The Huntsman Takes Snow White to the Dwarf House

Painting five out of fourteen in The Trial of Queen Vergeblich, The Stepmother of Snow White series.

One day the Queen called me into the castle. She said that she had seen a boar ravaging the fields, and I should let out the dogs to chase it away. They were howling when I let them out, and they raced toward the field. But then, all was quiet. They had found Snow White in the field, picking strawberries. Instead of attacking her, the dogs began wagging their tails, and she was petting them as though they were friends. She was even singing to them. I did not understand how the Queen would have me let out the dogs when Snow White was in the field. I suspected the Queen meant harm to Snow White.

Later I was summoned to the Queen. Snow White was there, and the Queen asked me to escort her to the deep woods to look for mushrooms then bring back a heart to cook for dinner. It seemed the Queen wanted Snow White out of the way so she could remain the Queen. I think she hoped Snow White would poison herself accidentally by eating a mushroom. I decided the best I could take Snow White away if the Queen meant to do her harm. I thought she might want the heart of Snow White to perform some magic ritual.

Everybody loved Snow White because of her kindness, beauty, and ability to sing. Nobody liked the Queen because she never did anything for anybody. So it seemed like the Queen was jealous of Snow White. I decided to take Snow White to a place of safety. I took her to the house of the seven dwarfs high in the mountains beyond the forest. The trip through the forest was spooky. It seemed that all eyes were on me as I carried Snow White on my horse’s back. I had to leave her alone at the house of the Dwarfs because the Dwarfs were at their mine.

I returned to the castle through the forest. I was hoping that I had pleased the fairies of the wood by my actions. Fairies like mushrooms, and we never bothered to pick any. The woods were much happier on my return. I was even able to kill a deer that I took back to the castle. There I presented the heart to the Queen. She seemed happy to have it. Then, I told the Queen how Snow White had died accidentally by eating a poisoned mushroom. She took the news as I expected and was relatively calm. She did not even bother to organize a funeral.

I had hoped the location of Snow White would stay a secret, but I overheard people in the market talking about her sometime later.

But it took quite a while for the Queen to learn where she was.