Tag: fairytale

The Fairytale We All Live: A Poem

~ Brooke F. ~ Leave a comment

I.

The chandeliers drip with crystal

tonight, the kingdom spins.

The ballroom a lake of glass and reflections,

Filled with perfume and possibility.

She wears a gown of wishes,

And a veil of desire, longing.

A crown, though lovely, sits heavy.

II.

First comes Sorrow,

cloaked in deep blue,

his fingers cold.

He was like dancing with a fine mist,

Wrapping round then gone.

speaks in poems and sighs.
“Stay with me,” he whispers. “I’ll understand you better than most.”

III.

Next is Riches

gold threaded through a wide smile,

he smells of coins,

conquest is his game.

He spins her fast,

so fast she forgets her own name.

“I can give you everything,” he hums. “You’ll never need again.”

IV.

Then Pride,
in a tailored suit that sounds like applause

when ruffled.

Mirrors in his eyes he says to her,

“With me…You’ll be seen. You’ll be known.”

They waltz among the envious glances and the Princess

is tempted.

But she is dizzy from the asking.

Her feet ache from the circling.

V.

Then

a quiet man,

Silent as the night,

simple coat,

scars in his palms.

Crown of vines…or even barbs?

no entourage.

“May I?”

They dance.

No promises.

No bargains.

Just the hush of a heartbeat

in time with her own.

When the music slows,

And the night comes to a close,

he does not ask for her hand.

He only thanks her for the dance.

She watches him leave the floor,

A hush over her spirit,

And she wonders

if she might choose him.

To Build A Heart

~ Brooke F. ~ 3 Comments

Once upon a time, there lived a man who lost his heart. He lost it to a woman with eyes like honey and a voice like silk. He handed it over to her without hesitation not thinking he would see her run away with it in less than a month. But she did. And the man was left alone and with a hole in his chest.
Determined to fill it with something, he set out to craft a new one. A new heart that could be even better than the one he had lost. So he gathered his crafting tools together and went out into the land in search of materials.
He came upon a city that sat upon a high mountain. There in its streets, he found a girl with a cart who sold colored ribbon. It was so beautiful, the man decided to make a heart of silk. He bought red silk from the girl and returned where he when about sewing his silk heart. But when he had finished, he found the heart much too light in his hands and entirely too vulnerable.
So he set out again this time into the woods. This time he came upon a woodcutter who told him of a kind of wood that could withstand anything. The man decided he would buy some of this wood and fashion his new heart from that.
He carved this new heart carefully with his tools and when he had finished, he found himself quite proud of his handy work. But another problem arose when the heart had been set on a table in front of an open window and clouds overtook the sky as it began to rain. The man returned to find his wooden heart, rotted and black on the table.
Frustrated and discouraged, the man traveled once again, determined to find the perfect material from which to craft his heart. It was on his travels once again that he met a witch upon the road who listened to his problem. She then offered the man a solution (for a price of course which he ignorantly paid).
“Take this stone,” she said after she pocketed his gold, “and carve yourself a heart that shall never break. Nothing shall penetrate its shell.”
And so the man agreed, returning to his home to carve the stone into a new heart. He found the stone quite heavy but surprisingly this did not deter him, determined not to possess a vulnerable heart ever again.
The man fashioned the heart and hid it away in his house. The man began staying home more as well, for fear someone might break in and steal his heart of stone. Soon, his paranoia grew so much to where he never left his home. And so he lived. Just him and his heart of stone.
Until one day a woman happened by his house. He was suspicious of her at first, afraid she had come to steal the stone heart. But he was slowly won over by her politeness and allowed her in.
Once inside the home, the woman remarked that the house felt cold, opening a window to allow the sun in. The man couldn’t remember the last time he had allowed the sun inside. The woman also noticed quite a few cobwebs hanging around the place. So she began clearing those away.
Grateful, the man offered her a meal for her troubles. She heartily agreed. Over warm food, the man asked the woman why she had come in the first place, thoroughly perplexed at her arrival. He was no longer in the habit of inviting anyone over.
She set her leather satchel on the dinner table.
“I found this discarded on the side of a road months ago. I have been searching far and wide for its owner. Finally, I was led to you.” The woman drew out the man’s old heart from the bag, offering it to him freely.
It was that day that the man decided he had very little use for a heart of stone. He then found himself inviting the woman to a meal the next evening if she so wished. Delighted at the gesture, she accepted.
It wasn’t before long that the two courted and were engaged, then married. And they lived happily ever after in a cottage where cobwebs never hung, and sunlight filled its rooms, for it was now a house of two hearts.

