Menace of the Witch's Ruby

Menace of the Witch's Ruby is a 1953 Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs comic story by Guido Martina and Romano Scarpa, first published in Topolino #78-80.
The story was translated and collected by Fantagraphics in 2017 along with several other Snow White stories under the title "The Return of Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs".
==Plot==
Every one hundred years, sorceresses and witches gather near the throne of Witch Empress Mammona for Witches Night. In attendance is Queen Grimhilde, who Mammona chastises for her failure to kill Snow White. As her fellow witches Scabra and Raven mock her, Queen Grimhilde begs for assistance to restore her full magical powers. Mammona orders the Evil Queen to turn her ruby from red to green in order to keep her magic from dying. As suggested by Scabra, Grimhilde will be transformed into a horsehair broom as punishment if she fails to get the tears of despair from Snow White and obtain the green ruby.
Queen Grimhilde transforms herself into an innocent fawn to deceive Snow White. Her plan works, and she's able to turn Snow White into a miniature statue with her magic. As she waits for Prince Charming to return so that she can kill him in front of Snow White and gather her tears of despair, the Seven Dwarfs work in the Mine with Dopey's parrot friend, Pepito Serape. The other Dwarfs grow annoyed with Pepito, who heads back to the Dwarfs' Cottage. There, he finds Queen Grimhilde magically transforming into Snow White.
As Snow White, the Evil Queen prepares a soup for the Seven Dwarfs, who quickly return home for supper. Dopey grows suspicious when "Snow White" refers to Pepito as a filthy beast. When the Evil Queen reveals herself, chaos ensues and Dopey manages to slip away. The rest of the Dwarfs are captured, miniaturized, and placed with Snow White. Grimhilde realizes Dopey escaped, but is unable to leave the cottage due to the elven star on the door. The Queen quickly grows weak, transforming the Dwarfs' gems into coal and falling into a deep sleep.
Meanwhile, Dopey regroups with Pepito Serape outside. They assemble an army of woodland creatures and enter the cottage, with Pepito using the wand to restore the other Dwarfs. The Evil Queen suddenly awakens, and they fight for possession of the wand. Dopey manages to gain the wand, and with Pepito saying the magic phrase, Dopey transforms Grimhilde into a miniature statue. Prince Charming soon returned to the cottage, and the group celebrated their victory for three days. On the third day, Queen Grimhilde's time expires and she is transformed into a horsehair broom that flies off.
==Characters==
===Heroes===
* Snow White
* The Seven Dwarfs
** Bashful
** Doc
** Dopey
** Grumpy
** Happy
** Sleepy
** Sneezy
* Pepito Serape
* Prince Charming
===Villains===
* Queen Grimhilde
* Witch Empress Mammona
** Scabra
** Raven
==Trivia==
* Despite the story's opening proclamation as Pepito Serape's grand debut, the parrot was never reused beyond a cameo on the cover of Topolino #245 in 1960.
==External links==
*Menace of the Witch's Ruby at the INDUCKS
Category:Snow White comic stories