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[SUMMER CAMP 2012 DAY 11] SOME DAY MY PRINCE WILL COME
Title: Some Day my Prince will come.
Wordcount: 4,119
Rating: K
Genre: Fairytale, storybook like, AU, spades WITHIN slice of life AU (sounds so complicated xD)
Summary: Alfred and Arthur are used to visit the nearby kindergarten every week to enjoy the kids and today Arthur is asked to tell a story about a certain Heroic Prince, a Lonely Dragon, and the long wait for true, true love…
Beta’s are lovely but since they are also people, they were too busy to help me edit this! Aside from me turning this in very very late… but yeah I’m not native, I’m form the Netherlands and speak Dutch, so sorry for any mistakes!
“Tell us a story, Mr. Arthur!”
“Yeah tell us! A romantic once!”
The kids from the kindergarten all seemed to gather around Arthur in order to hear what story he’d come up with today. Some kids practically ran towards him in order to hug him, while others would ran on to Alfred in order to drag the other blond closer.
It was usual for Arthur and Alfred to attend the kindergarten every week on Fridays. It all started when they suddenly met a small group of children when they were on a date and with whom they eventually ended up talking with. Apparently the group had managed to ran away from the teachers, thinking they were all cool, but eventually got lost and ended up crying, looking for an adult to show them the way.
Alfred had cheered them up with his usual silliness, while Arthur had told them stories on their way to the police station. Once there someone from the kindergarten soon came to pick the children up but they still wanted to hear the end of the story and joke around longer with Alfred. And so the both of them ended going with them.
The first time had been awkward. Kids wanted to know why Arthur and Alfred were so affectionate, after all they’d not seen guys being together much. Luckily the kids and the women in charge of the kindergarten didn’t seem to mind. They all listened happily to the stories along with the children, or as the kids played with their toys, showing them proudly to Alfred.
Many children had asked them to pay another visit and soon it ended up in weekly visits. Sometimes Arthur and Alfred would prepare a small play for the kids. That had obviously been Alfred’s idea, and despite Arthur being shy at first, he did find it enjoyable to think up the stories and act them out.
The children loved it all and soon they were well known in the kindergarten. Today was Arthur’s story to tell them all a fairytale. He enjoyed coming up with stories on the spot to entertain the children and to fit in their own imagination as they came up with ideas, so for today he’d only got small ideas to start off with.
Arthur had always wanted to be a professional writer, or maybe a childrens’ book writer, but he’d never gotten the chance. This was the best part of the week for him.
“Okay, okay, calm down loves. Don’t shout all together,” He said, small grin forming on his face. Despite his normally grumpy attitude, he loved these children, “A romantic one you said?”
“Yes. Mr. Arthur, please!” A blonde girl begged, and others agreed with her.
“And something cool, like a dragon!”
“Yeah a dragon!” The boys yelled, in order to not make the story too sappy. Arthur chuckled at that, it was wonderful to see how the kids worked together and made it into their own story as Arthur bound all their fantasies together.
“And add Mr. Alfred to it too!” The kids said, they sure loved the blond American.
“Aha,” Arthur said, “A love story with Alfred and a Dragon?” the kids nodded, all excitedly waiting with wide eyes.
“How about I tell you a fairytale version of how Alfred and I met?” He smiled, he’d really love to think this up, “I’m sure he’d slay a dragon for love, idiotic hero he is.” Arthur said sweetly, and the children chuckled at the small insult. They knew it was a small joke between Arthur and Alfred to call each other silly insults.
He cleared his throat and started talking.
Long, long ago, in a far off land, there lived a prince. The prince was quite a handsome man, everybody loved to see his blue eyes sparkle with wisdom and youth. He was smart, yet silly, and most lovable.
People were happy he was their Prince, no one would like to trade him for another. They were proud to live in the Spades Kingdom, known for its good leaders -the very kind King and Queen of Spades- and nice citizens.
Despite all happy places, lovely architecture, good citizens and wonderful royals, the Kingdom still had a dark side; this was where the Dragon lived.
The Dragon was a dark, black beat which knew no mercy. It’s said that at the top of the tower it defended, there was a princess waiting. Or maybe a wizard? Or maybe another royal? Or maybe nothing at all?
Who knew? All were rumours and no one ever lived to tell the tale. Centuries had passed since the place had been cursed by an evil witch who wanted to have the throne. After she created the dark side and had made the tower -of which no one knew its purpose- arise from the ground, only to be guarded by the Dragon, she soon was captured and locked up. She’d died of old age, refusing to tell just what she locked in there, even though it seemed to make the royal family very sad to talk about it.
