, and he was tormenting her from beyond the grave. She had no one to defend her from him. He was slowly turning the poor woman mad.
“If I could reach through this mirror and kill you myself, I would! You’re ugly and vile and your heart is black as night. You repulse me.” The queen cried even harder as the man in the mirror continued. “Your daughter, Snow White, is the fairest in the land. I could never love you or find you beautiful while she lives.” The queen looked up at her father through swollen, tear-filled eyes. Maleficent thought the queen must be bewitched or under his spell, because she couldn’t fathom any other reason the queen would want the horrible man’s approval, or want that creature to love her and find her beautiful. It made Maleficent ill.
“Will you love me if I kill Snow White?” the queen asked, an evil smile on her lips.
“Yes, my daughter. That would please me. That would make me love you more.”