CHEATING CHARMING
by MapleRose
Once upon a time, there was a prince. He was very charming, thus he was called Prince Charming.
Prince Charming was very handsome, with blue eyes the colour of October skies and hair the colour of crystallized honey. He was brave and strong as well, doing many heroic deeds across the land and saving damsels in distress. He was so brave and handsome that all the maidens in the land fell in love with him, from the poorest kitchen maids to the richest foreign princesses.
One day, he was riding on his white steed by a forest in the neighbouring land when he heard frantic screaming. The prince decided to follow the sound out of curiosity. He stepped into the clearing just in time to see a girl fall to the ground with an ogre standing above her, ready to take her away.
"Oh no you don't!" Prince Charming shouted and darted out to face the ogre. "I'll save you!"
The ogre smirked at him. "What luck, more food!"
But Charming wasn't afraid. He was the bravest man in the country. Ogres are nothing compared to him.
"I am Prince Charming, the bravest of the land. Surrender now if you don't want to be killed!" He brandished his trusty sword and prepared to fight. A second later, the ogre yelped and ran out of the clearing.
"Ha! Showed him!" Charming smirked after the running beast and sheathed his sword. He didn't get far in relishing his victory though, for he was interrupted by many frantic voices calling out behind him on the other side of the clearing. He turned around and found seven little men huddled around something, so he went over to them to investigate.
It turned out that the little men were huddled around the young girl the ogre had attacked, and some men were weeping.
"Oh, it's terrible!" one of them said. "She was so beautiful, so kind, we're too late, now she's…" he couldn't finish because he started crying again.
Charming looked at the girl closely. She was the most beautiful maiden he had ever set eyes upon. Her long ebony hair contrasted beautifully with her pale skin.
"She's beautiful!" he whispered softly. "Don't worry, I've taken care of the ogre," Charming told the little men proudly.
The men looked at one another and exchanged glances. Then one of them spoke.
"What do you mean? We scared him off with our mirror. Ogres are afraid of their reflections you see," he explained.
Charming shook his head. "No no, I fought him off, for I'm Prince Charming, the bravest of the land," he answered matter-of-factly.
The little men looked at one another again and shrugged, deciding to let the matter pass.
"It's too late for her…" one of them reminded the rest, so they bowed their heads and said a prayer.
Prince Charming knelt down next to the girl. "Oh she's so beautiful, it's such a shame..." Her lips were the loveliest shade of red and Charming found himself drawn to them. He lowered his head and met her lips with his own.
To his surprise, the maiden awakened. She was not dead after all, but merely fainted at the sight of the ogre. She gazed lovingly at him and he fell instantly in love. They were married a couple of weeks later at a ceremony in her kingdom.
However, Prince Charming was getting bored with staying in the castle all the time. He itched for adventure. So one day, he set off on his white stallion, promising his wife that he will be back soon, safe and sound.
Soon, his travels took him to a rundown castle. The castle looked as if it was abandoned quite some time ago, for the crumbling walls were covered with vines and brambles. Local people told him of an enchanted princess inside, so he decided to explore.
"But it's very dangerous, the castle is falling down, and a stone may fall on you," an old man warned. "And there are thorns and brambles that could kill you. Many young lads tried and failed."
"Don't worry, I won't fail. I'm Prince Charming." He walked towards the castle entrance confidently.
Because of his bravery and training as a prince, he was very agile. He was able to dodge the falling stones and cut through the thorn branches with his sword using his amazing strength. Then he bravely climbed to the tallest room of the tallest tower. There, he saw a beautiful princess – she was wearing her crown – lying in a wooden casket with a glass top. At first, Charming was confused. Why was the princess in a coffin? Was she dead? Then he took a closer look at her. No, she was still alive, he could tell by the movements of her chest.
Assured that he was not too late, Charming took a closer look at the princess. His breath caught in his throat, for she was the most beautiful maiden he had ever set eyes upon. Her long fiery hair fell softly against her rosy cheeks. In her hand, she carried a red rose, as if waiting to present it to someone. Her lovely lips matched the colour of the petals, and Prince Charming wondered if it was just as soft.
He lifted the lid. Their lips met and she awoke from her long slumber. She blinked a couple of times to get her eyes used to the sudden bright light. The first thing she saw was the handsome Prince Charming. She instantly fell in love with him as he did with her. They were married a couple of weeks later at her uncle's castle since her own castle was in very bad shape.
