In Which Sleeping Beauty Does Not Awaken

Part 2

Her eyes were closed, her expression peaceful. Light danced across her summer suntanned cheeks, her equally brown hands folded gently across her chest. Her dress was that of a peasant; her feet were bare and rough, her dark brown hair mussed.

Well, this is going to be easy. She's not that hard to kiss.

I sort-of wanted to beat my head against a wall when that comment entered my mind, but decided to simply appreciate the fact that I hadn't spoken it aloud.

The room we were in was lightly furnished; cut of the same stone as the rest of the castle. The drapes of the single window in the room, which was across from me, were pulled away to reveal a gorgeous view of the countryside. In the wall to the left was the fireplace, and besides that, the room was empty of decor.

Her bed was simple and had been moved towards the window, but was still more in the center of the room. There was a chest at the footboard, a rug on the floor, and a chair standing awkwardly all alone.

Richard pulled the chair to the side of the bed and sat there. Beckoning for me to sit on the bedside, he entered into what I suppose was an explanation of what had happened.

“You see, Lukas, I was originally intending this to happen to our princess, Aurelia. But the old, half-blind witch that I employed to execute this plan got the wrong girl. See, she only slightly resembles Aurelia.”

I nodded, slightly confused.

“But anyways, I intended Aurelia, and then for the prince to come save her. Sadly, the prince won't save a false princess when he can simply go and speak to the real one. So, I need to do something about this one.”

“Two questions,” I began, “why do you want the prince to come save Aurelia, and why do you need to do something about this girl? Why not just execute your plan and then have the prince kiss both of them?”

Richard groaned, “all these details...well, as to why I want the prince to come save her...that's none of your business. As to why I cannot go about my plans while this one is lost in her deep slumber; the witch won't curse another girl until this ones been taken care of. It's really quite simple if you understand the magic behind it all. When one person is suffering from your curse, you-”

“I get it, I get it. No need to explain. You just want me to kiss her, and then we'll be out of here, right?'

By now, I was becoming slightly irritable. I didn't understand why he had to have me do it and I wasn't looking forward to it anyway. Besides, if I dawdled around there much longer, my family would wonder where I was and I certainly didn't want them to know.

“Ah, that is, if it is a successful attempt, which is most likely, then I will most definitely be-”

“Alright. One last question.”

“Yes?” His gray eyes flashed to meet my blue ones.

“Why me?”

A sly grin that a demon could have worn slid across his face and he stood up, “Why, the answer is simple, Lukas. You are, after all, the prince's own cousin. You are the closest to a prince that they might come...have you forgotten it already?”

No, I hadn't forgotten it. I hadn't forgotten it at all. Instead, it had been continuously thrust into my face for all seventeen years of my life, and I hated it. Sometimes, I wondered if it were me that was important, or my blue blood.

Of course, it is my blue blood, and it always will be. You just have to get used to this if you're at all related to the prince, and go on living your life.

Richard began to pace back and forth, “you weren't my first solution, though. I tried it myself. When that didn't work, I had a peasant to try. That didn't work, either. That was when I attempted to get the prince to come to dinner, but he responded to my request with nothing whatsoever; not even the slightest hint of a reply. I wrestled with it for days until I determined that only a prince can break a spell meant for a princess. I didn't really want any prince but ours, so I continued to mull over it until I remembered you. Ah, yes, Lukas! Son of the king's second youngest brother. That would probably work. So here we are.” Richard sighed as he finished, and suddenly stopped pacing. He stared at me strangely for a moment. “Well? Aren't you going to kiss her?”

Well...as a seventeen-year-old male I stood dumbfounded for a few moments before I realized that I really was going to have to kiss her. I felt my face flush at my cousin's clear, honest gaze of inquiry. He definitely was a weird one...

I cast a glance at her face. Then I decided I wasn't going to think about it anymore and bent down. As soon as my lips touched hers, I felt a pressure on the back of my head and realized it was Richard's hand. After several long moments, my self in great misery, he finally allowed me to sit up. I suppose he had been worried I wouldn't kiss her long enough to break the spell.

Fury had welled up inside me, not to mention the racing of my heart and the embarrassment that I had just kissed a girl for the first time. I turned to Richard, about ready to shout at him, when I realized he was looking me up and down with great scrutiny. His eyes held a mad, angry light, and he cursed softly under his breath.

That was when I realized she hadn't awakened. Rather, she lay just as still as before. Not a sound passed between anyone in the room. It remained deathly quiet.

Then, Richard turned away. He left the room silently with a swoosh of his cape and was gone. After recovering from my stupor, I attempted to follow, but as I reached the door it slammed in my face, and I heard the grinding of a lock. In my ignorance I assumed Richard had done it. At first I called out, figuring that my crazy relative had simply pulled a cruel joke. Then I began beating upon the door, shouting and cursing at the top of my lungs. But no one came. After many hours the sun began to set and I realized that he had never intended to let me go if the plan didn't work. The look on his face when he left was enough. I didn't know why he'd decided to keep me there, but that wasn't the point. I was a captive of a madman who thought he was a wizard, with no way to get out, and as darkness set in, I crawled into a ball on the rug and drifted off into a fitful sleep.