Everyone was told to ignore it, to live on, and so people did. And this is where we come back to where we started; Alfred the Prince of Spades.
He was soon of the age for him to be wed, but despite all the visits of young, pretty girls from all around the kingdom, he still hadn’t found any whom he fancied enough to consider his wife. They were all lovely ladies, one by one, but just not anywhere near what he’d call ‘the love of his life’.
And Alfred sure was serious about that. All fairytales in his childhood consisted of noble men fighting horrid monsters in order to save the girl they loved. They would slay many beasts on their way, and eventually, almost like a reward, they would get the girl of their dreams.
That’s what Alfred was aiming for, and after a long though he finally decided to ask his parents.
“Dad, Mom,” He said on a nice evening, after dinner. His parent were sitting across from him in a comfortable loveseat near the fire -they sure had found true love- and looked up, almost synchronised, as their son spoke, “I want to ask you something.” Alfred continued.
“What is it, dear?” His mother asked, as his father made a quick acknowledgement by nodding his had once.
“I, uhm…” Alfred started, suddenly a bit nervous. What if they wouldn’t let him? What if they thought it was too dangerous? “I’ve been wanting to ask…”
“Yes, dear?” His mother asked him in order to continue as a bit of a long silence fell.
“I’ve been wanting to ask… May I try slay the Dragon in front of the tower in order to get to my true love?” the moment he said it, he knew he’d sounded like a silly little boy occupied in his own dream world, but he looked determined at his parents’ surprised faces as he felt like this was the right thing to do. He’d thought a lot about it and no matter what he tried, he couldn’t shake off the feeling this was his destiny.
“But Alfred, why would you want that?” The King, Alfred’s father spoke, “There’s plenty of good girls out there, I’m sure that you haven’t seen them all yet and they don’t have to be pretty to be kind. Really, shouldn’t it be better to just-”
“No pa,” Alfred said in a low but nervous voice, “It’s like… It feels like it’s something I must do, like it’s my destiny, you know? For some reason I’m sure my true love is waiting for me out there, I’m certain!” the last part of the sentence was said with such a determination that Alfred’s father could not find anything to refuse giving his son permission.
“Alright,” He said, “You convinced me. I don’t know why and I don’t know how come it’s so quick, but I shall believe you for now. Just promise me one thing Alfred,” he said, blue eyes like his son’s looking straight back at the other blue orbs, though these were a slight shade lighter.
“What is it, pa?” Alfred asked, staring back. He didn’t know what to expect but just hoped it wouldn’t be anything too restricting.
“Promise me,” The King said, “To stay safe at all times. If actually slaying the Dragon means risking your life, then don’t you dare try it! I shall send some of my best men with you to watch over you, my son, and keep you out of trouble. I’ve seen too much of your silly and brave heroic attempts to trust you with this promise on your own.”
Alfred wanted to complain about his dad not trusting him enough because he really, really promised that he wouldn’t do anything to get his life in danger. Though if it meant being heroic he might just take the rules a bit less tight, but hey, that is okay right? After all, it’s for the good purpose of being a hero!
But instead, he nodded obediently, knowing he was lucky his parent allowed though both, especially his mom, looked worried.
And that’s how he’d found himself on his horse, called Americano because it seemed to have too much energy to be contained by anyone but Alfred -who was just as active as the horse. His dad had send two of the best guards with him, which were nice guys so he didn’t mind their company, and within a few days they’d reached the dark side of the kingdom.
It was easily spottable due to it’s darkness. Most of Spades was bright and, despite mostly coloured in blues and purples, colourful enough to make anyone happy. In this place though, everything was dark and the most common shades were black and grey.
Despite the cold, dark looked though, the place was warm as if it was constantly surrounded by fire. Nothing too hot, but just warm compared to the rest of the place.
Alfred wanted to walk on, horse by his side, but was stopped by a strong hand on his shoulder.
“Maybe, Prince Alfred,” One of the guardsmen said, “We should wait until morning. It’s already getting dark and personally I’d rather have a good sight of the place, instead of it being consumed by darkness. I hope that’s not too bold to ask.” The other guard agreed, according to his nodding, and Alfred found he couldn’t refuse.
And thus they settled down for the evening, building a small temporary camp at the side of where the dark shadow began.
After a few hours though, when Alfred could hear the loud snoring of both of the guards, he himself couldn’t catch sleep. It was almost as if something was calling him to the shadow side. For a long time he decided to ignore it, but soon he found he could no longer and grabbed some of his basic stuff, saddles his horse, and drove off in silence.
