From the perspective of Bashful the Dwarf
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Source: www.disney-clipart.com |
“Don’t you say that again
Grumpy. She is the sweetest creature I have ever seen!” said Bashful with a
look of indignation that made the remaining six burst out into amused laughter.
He turned a shade of red making his already rosy face blush all the more.
“Now, now… don’t make fun of
Bashful here, we all know he has a soft corner for her” Doc admonished the
rest of them but burst into a chuckle as soon as he had uttered the words
making everyone once again roll in laughter.
“Whatever you say, we are not
safe with her around. What if her evil step mother comes back? She has already tried
killing her once and now that she is with us, I am sure she will try again. And
then what about us? What will happen to us?” Grumpy disapproved of her
presence and left no stone unturned to make his displeasure known.
“Can we go home now please? Let’s
see if she has lived up to her side of the deal and cleaned the house and kept
our food ready. If she has, I can go sleep almost immediately” said Sleepy
letting out a yawn that was accentuated by a powerful sneeze from Sneezy.
And so they set on their journey
down the mountains, towards the tiny cottage nestled in the woods on the banks
of a gurgling brook and surrounded by the most beautiful flower garden in the
entire country side.
“Can you smell that?”
exclaimed Dopey as they neared the cottage. The flavours of an onion soup
engulfed their senses making Happy burst out in laughter.
Snow White had kept her side of
the deal; their cottage was spic and span, their beds had been made, the
laundry done and the socks mended. If that wasn't enough, bowls of steaming hot
onion soup sat waiting on the dining table.
Everything else forgotten, they
welcomed her in their midst and from then on considered her as a part of their
family. Even Grumpy found his disapproval fading away once he had tasted the
delicious soup and found his socks looking as good as new.
A week went by but Snow White
still seemed to be in the danger that had brought her to them.
“Don’t ever open the door to
anyone till we return” Bashful heard the Doc tell her everyday making him
worry about her safety.
“The sweet little thing that
she is, it is easy to fool her” he thought, looking at Snow White with
ardent admiration.
There had already been two
instances when the Evil Queen disguised as a scarf seller and a comb seller had
made her open the door. The scarf seller had tried to strangle her while the
comb seller had tried to poison her with a poisonous comb. Both the times they
had reached in time to revive her but had known if their hunch was right, Snow
White’s life was still in danger. The Evil Queen, they thought would do
anything to destroy their little beauty.
“Should I stay back? Oh what
if something happens to her today? I cannot take it anymore” thought
Bashful unable to keep his feelings to himself. He had slowly started to fall
in love with his beautiful Snow White.
“Bashful, come with us, we are
already getting late” called out Doc, raising a brow. He had begun to
realize that the shy and sweet dwarf was falling in love.
“I need to speak to him soon.
We cannot fall in love with humans, he needs to understand that” thought
Doc as they walked towards the mountains.
Bashful turned around, taking one
last look at the cottage and Snow White who stood outside waving out. His heart
told him that something dreadfully wrong was about to happen.
***
“Something is wrong”
panicked Bashful as they came down the mountain. He had been fervently waiting
to get to the rock from where they could get a glimpse of the cottage. Once they had
gotten there he had quickly perched himself up and peered in the direction of
the cottage.
“There is no smoke coming out of
the chimney, something must have happened to Snow White” he yelled, quickly
getting down and scampering towards their house. The rest followed, the absence
of smoke had worried them too.
The silence that enveloped the
house was a sign that confirmed his greatest worry. Bashful ran into the house,
almost tripping over Snow White’s lifeless form.
“Oh, what happened to her?
What has the evil mother done to her?” he cried out holding Snow White in a
tight hug as he rocked her, tears flowing incessantly down his cheeks.
“Do something, please don’t
let anything happen to my Snow White” he yelled, making it more than
evident to everyone present what his true feelings for her were. But for once,
nobody made fun, they all stood in silence as Doc and Grumpy tried to revive
her; but all their efforts were in vain. She had fallen into a magical sleep.
