"Elmont, tell me a story!" Little Isabelle, Princess of Cloister demanded. The twenty year old guard looked up from his post in surprise. He didn't even think that the eight year old knew his name.
"Me, Your Highness?"
"Yes," Isabelle crossed her arms. "Nursie always tells me stories that have happy endings. I want you to tell me a terrible one."
"Excuse me?" Elmont fought back a grin as he sat down and Isabelle rolled her chocolate eyes.
"Tell me a terribly frightening one with adventure and monsters and giants and…" Isabelle grinned wickedly. "…romance!" She finished. Elmont groaned inside. Romance had become the little girl's new hobby. She was forever trying to find 'cute' couples within the palace.
"So what's the story?" she glared at Elmont. He smothered a grin.
"Well," he began, "Once upon a time, there was a very beautiful princess. Her name was Isabelle." Isabelle flushed with pride at being called 'very beautiful' and burrowed under her covers, pulling the blankets up to her chin. "Now Isabelle," Elmont continued, "Was a very boisterous princess-"
"What does 'boys-dress' mean?" Isabelle furrowed her little brow. Elmont smiled.
"Boisterous means loud and active."
"Oh." Isabelle nodded seriously. "Keep going." Elmont grinned again, and continued.
"Isabelle was the most famous princess in the land. She was beautiful and kind, but she also had a secret."
Isabelle shrunk deeper under her covers as Elmont continued. "At night, she would sneak out and ride her horse until midnight." Elmont leaned forward, and whispered, "As long as you don't do it again, I won't tell your father. Our secret, all right?" Isabelle nodded frantically.
"Continue," she said softly.
"Isabelle soon grew up, and became even more amazing. But she was soon to be married to a man she did not love—ah…Prince Bushy-Throat." Elmont stroked his beard and straightened, trying to appear dignified. He cast a haughty glance down at Isabelle, and she burst into giggles, pressing her hand to her mouth. "Now Prince Bushy-Throat was a very prestigious man—"
"What does 'press-Jesus' mean?" Isabelle interrupted.
"Important." Elmont cleared his throat and raised his eyebrows at her. She giggled again.
"Continue."
"Isabelle didn't love this man at all. He was at least five inches shorter than her, and had little teeny beady eyes that sat over a long hooked nose. But the worst part of him was his neck. It was covered with thick bushy hair, from the bottom of his chin, to his collarbone. He was also the fattest and laziest man that had ever lived in Cloister." Elmont puffed out his cheeks and glared down at the princess. She pushed her fiist into her mouth. "Isabelle really loved a…ah…a knight! Named…uh…"
"Elmont!" Isabelle offered. Elmont chuckled.
"Elmont? You're wanting her to love a man named Elmont?" Isabelle shrugged dismissively.
"'Elmont is a 'strong name for a good looking man'. That's what Nursie says." Elmont felt his face pinking—Isabelle's nurse was a good ten years older than him, at least. "And I want my future husband to be really really really really handsome!" Isabelle finished, nodding with finality. "Carry on." She commanded, glaring at Elmont.
"So Isabelle really loved…Elmont, the knight, and he loved her." Elmont continued. "He was going to ask the king for her hand—"
"Why would he ask him for her hand?"Isabelle interrupted once more. "That doesn't make sense."
"That's an expression meaning that he wanted to marry her." Elmont told her patiently. "He was about to ask Isabelle to marry him, when Prince Bushy-Throat swept in and demanded that Isabelle marry him, or the prince's men would attack her father's kingdom. Isabelle's father didn't want anything to happen to his kingdom, so he consented—allowed," he added before Isabelle could say anything, "To Prince Bushy-Throat's command. Isabelle was going to marry him. Elmont was angry. He loved the princess, and didn't want anything to happen to her. So one knight, he crept into the girl's room, and snatched her away! He asked her to marry him, right there in the middle of the night, and she said yes. The two quickly sneaked out of the castle, and hid in the woods for days, while the king's men and the prince's men looked for them night and day." Isabelle's eyes sank shut slowly, and Elmont stood softly, and tucked the little girl in.
"What happened next?" Isabelle asked sleepily, turning over and blinking heavily at Elmont.
"Then Elmont and Isabelle returned to the castle when the king's men revolted against Prince Bushy-Throat and put him in jail. And they lived happily ever after. The end." Isabelle smiled happily, then yawned.
"Good night, Sir Elmont…" she yawned.
"Good night, your Highness."