He’s left a small note with the guards, telling them about the weird feeling, and just hoped they would understand and would not assume him dead immediately.
Alfred soon found himself surrounded by full darkness and only the small flame in the gas lamp he’d taken with him shone bright enough to show where he was walking. By now he’s stepped off his horse, both because the animal was acting too scared to focus and because this way would be easier to explore the new area.
Suddenly a loud growl could be heard and for a moment Alfred thought it might have been ghosts. Alfred didn’t like to admit it much, but out of all things to be scared of, only ghosts made him cringle in fear. Soon though, the growl seemed more like that of a beast than a ghost, which made Alfred continue his path, be a bit wary.
And that’s when Alfred saw him, the Dragon. Emerald green eyes shining brightly in the dark surroundings as if it was the only light. The dark scales reflected the small amount of moonlight as the beast howled towards the moon.
Alfred stood there for a bit, watching the beast, as it continued to make sad howls at the silver orb which seemed to be its only friend. Alfred couldn’t help but wonder just how long the Dragon had been here.
As Alfred took a step closer he realised how the huge, huge beast almost sounded sad. As if he was crying over his loneliness or the death of loved ones. It made Alfred’s heart clench and he wanted to do nothing else but help the poor Dragon from its misery.
Just one step more was made before he tripped over a rock that poked out of the ground. Only then he realised how occupied with the Dragon he’d been, but it was too late now; the best had gone silent the moment he’d heard the other fall and its emerald eyes were focussed on the young man, laying defenceless.
The Dragon looked at him only for a moment, before Alfred saw it opening his mouth, which soon followed by the Dragon breathing out bright green flames.
Alfred had never seen such a thing before and he’d almost been too amazed by it to avoid being hit by it in time. Luckily his cloths were protecting him from a good portion of the heat as he hid himself behind a rock.
Well, that was shitty. Trapped by an angry Dragon, only to away his death. By now his horse had long run off and Alfred could only hope it was smart enough to wake up the guards so they could help and save him before it was too late.
He knew he should’ve never listened to the stupid, tingling feeling in his stomach telling him to go here. It was probably dark magic anyways, he should’ve know! It was his own stupid fault for wandering off on his own and now his dad would be right; he’d end up dead despite his promises.
Another hot breath of green flames passed by Alfred and he could feel how the heat was more intense. As soon as the flame stopped he looked over his rock only to see the dragon had moved from its spot and looked all but pleased as he slowly made his way towards Alfred.
The young Prince decided he should find another hiding spot as soon as possible and made a dash for it as soon as he ground the chance.
Half way though, the dragon was ready to fire again and Alfred had to hid behind another big rock on his way to safety. That’s when he spotted it; a small, silver necklace. Alfred couldn’t resist his curiosity and despite the situation he was now in, he awaited the right moment to grab it.
As he did, he could feel how there was something engraved in it. he turned the charm around only to find a name engraved in the front, accompanied with the most beautiful emerald he’d ever seen.
Arthur Kirkland
It read. According to it being made of silver and emerald, both expensive, this probably belonged to someone rich. Maybe one of the others who died here in quest of true love? Maybe…
That’s when it hit him. The emerald in the necklace, the old looking engraving, the green, green eyes of the dragon himself…
“Arthur,” Alfred whispered to himself, “Arthur!” This time he said it louder, loud enough for the dragon to hear. Who, in return, seemed to stop half way of planning to fire another breath of green fire.
“Arthur Kirkland, that’s your name isn’t it?” Alfred asked, standing up and tuning around to face the dragon who seemed surprised at the mentioning of the name. Now, come to think of it, wasn’t there this royal family that ruled Spades before the Jones? Wasn’t their name Kirkland also?
A small, almost pleading sound came from the dragon as it looked at Alfred with sad, yet hopeful eyes.
“Arthur…” Alfred really thought of the name now, which he actually found a pretty name. Rather suited for someone from a royal family...
The Dragon got closer to him, shyly and slowly in order not to scare him off, but still keeping his distance as if not being able to trust anyone.
“Don’t worry, you can trust me,” Alfred said softly, “I won’t hurt you. You must have a reason as to why you are like this, and I’m a hero here to help you!”
It almost looked as if the Dragon was rolling his eyes at him, letting a small, amused puff of smoke escape through its nostrils.
“I am Alfred F. Jones, Prince of Spades, though I’d rather be called a Hero!” The young Prince introduced himself, hoping he acted friendly enough to the Dragon to not make him angry again, “It’s a pleasure to meet you!” for a moment Alfred thought he could see some of the scales coming off, almost as if they were ready to vanish into the air.