Till they did not know the source of her sleep, it would be impossible to
revive her.
“Where are you taking her? Why
don’t you try some more? We all know magic don’t we? Can’t we do something?”
Bashful looked from one to the other with a pleading look. Their hearts went
out to him but they knew there was not much they could do.
He watched them place her in a
glass coffin. She looked as radiant and beautiful as ever he thought, gazing at
his love, her pure white skin, rose coloured lips and hair that seemed to be
made from ebony. Every single day he placed a flower on the coffin which was
now kept outside in their flower garden. The most mesmerizing flower among all
the flowers, he said to the others, sitting by her side everyday and night despite the
snow that had set in, wondering if there was something he could do to wake her
up and bring her back into their life. Into his life.
“Will it work if I kissed
her?” Bashful charged into the house one day.
“What?” the remaining six
called out in unison.
“You know, like what they say
about Sleeping Beauty. She was woken up by the Prince who loved her. I love
Snow White, maybe my kiss could wake her up too” he said looking happy and
eager for the first time in over a week.
“Bash, it’s time we sat and
had a little chat” said Doc, gently making Bashful sit next to him and
silently motioning the rest to leave them alone.
“As much as we all love Snow
White, she is a human and we are dwarfs. We cannot forget that fundamental
fact”
For a long time Bashful stayed silent,
finally nodding his head as tears fell down onto the floor.
“I know it is not easy-”
“Doc, you have to come out
there. There is a young man who has come!” yelled Dopey from outside the
window.
Wondering who it could be Doc
walked out, leaving Bashful to control the emotions that were now pouring out. In the snow covered garden
outside, was a handsome young man, leaning over Snow White and looking at her
with a gaze full of love.
“Who are you, young man?”
asked Doc, walking over to the Coffin and placing a protective arm over it.
“I am the Prince of the
Kingdom that lies to the north of the Woods. I was going down this path on my
way for a hunting expedition when I chanced upon this coffin. Who is she? She
is so beautiful, I have fallen in love with her” said the young man.
Doc looked at the Prince for a
long moment. He seemed to be a good and kindhearted man and his eyes were
brimming in love for their Snow White. He couldn't keep her with them forever;
her evil step mother would always be a threat for her, alive or sleeping.
Thinking of all aspects, Doc took his decision.
“She is Snow White my Lord,
the princess of the Kingdom that lies to the south of these woods…” and he
narrated the entire tale.
“I shall take her with me and
get the best possible medical help to revive her” said the Prince, ordering
his Guards to pick the coffin and carry it back to their Kingdom.
Just as the guards picked her up,
one of them stumbled, making Snow White lurch and almost fall out of the
coffin. With the sudden jerk, a piece of apple flew out of her mouth, waking
her up.
Overjoyed, the Prince stepped
forwards and helped Snow White out of the coffin while Doc narrated the entire
tale to her as the rest of the Dwarfs danced in happiness.
Thanking them all, Snow White hugged
and kissed them and asked “Where is Bashful?”
Before anyone could speak, Doc
replied “He had to go into the mountains”
“Oh I wish I could have bid
him goodbye” she said, looking coyly at the Prince with whom she had fallen
in love the moment she had set her eyes on him.
“Why didn't you let her meet
Bashful?” Grumpy asked Doc as they waved at the Prince and Snow White who
had now mounted his horse.
“He wasn't in a state to meet
her. There was no point in letting her know his true feelings” said Doc.
“Will he get over it?” asked
Sneezy.
“Oh yes, he surely will. We
are dwarfs, we can’t really fall in love with Humans” said Doc.
Engrossed in conversation no one
noticed the lone figure that stood at the window watching Snow White fade away
into the Woods. Nobody noticed the knife in his right hand slashing his left
wrist creating a trail of blood red blots all over the pure white snow on the
window sill.