I finally thought of one for ScotCh!
And if you can't tell, these fairytales are supposed to have a slight satirical edge to them. Please don't take them too seriously.
-:-
There were once two kingdoms, Latot-Amard and Potenza, which wished to unite their countries and become the strongest allies in the Seven Kingdoms.
The King of Potenza had a son and joy of joys, the Queen of Latot-Amard had a beautiful baby daughter. Their marriage was arranged before the two were even able to crawl.
The two kingdoms brought their children together often, hoping they'd be good friends and strengthen their own friendship in return.
Prince Christopher was a handsome little boy and would most definitely grow up to be a fine hunter like his father. Princess Scota was deemed the most adorable girl in the kingdom with her blonde curls and big brown eyes. She could easily get any nobleman she wanted for a husband if she were not already engaged of course.
The Prince and Princess did indeed become fast friends, after Chris pulled at Scota's dress and she smacked him with his own wooden sword, they were inseparable.
They spent hours running around together. Whenever Scota visited Potenza, she and Christopher would explore his lavish castle and play pranks on any visiting nobles. Christopher especially liked the time Princess Scota slipped a grass snake into Lord Richard's boot. And whenever Christopher graced the court of Latot-Amard, he and Scota would wander the gardens and steal treats from the kitchens.
By the time they were seven, the two kingdoms readily agreed they were a match made in heaven.
But then things took a turn for the scandalous. It was the summer Scota turned nine and Christopher and his father were attending the festivities.
Christopher and Scota were attached at the hip the moment Chris dismounted from his horse. The two had spent the day playing pranks on the party guests, trying to sneak a look at Scota's cake and exploring any secret passageways they could find.
But then the time came for Scota to get dressed for her party. The King of Potenza searched for his son, to get him ready also and could not find him anywhere. He then knew that the little prince must still be with his betrothed and went to the princess' chambers.
When he opened the door, he was shocked to find, not a little girl trying on her new dress, but a nude, blonde boy refusing to take a bath.
This was an outrage! A scandal! How dare the Queen try to pass off her son as a girl for the sake of an alliance!
The Queen sobbed and begged for the King to reconsider but his word was final. He broke the engagement and took his son back home without even letting the children say goodbye.
Scota, or Scott as he was named at birth, watched, with tears in his eyes, as his best friend rode out of court and out of his life.
Christopher was confused. He did not care that Scott was a boy. Scott was still Scott and being a boy made him better because that meant they could go hunting together. But he was young, his father thought, he would learn in time and find a more suitable bride.
-:-
That more suitable bride appeared almost a year later when the Queen of Latot-Amard gave birth to an actual baby girl. They named her Tess and praised her fair hair and eyes as blue as the ocean. Scott was happy to have a sister, someone he could play dolls with and teach how to walk in those funny, heeled shoes.
That is, he was happy until his mother announced the King of Potenza had forgiven them and would marry Chris off to the new princess.
But his melancholy did not last long, for he was finally allowed to see Chris again. The King and his son came to see the new baby scarcely a month after the announcement had been made. Chris' horse had barely come to a stop before he was leaping off it to hug his best friend.
A year was like a lifetime to two ten year old boys.
And then it was just like old times, since Tess was too young to leave the nursery, Chris and Scott explored the castle, ran through the woods and practiced archery while planning more elaborate pranks then had ever been conceived before.
The years rolled by just as before, Chris visited Latot-Amard every summer, Tess learned to walk and talk, Scott grew out of his habit for wearing dresses and showed great skill for archery. In the blink of an eye, the two princes were fourteen and the Queen was planning a ball to celebrate Tess turning 5.
It was a nice party, full of music and dancing. Everyone agreed that Princess Tess was beautiful in her lacy, pink dress and that her brother was becoming a fine young man, worthy of any lady in the court.
But Scott paid no attention to the women trying to coax him into a dance. He spent most of his time conversing with Lord Richard's son, Rick. Rick was a great swordsman and hunter, rivaling even Chris' skill at tracking.
The Prince of Potenza hated him. He was sleazy and slimy, like a worm, unworthy to even be looked upon by Scott, let alone ensnare all his attention.
No one who lived in the castle were surprised when Lord Rick ended up drenched in wine, their prince being dragged away by an angry looking Chris. Such things were usual fare when the prince of Potenza was visiting.
-:-
When Tess was seven, she began to spend more time with her betrothed. Her mind was full of the fairy stories her nursemaid told her and Chris was her knight in shining armor.