Maybe all the Dragon needed to do was trust someone, in order to become a human once again? Well, if that was the case, then Alfred sure was the one who could help him out!
“Don’t worry, I understand you’re wary, I’d be too.” He said, “I’m sorry I watched you earlier, but you sounded so sad. You must be missing your family after all these centuries, after all you’ve been here for ages, right?” The Dragon gave a quick nod as he moved a bit closer again.
By now its nose was really close to Alfred, almost close enough to touch. Alfred was curious about how the scales would feel and found himself slowly moving closer.
For a bit the Dragon seemed as if it wanted to fly off, away from Alfred and away from other people, but smiled again he seemed to decide on waiting just a bit longer before making rushed decisions.
“Shh, calm down,” Alfred hushed, “Don’t worry, I’ll make sure you’re save. I’ll make sure no one will ever come back here to hurt you again…” Large scars of where swords had slayed the Dragon’s nose were visible and Alfred slowly lifted his hand to touch them, caress them. He felt like it was his job to protect it from the cruelty of the world, protect it from any more pain and sadness.
The Dragon moved its nose just a bit closer and slowly Alfred started wrapping his other arm around it, hugging it tight. He closed his eyes as he felt something weird but warm and soft flow through him as he continued to talk sweet words.
“Calm down, don’t worry, I shall protect you now…” And as the he kept his eyes closed Magic did its own work.
It started with Arthur’s tail slowly disappearing. The scales lit up and flew up into the sky and vanished almost as if they were green fireflies, as the magic made its way towards the rest of Arthur’s body, all scales slowly flying off and eventually leaving only the pale figure of a young man behind.
After all the years of staying as a Dragon, Arthur’s body hadn’t much changed. He didn’t know how it happened but he could feel how slowly but surely the magic made him feel like himself again, like the self he’d missed.
“Don’t worry, I’m your Heroic Prince now, Arthur, And you’ll no longer be a Lonely Dragon, I promise,” Alfred said before opening his eyes, only to meet with emerald orbs that were staring right back at him.
He was surprised by Arthur being back in his human form, after all these years, and it almost made him trip backwards in surprise. It made Arthur grin a bit, though the man looked awfully cold and pale without any cloths and. Alfred quickly undid his cape and put it around Arthur, “C’mon let’s get out of here, there’s no use to stay here any longer.” And as they both made their way out, the stone tower that had been held up with the same magic as Arthur’s Dragon transformation, started to crumble.
By the end they reached the border of the shadow, tower was long gone and the darkness started to retreat, only to show the most beautiful flowers instead.
“Prince Alfred!” Two worried guards made their way towards them as shock was still visible on their faces. They had probably been dead scared by the idea of having to return to the castle only to inform the King that his son had died after all.
“Americano came running back at us and we thought you died, we were getting ready to search for you just as the tower crumbled down and shadow started to retreat. We thought we’d lost you forever!” The other guard said and Alfred felt a bit guilty for them worrying so much about him.
“Oh, hi,” Alfred said sheepishly, rubbing the back of his head, “Sorry ‘bout that, I promise I won’t do it again okay.” The guards still seemed wary but nodded, not wanting to distrust their Prince though the man was a silly one who would probably forget about this promise as soon as he thought he could be a hero.
“But hey, chin up, I found someone whom I think would be wonderful to bring back to the castle! Can I borrow some cloths of you guys, I think I need my spare ones because the ones I have now are rather burnt.” And it was true; Alfred’s expensive cloths were full of small burn-holes and black with ash.
“Sorry,” Arthur mumbled, “I-I’m just not used to people being nice to me. All they’ve ever done over the years was trying to kill me, get into the tower, but little did they know that the moment they would step in they’d die. Many passed me and died that way, though I’m pretty sure people thought it was my fault as they kept sending more, all trying to enter the castle…”
“Don’t worry, Artie, it’s okay,” Arthur seemed to dislike the nickname but let it pass for now, plenty of time left to bother about that later, “I can understand. Now please were these cloths and I promise you a room in the castle! We’re gonna be great friends!”
“I knew,” Arthur nodded, “I knew someday my Prince would come.”
“That’s it for now, guys,” Arthur cut the story off, realising the kids were soon to be picked up by their parent again.
“Aww c’mon Mr. Arthur, what happened to them afterwards?”
“Yeah, what happened?” the curious kids started asking. Arthur couldn’t help but smile sweetly at them and decided it wouldn’t hurt to tell a quick version of the ending.
“They became friends,” He said, “Which eventually turned out to be love. Just like Alfred and I.”
