Jack's Short Stories

Dame of Glory

Words: 2929

FAIRYTALE TRUTHS:

WRITE A FAIRYTALE ABOUT AN OUTSIDER TRYING TO FIT IN

Once upon a time, there was a beautiful princess. Her silky hair was always braided with ribbons of all sorts of colors. The entire kingdom looked at her for advice, she was a beacon of hope, she was inspirational and loved by all. And lucky enough to be right by her side was her personal knight, Sir Dante.

Sir Dante was personally hired by the king to wait on and to protect his daughter. Sir Dante talked only to her. He rarely slept or ate, then when he did do so, he did it in private. The Princess had seen his face only when they were younger, about thirteen. And though she had only seen his face a few times then, she remembers his freckles, long eyelashes, and beautiful dark eyes. She remembered his voice was high, it still was. She wonders when his voice will finally drop like all the other boys', she wonders how different it will make him sound. She hopes that once puberty hits him, the other knights will respect him more, he deserves it.

The knights don't think of Sir Dante as manly. He is particularly sensitive, a trait seen far too feminine to be a war leader. But the princess likes his sensitive side, she always knows how he feels and what he's thinking. He's a very open man, and she is a woman who can't read emotions easily.

When Sir Dante sat at the knights' dining table, he did not take off his helmet to eat like all the other knights. Instead, he put the knight's nightly meal into a Ziploc bag, a weapon that wouldn't be introduced to any other kingdom for another 350 years.

"Sir Dante," Sir Chad asked, biting his lip and rubbing chin, "Why dost thou never eat in front of us?"

Sir Dante shrugged.

"Oi!" Sir Kaiden-Jaden-Aiden-Braden said, "Tell us about the princess? What's she like?"

Sir Dante cleared his throat. There was so much to say about The Princess, he could talk about her for days. How she messed with the tool on all her dresses, how she'd pick the color blue over anything else, how she'd wake up early just to see the deer roam freely while everyone else was asleep. He could talk about the infinite things that made him fall in love with her, he just didn't know how to say it, not to these scoundrels at least. He didn't want the other knights knowing he had a crush on her, he would lose his job. Still, he wanted to express how great The Princess is. "She's... Clever. She'd make an excellent queen," he murmured.

"Aye, but what does she look like?" Sir Chad asked. "You're closer to her than anyone! How tall would you say she is? Is she naturally blonde? What's her actual name? Come to think of it, I've only ever heard her referred to as The Princess."

Barely a whisper: "The?"

"What?"

Sir Dante spoke a little louder. "Her name is The."

Sir Chad looked confused. He always looked confused. "Does that mean her last name is Princess?"

Sir Dante nodded.

"So our King's name is... King Princess?"

Sir Kaiden-Jaden-Aiden-Braden rolled his eyes. "Honestly Chad, I can't believe you don't even know the names of our monarchy." He laughed but it died when no one else laughed with him.

Chad spoke again, still puzzled. "So when she becomes queen, her title will be Queen Princess?"

"No, that's the current queen's title, who was tragically born without a first name. She will be Queen The Princess."

The two went on with their fairly stupid questions, and Sir Dante left, holding his plastic bag of mashed potatoes. He would meet The Princess in her tower. They never dined together, she always dined on fanciful food privately with her family. He sat on her plump bed, filled with as many feathers as a mattress could hold. It sank under his heavy, armored weight, causing his armor to bend uncomfortably at the knees. Oh, whatever, Sir Dante thought, as he began taking off his hulking, steel boots. He opened up his bag of mashed potatoes before realizing he had forgotten to bring any utensils.