Bedtime Stories
"Mommy?"
"Yes, Gracie?"
"Will you tell me a bedtime story?"
Quinn smiled as her little girl peeked at her from the edge of the bed. She patted the spot next to her, and Gracie climbed up. "Sure. What sort of story do you want?"
"A fairy tale!"
"Okay. Just one though. Mama will put us both in time out if you're up when she gets home from the theater."
Gracie nodded and cuddled into Quinn's side.
"Right…ah…once upon a time, there was a princess. She was an amazing princess—kind, and brilliant, a beautiful. Everyone who knew her spoke of her mercy and all of her amazing talents. This princess grew up, and knew that a special throne awaited her in a faraway land—"
"What was the land called?"
"Er…" Quinn hesitated. The story would be pretty obvious, even to the six year old, but she couldn't just out and say Broadway. She wasn't a world famous author for nothing though…. An anagram would work fine. "Braywoad. So she worked very hard to be the best princess she could be. And in the last few years in her own kingdom—"
"What was her kingdom called?"
"Mila. Now shhh, I'm trying to tell the story."
"Don't leave out details. Those are important."
Definitely Rachel's kid, Quinn thought, smiling. "Right. Well, in the last few years in her own kingdom, she pardoned a few of the kingdom's bullies. She thought they deserved a second chance. In time, she became great friends with them. But the prince—the boy she would one day marry—didn't like them. He didn't like her having or giving any attention but his own. So in the last year before her journey to Braywoad began, he became scared that she would leave him. She had her knew friends, remember? And he was very afraid that she would forget all about him. So he became mean, and demanded she marry him right away."
Gracie gasped. "That's not fair!"
Quinn shook her head. "No, it wasn't. But remember, the princess was kind and loyal, and smart. She calmed his fears as best she could, but did not agree to the marriage."
"Good!" Gracie said firmly.
Please stay this smart your entire life, Quinn thought. "So the princess, along with her two friends, set out on their journey. One of the friends wanted to become a lawyer, and help those in need. The other friend wanted to be a scribe for the kingdom. They had also pledged to protect the princess as she made her way through her trials."
"Trials?" Gracie asked, wide eyed.
"Oh yes. She couldn't just take the throne, you see. She had to prove herself worthy. There was a special school for princes and princesses, and she had to be the very best to gain the throne. So she worked, and it was hard, believe me. There were nights when she would cry to her friends, mostly the scribe-in-training, because she didn't feel worthy of the throne. Over a couple of years, those fears eased somewhat. She and the scribe grew closer, and one day the scribe was surprised to find that she was falling in love with the princess. Even more surprising was the moment when the princess confessed that she felt the same."
"Oh, yay!" Gracie said, eyes sparkling. She got the dramatics from Rachel, but the whole crying at movies and stories thing? That definitely came from Quinn…. "But…what about the prince from Mila?"
"Ah, you remembered," Quinn said, tapping Gracie's nose. "He hadn't come to visit, or written, and he didn't call all that much. But out of nowhere, during the princess's third year away from Mila, he showed up. And he showed up demanding that she marry him once again. He'd heard rumors, you see, of the princess's closeness to the scribe. He locked her away in a tower for a month, and no one knew where she'd gone."
Something in Quinn's voice was so incredibly sad that Gracie clung to her a little more tightly.
"But remember, it wasn't just the scribe that was looking after her," Quinn continued, hugging the girl. "There was the lawyer, and also a bard that they had become friends with. They found her, and there was a mighty battle between the scribe and the prince. But finally, the princess begged them to end it, and the scribe stopped. The prince, angry but not crazy, left for Mila. The princess made it to Braywoad the next year, and was married to the scribe not long after. When they saw the prince again, he had taken another for his queen, and apologized for his treatment of the princess. All was well."
"And the lawyer and the bard?"
"The bard became famous for his voice throughout all the land. And the lawyer was the best the kingdoms had ever seen. And she found a princess as well, and they stayed in the kingdom with the first princess and the scribe, because they loved them as well. And now, it's time for bed."
"Wait! Did they live happily ever after?"
"They lived as well and happily as they could. They had good days, they had bad days, but they were a family, and they loved well and long. The end."
Gracie seemed satisfied with this, and allowed Quinn to carry her back to bed. "Night Mommy!"
"Night, silly squirrel."
Quinn turned out the light.
"Mommy?"
"Yes?"
"That story…it's about you and Mama." It wasn't a question.
"It is."
"The other princess is Aunt Brittany, the bard is Uncle Kurt, and the lawyer is Auntie Tana."
"Yep."
"And Mr. Finn…he's the prince."
"Yes."
"Did he really lock Mama away for a month?"
"Two days. And she wasn't locked away so much as just secluded so they could talk."
"It was a good story."
Quinn smiled. "I think so too."