“Did they rule well?” A boy asked, his toy car long forgotten as he’d listened to the story instead, “Were Arthur and Alfred nice Kings?” Other kids nodded in agreement, wondering the same.
“Alfred was to become one of the greatest Kings Spades has ever known,” Arthur explained, “Accompanied by his officially wed Queen Arthur. It’s impossible to have two kings, and since it’s only status, it doesn’t mind is the Queen is a boy or a girl.”
“That’s so sweet!” A girl said, “I want to meet my true love as well when I get the chance! Later when I grow up I’m gonna marry a really brave hero as well!” she said ti with such a determination that it made Alfred chuckle too as he skidded closer to Arthur, giving him a sweet kiss on top of his head.
Soon the kids were picked up by their parents though and as all waved goodbye and looked forward to next week, telling their parents excitedly about the story they heard, Alfred and Arthur found themselves alone in the room, cleaning up the last toys left behind by the children.
“Really now, Arthur, an Idiotic Prince and Lonely Dragon?” A small, lovely grin appeared on his face, “Why is it that you always get to be the cool creature!”
“Well,” Arthur said, “You got your hero-part, so you should be grateful.” He was about to put the last toy away as he could feel arms swing around his waist.
“Yes,” Alfred said, “I’ll be your Idiotic, Heroic Prince and you shall be my Lovely Lonely Dragon, who’s not lonely any longer because the Prince he waited for has finally come to save him and stay with him forever.”
//Author’s Note//
THEY ALL TURN OUT EITHER TOO LONG OR TOO SHORT, THESE STORIES THAT IS.
Omg I’m dead I never thought I’d write this much and I started so late omg this is going to kill my beta, ooops ;A;
But I LOVED writing this I just jkfdjngkjdfgnfjk I went all loose and this is stuff I just love to write. I love fairytales ok and I’ve been wanting to write something sweet as this for ages and despite it being a oneshot and people’s reactions being a bit fast, I still like it a lot and for once I’m proud!
This story actually reminded me of a story I used to love as a kid; The Pagemaster. Mostly because it’s a fairytale, I dunno, there’s no good parallel to point it out, but I got this feeling while writing ok!!
Excuse me for any fails! I hope you enjoyed it!
Sorry for not updating yesterday I didn’t like the song/theme and it all wouldn’t work for me so I just gave up on it the other days will work out find though, got nice plots ready for them, just a few days left though before I can call this summer camp complete. First to participate, and I really enjoyed my time!
See you next story <3
REVIEWS ARE LOVE especially after a story I worked so hard for and wanted to write so so so badly!
I do not own Hetalia or the characters, those belong to their rightful (awesome) creator, Hidekaz Himaruya!
(08/01/12)
Wordcount: 4,119
Rating: K
Genre: Fairytale, storybook like, AU, spades WITHIN slice of life AU (sounds so complicated xD)
Summary: Alfred and Arthur are used to visit the nearby kindergarten every week to enjoy the kids and today Arthur is asked to tell a story about a certain Heroic Prince, a Lonely Dragon, and the long wait for true, true love…
Beta’s are lovely but since they are also people, they were too busy to help me edit this! Aside from me turning this in very very late… but yeah I’m not native, I’m form the Netherlands and speak Dutch, so sorry for any mistakes!
“Tell us a story, Mr. Arthur!”
“Yeah tell us! A romantic once!”
The kids from the kindergarten all seemed to gather around Arthur in order to hear what story he’d come up with today. Some kids practically ran towards him in order to hug him, while others would ran on to Alfred in order to drag the other blond closer.
It was usual for Arthur and Alfred to attend the kindergarten every week on Fridays. It all started when they suddenly met a small group of children when they were on a date and with whom they eventually ended up talking with. Apparently the group had managed to ran away from the teachers, thinking they were all cool, but eventually got lost and ended up crying, looking for an adult to show them the way.
Alfred had cheered them up with his usual silliness, while Arthur had told them stories on their way to the police station. Once there someone from the kindergarten soon came to pick the children up but they still wanted to hear the end of the story and joke around longer with Alfred. And so the both of them ended going with them.
The first time had been awkward. Kids wanted to know why Arthur and Alfred were so affectionate, after all they’d not seen guys being together much. Luckily the kids and the women in charge of the kindergarten didn’t seem to mind. They all listened happily to the stories along with the children, or as the kids played with their toys, showing them proudly to Alfred.
Many children had asked them to pay another visit and soon it ended up in weekly visits. Sometimes Arthur and Alfred would prepare a small play for the kids. That had obviously been Alfred’s idea, and despite Arthur being shy at first, he did find it enjoyable to think up the stories and act them out.