Fairytale Reading List

~ Brooke F. ~ 2 Comments

★Cinder by Marissa Meyer

★To Kill a Kingdom by Alexandra Christo

★Ella Enchanted by Gail Carson Levine

★Inkheart by Cornelia Funke

★The Princess Trials by Cornelia Castiel

★Among the Beasts and Briars by Ashley Poston

★The False Prince by Jennifer Nielsen

★Jinx by Sage Blackwood

The Lantern Princess

~ Brooke F. ~ Leave a comment

Once upon a time, there lived a princess named Nilsa. Her mother was a just and fair queen who was known for her charm and grace throughout all the land.
Her father, on the other hand, was a noble knight who fought with the ferocity of a dragon. He was both feared and loved among the people. It was he who named Nilsa, the word meaning “champion” as she would be a champion for her people.
As fate would have it, There came a time when Nilsa’s parents died she inherit the throne with reluctance.
However, word got out of her parents’ death and her father’s enemies began to make plans to attack the kingdom.
But the princess was no fool when it came to battle strategy as her father had taught her of things such as war. The enemies of the kingdom soon Found this out the hard way, returning home with few men, many of which were injured.
The rival Kings held a meeting among themselves and discussed as to how they could take the kingdom as they could not by force.
Then one proposed an idea. They would release locusts on their fields to destroy their farms.
The there agreed to this and they did as they discussed. They collected a hundred locusts and then released then on the Kingdoms fields. After a month’s time, there was no food left in the kingdom.
Nilsa’s people were hungry so she arranged and organized hunting groups to hunt down any available food. She herself was in one and so she rode out into the forest to look for game.
She came across a lady sitting in a stump. She looked haggard and was all bent over and she was very thin. A ragged cloak was thrown across her shoulders.
“Can I help you, Milady?” She asked the stranger.
“I am so hungry!” The other woman said, her voice hoarse. “I have not eaten in ten days. Please, can you prepare me a meal? If it is my last, so shall it be.”
“It shall be done,” said Nilsa. She hunted down a rabbit and killed it and returned to the woman. She then hastily made a fire and prepared it, cooking it brown. She then offered it to the lady along with some water from her own canteen.
“You are so very kind. But You are royalty? Why should you trouble with the likes of me?” The old woman said.
“A queen can eat when her subject’s stomachs are first full,” replied she.
Then the woman transformed into a beautiful shining woman in glimmering robes.
“Blessings upon you, Nilsa!” She said. “For you have proven yourself worthy. Your kingdom is ravaged with hunger but no longer this shall be.”
She then disappeared leaving Nilsa to wonder what has happened.
When Nilsa returned home, she came to find that the crops had regrown, twice as healthy and ready to harvest. Her people celebrated as they had an abundance of food.
The rival Kings marveled at this but resolved to bring Nilsa and her kingdom Down. The Kings held a meeting once more. This time they proposed they poison the kingdom’s water supply.
And so when Nilsa’s kingdom had nothing to drink, she journeyed into the forest once more in search of a new water supply. Upon searching, she came across a rabbit trapped in a trap.
“We are not hungry anymore,” she thought to herself. “So there is no need to kill it.”
And she released it but it did not run away. Instead, the creature panted mournfully and remained to lie on the ground.
“It must be thirsty as well,” she considered. And then she spotted a small well of crystal clear water. Without hesitation, she began to draw the water from out of its dark mouth. She then picked up the small creature and wasted no time in allowing it to receive the drink it had so craved. The rabbit lapped the water up greedily and then, strength regained, began to squirm. Nilsa loosened her grip, allowing the rabbit to escape.

