Why we don't believe in fairy tales

An old witch in an older story
strangled a princess while she slept
and brought her kingdom half to ruin,
just before the happy ending.
In vain we readers will force open
the raw earth of the unhappy narrative,
and plunge our hands into its heart,
saying too late, "If we had been there,
we would have made things better."
The death was our cue, but
the witch was our warning,
cloaked in memory and jeweled
richly with power we're sure she stole
from the little girl who waited
alone for herself at the beginning.