The children loved it all and soon they were well known in the kindergarten. Today was Arthur’s story to tell them all a fairytale. He enjoyed coming up with stories on the spot to entertain the children and to fit in their own imagination as they came up with ideas, so for today he’d only got small ideas to start off with.
Arthur had always wanted to be a professional writer, or maybe a childrens’ book writer, but he’d never gotten the chance. This was the best part of the week for him.
“Okay, okay, calm down loves. Don’t shout all together,” He said, small grin forming on his face. Despite his normally grumpy attitude, he loved these children, “A romantic one you said?”
“Yes. Mr. Arthur, please!” A blonde girl begged, and others agreed with her.
“And something cool, like a dragon!”
“Yeah a dragon!” The boys yelled, in order to not make the story too sappy. Arthur chuckled at that, it was wonderful to see how the kids worked together and made it into their own story as Arthur bound all their fantasies together.
“And add Mr. Alfred to it too!” The kids said, they sure loved the blond American.
“Aha,” Arthur said, “A love story with Alfred and a Dragon?” the kids nodded, all excitedly waiting with wide eyes.
“How about I tell you a fairytale version of how Alfred and I met?” He smiled, he’d really love to think this up, “I’m sure he’d slay a dragon for love, idiotic hero he is.” Arthur said sweetly, and the children chuckled at the small insult. They knew it was a small joke between Arthur and Alfred to call each other silly insults.
He cleared his throat and started talking.
Long, long ago, in a far off land, there lived a prince. The prince was quite a handsome man, everybody loved to see his blue eyes sparkle with wisdom and youth. He was smart, yet silly, and most lovable.
People were happy he was their Prince, no one would like to trade him for another. They were proud to live in the Spades Kingdom, known for its good leaders -the very kind King and Queen of Spades- and nice citizens.
Despite all happy places, lovely architecture, good citizens and wonderful royals, the Kingdom still had a dark side; this was where the Dragon lived.
The Dragon was a dark, black beat which knew no mercy. It’s said that at the top of the tower it defended, there was a princess waiting. Or maybe a wizard? Or maybe another royal? Or maybe nothing at all?
Who knew? All were rumours and no one ever lived to tell the tale. Centuries had passed since the place had been cursed by an evil witch who wanted to have the throne. After she created the dark side and had made the tower -of which no one knew its purpose- arise from the ground, only to be guarded by the Dragon, she soon was captured and locked up. She’d died of old age, refusing to tell just what she locked in there, even though it seemed to make the royal family very sad to talk about it.
Everyone was told to ignore it, to live on, and so people did. And this is where we come back to where we started; Alfred the Prince of Spades.
He was soon of the age for him to be wed, but despite all the visits of young, pretty girls from all around the kingdom, he still hadn’t found any whom he fancied enough to consider his wife. They were all lovely ladies, one by one, but just not anywhere near what he’d call ‘the love of his life’.
And Alfred sure was serious about that. All fairytales in his childhood consisted of noble men fighting horrid monsters in order to save the girl they loved. They would slay many beasts on their way, and eventually, almost like a reward, they would get the girl of their dreams.
That’s what Alfred was aiming for, and after a long though he finally decided to ask his parents.
“Dad, Mom,” He said on a nice evening, after dinner. His parent were sitting across from him in a comfortable loveseat near the fire -they sure had found true love- and looked up, almost synchronised, as their son spoke, “I want to ask you something.” Alfred continued.
“What is it, dear?” His mother asked, as his father made a quick acknowledgement by nodding his had once.
“I, uhm…” Alfred started, suddenly a bit nervous. What if they wouldn’t let him? What if they thought it was too dangerous? “I’ve been wanting to ask…”
“Yes, dear?” His mother asked him in order to continue as a bit of a long silence fell.
“I’ve been wanting to ask… May I try slay the Dragon in front of the tower in order to get to my true love?” the moment he said it, he knew he’d sounded like a silly little boy occupied in his own dream world, but he looked determined at his parents’ surprised faces as he felt like this was the right thing to do. He’d thought a lot about it and no matter what he tried, he couldn’t shake off the feeling this was his destiny.
“But Alfred, why would you want that?” The King, Alfred’s father spoke, “There’s plenty of good girls out there, I’m sure that you haven’t seen them all yet and they don’t have to be pretty to be kind. Really, shouldn’t it be better to just-”
“No pa,” Alfred said in a low but nervous voice, “It’s like… It feels like it’s something I must do, like it’s my destiny, you know? For some reason I’m sure my true love is waiting for me out there, I’m certain!” the last part of the sentence was said with such a determination that Alfred’s father could not find anything to refuse giving his son permission.