Then suddenly, there was a bright light, and the lady in shimmering robes was present once more.
“Because you have proven yourself once again, I will aid you in your hour of need and quench the thirst of your land.”
And she disappeared once more and, like before, Nilsa returned to her kingdom to find their problem solved and the water not only purified but even clearer than before.
The Rival Kings were at their wit’s end.
“We need drastic measures!” Said one.
The others nodded in agreement and discussed what should be done. They finally agreed on a fire. They would allow the fields to catch fire from the north side of the kingdom and from the south side. The blazes then would eventually make their way to the castle and the village itself, leaving nothing but ash in its wake.
The night of the fire many lives were lost. But more than that, the village and the castle were reduced to nothing more than a few remnants of stone and charred wood.
Nilsa was badly burned but did not give up. That morning, she rose early and made her way into the forest. There, beneath a tree, sat the lady who had helped her before.
“I see that nothing will satisfy those villains but the downfall of your kingdom. But fear not as it will not come to pass for I have prepared a kingdom for you across the great divide. And there you and your people can live peaceably.”
“But the great divide is an uncrossable canyon of darkness where creatures of shadows roam,” said Nilsa. “How shall we cross safely.”
“The creatures are fearful of nothing but the light of fairies,” said she. “This I can give you so you might pass through safely.”
She stretched her hand out and in her grip was a lantern. “Light all the other lanterns with the light from this fire within the lantern and you will live to see brighter days.”
And with that, she was gone.
Nilsa wasted no time in returning to her fire scourged kingdom and telling her people of the fairy’s words. She then instructed her people to pack what material objects they had left and to arrange themselves in a line. Those who stood at the line’s edges and ends were armed with a sword and a lantern so to keep the darkness away.
And so Nilsa led her people into the dark divide. They encountered nothing though dark shapes in the distance could be seen, but they were long gone by the time they were nearing them.
Upon making it to the other side, the people were greeted with the sight of a beautiful, luscious, green valley with a castle at its center. Rivers of crystal clear water flowed throughout the rich farmland that lay in the outskirts of the kingdom and flowers of beautiful color lined the pathway that led to their new home. And there, Nilsa and her people built a new kingdom that became their paradise and they lived there happily for the rest of their days.
The ending for the evil kings, however, was not so happy. Strangely enough, one King’s water supply was contaminated. Another’s crops mysteriously withered away leaving him and his subjects with a food shortage. And yet another’s kingdom had a fire that swept across half of its entirety.
And while these Kings could not tell exactly why, but they somehow felt that it was the work of some form of strange magic. But the answer was far simpler; they were simply reaping that which they sowed.

The End

Writing Prompt: Fairytale Apocalypse

~ Brooke F. ~ Leave a comment

We all know about the fairytale world of Grimm, where the princesses were saved and everyone lived happily ever after. But, let’s say, there is an alternate timeline that run parallel to this utopian one. One where the Princesses were not rescued. One where the castles crumbled and the world is ripping itself apart at the seams. One where wolves roam in the woods (careful not to wear red), sea witches and pirates rule the ocean, witches curses and magic go unchecked, and dragons circle the sky. A fairytale world living in an apocalypse.

The Emotion Seller

~ Brooke F. ~ Leave a comment

Once upon a time, long ago in a land very far away, there lived an elderly shopkeeper. But, since tales rarely revolve around the ordinary, this was no ordinary shopkeeper. What was unique about her wasn’t her per se, but her wares. This woman bottled and sold emotions. Her most popular items were motivation, love, joy, bravery, and confidence.  

But she has one very special bottle that no one had ever dared to touch; sadness. 

“Why would I buy that which I could get for free?!” People often jeered.  

Now this Emotion seller was very famous and rightfully so, news of this merchant being told far and wide. As a result of this, she gained many new customers, many of which who were very rich. But none dared touch the bottle of sadness even with her hundreds of new clients.  

As news spread, An arrogant lord heard of this seller and ordered his servants to fetch her so that she could sell him some of her wares. Within a few days, she arrived at his castle and gained an audience with him where she showed him every bottled emotion she sold, including the bottled sorrow. The Lord is taken aback by this, shocked she would dare carry such a thing. 

“What use is sadness to anyone?” He said in a mocking tone.  

“If that is so,” the seller replied. “Drink it, and prove to me it is useless.” 

Now the lord had no such desire to drink the potion, but being prideful and not wishing to back down, he accepted.  

“The effects should only last a day. If you find the potion to be of no use, I will give you every bottle of joy that I have,” the seller promised.  

That was enough to push the Lord to take the potion from the seller’s hands and down it in one gulp. 

The seller didn’t even wait to see the effects set in upon the noble. She smiled at him politely and turned to exit, saying nothing. 

The King could feel his confidence waning as she strutted out. He couldn’t imagine what reason she had to be so self-assured. He couldn’t see how she could possibly win this “wager”.

