Isabella was incredibly quiet. More so than before. She was beginning to realise that this was a lose/lose situation. She tried not to make herself obvious.
“Will you come with me.. Into the silver forest?” He asked sweetly.
“ But.. You’re not allowed in there its..”
“Dangerous? Bah… you’re the only thing that has come out of that in 9 years. I think its safe.” He laughed “Besides.. I have a surprise for you.”

He smiled and led her across the bank. They entered the silver forest. It was after sunset and the moon was high in the sky leaving a soft white glow on the trees, Isabella and Alexander. She could hear her heart beating in her ears. Her guilt and sadness building and making her feel sick to her stomach. Isabella felt worse when she looked at the clearly excited Alexander. He was so trusting. So Pure.

He finally stopped and pointed to an area of the forest.
All of a sudden a fine table and two chairs appeared. On the table there were plates and meals of all sorts. On the table there was a small pink lantern. There were knives and forks and two glasses.

“How did you…”
“Magic. I thought perhaps you’d like a more civilised meal. We usually just eat in our laps” Alexander laughed. “It will only last about 2 hours so we had better dig in before the table disappears.”

They sat down to eat. Isabella wished for knife wound with every bite of food she took.
“ I wouldn’t mind living in here.” Alexander said. Relaxing with his arm hanging over the back of the seat.
Isabella smiled fakely.
He tucked into his food.
“Do you like it here?” Alexander asked.
“All the parts of the forest look the same to me.”
“No I mean. My way of life. The forest.”
“Oh.. Its very different to my life…anyway.”
“ I’d really like you to stay…with me.” Alexander began.
“ Alexander do you think your feelings would be as strong for me if I were someone else?”
“ I don’t understand.”
“ Answer.”
“Well no… I’m in love with you. With Isabella.”
“I see…” Isabella said sadly.

She remembered what O’ Hare had said to her
“No man will ever truly love you…. Anything he feels will be your witchcraft.”

“Would you love me no matter what Alexander?” Isabella asked.
“Yes Of course.” Alexander smiled.
“Good.” Isabella smiled. “Alexander I… am something… that I have no choice in. I have always been this way and it isn’t  something I can control…”
“What a girl?” Alexander joked.
Isabella looked at him angrily.
“Sorry… go on.”
“It doesn’t matter.” Isabella said and looked away.
Alexander frowned.

“I’ll be back in a minute.”


Isabella was left on her own for what felt like a lifetime. She put her hand in her pocket and felt the corners of the vial. Such a small thing to defeat something so big. She took it out of her pocket and looked it over. She felt burning tears in the sides of her eyes and as her tears began to fall she took the cap off the poison. She stared at the glass on the table uncertainly. Feeling the cold night creeping in around her. If she was going to do it. She would have to do it soon.  Alexander would soon be back. She wiped the tears from her eyes and with one quiet whimper poured the contents into the glass. Her Glass.


Alexander came back happily smiling and sat down.
“A toast to you I think Alexander.” Isabella said
Alexander raised his glass smiling.
“ I love you.” she said.

She raised the glass up to the heavens. Then brought it back down to her mouth. Her lips curved around the cold glass.
She closed her eyes.

“I don’t think so.” called a familiar voice. The King was standing next to them both. He took the untouched drink from Isabella’s mouth placing it back down on the table. She hadn’t had the chance.

“How cute.” The king said mockingly.
“Who are you?!” Alexander said standing up quickly. He was quickly pushed back down on his seat by a pair of unseen hands. Then he seem them. About 5-6 of the King’s watchers were around him and Isabella.
“You pretend not to know who I am?”
“I don’t pretend. I actually have no idea.” Alexander said getting more and more angry.
“Really.. He doesn’t know.” Isabella said feeling her arms being held back by O’Hare.
“Get Off Her!” Alexander shouting “ Isabella.. Do you know these people?”
“Oh… I’d say she knows us very well.” The King said trailing a sharp finger across the chin of Isabella.
“ I am King Fredrick, Or rather acting king. I will have my coronation in two days” The King bowed in an over dramatic matter. “Everything north from here, is under my rule.”
“ So you are the king. Isabella has mentioned you” Alexander said gruffly.
“So you have heard of me. I would have been shocked if you hadn’t” The King smiled evilly.
“Yes. She told me that you allow all your towns people to go poor and starve whilst you sit in the lap of luxury.” He said trying to shake his shoulders from the grip of the Watcher behind him.
“They choose to be poor. Besides, I am royal blood. These commoners are of low circumstance. They are the scum of my beautiful kingdom.”
Alexander only shook his head. Anger rising in his dark eyes.

