Out of nowhere, the little brown mouse scurried up Dreamy’s arm and onto the edge of the glass side, standing on his rear legs, with his whiskers twitching. He leaned towards the fruit.

‘No, no,’ Snow White said. ‘We need to put it somewhere safe. Otherwise the animals will eat it.’ She looked at the prince. ‘Have you got a pouch or something?’

‘Of course.’ He took the apple and the small bite she’d coughed up and put them in his money bag. She was beautiful and also kind. The dwarves had been right. This was magical. It was love. It had to be.

They made camp in a small clearing at the side of the road and in the glow of the fire, the two dwarves and the prince told her all that had happened since the crone gave her the apple. The prince let Dreamy tell her of his vigil and how he’d sat beside her as she lay there somewhere between life and death, through all the days and nights. When they were done, she turned and looked up at him. ‘You were going to keep me safe?’ she asked.

‘I’m still going to keep you safe,’ he said, wrapping one arm around her and pulling her close. On the other side of the fire, the two dwarves beamed with happiness. ‘Marry me and come back to my kingdom. You will be the brightest jewel in the crown of my palace of light. You will never want for anything, I promise you.’

She looked into the fire and his heart raced with his love for her. ‘Please be my wife,’ he said. ‘I’ve been searching for you all my life. This is true love. I knew it when I first laid eyes on you.’ He could feel heat rising on his face; embarrassment and excitement. She had to say yes. She had to. Surely she must feel something for him too.

‘A lost prince and a cursed princess,’ Dreamy said. ‘It’s so romantic. Like something from one of the story books you gave me.’

‘The queen tried to kill me,’ she said softly.

‘And she’ll try again if she gets the chance,’ Grouchy said. ‘She’s wicked, that one.’