She is just trying to make you question yourself, he told himself as he went to sleep that night. The next day will be a miserable one but that should not matter as you will have guaranteed happiness for the rest of your life.

The next morning, as soon as The King’s eyes opened, he could tell he was not feeling well. Sure, physically he was in top condition but he couldn’t help but notice this awful weight in his chest. It was all he could to do to get out of bed. Momentarily, he thought about staying in the rest of the day and taking his leave as sick for the remainder of the potion’s time but the thought was fleeting. By now everyone in the court would have heard of his wager with The Emotion Seller. If he were to hide the entire day he would be nothing short of a laughing stock. 

It was this thought that drove The King to drag himself out of bed and prepare himself for the coming day.

His day already was off to a dreadful start, as when he began to eat his chicken pie for breakfast, he found a bone. 

“What on earth?” he grumbled to himself, spitting the bone out onto his plate. “Bring in the chef!” he commanded his servant. They scurried off and quickly returned with the kitchen’s head cook.

“There was a bone in my breakfast!” The King exclaimed, glowering at the cook. The cook shrunk away, wringing his hands nervously.

“I-I am so very sorry, my liege,” he stammered.

“Not as sorry as you’re going to be,” The King said with a frown. “I could have choked and died! You are hereby banished! You are lucky won’t try you for an attempt to kill the king!”

“Oh!” The cook cried in horror. “Banishment! Please, have mercy sire, I cannot leave my family here alone,” the cook began to cry. “They depend on me for the very food they eat. If I am banished they shall surely starve.”

Now, The King was not the most merciful of Kings as one could guess but this morning was a special one. To his surprise, he found that weight in his chest grew upon seeing the cook shed tears even though he was angry with him only moments before. The King drew in a long sigh.

“Well, perhaps I won’t banish you then,” The King relented, barely believing the words coming out of his own mouth. “But if this ever happens again, you shall face even harsher consequences! Everything that comes out of that kitchen is your responsibility,” He added grumpily though he found it hard for him to muster any sort of disdain for the man.

The cook blinked in shock, as did the other servants in the dining room.

“Oh-! Thank you! Thank you, sir!” The cook bowed low before he returned briskly to the Kitchen.

An act of mercy becomes a king every now and then, The King said to himself, slightly put-off by the occurrence. But it soon vanished from his mind as he became aware, yet again, of the sorrow that rested upon him. If only I can make it through today…

~*~

The King made his way briskly down the castle hall, a well-dressed Advisor at his elbow, penning something down as he spoke.

“The Ambassador of The Green Isles arrived just yesterday,” he talked quickly and cordially as if the fast pace of their walk was affecting his speech. 

“And how are the people of The Green Isles?” said The King.

“Er, not so good,” The Advisor admitted. “I’m afraid they’ve come to ask you for aid.” 

“Relations with The Green Isles are strained as is,” The King said more to himself than anyone else. “They’ve never really taken a liking to me as King, that much has been made obvious in the past years. Things must be pretty bad for them to come crawling into my court.”

“My thoughts exactly, sire,” The Advisor bobbed his head in an almost animated manner, fidgeting with his quill now. “I can’t help but advise you against helping them. They’ve been rather vocal about their disapproval of how you handle diplomatic relations. Perhaps it would teach a lesson to them as well as the surrounding Kingdoms. They too have voiced opposition against your “abrasive” way of dealing with the neighboring lands.”

The King slowed his pace as he thought.

“So you’re saying this is a chance to elevate ourselves?” he spoke slowly, a pensive look in his gaze. 

“Precisely.”

The two finished the walk to the Diplomatic chambers in silence, The King thinking to himself all the way until they stopped before a large set of double oak doors. 

“Well, I suppose there’s no use in putting off the unpleasant,” The Advisor reshuffled his papers and gathered himself.

“One more question before we go in.”

“Yes?”

The King inclined his head towards The Advisor, eyes curios. “What has brought The Green Isles so low?”

The Advisor sighed as he began combing through his papers for the third time that afternoon.

“Er, Plague or famine I think it was,” The shuffling of parchment filled the hall as The Advisor searched for where he supposedly jotted the information down. “Something of that sorts. Though I can’t see it being of much importance in this specific case. I think the course of action is clear where it concerns The Green Isles.”

The King found himself irked at The Advisor’s coldness, a trait he had never thought to dislike until this moment.