“Alright,” He said, “You convinced me. I don’t know why and I don’t know how come it’s so quick, but I shall believe you for now. Just promise me one thing Alfred,” he said, blue eyes like his son’s looking straight back at the other blue orbs, though these were a slight shade lighter.
“What is it, pa?” Alfred asked, staring back. He didn’t know what to expect but just hoped it wouldn’t be anything too restricting.
“Promise me,” The King said, “To stay safe at all times. If actually slaying the Dragon means risking your life, then don’t you dare try it! I shall send some of my best men with you to watch over you, my son, and keep you out of trouble. I’ve seen too much of your silly and brave heroic attempts to trust you with this promise on your own.”
Alfred wanted to complain about his dad not trusting him enough because he really, really promised that he wouldn’t do anything to get his life in danger. Though if it meant being heroic he might just take the rules a bit less tight, but hey, that is okay right? After all, it’s for the good purpose of being a hero!
But instead, he nodded obediently, knowing he was lucky his parent allowed though both, especially his mom, looked worried.
And that’s how he’d found himself on his horse, called Americano because it seemed to have too much energy to be contained by anyone but Alfred -who was just as active as the horse. His dad had send two of the best guards with him, which were nice guys so he didn’t mind their company, and within a few days they’d reached the dark side of the kingdom.
It was easily spottable due to it’s darkness. Most of Spades was bright and, despite mostly coloured in blues and purples, colourful enough to make anyone happy. In this place though, everything was dark and the most common shades were black and grey.
Despite the cold, dark looked though, the place was warm as if it was constantly surrounded by fire. Nothing too hot, but just warm compared to the rest of the place.
Alfred wanted to walk on, horse by his side, but was stopped by a strong hand on his shoulder.
“Maybe, Prince Alfred,” One of the guardsmen said, “We should wait until morning. It’s already getting dark and personally I’d rather have a good sight of the place, instead of it being consumed by darkness. I hope that’s not too bold to ask.” The other guard agreed, according to his nodding, and Alfred found he couldn’t refuse.
And thus they settled down for the evening, building a small temporary camp at the side of where the dark shadow began.
After a few hours though, when Alfred could hear the loud snoring of both of the guards, he himself couldn’t catch sleep. It was almost as if something was calling him to the shadow side. For a long time he decided to ignore it, but soon he found he could no longer and grabbed some of his basic stuff, saddles his horse, and drove off in silence.
He’s left a small note with the guards, telling them about the weird feeling, and just hoped they would understand and would not assume him dead immediately.
Alfred soon found himself surrounded by full darkness and only the small flame in the gas lamp he’d taken with him shone bright enough to show where he was walking. By now he’s stepped off his horse, both because the animal was acting too scared to focus and because this way would be easier to explore the new area.
Suddenly a loud growl could be heard and for a moment Alfred thought it might have been ghosts. Alfred didn’t like to admit it much, but out of all things to be scared of, only ghosts made him cringle in fear. Soon though, the growl seemed more like that of a beast than a ghost, which made Alfred continue his path, be a bit wary.
And that’s when Alfred saw him, the Dragon. Emerald green eyes shining brightly in the dark surroundings as if it was the only light. The dark scales reflected the small amount of moonlight as the beast howled towards the moon.
Alfred stood there for a bit, watching the beast, as it continued to make sad howls at the silver orb which seemed to be its only friend. Alfred couldn’t help but wonder just how long the Dragon had been here.
As Alfred took a step closer he realised how the huge, huge beast almost sounded sad. As if he was crying over his loneliness or the death of loved ones. It made Alfred’s heart clench and he wanted to do nothing else but help the poor Dragon from its misery.
Just one step more was made before he tripped over a rock that poked out of the ground. Only then he realised how occupied with the Dragon he’d been, but it was too late now; the best had gone silent the moment he’d heard the other fall and its emerald eyes were focussed on the young man, laying defenceless.
The Dragon looked at him only for a moment, before Alfred saw it opening his mouth, which soon followed by the Dragon breathing out bright green flames.
Alfred had never seen such a thing before and he’d almost been too amazed by it to avoid being hit by it in time. Luckily his cloths were protecting him from a good portion of the heat as he hid himself behind a rock.
Well, that was shitty. Trapped by an angry Dragon, only to away his death. By now his horse had long run off and Alfred could only hope it was smart enough to wake up the guards so they could help and save him before it was too late.