“Oh I forgot to introduce my friend Mr O’Hare. You know.. He is engaged to Miss Isabella.”

Alexander’s eyes darted towards Mr O’Hare. Mr O’ Hare tightened his grip around Isabella’s arms.
Alexander started kicking his feet to try and get off of the chair.

“Calm down Alexander.”
“How do you know my name?”
“ You will find I know you very well. I knew you’re father.”
“My father…”
“Yes.. Your father was my uncle. The deceased king.”
“No. No. You’ve got it wrong. My father was a simple woodsman.”
“Dare you question a king!” He shouted/
“I believe you have the wrong person.”
“You’re father’s name was James Smith. He met your mother 19 years ago. He was going to live with your mother and you in this very forest until 2 years later his father died leaving him as the only “proper” heir for the Kingdom. Your mother wouldn’t leave the forest. Silly cow. So your father kept you and your mother a secret.”
“Why?” Alexander asked.
“To keep the kingdom the way his father had. He knew that if my father or I managed to get on the thrown. We would run it the way we wanted. The way it should be. He was afraid but in the end he was just like those poor disgusting little street worms. The towns people. He wasn’t fit to rule the kingdom. He kept you and your mother here protect you from being killed. It would be the easiest way to hurt him.”
“Why are you here then? If you are the king what could you possibly want to do with me?”
“Well.. Dispose of you. If anyone was to find out about you. They could make you king. I wont have it. I WONT!”
“What?! I don’t want to be a king. You don’t have to kill me!”
“Liar! Everyone wants to be a king. To feel the power that comes from it. To play god with the lives of dumb people just-like-you.”
Alexander looked at Isabella. He didn’t know how he was going to get out of this. First he wanted to make sure Isabella was safe.
“Please can you let Isabella go. She didn’t know anything. I swear.”

Isabella looked away.

“I had almost forgot about Isabella.” The king said wandering back over to her.
“She is an amazing witch isn’t she.”
“I don’t understand.” Alexander said.
“Alexander have you by any chance heard of white witches.”
“No” Alexander said slowly.
“Well white witches are women of a magical family who have unique powers. Your mother, I hear was a powerful witch but she mastered in different powers. These women have the power to make men fall in love with them. To have them hang on their every word. They practically control all men. Especially young men.”
“Nice story but what does it have to do with Isabella.”
“Isabella is a white witch.”
“YOU LIE!” Alexander shouted
“No Alexander. All this time she has been here she has been controlling your heart. She knew exactly who you were. She wanted to get rid of you. She was using you to get information and gain your trust so that we could come here and get rid of you”
“Isabella?” Alexander looked right at her. Isabella kept her eyes to the ground.
The king came up close to Alexander’s face.
“She did it for her Fiancé and for me.”
“You made me believe that you loved me!” Alexander shouted at Isabella.
“I…do.” Isabella said quietly.
Alexander felt as if his heart had been ripped from his chest. He wanted to cry but the tears wouldn’t form. He wanted to scream but he could barely breathe. He looked around at his fate. He could feel nothing but a bottomless pit in his stomach. He didn’t care anymore.

“Take her away O’Hare.” Fredrick said.
Mr O’Hare pulled Isabella away by her arms roughly.
“No!” She screamed. He hauled her kicking and screaming into the carriage.
“Give up the act now love.” the king laughed.
All of the watchers around him chuckled too.

Alexander stayed still. His eyes scanned over the grass. The king picked up the glass with the poison in it from the table.
“Now.. lets get this over with.” The king sighed.
He pushed the chair that Alexander was on backwards and he fell off of it.
Alexander rolled over on the grass.
One watcher lay across his stomach. The other watcher lay across his legs and two watchers kept his mouth open wide enough for the king to pour the drink into Alexander’s mouth.
Alexander barely struggled. What did it matter anymore. He felt completely empty. Luna had warned him and he hadn’t listened. He only had himself to blame.

Once the cruel poison had cut the inside of his innocent throat he felt a sudden shudder. His whole body was tensing up. He felt a loss of control of his eyes. They rolled back and forward in his head. Moments of light from the moon. Shapes of the King and his watchers moving. He had a taste of blood now in the back of his mouth and in that instant he saw all the faces he had loved. He saw Luna soaring through the air. He saw his mother’s warm smile, her auburn hair. Lastly he saw Isabella. Their first meeting, their first touch, their first kiss, their last night.

Just like that it was over. Alexander’s lifeless body lay alone in the silver forest. Only the moon kept its same silhouetted white beams on his body. He was dead.