The princes tolerated it at first, for Tess was kind and entertaining, but her adoration of Chris soon became a nuisance. The boys could scarcely take a step without her appearing and asking to come along. And she always wanted to hold Chris' hand, which for some reason irked her brother. Chris had always had warm hands that spread comfort to whatever they touched. Chris and Scott had held hands when they were children. He almost missed the contact now.
Then, when Tess had tried to accompany them on their camping trip, a trip they had planned to get away from her for awhile, that was enough.
The Queen was not pleased when she found the boys trying to sell Tess down at the market. A sign that read: "Annoying sister for sale, will take any price" around the little girl's neck.
-:-
But soon Tess grew out of that phase and before they knew it, she was sixteen, her brother Scott a shocking twenty-four and still disgracefully single.
Not that he didn't have suitors. There were princesses and ladies, even some noblemen who vied for his attention but he turned each one of them down, claiming each to be unsuitable.
But the Queen did not worry much because she had another wedding to plan; Tess was finally old enough to marry the Prince of Potenza!
Everyone in the two kingdoms rejoiced, everyone except the engaged couple. Chris did not want to marry a woman whom he would forever think of as his best friend's little sister. The man took to going hunting for days at a time and exchanging letters of complaint with Prince Scott.
And nor did Tess want to marry Chris, he was a fine man but she did not love him, not in the way a girl should love a husband. The Princess spent her days before the impending wedding, crying into the shoulder of Fred, the court jester, who was none too pleased by the match himself.
As for her brother, Scott spent the time in utter confusion. He wanted Tess to be happy and to unite their kingdoms, because that would be nothing but advantageous for both their peoples. But he knew this marriage would not make either his sister or his best friend happy. And the very thought of it made his stomach churn as well now that he thought about it. The Prince took out his frustrations by practicing his archery.
-:-
It was two weeks before the wedding and Scott could not stand being around the giggling, chattering servants any longer. He took a walk in the fields outside the castle, admiring the great blue sky and wishing he could fly.
Well, he got his wish.
Before Scott could form a reaction, a large shadow appeared over him and he was scooped up by a dragon before he could even chance to run.
The dragon's grip was tight and searing hot around him; he cut his hands on its scales trying to pry its claw open. The height was too much for him and he passed out.
When he awoke, he was surprised not to find himself in a dank, dark cave but in the ruins of a castle. The dragon had placed him in a tower that was crumbling apart and that was easy to escape if it were not guarded by a scaled beast.
The dragon welcomed his newest pet and told him how pretty his golden hair had looked in the sunlight. He simply had to add it to his treasure trove. Other than fear of death, Scott was pleased by this turn of events. He had always wanted to learn about dragons and if he were here, he would not have to attend Tess' wedding.
The dragon noticed this and asked for Scott to regale him with a story, settling back on his golden haunches, quite like an oversized dog. And so Scott told him the story of his life, his engagement, the breaking of it and the impending marriage of his sister to his best friend.
The dragon seemed quite interested in Chris and pestered Scott with questions. Scott knew Chris better than anyone and answered each question honestly, in as much detail as possible. The dragon nodded when he was finished and there was a gleam in his green eyes. He then told Scott to get some sleep for in the morning he would have to tell the dragon more stories or get slain for being a boring pet.
-:-
Back at the castle, a guard raised the alarm, claiming he had seen the prince carried off by a dragon!
The household was in uproar; both the Queen and Princess Tess were in tears. Scott had to be rescued! Tess refused to get married until her brother was found. The Queen hesitated but agreed, Prince Christopher would consent to wait, the missing royal was his closest friend after all.
The Queen sent out a decree, that any man of age who could bring her son back would get handsomely rewarded.
Surprisingly, a large amount of men volunteered and set out to find this dragon and slay it. Most were in it for the promise of money but some like Lord David, went in hopes of winning Scott's hand.
-:-
It was a few days later that the royal family of Potenza finally arrived to join in the festivities of their son's wedding.
They were shocked when they found the ceremony had been postponed and even more shocked by the reason behind it.
The King thought they should go on with their plans; there was no need to have that dress-wearing pretender around.
The Queen of Potenza thought the garden looked lovely and did the Queen of Latot-Amard have any advice on how to grow pumpkins?
The Prince turned his horse around and galloped out of the courtyard, thinking all of them to be idiots.
-:-
At the dragon's keep, Scott was having a marvelous time. Besides the threats to his life, the dragon was engaging and interesting. He was also lonely and so asked Scott for stories and news constantly. In return, the dragon told him of old pets he'd had and Scott was amazed that he had known some of them, one being his great-great-great grandfather, King Arthur, the only pet the dragon had allowed to leave alive.
Their fun was interrupted by the first adventurer to find them. He threatened the dragon, claiming to be Prince Scott's savior. Scott doubted that fact very much. The man had a large belly and a balding head. And that was unsuitable.
