Chapter 205 Call Me Snow White
Some unusual viewers were participating too, using their secret accounts like the emperor who always faithfully watched her live broadcasts because he was a foodie. The empress who was learning to cook for her husband, Samael Rogan who wanted to study every move of the woman he considered his arch nemesis and a general who had been up all night fighting more Draco's. No more mecha warrior lives had been lost thankfully because of his wife's knowledge.
"I will be telling you the story of a princess named Snow white, it takes place in another world, in a kingdom far, far away." Scarlet spoke softly, using hand gestures and hoping that she would come out of this sounding like a good narrator and doing the story justice. "It was in the middle of winter and the snow-flakes were falling like feathers from the sky, and a queen sat at her window working, and her...."
While she read, she captivated the attention of her little audience, Esong drifted off to sleep and the comments in the live broadcast were filled with questions.
[What is embroidery?]
[Why was the princess named snow white?]
[Is there winter in other worlds?]
When she reached the part of the story with the mirror on the wall, Scarlet pulled a small hand held mirror from her storage bracelet and showed it to the children.
"Looking glass upon the wall,
Who is the fairest of us all?"
"And the looking glass would answer,
You are the fairest of them all."
[So the mirror talks, ha, what a stupid story.]
[Where can I buy a hand held talking looking glass?]
[I believe I am the fairest maiden in the empire. ]
[This years star daily declared Carla Ebony the most beautiful woman in the Sun star so does this mean she is the fairest of us all?]
Meanwhile, Scarlet who was not even looking at the comments continued,
"Queen, you are full faire, 'tis true
But Snow-white is fairer than you."
"This gave the queen a great shock, and she became yellow and green with envy, and from that hour her heart turned against Snow-white, and she hated her." Scarlet paused, allowing the suspense to sink in and making the listeners even more desperate to listen to what happened next.
"Should I keep going?" she asked the children.
"Yes," the children answered and they clapped.
"Since the little ones want to hear more, then I will continue." Scarlet turned the page in the colorful red and white book she was holding.
The adults who were taken in with the story too longed to pull the book out of her hands so that they could read it for themselves at a faster pace and get to the end.
Mr. Rodney was smiling happily as he monitored the views because the eight thousand viewers in the beginning were now three million. It was a small number, a lot less than what she pulled in when she was cooking but it was growing slowly.
When Scarlet reached the part where part where the queen ordered for Snow white to be killed, the children and adults gasped alike.
[That is so cruel, how can you kill someone for being more beautiful than You?]
[Down with the wicked queen.]
[Poor snow white, I hope she survives.]
In the royal palace, the empress looked at her husband and daughter who were saying, 'what a cunning queen' and she thought, 'do they realize that I am cunning queen?' And, why were they so invested in the story? She was glad that she had no step children otherwise people would soon begin poking into their welfare, wondering if she was just like snow white's wicked step mother.
One hour later, Scarlet finished the story and the children cheered, some jumping around even as they celebrated snow white's victory over the wicked queen. Scarlet even saw principal Stash wiping a tear away from her eyes.
"Did you enjoy the story?" Scarlet asked the children.
"Yes." the children nodded.
"Governor," one girl raised her hand and said, "I will be called snow white from now on."
"Oh, is that true little princess?" she teased.
"No, I want to be snow white."
"Me too."
Because the live broadcast was still ongoing, people could see the girls all claiming to be snow white. In the palace, the third princess tilted her crown upright and she said smugly, "We can't all be snow white."
"But you are not her." the queen said in a puzzled voice.
"I am a princess, ergo, snow white." the third princess explained as logically as she could.
"Still..." the empress wanted to voice her doubts on this flawed logic but her daughter kicked her feet childishly as if she was throwing a tantrum.
"Ah, mother..." she complained.
"Okay," the empress backed off and said, "You are snow white."
"Mother, where can I get a talking mirror?" the third princess asked the empress.
The empress shrugged and said, "Ask Markay."
"Kids, stop arguing and listen to me," Scarlet and principal Stash calmed the children down because she wanted to explain some more things. "The moral or what I want you to learn from the story is the danger of vanity and greed. True beauty comes from inside, not outside." she touched her heart to show the inside and her face to show the outside.
[So she was teaching the children a lesson through the story, I have also learned something.]
[Does everyone remember that online fight between Scarlet and Bejeweled? I remember the other woman insulted Scarlet's looks and rubbed her family's wealth in her face. Could this be related to it?]
[Do you mean bejeweled is the evil queen and Scarlet is Snow white.]
[I remember that scandal, I was an anti fan of Scarlet's back then.]
"This ends our story time here children, I will see you all here next Wednesday for another story. The physical book of snow white's fairy tale is available for sale at the purchase point of the Maddox library and on star net at blue star fairytale. com. Until next time, Scarlet out."
As she was bidding the online viewers goodbye, the children were already getting up and being organized to exit the reading room carefully. Scarlet stayed back and patiently waited for them all to leave before she carried Justin up in her arms.
"Did you have fun?" she asked him.
"Yes mummy, story time is better with my friends." he replied. Usually she read stories to him alone before bed.
"Then what story should we read next time?" she asked him. "Jack and the beanstalk, little red riding hood, sleeping beauty, Cinderella."
"Are those all stories you came up with governor?" Principal Stash who had been slowly following them asked. "Do you have physical books that I can purchase before the reading next time?"
Scarlet stopped walking and she looked around the library, then she said, "There are many books here principal, you are always welcome to find a book, get a comfortable spot and read. You will discover many hidden gems on your own."
Some of the comfortable reading spots were solo pods which gave off the effect of one reading by the side of the ocean. Others under the stars, or sitting in a sunny grassland. It was a readers paradise the Maddox library, if people fell in love with reading then she would build many more. "My husband is calling, principal, I should answer this privately." she showed her bracelet to the principal and the woman excused herself.