Dylan O'Brien (ıṃѧɢıṅєṡ & ƿяєғєяєṅċєṡ)

You Get a Necklace

You walked around, looking at each and every piece of jewelry. They were all so beautiful and you just wished you could buy one. "That used to belong to a princess, given to her by her prince." You scrunched up your nose, what she had said sounded like a tale.

"I'm sorry," you said pausing to let out a laugh. The woman stared at you with a blank expression on her face, as if she really truly believed it. "It just sounds cliché." You explained and she scoffed.

"Sit down young girl, let me tell you the story. And mind you, I know every single detail, and event. I'm a historian, you know." You found yourself a chair and sat in it, watching as the older lady sat down in another chair in front of you.

"Let's see—"

"Before you start, my boyfriends coming to get me so don't take too long." Or take as long as you'd like, a little voice inside your head said.

She ignored you, though. "—ah, yes. Like every good story, it started with a girl meeting a boy, in an unusual situation."

"Once Upon A Time..."

The princess danced through the crowd of her villagers, keeping herself unknown—disguised as a begger. Even though the clothes she wore were dirty and holey, her beautiful hair and face could easily be noticed. For that reason she wore a hood over her face, hoping that no one would pay any attention. "Miss? Miss!" She called to a older lady standing on the pathway, watching a man trade something for bread. The old lady turned her head in the princesses direction, and walked towards her.

"Is there somethin' I can help ye with?" She asked sloppily, but her eyes said that she cared to help the princess—or begger. The princess had been running away from her castle, she would return back next week, but she wanted to experience the way her people were being treated due to the complaints her mother had been given.

"Do you know of a place where I would be able to stay?" She asked looking around the dirty street, she found herself looking down at the ground after she had made eye contact with a soldier of hers. The old lady tapped her chin and placed a hand on her hip.

"Down the road a ways there's a Inn, I thinks?" She said and turned around, as the man who traded something for bread began to walk away. The princess watched as the lady walked away, and wrapped the brown shawl tighter around her shoulders, warming herself up. She walked down the stone paths and soon arrived at the Inn the old lady told her about. She stood a foot away from the door, wondering if what she was doing was really worth her experiment. She quickly shook out the cons and opened the door, looking around immediately as she walked in.

Girls were walking around, draping their arms around men, wearing dresses that showed too much skin—in her opinion. She knew who those girls were called, strumpets, whores. Some were attractive, but majority were not. The princess knew enough to ignore the men, and ignore the women who offered themselves—their bodies—to the drunken men for money. The stench of beer, liquor, and smoke filled the Inn and as the princess walked over to the bar counter, she let down her hood. The bartender noticed her and sent her a toothy smile, only it wasn't white like she had imagined—it was a brownish-yellow. "How may I 'elp ye miss?" He asked, resting his arms on the counter and looking straight into her eyes. The princess stared back, in her mind wondering what she should tell the man she wanted.

"Water," she decided on and heard the man snort. She ignored it however and waited for him to hand over her drink. She placed two coins on the counter as the man set down the glass of water. She'd only been away from the castle since sunrise but she was parched. Instinctively she grabbed for the glass and gulped down the water, almost tempted to ask for another glass. But she restrained herself, and cleared her throat. "Can I have a room?" She asked, the man who seemed to run the joint rose an eyebrow.