by Burke,H. L.
“Well, fate is often in a name. Mine just happens to be Dustin, Dusty if you would like. And you, my young fellow?”
“Percival, but I prefer Percy.”
“I prefer it as well. A fine, friendly name. Yes, indeed, one can trust a nice, honest name like Percy. How old are you, Percy?”
“Sixteen ... I mean seventeen.”
“Is it hard for you to remember your age?” Dusty laughed.
“Well, I was sixteen yesterday and today I am seventeen.” Percy shrugged.
“Then today is your birthday!” Dusty exclaimed. “Happy birthday. Seventeen is an illustrious age, an age of action, an age for celebration! No one should spend their birthday sitting in a dusty corner. Come with me, young man! We shall celebrate in a manner befitting this great day.”
Percy shifted from one foot to the other. He cleared his throat and searched for an excuse. They really couldn’t because ... because ... He simply couldn’t bring himself to admit to the honest Dusty that he was there under false pretenses.
After a moment, Dusty smiled and patted the youth on the shoulder. “I was young once, Sir Percy. We shall go where Sir Ivan shall not spy us. I have a feeling your fine superior has fallen asleep on guard duty and will not awaken until the next shift comes to relieve him. Men like Ivan do not work when they work.”
Percy blinked, but drawn by the thought of companionship, he re-shelved his book and followed Dusty from the library out into the courtyard.
Percy’s exploration of the palace grounds had been limited to the stables, kennels, and library. Dusty led him down a side hall away from the servants’ quarters. They came out into an open green space surrounded by tall, ivy-covered walls. Birds twittered inside bushes trimmed to look like unicorns and lions. The fragrances of roses and lavender floated through the air. Everything was tended to perfection, and not a weed poked through the white gravel of the pathways.
“Now isn’t this more pleasant than the kennels?” Dusty asked.
Percy nodded. He followed Dusty over a bridge crossing a duck pond and glanced down into the water. Colorful fish darted after bugs.
The pair came to the far wall. There, nestled among rose trees and vines, stood a tall, narrow tower with no door and but one window. Percy and Dusty circled it once, Percy searching in vain for an entrance or purpose to this tower.
“What is the use of a tower you can't enter?” he finally asked.
“You don’t know about the Doorless Tower? You would think someone would have told you the tale by now. It's why everyone here is so paranoid about fairies.” Dusty and Percy sat on the grass by the pond, gazing at the high window. “In that tower dwells the Princess of Ithelia, daughter of our king.”
“I suppose I've heard about there being a princess. I guess this explains why I've never seen her.” Percy tilted his head, staring at the tower. “She's in there because of fairies?”
“Aye, of course. There is little in this kingdom the fairies don’t meddle in, and princesses get the worst of it. It was vindictive fairies who turned our queen into a mannequin, changed the queen’s mother into a duck, and caused the queen’s grandmother to speak backwards for a year. Our royal family fears the creatures like the plague.
“That is why, when the late queen bore him a daughter, our king took every precaution with the little Princess Matilda. He sent special invitations to all the fairies, taking care not to forget one. He showered them with every possible consideration at the christening. He greeted each of the nine-hundred-ninety-nine fairies by name, and when the christening was over, the little princess had somehow escaped a cursing.
“Now the king was so relieved and pleased with his own ingenuity that he burst out laughing. One of the fairies, who had come back to retrieve her wand, overheard this and decided that the fairies were the brunt of some cruel joke. She returned to the fairy council, and convinced all but one of their number that they had been greatly deceived by the king’s seeming kindness and that the only way to save face was to strike this new child harder than any of her predecessors.”
Dusty smiled and leaned back against the wall. He plucked a blade of grass, put it in his mouth, and began to chew.
Percy raised his eyebrows. He cleared his throat. “What happened next?”
Dusty sat up straighter, his voice sinking to a whisper. “Most of the fairies were eager to do their worst, but each of them had a different idea of how the smiting should take place. Some felt she should be cast into an eternal slumber, or deprived of her beauty, or changed into a lizard or a newt. While they were arguing over the best method, one kindhearted fairy slunk away to warn the royal family.”
“I didn't realize Ithelia had kind fairies.” Percy frowned. “They all seem obnoxious.”
“How many fairies have you actually met?” Dusty scowled.
Percy subsided, and Dusty continued. “Under the guidance of this fairy, and with a significant amount of magic, the panicked king built the tower you see before you in less than a night. The way into it is known only to a trusted few, and only the princess’s father and hand-maiden are allowed to enter. Her only view of the world is through that little window. Meanwhile the king is searching far and wide for a true-hearted prince who will stand by his princess and disenchant her if the fairies finally find a way around the tower's magical protections.”
“And I thought my life was dull,” Percy murmured.
“You have no idea. So many girls dream of becoming princesses, but if they knew what it meant, they'd think it a nightmare.”
They sat in silence. Percy stared at the fluttering curtains in the window above him.
Maybe I've been foolish to lament my lack of fairy blessing. After all, I might've just as easily been cursed. I would go mad stuck in a tower, day in and day out. Of course, being stuck in the kennels isn't that much better. I really need to get out more.
Something stirred in the window. He stiffened. A head appeared in the opening. It was a pretty young girl with golden locks and soft features. She glanced about the garden. Her eyes met his. He swallowed. Even from a distance, she had a sort of glow around her, the glow of the sort of girl who would never talk to Percy. Who would usually look right through him. But there she was, looking. She smiled. He felt the corners of his mouth twitch upward of their own accord. Her grin broadened, and she waved.
“Ah, she likes you. You should wink. Girls love that.” Dusty's voice cut through the moment like an axe.
Percy recoiled. Am I seriously considering flirting with a princess? This isn't a good idea. What if the king finds out?
“Let's get out of here before someone sees us.” He leaped behind a bush and peered through the branches. The princess's smile faded. She opened her mouth as if to call out, then shut it again. His heart twisted. She looked so sad, and it wasn't her fault she had to spend her life stuck in a tower. He almost emerged to wave at her, but before he could, she turned away, allowing the curtain to fall back over the window.
It's for the best. I'm not the sort of knight who rescues princesses from towers.
He stepped back out from behind the bushes and dusted a few stray leaves off his trousers.
“That was close,” Percy said to Dusty. “Why didn’t you warn me ... ” He stopped, for the old man was nowhere to be seen. Percy swallowed. The whole thing was strange. If it hadn’t been for his family’s record, he would have suspected fairy work. He walked back through the garden, keeping an eye open for Dusty. He managed to avoid anyone who might recognize him on the way back to the tiny quarters he shared with Ivan. His room was empty, no sign of Ivan, and still smelled like dogs.
Maybe I imagined this whole day. At least I got some time to myself. I needed a break.
Percy returned to his bed and pretended to be asleep when Ivan finally returned.
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