Everyone was terrified for me because I had been promised to a snake. But I couldn’t wait to meet my destiny. The snake slithered into the garden and as soon as I saw him, I loved him.

He wound around me and kissed me, and then I followed him to a room in the castle. As soon as I had shut the door, he threw off his snake skin and stood before me, a beautiful man. He embraced me tenderly.

Then my parents looked through the keyhole, and when they saw the handsome man, they burst through the door. In their excitement they threw the snake skin into the fire.

“Oh, you wretched people, what have you done?” he cried and instantly changed into a dove. He crashed around the room and banged against the window, breaking a pane of glass.

Then he flew away. I was furious with my parents and that night I left home disguised as a peasant. I was determined to seek my happiness and would not stop until I found it.

Princess Engaged to a Spellbound Snake in The Enchanted Snake, Green Fairy Book. Illustration by H.J. Ford.

What do you feel about the interference of the parents in this situation? How does the princess feel about what they have done? To express her feelings, write the letter the princess would write to her parents before she leaves the castle.