Charming hated clichés with a passion. They were the reason why he was embarking on a journey that would most likely cost him his life, because Princes were supposed to rescue Princesses from dragons in dank lairs. No one ever told stories of the Prince who opted for a Princess who lived a little closer, or the Prince who failed to get to the Princess because he was too busy being eaten by the dragon.
Sure, he was a fantastic swordsman, possibly the best in the kingdom. But dragon were large, and they breathed fire. They ate nobles for breakfast, lunch and afternoon tea, with a few peasants at night to wash that down.
Suddenly Charming hated being a noble too.
He tethered his horse when he was within walking distance to the cave where the dragon purportedly lived. He had some time to think about it, while he made his way there, caution to the wind - he was probably going to die today, anyway, so why bother being careful.
Who was he going to blame for this mess that he was walking into? He could blame Snow, for divorcing him. He could blame his mother, for forcing him to seek a second wife this way. He could blame his father, for not exercising his Kingly powers and stopping his only son from what would be a fiery death...
And now he really didn't have time to assign the blame, because he could see the dragon, and it had seen him.
"Right then." Charming pulled the mask on his helmet down, and pointed his sword at the dragon. "This is completely rubbish, but, en garde!"
The dragon looked at him with one beady eye. It tilted its head. PARDON? it said.
This was unexpected. Charming raised his voice. "I said, EN GARDE!"
OH. I SEE. ANOTHER PRINCE. WOULD YOU MIND WAITING A DAY OR SO? I JUST ATE THE PRINCESS; SHE WAS A FAT ONE, GOING TO LAST ME A WHILE. The dragon burped, then picked its teeth with a bloodied claw.
Charming blinked. He was walking away all the while he replied to the dragon. "All right. Er, I might not stick around for that then - no point now that you've eaten the Princess, is there? Nice to meet you, I'm Avenant."
The dragon sighed contently. GREAT TO SEE YOU. COME VISIT ME NEXT TIME YOU'RE IN THIS REALM, JUST ASK FOR SVEN, THEY ALL KNOW ME HERE.