Soon, Prince Charming got tired of staying in the castle again. He wanted adventure. So he took off one day on his white horse with promises to his wife of returning shortly, safe and sound.
He came upon a castle in another land. There was a huge crowd of men outside, as if waiting to be admitted. Curious, he went in with them.
"What's going on?" he asked the man next to him once they were inside.
So the man told him that the king and queen's only daughter was under a witch's terrible spell that only a prince can break. They were looking for a real prince by summoning men near and far to find one who can break the spell. That prince would marry their only daughter.
"That's easy!" Prince Charming raised his chin arrogantly. "I'm a real prince."
"You?" the man gave a hearty laugh.
Prince Charming was taken aback by this. He felt insulted. But before he could reply, the herald interrupted.
"Next!"
Prince Charming stepped forward. The herald eyed him with a skeptical look as if wondering why this man dressed in dirty rags was even going to try. It had rained the night before, and Prince Charming had forgotten that his silk clothes were soaked and ruined in the rain, and that the mud from the ground that he had slept on was all over his clothes and hair.
He walked to where the king and queen were sitting, and an attendant explained what was required of him. He was slightly shocked when he was presented with a frog and was told to kiss it. He thought he had to kiss a princess, not a frog! When he was hesitant and then refused to kiss it, the king and queen stood up and congratulated him. They told him that he was the prince that they've been looking for, because only a true prince would have enough guts to say no to the king and queen, and would feel disgusted to kiss a frog.
Then he was led to the room where the real princess lay, asleep. She was the most beautiful maiden he had ever set eyes upon. Her long golden hair framed her flawless face. One kiss on her cherry-red lips and she awoke. She fell in love with him and he with her, so they were married a couple of weeks later in her castle.
Once again, Prince Charming wanted adventure. One day he set off on his horse with promises to his wife that he'd come back soon, safe and sound.
Not far from his homeland, he came across a tower guarded by a dragon. The tower was very strange, for there was no door, only a solitary window very high up. An old woman in a cloak that hid her face told him in a raspy voice about the legend of a beautiful princess in the tower. She was said to be the most beautiful maiden in the world, even the sun couldn't compare with her radiant beauty. Her voice was said to be the loveliest one would ever hear. Her songs would make the moon stop in its tracks.
Prince Charming, in awe, decided to rescue the princess and see for himself just how beautiful she was. But first, he had to get past the dragon.
The dragon was nothing like he had ever seen, and nothing like what he thought it would be: it was much larger and much scarier. The tower looked tiny next to it, and Charming looked even smaller. The razor claws and sharper teeth could easily pierce any knight's armour. The shining green scales gleamed in the sun, and it turned its piercing golden gaze at the challenger. Prince Charming felt his legs turn to jelly. His years of training and experience cannot compare with this great beast before him.
The dragon seemed to smile. It revealed its fangs and came for the trembling young man. Prince Charming closed his eyes, said goodbye to the world and waited for the pain…
It never came. Slowly, cautiously, he opened his eye slightly. Then both eyes popped open as he saw that instead of swallowing him, the dragon was lifting him up towards the tower. Even better, the dragon dropped him inside the room at the top of the tower through the window. Prince Charming wondered why it was helping him. He shrugged it off, not really caring for a logical explanation. Then he remembered the maiden that lived in the tower. So he turned around and saw…
Nothing.
There was nobody in the tower except for him. No maiden with the most beautiful face and wonderful voice. There was just an empty room save for a small stone slab.
Prince Charming glanced carefully out the window, and let out a huge sigh of relief when he saw that the dragon was gone. He then started to look for a way down. There was no stair to be found. He leaned out, wondering if it was possible to climb down. The tower was really high up, so jumping wasn't an option, and the smooth brick made climbing extremely difficult if not impossible. That was when he realized that he was stuck. Prince Charming sat down on the cold stone slab, feeling defeated. He turned and saw that there was a beautiful red apple beside him. He was getting a bit hungry, so he took a bite…
From the shadow of the tower, three princesses watched the scene with conspiring smiles on their faces.
They lived happily ever after, well, except for Prince Charming. Perhaps someday, a brave princess will break the spell and rescue him.
FIN
Well, what do you think? Review and let me know. This is a one-shot, so that's the end. Unless I get a hundred requests, I ain't continuing this.