In a dark prison was an old woman behind the cage had an visitor.
"Hello, Hans," the prisoner said softly.
"Hello, mother," Hans replied with a nervous quiver. "I hope you are well."
Although Hans had rehearsed exactly what he wanted to say, he was now finding it
nearly impossible to speak.
"I heard that you are the king now," his mother said.
"It's true," said Hans. "I've inherited the throne as my father intended."
"So, to what do I owe this honour? Have you come to watch me wither away?" his mother
said. There were such authority and power to his voice; it was known to make the strongest of women
melt like ice.
"On the contrary," Hans said. "I've come to understand."
"To understand what?" his mother asked harshly.
"Why…" Hans hesitated. "Why you did what you did."
And with this finally said, Hans felt a weight lift off of his shoulders. he had finally asked
the question that had been so strongly on his mind. Half of the challenge was over.
"There are many things about this world that you don't understand," the mother said, and
turned to look at her son.
It was the first time in a long time that Hans had seen his mother's face. It was the face
of a woman who had once possessed beauty without flaw, and the face of a woman who had once
been queen. Now, the woman sitting before him was just a prisoner whose looks had faded into a
permanent, sorrowful scowl.
"That may be," Hans said. "But can you blame me for trying to find some sort of reason
behind your actions?"
The recent years of Hans's life had become the most scandalous of the kingdom's royal
history. Everyone knew the story of the fairy prince who'd taken refuge with the Seven deadly sins while
Hiding from his jealous mother.
The story was simple, but the aftermath was not. Even with a new marriage and a monarchy to
occupy his time, Hans found himself constantly wondering if the theories of his mother's
vanity was true. Something inside the new king refused to believe that someone could be so
malicious.
"Do you know what they're calling you out there?" Hans asked. "Outside this prison
walls the world refers to you as the Queen."
"If that is what the world has labelled me, then that is the name I shall learn to live with," the Queen said. "Once the world has made a decision, there is little anyone can do to change its mind."
Hans was astonished by how little his mother cared, but Hans needed her to
care. She needed to know there was some humanity left in her.
"They wanted to execute you after they discovered your crimes against me! The whole kingdom
wanted you dead!" Hans's voice faded to a faint whisper as he fought off the emotions
building up inside her. "But I wouldn't allow it. I couldn't…"
"Am I supposed to thank you for sparing me?" the Queen asked. "If you expect someone to
fall at your feet and express gratitude, you've come to the wrong cell."
"I didn't do it for you. I did it for myself," Hans said. "Like it or not, you are the only
mother I have ever known. I refuse to believe that you are the soulless monster the rest of the world
claims you to be. Whether it's true or not, I believe there is a heart deep down inside of you."
Tears rolled down Hans's pale face. he had promised himself he would stay strong, but
he had lost control of his emotions once he was in his mother's presence.
"Then I'm afraid you're wrong," the Queen said. "The only soul I've ever had died along
time ago, and the only heart you'll find in my possession is a heart of stone."
The Queen did indeed have a heart of stone, but not inside her. A rock in the shape and size of a human heart was on a small table in the corner of the cell. It was the only item the Queen had been permitted to keep when she was arrested.
Hans recognized the stone from his childhood. It had always been very precious to her
mother and the Evil Queen had never let it out of her sight. Hans had never been allowed
to touch it or hold it, but nothing was stopping him now.
he walked across the cell, picked it up, and curiously stared down at it. It brought back so manymemories.