this night is sparkling (don't you let it go)
Words: 6656
Summary: It's been several months after Princess Katherine of Glimmer Grove has managed with the help of the Fairies to clear her kingdom off the withering - the so called "curse" - that had her homeland in ruins for more than two decades. A grand festival is prepared to celebrate this occasion, with guests from across the kingdom and the Continent. All eyes are on Princess Katherine.
And yet, she chooses to ignore them, for she knows where her heart truly lies. She alone gets to choose her happy ending.
~•~•~•~•~
The morning sun embraced the kingdom of Glimmer Grove, its warmth spread across from the river bank up to the hills behind the castle. The flowers all across the kingdom were in full bloom and the bees were buzzing around. The kingdom was once more full of life, the corruption that threatened the peacefulness of Glimmer Grove almost forgotten, like a bad dream.
In truth, it was only a couple of months ago that the corruption was slowly corroding Glimmer Grove, turning it into a deserted land of nothingness. But, at long last, Princess Katherine had finally managed to save her home from destruction, ending the corruption once and for all with the help of the little Fairies, whose size definitely couldn't account for their power.
And now, months later, the kingdom was preparing to celebrate the triumph of goodness against evilness. It was a joyful occasion, marking the beginning of a new era for Glimmer Grove. A victory for the royal family too, who had returned from exile in order to celebrate amongst their people and to watch first hand the achievements of their daughter.
Everything seemed to be coming together.
Except that Katherine's secret was out in the open now and everyone knew that, among other things, she was also a skillful monster slayer.
It would be a relief if Katherine didn't know her parents so well.
They had always been protective. But this was so much worse than she had ever imagined. It took her ages to convince them she was more than capable of protecting not only herself but her people too. Her mother had always stressed the importance of duty. Wasn't protecting the people part of hers too? That had silenced them for long enough.
Of course, Katherine didn't have much time for monster slaying these days. The upcoming festival, first of its kind, required her full attention. She couldn't afford another mishap like the Tea Party. What a mess that one had been. She didn't want to think about it at all.
People had been flocking back to the new-found kingdom now that rumors had spread that the corruption was gone and that the princess was no longer cursed. Katherine had no patience or time to dispute this claim and so chose to ignore it altogether. Let people believe whatever they want.
But she couldn't ignore all the expectations that were placed upon her shoulders all of a sudden, now coming from two fronts. She was used to her parents demanding nothing but perfection and to the villagers' scorn, but now things had changed on their part. It was honestly so strange not being ignored nowadays.
Katherine wasn't sure how to feel about it.
What she did feel was stress. Always stressed to keep her parents pleased, always stressed to please her people. This festival had to be successful. For their sakes and for hers too.
That morning, Katherine spent it hanging colorful banners across trees and lampposts. It would have been easier if she wasn't so clumsy, but most importantly if she wasn't afraid of heights. Unfortunately, the palace was still severely understaffed, so she was forced to do it herself.