“If I deem it important it is so. And as far as a course of action is concerned,” The King glared pointedly at the man. “I am The King and I will decide what course of action is best. Are we clear?”

The Advisor set his jaw, realizing he had agitated The King; never a wise thing to do.

“Yes, sire,” he responded, still as cold as ever.

The King pushed open the doors, revealing a long, high ceilinged room with an equally long, stretching table with numerous chairs arranged around it. But all but one were empty. At the far end of the room and look very small was a woman clad in a modest, earthy-green cloak and dress. She wasn’t adorned with much else. No jewelry or intricate hairpieces. She looked common.  

As The King neared her, it was clear to him that the woman he could already sense her nervousness as she rose from her seat and bowed.

“Be seated,” he told her before taking a seat himself. Not at the head of the table as he usually did, but at a seat at The Ambassador’s side. This confused The Advisor, his expression said as much. But still, he said nothing and hung back behind The King, ready to pen whatever was needed.

“Hello, Ambassador…what’s your name?”

“Elle,” The woman said quietly. “Ambassador Elle. I come on the behalf of King Daeryen of The Green Isles, as I’m sure you know.”

The King nodded. “You have come to seek our aid.”

The Ambassador drew in a breath before continuing to speak.

“The is correct, your grace,” She did not meet his gaze. “The King Daeryen says he knows he would be the last person you would wish to help. But he promises you his unwavering support if you were to show him kindness in our time of need, if not for him but for our people who have nothing to eat day in and day out,” she looked up and The King was just now noticing how pale and frail the woman- no, the girl, looked. She continued, her voice becoming faint and shaky. “People are dying and we cannot stop it on our own.”

A moment of silence ensued as The Ambassador lowered her head in what looked like defeat, even though she hadn’t yet heard the King’s response. It was apparent to everyone there she was without hope.

A deep sorrow overcame The King as The Ambassador’s words began to sink in. Families with no food. Children left with no parents. People dying in the street unable to take the heat and malnutrition. The streets filled with vagabonds unable to feed or properly clothe themselves. The desolation and destruction it not only brings to the Kingdom as an entity but upon every person who misses a meal to feed those they care about with what little food they have left.

“Send them whatever supplies they need,” The King found himself saying. “So that every empty stomach might be filled.”

The Ambassador and The Advisor’s mouths both dropped at nearly the exact moment.

“I’m sorry?” The Advisor said, clearly taken aback. 

“Send them everything they need,” The King said again, more firmly.

“But-” The Advisor hesitated. “Do…do you think it wise, sire?”

The Ambassador sucked in a breath, waiting for The King’s response to this.

“Is empathy ever unwise? Now I repeat,” he turned to fully face The Advisor at his left. “Send them their supplies.”

The Advisor looked as if he might something else before opting to clamp his mouth shut, resigned.

“It shall be done.”

~*~

The King felt somewhat better after he met with the Ambassador even if he continued to carry the weight in his chest with him the rest of the day. But somehow, it now felt more bearable. And soon, before he knew it, night fell and it was time for him to retire to his chambers. But as he was escorted there by his Servant, he found himself pausing before a window, catching a glimpse of the bright orange sky outside. He stopped and took it in for a moment, noticing how the pink wispy clouds met the golden rays of the sun as they peeked over the edge of the Earth before shrinking completely out of sight. The King found himself entranced.

“It is very strange,” The King said to his servant. “I have never noticed how beautiful the sunset is until now. Has it always been so?” 

The Servant paused, uncertain how to answer The King. It was just as well because The King didn’t really expect an answer.  

“How is it I have lived my life without noticing this. And then the day after I take that Merchant’s potion, I find myself marveling at it?” 

“Perhaps one must be a little sad to love a sunset,” the servant said in a low voice. “Will that be all, my lord?” 

“Yes,” The King said with a nod. “You may go.” 

The next day, The King awoke to a light feeling all over him, as if the weight he had felt the day before had been completely lifted. His morning was a blur as he dressed and ate breakfast, anxiously awaiting the arrival of the merchant. The King received news that she had arrived in the mid-morning and The King wasted no time in allowing her an audience. Just moments later, an elderly woman hobbled to the center of the throne room, potions clinking at her side as she walked. She stopped when she reached the foot of the throne and looked up at The King with old but curious eyes.

“I see you are doing well, Potion Seller,” The King remarked.

