Author's Note: This story was written for SaoirseParisa's One Word Prompt in the Village Square Forum. My word was 'Dream.' I went through several ideas before finally being able to type something out. I hope you all enjoy this little fairytale ;).

Lisette found herself standing in a pale pink dress at the edge of a field of flowers. The view in front of her was breathtaking. There was an endless sea of flowers of all shapes and colors. A soft red light glowed in the distance. She became drawn to the light and walked towards it, identifying flowers she saw along the way.

"Gillyflower, yellow daffodil… Oh! There's a white carnation."

It wasn't long before Lisette reached the source of the red light. A single red rose sat on a crystal pedestal. Lisette had read enough fairytales to know not to touch it, yet her hand floated towards the scarlet petals. She held her breath as her fingers gently grazed the flower. Her hand started to wrap around the stem.

"No! Princess Lisette, don't pick it up!" a familiar voiced called. But it was too late. The flower had been removed from the pedestal. Flames emerged all around the girl, scorching all the flowers in their path. The air became thick with smoke, and Lisette could no longer see the field. Her body trembled, and her grip on the rose tightened. A pair of golden eyes glared through the smoke. A faint outline of the creature's figure revealed it to be a dragon.

"You have touched the forbidden flower. A price must be paid!" the dragon roared.

"I'll give it back," Lisette squeaked.

"It's too late," it hissed. "You're coming with me."

Lisette screamed as the dragon's claw reached out to her. She closed her eyes and the scene around her shifted. The blonde now found herself in a dark, empty room. The smoke and fire were gone. She looked down at her clothes. Her dress was covered in black spots and tattered to the point where she might have as well been wearing rags. A dim light shone into the room through a single window. Lisette walked to the window and gasped. The landscape around her was completely barren, and, to her horror, the ground was at least ten stories below her.

"I'm trapped in a tower," she whispered to herself in a state of disbelief. Fear crept into her mind as she clutched her chest. She looked around the room again. There was no furniture, no food, no water, no rope, and nothing to help her. Her hands rose to her hair. The flowers were gone.

"Is this my punishment?" she cried softly as she dropped the floor. Tears slowly started to glide down her face. "Someone… please help me."

Lisette waited in the tower for what could have been minutes, days or weeks. She had no way of knowing. The dim light never brightened nor did it ever fade.

"If only a knight in shining armor could rescue me… or if this is my fate, please let me see one more flower before I die," she prayed. Out of nowhere Lisette heard a loud 'cling.' She looked up to see an arrow pierced into the wall across from the window. A little envelope was attached to the shaft. She walked over to it. She quickly grabbed the envelope and went to sit just below the window to open it.

Princess,

I'm here to save you, but I need you help me.

Kiss the petal, say you want to escape, and drop the petal from the tower window.

See you soon,

-Your Knight

Lisette's heart fluttered with hope as she picked up the red petal. She knew it was from the forbidden flower. Could the thing that cursed her really save her? She had to try. Her hand brought the petal to her lips, and she placed a kiss upon it. Standing up, she reached out the window and prepared to drop it.

"I want to escape this tower," she said. The petal fluttered to the ground. A white light flashed as the petal made contact with the ground. A giant red rose slowly emerged from the ground next to the tower. Eventually, it surpassed the height of the tower. Lisette watched in awe as it kept creeping towards the sky.

"Princess!" a voice called. Lisette looked down to see someone in armor climbing up the rose's thorns.

"Hello!" she called back. A smile spread across her face. Her knight had finally come to rescue her. When the knight reached the window's level, he extended his arm to her.

"Grab my hand, princess."

"But the dragon!"

"The dragon has been put to an eternal slumber."

Lisette hesitated, but only for a moment. One wrong step and she would fall to her death, but she felt being doomed to the tower of nothingness was a far worse fate. Besides, something inside her told her to trust the knight. His voice and presence felt… familiar. She reached for his hand and, with a leap of faith, jumped from the tower. The princess momentarily dangled in the air, but the knight pulled her up to him.

"Are you ready to get out of this place?" he asked.

"Yes!"

"Please wear this," he said, handing her a harness. She fastened the harness around her as the knight tied a rope around the thorn above them. He then tied the rope to her. "I'm going to lower you down."

"But, what about you?"

"I'll climb down after I lower you."

"Be careful… and thank you."

"Anything for you, Lisette."

The blonde blushed as she stepped off the thorn. Her heart filled with joy as her shoes touched the ground. The knight soon returned to the ground.

"Thank you for saving me!" she exclaimed, giving him a hug. After regaining her composure, she looked the knight. "Who are you?"

The knight removed his helmet to reveal disheveled brown hair and deep blue eyes. Lisette's heart skipped a beat at the sight of the man who had once removed a thorn from her finger.

"Henry!?"

"The one and only, your highness."

"Why did you rescue me? Didn't I deserve to be punished for touching the forbidden flower?"

"The forbidden flower is enchanted to attract those pure of heart. The dragon had been using it in an attempt to remove some of the good from this world. And… the reason I saved you is er- I… I love you, Lisette."

Lisette's heart fluttered with joy and her cheeks tinged pink.

"You l-love me?" she asked, smiling.

"Yes, I have for a while now… I just wasn't able to say it before."

"I love you too!"

Henry smiled and stepped towards Lisette, leaning in for a kiss.

BEEP! BEEP! BEEP!

"No!" Lisette gasped as she woke up. Her heart was racing as she looked around. She was at home. It had all been a dream.