Princess Mouseskin and The Privilege Purge

    There once was a king that had three daughters. He pondered which daughter loved him most and decided to have them each declare their love for him. The oldest daughter stated that she loved him more than the citizens of the kingdom combined. The middle daughter proclaimed that her love for the king is greater than jewels and pearls. The youngest daughter did not know how to explain how much she loved her father. Rather than comparing her love to material things, she stated she loved him more than salt. The king was furious at the response as he found salt to be a mere commoners good. In his rage, he sent one of his servants to take the youngest daughter to the forest and behead her.

    The king failed to realize the servant he sent to transport and kill the young princess was her lover. While the two were in the forest, the princess began to plot her revenge for her father’s banishment and attempted execution over a misinterpreted compliment. She decided to find a way to remove her father from power so that she may inherit the kingdom and give the citizens a fair ruler. She planned to disguise herself for a few months as a servant for a neighboring king, then revealing herself so that she may marry him. She decided to title this plan the Privilege Purge. She informed her lover of her plan and asked that he find her a mouseskin to wear. Even though he is confused by this request, the servant went out and skinned more than 50 mice to create a skin large enough to cover the princess. The princess traveled to the neighboring kingdom and worked as a servant to the other king. While in the king’s service, the princess remained in contact with her lover to make sure the plan was working. The king would throw food often at the princess, but these actions only served to empower the princess in her plot. She decided to rid this kingdom of its rude and selfish ruler as well.
 
    After months of serving the king, the princess revealed herself to the king. Amazed by her beauty, the king demanded that she marry him. She agreed to this arrangement, as it made her plan much simpler. About a week following the wedding, the newlyweds were alone eating in the palace’s dining room. They had chicken and vegetables for dinner, with wine to drink. What the king did not know was that the queen had poisoned the wine with drain cleaner. When the king drank the concoction, he began to convulse and within minutes died. The princess organized it to appear as though the king committed suicide following their dinner. When the king was found dead, the kingdom mourned their loss with their queen. The queen took over the kingdom as a result.
 
    A month after the passing of the king the queen invited the king of the neighboring kingdom, her father, his remaining daughters, and her father’s servant, her lover, for a dinner. Her father and sisters arrived prepared to enjoy the dinner without any problems. Once the trio received their food, they were disgusted by the lack of seasoning. The king declared that salt was necessary, which brought back memories of his beloved youngest daughter. The queen revealed herself to her father and sisters. She reprimanded them for declaring the necessity of salt now, when almost a year ago the princess declared her love for her father was greater than that and was banished. She seemed to forgive them and asked her father’s servant to fetch them salt from the royal kitchen. The servant knew this as his cue to grab the alternative substance for seasoning, arsenic. The poison was placed into a salt container to remain unsuspecting. The servant poured some of the substance onto the food of the trio and left them to “enjoy”. Before eating the freshly seasoned food, the king declared if anything were to happen to him or his daughters that the youngest daughter would have control of his kingdom. The queen smirked at this declaration, as it shows that everything is working in her plan. The queen encouraged them to eat the newly seasoned food. Once the trio take a few bites of the meal, they began to convulse just as the former king did. The three die in the room while the queen and servant gaze upon each other longingly, realizing they no longer have to hide their love. When the neighboring kingdom discovers the death of their beloved royalty, the citizens mourn for them, yet rejoice in the discovery that their favorite princess lived on to become the queen of another kingdom. As a part of her birthright, the queen inherited the other kingdom and began to rule both kingdoms in a loving manner. The queen finally married the servant, making him the king. The two ruled the kingdoms fairly and refused to allow themselves to be as shallow and vain as the kings and princesses were. Their plot was complete as they cleansed the kingdoms of selfish and horrible rulers who did not deserve the kindness they expected to be given to them.