“Very much so, my liege. Business has been good since news of our little “contest” spread.”

“That is good to hear,” said The King. 

The Potion Seller cocked her head at this remark. “Do you find yourself satisfied with my bottle of sorrow?”

A beat of silence ensued before The King responded with a simple nod of his head.

“And tell me, did it make a difference?” The Potion Seller flashed her signature smile, mischievous and crinkling at the edges of her eyes. The King felt she somehow already knew the answer.

“I spared a man and am revered among the common folk as merciful. I came to a Kingdom’s aid when I was overcome with sorrow for them and gained their loyalty. And I watched the sunset with new eyes,” The King spoke slowly and thoughtfully, something he had not been accustomed to doing until the recent days. “Tell me, how is it sadness is so powerful?”

“I think you know,” The Potion Seller said, surprisingly gentle. “It would seem I have another satisfied customer!” The older woman’s eyes sparkled with jubilee before clicking her walking stick loudly upon the throne room’s marble floor and turning to leave, calling over her shoulder as she went, “My work here is done!”

The Chess Princess

~ Brooke F. ~ Leave a comment

Once upon a time there was a lovely princess who lived in a lovely castle with a lovely library and a lovely king who was her father. 

This princess lived her days out happily, reading in the library, playing in the gardens, and (her most favorite activity) playing chess with her dad. 

But alas, a time came when the king died, leaving the queen behind to take care of the kingdom. Now the queen was a beautiful woman but she wasn’t necessarily a leader. There were enemies eyeing them and their land with greed. Now would be a decent opportunity to strike. The queen had to do something fast. So she arranged a political marriage between the princess and the prince of another kingdom, uniting them both under one banner. Soon there after, the queen died some say if heart break and some say of just plain stress.. 

Now the daughter was very sad at the loss of her parents and her arranged marriage, but she soon realized this is what fate had in store for her. So the coming year, she was married, and then the next year, was crowned queen alongside her husband who was crowned king. 

They went on to have a daughter, named Iris. The king was disappointed, hoping his wife would have a boy, therefore producing an heir. However, after the daughter was born, the queen had miscarriage after miscarriage. It soon became obvious that this was to be their only child and heir. The king was very saddened at this however the queen did not mind, loving her daughter with the purest love a mother could ever offer. So while the king attended his kingly business and largely ignored his daughter, the queen would spend time with her in the tower playing chess with her and read her stories. She wished to give her twice the amount of love to replace her father’s. 

But tragedy then struck yet again. Iris’s mother grew ill and quickly died not long after the princesse’s 15th birthday. This hit Iris very hard, Locking herself away in the tower for days to mourn. But she soon found strength through memory of her mother. 

“Remember,” she used to tell her during their usual chess game. “The Queen is the most powerful piece in the board. You are the most powerful piece on the board Iris.”

And so, after a three days of solitude, Iris walked out of the tower, standing tall and brave. But still very sad. 

Her years leading up to her 18th birthday were lonely ones, only gaining joy from her occasional trips to the town market, her daily rides, and of course her chess matches. She played nearly every single person of the castle staff, and beat them too. She had perfected her game it would seem.

Solemnly, Iris walked the courtyard of the tower she would soon be living in in the coming weeks. It was a tall, towering building, casting a dark shadow across it’s mosaic stone courtyard. It was once part of a old castle but now only a few crumbling walls and the tower remained. 

Inside, the tower was rather plain with no decorations in its room but had some of the most beautiful architecture she had ever seen. 

Iris decided she would not mind living here that much. Especially if she got to redecorate. But she supposed that hardly mattered as she would be only here as long as it took a prince to complete her test. 

So she began to think. But her thoughts began to swirl of her looming future marriage to a stranger and her controlling father so she stopped and opted to hide in the castle library and stare at her chess set, wishing horribly that her mother was there. She fiddled with the lovely stone pieces, tracing the shape of the knight’s arched neck, the pawns round top, when she was suddenly struck with an idea. 

“Always be the strongest piece on the board,” her mother’s voice echoed. 

“Don’t worry, mother,” iris whispered. “I will be.”

All night iris worked feverishly. Sketched after sketch she drew of her idea for her test. So when the morning came her eyes stung and she was utterly exhausted. But she did not rest- time was awasting!

She hurriedly ran down the castle stairs and into the courtyard where she met the black smith. She showed him her blueprints and sketches and of her idea. She asked him if he would help (she would pay him handsomely of course she added)

The black smith complied and began work as she requested. As the week dragged slowly on, the Princess was scarce, checking on the black smith constantly and sometimes even rolling up her sleeves and helping with the work herself. They were loosing time. The end of the week was near. 

Part of her doubted that they were going to make it. But on the fifth night her handmaidens and servants told her that they knew what she was up to. They told her to not to worry- they had not alerted her father of her activities. Not only that, they had heard through the castle gossip that they had fallen behind and they all wished to help. 

So That evening a group of young servant girls showed up at the black smiths forged with aprons and their sleeves rolled up and ready to work. And that night they finished. And early!

And then the seventh day came. 

The king demanded to see his daughters test for he had suitors waiting already. 

Iris led the king to the tower’s checkered tile court yard and gestured for him to look. 

Set up on opposing ends of the court yard arranged on the alternating squares were giant, metallic chess pieces. The pieces were giant, roughly about a head taller than most men though hollow so they could be pushed and moved with ease. There was a set of white pieces on the end closest to them and a set of black further away. 

“What on earth-?” The king began. 

“It’s my test,” iris explained. “Whichever suitor can beat me in chess may get my hand in marriage.”

“Don’t be ridiculous,” the king responded. 

“It’s my test,” the Princess pointed out, refusing to back down. 

Finally the king agreed, thinking that surely some prince would beat her. But he was very very wrong

Game after game iris would crow those wonderful words, “checkmate!”

A week went by and the suitors began loosing interest and went to find other princesses with easier tests. 

Iris’s father was angry at first but there wasn’t much he could do. He had to abide by his family’s tradition.  

And so iris spent the next 10 years in her tower, and sometimes venturing out into the forest and generally led a peaceful life. 

It wasn’t long after those ten years that the king opted to retire and step down from the throne, becoming sick in his old age. 

And so iris, now completely grown and ambitious, volunteered to take over. The people agreed unanimously- she was to be their queen. 

Being so wonderful at chess led to her being a excellent tactician during war time, defending and conquering when needed. So the kingdom knew an era of peace beneath the chess princess.  

Original Fairytales: The Lantern Princess

~ Brooke F. ~ Leave a comment

Once upon a time, there lived a princess named Nilsa. Her mother was a just and fair queen who was known for her charm and grace throughout all the land.
Her father, on the other hand, was a noble knight who fought with the ferocity of a dragon. He was both feared and loved among the people. It was he who named Nilsa, the word meaning “champion” as she would be a champion for her people.
As fate would have it, There came a time when Nilsa’s parents died she inherit the throne with reluctance.
However, word got out of her parents’ death and her father’s enemies began to make plans to attack the kingdom.
But the princess was no fool when it came to battle strategy as her father had taught her of things such as war. The enemies of the kingdom soon Found this out the hard way, returning home with few men, many of which were injured.
The rival Kings held a meeting among themselves and discussed as to how they could take the kingdom as they could not by force.
Then one proposed an idea. They would release locusts on their fields to destroy their farms.
The there agreed to this and they did as they discussed. They collected a hundred locusts and then released then on the Kingdoms fields. After a month’s time, there was no food left in the kingdom.
Nilsa’s people were hungry so she arranged and organized hunting groups to hunt down any available food. She herself was in one and so she rode out into the forest to look for game.
She came across a lady sitting in a stump. She looked haggard and was all bent over and she was very thin. A ragged cloak was thrown across her shoulders.
“Can I help you, Milady?” She asked the stranger.
“I am so hungry!” The other woman said, her voice hoarse. “I have not eaten in ten days. Please, can you prepare me a meal? If it is my last, so shall it be.”
“It shall be done,” said Nilsa. She hunted down a rabbit and killed it and returned to the woman. She then hastily made a fire and prepared it, cooking it brown. She then offered it to the lady along with some water from her own canteen.
“You are so very kind. But You are royalty? Why should you trouble with the likes of me?” The old woman said.
“A queen can eat when her subject’s stomachs are first full,” replied she.
Then the woman transformed into a beautiful shining woman in glimmering robes.
“Blessings upon you, Nilsa!” She said. “For you have proven yourself worthy. Your kingdom is ravaged with hunger but no longer this shall be.”
She then disappeared leaving Nilsa to wonder what has happened.
When Nilsa returned home, she came to find that the crops had regrown, twice as healthy and ready to harvest. Her people celebrated as they had an abundance of food.
The rival Kings marveled at this but resolved to bring Nilsa and her kingdom Down. The Kings held a meeting once more. This time they proposed they poison the kingdom’s water supply.
And so when Nilsa’s kingdom had nothing to drink, she journeyed into the forest once more in search of a new water supply. Upon searching, she came across a rabbit trapped in a trap.
“We are not hungry anymore,” she thought to herself. “So there is no need to kill it.”
And she released it but it did not run away. Instead, the creature panted mournfully and remained to lie on the ground.
“It must be thirsty as well,” she considered. And then she spotted a small well of crystal clear water. Without hesitation, she began to draw the water from out of its dark mouth. She then picked up the small creature and wasted no time in allowing it to receive the drink it had so craved. The rabbit lapped the water up greedily and then, strength regained, began to squirm. Nilsa loosened her grip, allowing the rabbit to escape.

