Short Stories

A Fairytale

I was born a princess. In your world, perhaps, where magic is less populous, princesses are not enchanted beings, beautiful and powerful. But here, in my world, princesses are gifted and special. I was born the youngest with five older brothers. Two years after my birth, my little sister was born.

Our parents named us all after plants; my oldest brother is Alder, followed by Basil, then the twins, Reed and Rowan, with the youngest being Sage. My name is Iris, and my little sister's name is Lily.

As a baby, I was given three blessings - a lucky number in magic, much like seven. The first was from my fairy godmother, a woman of kindness, with snow-white hair and adorned always in white. It was a representation of purity in my culture, though I later learned that white meant death in others. At any rate, she blessed me first, and she blessed me with charisma.

The wizard who advised my parents looked at me and blessed me with beauty, that I would have golden hair and bright eyes and be ever enchanting.

The third gift, however, was the best one. An old hedgewitch, there only by chance, blessed me with compassion, an important trait for a princess to have.

Thus it was that I was given three gifts, three blessings, and as I began my years these three blessings started my life on a positive note.

Age brought other gifts as well, less important ones. A diamond necklace. A dress made of imported silk. A magic wand made to be a child's toy. A rocking horse, spelled to always rock as long as I rode it were I to grow tired. Good gifts for children and princesses, but not important magic ones and not ones I found essential.

It was my fifth year when I next received a gift I feel, even now, I could not do without. My parents' were receiving dignitaries from a foreign land, and as was custom they brought gifts for all of the children. For my eldest brother, they brought a sword forged in the fires of volcanoes, crafted by the finest blacksmith ever seen. For Basil, they brought a clever puzzle toy to challenge even the brightest minds (it took Basil three years to solve it, and none of my parents' advisors could ever figure out how he did it). Alder was a fighter; the second oldest of my brothers was very smart. As you can infer, they did their research.

For the twins, they brought enchanted saddles, one for each, that whatever horse they chose to ride would be the swiftest horse in all the land: that is, equally swift as the other brother's horse. For Sage, still a child if older than I was, they brought a game he could play by himself or with others. For my little sister, who was only three at the time, they brought the softest blanket in all the world.

But for me, they brought the best gift; an exotic creature not found in our lands, a sabre wolf. A small puppy at the time, but with magic in his blood to extend his lifespan. It was not the intended gift - they brought me some toy I found little interest in - but the wolf had bonded to no-one else. He was meant for me.

His name was an accident as much as it was intentional, Adder. For the day they brought him he saved me then and there from a snake in the garden where I had set out to chase Sage as he teased me. He leapt from his handler's side, breaking the leash as he pounced upon the snake.

And then, gentle as a well-trained puppydog, he nuzzled me. He became my best ally, my partner in all things, and my dearest friend.

He was even at my side for my tenth birthday party; a big, important event, to be sure. I would be achieving my age in the double digits, and much like three and seven are important magic numbers, so too is ten.

But my gift of compassion drove me to declare my birthday party to be for every ten year old in the kingdom, and so stubbornly I insisted that peasants be allowed in the palace and its gardens. It was a shock, and were I to be a mere noble and not the eldest daughter of the king and queen I am sure there would be great gossip. As it was it appeared my behavior offended several nobles, though at least one of their children whispered to me about how brave I was and how they wished they could do the same.