The Dog Princess: A Tom Holland Fairy Tale

Worst Nightmare

"Send for my father." Timothée stood up coldly, scarily numb. The guards holding Katherine looked at him, bewildered and shaking. A few long seconds passed, and Timothée exploded, the veins in his head popping out and his eyes going wild. "I said, send for my father! And King Benedict! Tell them I've made my decision! Now, go!"

The guards dropped Katherine and ran off, seeing to Timothée's furious demands. Jon wiped some sweat from his brow, now very concerned about the unhinged state of the prince. "My lord, you mustn't be hasty—just what are you going to do about this??"

Katherine's speech relaying all she heard through the door stung Timothée's mind and heart, and he could hardly believe it. He turned sharply to Katherine, who was still lying on the floor petrified. "There better some truth to your claims, girl. Or it's your neck—I swear it! You'll not win my favor with lies—"

She squirmed, trying to stand her ground although she was so far below him. "It's not a lie, Timothée! Just give her a command! You'll see...what I say is true."

"It better be. For your sake." He hissed before storming off back into his chambers, followed swiftly by Jon.

"Sire—"

"Cancel lunch—"

"Timothée—"

Timothée turned sharply, making Jon almost jump out of his skin. The hairs on Jon's neck stood up as Timothée spoke softly yet sharply, his eyes piercing into him like never before. "Cancel. Lunch. Get me two guards for tonight. Lock Princess Katherine in the tower until I know she's telling the truth and...compose yourself while you're at it. Do you understand?"

"Yes, my prince." He replied, his head still wrapped up in it all. Jon soon went to fulfill his duties, biting his nails in a nervous frenzy he had never experienced. He usually could control Timothée, but today his attempts were futile.

Timothée paced around his chambers for what felt like an eternity. His mind was racing with thoughts, thoughts that frightened him. His eyes filled with hot tears as he saw red, burning and blistering as they fell without his permission. He wanted none of this—he hoped it was a bad dream. Several hours later, the guards returned to Timothée, who was now lounging in the throne room anxiously awaiting any news. "Well?" He asked him, annoyed, as he could clearly see they were too scared to speak.

"Princess Katherine is in the tower, your grace. Just like you ordered." The first replied, less than confident.

"Your father, King Robert, and King Benedict have been summoned. King Benedict should arrive before sundown, and your father not far behind." The second one spoke with more gusto, in attempt to conceal their collective skittishness.

"And tonight?" Timothée rubbed his chin with a devilish grin.

"We are prepared, your highness." The guards replied in unison, bowing fearfully to him.

"Excellent."

***

A dangerous cluster of dark, gray clouds floated over the ink blue night sky, any light of the stars being snuffed out. Tom looked nervously out his bedroom window at the dreadful night, feeling a misty sprinkle come through the open space. A quiet patter started up, syncing up with his raised heart rate as he rose from bed shaking. Harrison was fast asleep, snoozing away blissfully unaware of the weather amongst other things.

Tom wasn't quite sure how to dress. It was his wedding day, was it not? But since they were fleeing, should he wear something more practical? Suddenly he wished they had more time to discuss the minor details. After a bit of thought, he decided to be practical, pulling on a pair of riding boots, trousers, and a comfortable but clean shirt, one of the ones she gifted to him. He threw on cloak with a hood that would help conceal his identity once they were off, all the while stuffing as much of his few belongings he could into a ragged satchel. He wasn't confident in his choice of attire, but he thought surely they could have a proper wedding once they were finally free. He'd be sure to impress her then. Getting lost in the thought of Rosemary and the choice they would make, he clumsily caught his foot and tripped on the edge of his trunk, stumbling over in a scuffle. His satchel slipped off his shoulder, plopping open on the ground with a thump near Harrison's bed, of course stirring the sleepy lad.

Harrison popped up, a bit startled, yet still half asleep. "What—what is it?" He looked around, his eyes finally settling on an anxious Tom, bracing himself with gritted teeth. "Where ya going? At this hour..."

Tom scrambled to pick up the satchel and it's contents, unsure of what to say. "Go back to sleep, Haz, pretend you never saw me—"

"Really, mate, come on now!" Harrison teased with a yawn and stretch. "Meeting someone?" He snickered and batted his eyelashes, making Tom feel more sad than his usual annoyance.

"Yes, I am. And...I won't be coming back." Tom replied, watching as it took Harrison a moment to process.

Harrison threw off his covers, shocked. "Not coming back—so you're running off—"

"We are."

"We—no—really?? You and the princess—" Harrison's voice kept getting gradually louder, causing Tom to violently shush him.

"Yes, Rosemary and I. I'm sorry I couldn't tell you mate. I was afraid—"

"Afraid? I was about to miss seeing you off because you're chicken—"

"I don't want anything to happen to you—"

"They can't break me, Tommy Boy." Harrison stood up, a skip in his step now as he pulled on a shirt and some shoes. "Oh man, oh man! I knew you had it in you! Where do you meet her?"

Tom smiled widely, almost welling up. "Her chambers first, then out to the stables and off the grounds. We'll go as far as we can tonight."

"We best get a move on then." Harrison clapped his hand on Tom's shoulder as the went out to the passage. As they winded down the familiar stony labyrinth, Tom felt his palms go sweaty, a limp forming in his stomach. Definitely the nerves kicking in for sure, he thought. His entire life was about to change, why shouldn't he be nervous? Harrison carried on without a worry, elated that things were finally going his way! He was over the moon for his friend! He took note of Tom's worrisome demeanor. "This is going to be great, Tom! Everything is going to be—"

Suddenly they stopped dead in their tracks, a shadowy figure blocking their way. Before they could think, they were quickly over powered, being grabbed from behind. The dim light of their candle stub did nothing for them in the scuffle as it fell to the ground, flicking out on impact. The helpless boys tried to scream, but they were being gagged, choking on the cloth at it was shoved on. Swiftly their hands were bound, and they were kicked to the ground on their knees. The figure in front of them slowly lit a lantern, illuminating the sinister face of their worst nightmare.

"Going somewhere, boys?"