Then suddenly, there was a bright light, and the lady in shimmering robes was present once more.
“Because you have proven yourself once again, I will aid you in your hour of need and quench the thirst of your land.”
And she disappeared once more and, like before, Nilsa returned to her kingdom to find their problem solved and the water not only purified but even clearer than before.
The Rival Kings were at their wit’s end.
“We need drastic measures!” Said one.
The others nodded in agreement and discussed what should be done. They finally agreed on a fire. They would allow the fields to catch fire from the north side of the kingdom and from the south side. The blazes then would eventually make their way to the castle and the village itself, leaving nothing but ash in its wake.
The night of the fire many lives were lost. But more than that, the village and the castle were reduced to nothing more than a few remnants of stone and charred wood.
Nilsa was badly burned but did not give up. That morning, she rose early and made her way into the forest. There, beneath a tree, sat the lady who had helped her before.
“I see that nothing will satisfy those villains but the downfall of your kingdom. But fear not as it will not come to pass for I have prepared a kingdom for you across the great divide. And there you and your people can live peaceably.”
“But the great divide is an uncrossable canyon of darkness where creatures of shadows roam,” said Nilsa. “How shall we cross safely.”
“The creatures are fearful of nothing but the light of fairies,” said she. “This I can give you so you might pass through safely.”
She stretched her hand out and in her grip was a lantern. “Light all the other lanterns with the light from this fire within the lantern and you will live to see brighter days.”
And with that, she was gone.
Nilsa wasted no time in returning to her fire scourged kingdom and telling her people of the fairy’s words. She then instructed her people to pack what material objects they had left and to arrange themselves in a line. Those who stood at the line’s edges and ends were armed with a sword and a lantern so to keep the darkness away.
And so Nilsa led her people into the dark divide. They encountered nothing though dark shapes in the distance could be seen, but they were long gone by the time they were nearing them.
Upon making it to the other side, the people were greeted with the sight of a beautiful, luscious, green valley with a castle at its center. Rivers of crystal clear water flowed throughout the rich farmland that lay in the outskirts of the kingdom and flowers of beautiful color lined the pathway that led to their new home. And there, Nilsa and her people built a new kingdom that became their paradise and they lived there happily for the rest of their days.
The ending for the evil kings, however, was not so happy. Strangely enough, one King’s water supply was contaminated. Another’s crops mysteriously withered away leaving him and his subjects with a food shortage. And yet another’s kingdom had a fire that swept across half of its entirety.
And while these Kings could not tell exactly why, but they somehow felt that it was the work of some form of strange magic. But the answer was far simpler; they were simply reaping that which they sowed.

The End

How to feel Magical

~ Brooke F. ~ Leave a comment

How to feel magical for all my fellow princesses and fairies out there…

Take baths with rose petals and moonlight

Use enchanted lotion

Aquire books

Gather flowers

Treasure keys and trinkets

Light candles

Paint

Write your favorite things in your journal and on your arms 

Collect cool looking glass bottles 

Learn languages of all kinds, especially Latin. 

Eat different things and try new foods on a regular. 

Go on walks often 

Admire nature

Stargaze 

Do your hair with sparkling things 

Stretch 

Give yourself time to think

Explore music

Draw in dark ink

Record the stars and how they move

Read stories and collect them like treasure only to share them with others. 

Makes wishes. Whether it be blowing the fluff off of a dandelion, throwing a penny into a well, or spotting a shooting star, don’t be afraid to make one.