He knew he should’ve never listened to the stupid, tingling feeling in his stomach telling him to go here. It was probably dark magic anyways, he should’ve know! It was his own stupid fault for wandering off on his own and now his dad would be right; he’d end up dead despite his promises.
Another hot breath of green flames passed by Alfred and he could feel how the heat was more intense. As soon as the flame stopped he looked over his rock only to see the dragon had moved from its spot and looked all but pleased as he slowly made his way towards Alfred.
The young Prince decided he should find another hiding spot as soon as possible and made a dash for it as soon as he ground the chance.
Half way though, the dragon was ready to fire again and Alfred had to hid behind another big rock on his way to safety. That’s when he spotted it; a small, silver necklace. Alfred couldn’t resist his curiosity and despite the situation he was now in, he awaited the right moment to grab it.
As he did, he could feel how there was something engraved in it. he turned the charm around only to find a name engraved in the front, accompanied with the most beautiful emerald he’d ever seen.
Arthur Kirkland
It read. According to it being made of silver and emerald, both expensive, this probably belonged to someone rich. Maybe one of the others who died here in quest of true love? Maybe…
That’s when it hit him. The emerald in the necklace, the old looking engraving, the green, green eyes of the dragon himself…
“Arthur,” Alfred whispered to himself, “Arthur!” This time he said it louder, loud enough for the dragon to hear. Who, in return, seemed to stop half way of planning to fire another breath of green fire.
“Arthur Kirkland, that’s your name isn’t it?” Alfred asked, standing up and tuning around to face the dragon who seemed surprised at the mentioning of the name. Now, come to think of it, wasn’t there this royal family that ruled Spades before the Jones? Wasn’t their name Kirkland also?
A small, almost pleading sound came from the dragon as it looked at Alfred with sad, yet hopeful eyes.
“Arthur…” Alfred really thought of the name now, which he actually found a pretty name. Rather suited for someone from a royal family...
The Dragon got closer to him, shyly and slowly in order not to scare him off, but still keeping his distance as if not being able to trust anyone.
“Don’t worry, you can trust me,” Alfred said softly, “I won’t hurt you. You must have a reason as to why you are like this, and I’m a hero here to help you!”
It almost looked as if the Dragon was rolling his eyes at him, letting a small, amused puff of smoke escape through its nostrils.
“I am Alfred F. Jones, Prince of Spades, though I’d rather be called a Hero!” The young Prince introduced himself, hoping he acted friendly enough to the Dragon to not make him angry again, “It’s a pleasure to meet you!” for a moment Alfred thought he could see some of the scales coming off, almost as if they were ready to vanish into the air.
Maybe all the Dragon needed to do was trust someone, in order to become a human once again? Well, if that was the case, then Alfred sure was the one who could help him out!
“Don’t worry, I understand you’re wary, I’d be too.” He said, “I’m sorry I watched you earlier, but you sounded so sad. You must be missing your family after all these centuries, after all you’ve been here for ages, right?” The Dragon gave a quick nod as he moved a bit closer again.
By now its nose was really close to Alfred, almost close enough to touch. Alfred was curious about how the scales would feel and found himself slowly moving closer.
For a bit the Dragon seemed as if it wanted to fly off, away from Alfred and away from other people, but smiled again he seemed to decide on waiting just a bit longer before making rushed decisions.
“Shh, calm down,” Alfred hushed, “Don’t worry, I’ll make sure you’re save. I’ll make sure no one will ever come back here to hurt you again…” Large scars of where swords had slayed the Dragon’s nose were visible and Alfred slowly lifted his hand to touch them, caress them. He felt like it was his job to protect it from the cruelty of the world, protect it from any more pain and sadness.
The Dragon moved its nose just a bit closer and slowly Alfred started wrapping his other arm around it, hugging it tight. He closed his eyes as he felt something weird but warm and soft flow through him as he continued to talk sweet words.
“Calm down, don’t worry, I shall protect you now…” And as the he kept his eyes closed Magic did its own work.
It started with Arthur’s tail slowly disappearing. The scales lit up and flew up into the sky and vanished almost as if they were green fireflies, as the magic made its way towards the rest of Arthur’s body, all scales slowly flying off and eventually leaving only the pale figure of a young man behind.
After all the years of staying as a Dragon, Arthur’s body hadn’t much changed. He didn’t know how it happened but he could feel how slowly but surely the magic made him feel like himself again, like the self he’d missed.
“Don’t worry, I’m your Heroic Prince now, Arthur, And you’ll no longer be a Lonely Dragon, I promise,” