Once upon a time, there was a widow who lived in a small house in the forest with her two daughters. Although her children were both named Rose, they were distinguished by their middle names, Red and Snow. Red, always dressed in that color, was an adventurous girl who spent her days in the woods. Snow, dressed all in white, was a quiet girl who preferred to stay at home.
During a harsh winter, the widow died of illness, leaving Rose Red and Rose Snow alone. As they were old enough to fend for themselves and get married, shortly after their mother's death, the two young women wanted to leave the forest and go to the big city of Palmas’ kingdom.
"But it's better to wait for spring." Says Snow. "Traveling in the middle of winter would be crazy!"
"If you say so. So, will you come help me chop some wood?" Red asked.
"You know very well that my hands are only good for sewing!"
Red sighed. She wished her sister was physically stronger. It was Red who always did the heavy lifting, including chopping wood.
"Okay, I'll take care of it, but you don't open the door to strangers, right?"
Although she thought it was a bit silly, at her age, their late mother had always told them never to open the door to strangers. Yet, who lived in these woods, besides Red and Snow?
"Of course. See you later!"
Red left the house and went to chop wood.
Meanwhile, Snow was mending one of her nightgowns when she heard a knock on the door. It couldn't have been her sister because she always entered without knocking. Snow, remembering her sister's words, ignored the noise. The knocking became more and more insistent and Snow became afraid. What if it was a robber? She had read many tales of brigands, evil men who hurt innocent girls in many ways.
In panic, she searched for the crossbow her sister used to hunt. As soon as Snow found it - fortunately there was already a loaded bolt - she grabbed it and pointed it at the door. Powerful blows echoed through the wood. The door was about to be kicked in. I must aim well. I mustn’t tremble! As soon as the door fell shut, Snow screamed when she saw a bear standing on its hind legs.
Without taking the time to think, because it is very rare to see a bear standing up, Snow threw the bolt into the bear's chest. The beast let out a grunt, before collapsing into the snow. Wanting to make sure it was dead, Snow went over to it. Before her astonished eyes, the bear transformed into a richly dressed young man. Snow recognized him. He was the Palmas’ kingdom prince! He was dead because of her.
Meanwhile, Red had finished cutting wood. After putting it in a small sled, she was about to leave for home when she heard a voice calling for help. Red went to the source of the cry for help and found a dwarf. A real dwarf, just like in her late mother's tales. A dwarf with his beard stuck under a ice block.
"Everything... Everything okay?" Red asks the dwarf.
"What do you think, silly girl? I'm going to freeze to death!"
"Your beard is stuck."
"Did you just notice THAT now? Stupid girl..."
"Why are you so mean? I want to help you!"
"Really? How do you plan to do that?"
"Like this."
She grabbed her axe and, despite the dwarf's screams, cut off his beard, freeing him from the ice.
"NOOOOOOOO!" Shouts the dwarf. "You little scatterbrain! What have you done?"
"I saved your life, you ingrate!"
"My beard... my beautiful beard..."
"Well, now that you're safe, I'm going home with my wood."
"NOT SO FAST!"
Suddenly, the air became heavy, and Red felt strange.
"Do you really think I'm going to let you go, after what you did to me?"
"BUT I SAVED YOUR LIFE!"
The dwarf wouldn't listen. After declaring that he was a powerful magician, and that he had turned the Prince of Palmas into a bear because he had DARED to stop him from stealing the royal family treasure, he turned Red into a vixen.
"Now I'm going to have roasted fox for dinner!"
Red, without losing time, fled. She refused to be eaten by this ingrate. Worried about her sister, she returned home. She was surprised to see her sister crying over the corpse of a man, the prince.
"This is horrible..." Says Snow. "What will become of me? I..."
Suddenly, Snow saw the vixen and shouted at her not to come near.
"I... I... I-I-I...! My sister will kill you for your fur if she sees you! GO AWAY!"
Red tried to talk to her, but she could only make sounds. Her sister panicked even more.
"GO AWAY! LEAVE! I... I killed him... the prince... I didn't know the bear was HIM! I... My sister, Red... Where is she?"
I'm here, Snow.
"She would know what to do. I mean, I think. I..."
Suddenly the ungrateful, evil dwarf arrived.
No... he managed to follow me!
"HA HA HA! I found you, little fool! Did you really think you could run away...? Hey, is that the prince? NOOOOOO! Why did he die? He was mine to kill!"
"What?" Snow asks the dwarf.
"I wanted to eliminate him myself! After all, I'm the one who turned him into a bear."
"No... why did you do that? And where is my sister?"
"Your... sister? Oh, that's so funny!"
The dwarf laughed for a while before continuing to speak.
"That vixen is your sister. I'm going to eat her tonight!"
"N-No... that's a lie! Red... Red can't be..."
"Yes, she’s your sister. Would you like to join her? I can arrange that VERY WELL!"
He was about to cast a spell when Red jumped on him. She screamed in danger and Snow knew she had to run. As she ran through the snowy woods, her sister held the dwarf back as long as she could by biting him. The dwarf, tired of her bites, cast a fatal spell. The vixen's body was pushed back into the snow. She turned into a young woman in red, Rose Red.
After a while, Snow stopped, exhausted and cold, because she didn't have her coat on. She was terrified. What was going to happen to her? She had killed the prince. Maybe her sister was dead. The evil dwarf must be looking for her.
On the verge of despair, Snow began to cry, despite the cold. Suddenly, she heard a strange sound, and she felt something under her right foot. Snow lifted her foot and found a pocket watch. The watch had a large chain and a gold cover with six colored dots. One red, one blue, one yellow, one orange, one green and one purple. As soon as she took it in her hands, a message appeared on the ground.
The Marvelous Watch allows you to go back in time to repair your mistakes. To use it, carry it and say: "O timepiece, reverse me".
It's AWESOME! All I have to do is use it to go back in time, stop the prince from dying and save my sister! She was about to say the magic words when the dwarf arrived. When he saw the watch, his eyes turned dark.
"I wouldn't do that if I were you."
"You aren't so smart now!" Snow retorts.
"This watch... is cursed. No one knows where it came from, but everyone who uses it dies, even if they manage to fix their mistakes."
"Liar!"
"The watch... collects souls."
"LIAR!"
"No, no! I'm telling you the truth. My brother... he used it and..."
"How would you know if he was going back in time?"
"Because he told me so, on his deathbed! He had tried... to cancel my existence... because I am wicked. He was kind. Gentle as a lamb."
Snow remains silent and the dwarf insists that she doesn’t use the watch.
"My sister... is she... alive?" She asks the dwarf.
"Please. I beg of you."
"My sister... did you kill her?"
"I..."
"YES OR NO?"
"... ... ... ...Yes."
There was nothing else to say.
"O timepiece, REVERSE ME!" Says Snow.
The six colored dots lit up, one at a time, then faded away and everything around Snow turned black. Suddenly, Snow saw her twin appear before her. The Other Snow told her that she was her past self. If Snow wanted to continue her mission, she had to kill the Other Snow.
"What? NO!"
"You don't have a choice. Unless you'd rather lose your soul right now."
"Lose my soul... then the dwarf was right."
"Of course. Don't worry. The first time is always the hardest."
"The first time? I don't understand."
"That's alright. Remember, you're doing this for the prince and your sister."
"I must kill you... how?"
"As you please. With a weapon? Strangle me? Burn me alive?"
Snow focused and her look-alike was engulfed in purple flames. Then she found herself at home. The door was intact and Red was alive and talking to her.
"Are you coming to help me chop wood?"
"..."
"Are you listening to me? I asked you if...?"
"Chopping wood? No. You know very well that my hands are only good for sewing!"
Red sighed and, after telling her sister not to open the door to strangers, she left the house and went to chop wood. Snow looked at the watch in her hands. Red hadn't noticed it. Snow had really gone back in time. She waited, knowing that the bear would come. As soon as she heard him knock on the door, she let him into the house.
"I thank you, I... I'm not really a bear."
"I know. You are the victim of an evil spell."
"Yes, and only the death of his caster can save me."
"His death, huh? Stay here."
Snow put on her coat and went out to find Red. Her sister was still chopping wood.
"Snow? What are you doing here?"
"It's complicated, but you have to believe me. There is a bear in our house, but it's not a real bear. It's the prince of Palmas' kingdom, transformed into a bear by a dwarf. To become human again, the dwarf must die."
"What? A bear and a dwarf?"
"RED! I'm serious! He..."
Suddenly, Snow heard the dwarf's voice calling for help.
"Is that your dwarf?" Her sister asked.
"Yes, it's him!"
The two sisters went to the source of the call for help and found the dwarf. His beard was trapped under an ice block.
"Everything... Everything okay?" Red asks the dwarf.
"What do you think, silly girl? I'm going to freeze to death!"
"Your beard is stuck..."
"It's obvious, sister!" Says Snow. "But you remember what I told you earlier."
"What are you talking about?" Questions the dwarf.
"Yes, I remember it very well..."
Red approached the dwarf and she plunged her axe into his head, killing him.
"AH!" Snow exclaimed. "Too easy."
Red asks her what she is talking about.
"He was a magician, with the power to turn humans into animals, and he couldn't even get out of a ice block or avoid your axe!"
Snow laughed and Red wondered if she was still in her right mind.
"Ha ha ha... Well, let's go home. The prince will be waiting for you."
The two sisters set off. As they neared the house, Red saw the prince in the distance and her heart leapt in her chest. It was love at first sight. She rushed toward him, not realizing that her sister's skin was icy and her eyes were empty. Rose Red jumped into the prince's arms and Rose Snow, standing far away from her sister, collapsed in the snow. The watch had collected its due.