It started off as the worst day in my life. My mother had awoken me to what she thought was the greatest news.

“We have decided on your husband,” she exclaimed. “You remember that Lord Barnes?”

“Barely,” I muttered as I tried to smuggle myself to death with my own pillow.

“Guess what, you are going to get married to him.”

That was when I lifted the pillow away from my face in horror. I remember the horrible experience that was talking to Lord Barnes was. Flashing back to when he first knocked on my door, I knew instantly what an unbearable pig he was. Don’t get me wrong, Lord Barnes was quite handsome.

But the moment he opened his mouth, any beauty outside withered away faster than a flower in winter.

“My pretty girl, aren’t you going to be the luckiest lady alive,” Lord Barnes said to me once he saw me while examining my corset.

“How charming,” I replied, trying to be as okay with what he had to me.

“Admittedly, I thought you were going to be hotter than your portrait showed.”

“Excuse me.”

Lord Barnes barely gave me a glance as I stared flabbergasted.

“Oh you know better than to that voice of yours babble on,” he responded.

“Guess our conversation is over then,” I replied with an awkward smile.

I left my mansion as soon as possible that day, promising myself that I would never marry that pig. Alas, that was a shallow promise.

“You can’t just let me marry such a monster!” I exclaimed to my mother, fully out of bed.

“Well, Lord Barnes proved to be the best suitor out of all them,” she insisted.

“I will curse you if you say it’s because he was the richest.”

“It wasn’t just that he was the richest. You know that he’s a well respected man.”

“Well, Lord Barnes will be nothing but a pig to me!”

“Maybe you should be calmer about this.”

In that moment, I immediately left the room. I didn’t even bother getting out of my pajamas, I just had to run away.

“Wait,” I could hear my mom cry out.

It was a very pitiful cry, like a wail for my death.

Despite that, I didn’t look back. Instead, I ran further and further into the woods. It became only darker and darker. Eventually, I was all alone. The sun was even beginning to set as the fireflies danced.

As I stared into the lake in front of me, I began to weep a little.

“Should I just go back,” I said to myself in the reflection. “I know that Lord Barnes is a good for nothing man. But my mother is probably…”

“She could care less,” a mysterious voice hissed in the distance.

“Wait, who’s there?!”

“Just an old friend for you. Here, turn around.”

As I turned, I gasped in horror. It was a demon, with feminine body, red skin, goat horns, and a skull-shaped head.

“What are you,” I practically whimpered.

“Just, just get away from me. You can’t be real!”

“Oh my sweet dear,” the demon mocked. “I’m as real as one can be. Maybe I should formally introduce myself.

“My name is Azaleas, at least that’s what it is to mortals. I see that you are in such mortal distress. Does it have to do with that particular Lord Barnes you are marrying.”

“Well, yeah. But I doubt that you of all creatures would care.”

“Oh no, I have seen this tale too many times. A beautiful bright maiden gets sold off to some pig, all agency taken away. And she is left believing that there’s nothing she can do. But all of those maidens are mistaken. For I can save them.”

“Well then, if you are who you say you are, how do you want to help me? Please don’t tell me it’s murder or anything.”

“Well, it’s exactly that. But Lord Barnes won’t be dead to any mortals.”

“What do you mean by that?”

Slowly, I began to back away from the mirror.

“Why, I’ll remake that man into the prince charming of your dreams. He will remember nothing but his love for you.”

“Why, that seems to be a bit extreme. I think I’ll pass.”

“Come on my sweet dear. You know that as soon as you leave this forest, your mother will wed you to Lord Barnes as he is now. Please, I demand so little from you. Especially as your friend.”

“Well then, thanks for your help.”

I immediately left the mirror and walked out of the forest. My mind was still racing about what I had seen.

“That must have been a crazy vision,” I thought to myself. “There’s no way that was real. I should just forget about it now.”

When I arrived back home, I noticed everything was much cleaner than it was before I left. I could even make the argument it was cleaner than it ever was. There were photos of me and my mother plastered everywhere. They appeared to be the happiest photos one could imagine, but I couldn’t help but feel unnerved with them. Before I could take a closer look at them, I heard a distinct voice cry out in the distance.

“Katherine,” the voice called out, sounding exactly like Lord Barnes.

I turned around and confirmed that it was in fact the man himself. The only noticeable difference was a much warmer smile plastered on Barnes’s face.

“Oh my,” I managed to respond. “You look quite different than the last time we met.

“Must be the hair. Anyways, do you know what happened here? I swear, something here changed. And it can’t just be the upcoming wedding.”

“Don’t you remember,” Barnes almost sang out.

“Anyways, would you happen to know where my mother is?”

My heart sank in my heart. That was when Barnes gently held my hand. Leading me to my mother’s room, I realized it.