The man brandished his sword and waved his shield, taunting the dragon. The dragon seemed to sigh in annoyance before roasting the man alive.
It was the same with the next few men, all talk and no action, too easy to even be considered a threat to the dragon.
Then there was one who actually managed to stab the dragon's tail. He'd died when the dragon smashed him into a tree. But no suitor ever came close to defeating the dragon, for which Scott was glad, none of them were right.
-:-
Chris tracked down Scott for days. He thanked his great mind for packing all his hunting gear onto his horse despite his father's insistence that he would not need it. He was to be a married man after all.
Chris grit his teeth and urged his horse to go faster.
It did not take him long to find the path to the dragon's lair. He just followed the trail left behind by past adventurers. He eyed the scorch marks and skeletons still in their armor warily. He had no armor, dressed only in his tunic, his sword tied to his belt and his quiver against his back. He hoped it would be enough, because he would do anything it took to rescue Scott.
-:-
He knew he was getting close when he saw a man run by with his hair on fire. He dismounted from his horse and tied it to a tree to keep it safe. He drew his sword and began walking through the trees, up the hill to the dragon's keep.
What he saw when he got there almost made him laugh. Scott was sitting on the railing of a balcony, kicking his feet and studying his nails boredly, while a man in armor, who Chris recognized as Lord David, talked to the dragon, which looked as if it would like nothing better than to slash the knight's mouth off.
The group turned to look when Chris stumbled over a rock. Scott's face breaking into a grin while the dragon let out a growl of amusement.
The dragon focused again on David and pushed him over with the touch of one claw, ordering him to leave. The poor knight gathered his things and did just that, running away into the trees.
Chris gripped his sword and stepped forward.
"Doing well Scott?" he called, his eyes not leaving the dragon, who watched him curiously.
"Just fine, though I'm glad you could join us," Scott replied, smiling that mesmerizing smile that always made Chris' breath catch in his throat.
Chris stared levelly at the dragon and thought about his words before speaking.
"Dragon, I will fight you if I must but perhaps I could kindly ask you to release my friend?" he suddenly wished he had a shield, though it would do him little good.
The dragon chuckled and said something to Scott that made Chris' cheeks burn before lowering its head. It came eye level with Chris and got so close; the prince could feel its breath. He stood frozen.
"I can see into your soul young one and I could not concede defeat to anyone but you," the dragon declared and Chris felt like his legs would give out in relief. Then the dragon's voice lowered and its large eyes became slits.
"Take care of him, he is my favorite pet by far," it said before stepping back, unfurling its wings and taking off into the sky, shouting that he would visit Scott again.
Chris dropped his sword as the magnificent beast disappeared.
"Chris!" the man turned just in time to catch Scott who had jumped off the balcony. He spun his friend around and gripped him tightly, silently rejoicing that the blonde was in his arms once again. Scott hugged him tight and grinned.
"I knew you'd come," he whispered and pulled back so he could see Chris' face, though the other prince did not put him down.
"Wouldn't you have rather been rescued by a real suitor?" Chris raised an eyebrow, trying not to show how vulnerable he truly was. Scott giggled.
"Oh Chris, you have always been my suitor," he said as he put his lips upon Chris'. And suddenly, everything made sense.
-:-
True, there was a riot when they returned home. Both their parents were outraged but the princes merely claimed to be reinstating the original arranged marriage.
The regents only calmed when Tess said she would not marry Chris and that by marrying Scott, the two lands would still be united. The King and Queen could hardly argue with that.
Besides, as it turns out, they needn't have worried. Scott found out a few years later that he could provide an heir without a problem.
"I'm with child?"
888
The End!
Scott hates me now but I couldn't help it.
I did not like this story at first but it grew on me and ended better than I intended.
Also this story has spawned ideas for many drabbles. Keep watch for kiddie ScotCh and royal teen angst.
This story is slightly based on the animated film, the Swan Princess. And the Queen of Potenza is a very unfunny Cinderella reference. Forgive me.
Can anyone tell me where David is from? Yes, he is from a past ScotCh story and there is a reason behind him being placed in this tale.
And while writing this I realized I put way too much thought into these worlds. The dragon has a name and back story. His name is Teigue. And Fred the jester, also has a detailed past (and possibly marries Tess? Did anyone else catch that?) Plus, I have a liking for the name Fred. Such is the curse of a writer.
Okay, enough of my rambling. Please review and encourage me to write those drabbles, because Scott and Chris were meant to be medieval princes and to be in angsty lurve!
Mmm, Chris in a tunic...
Peace,
Whirl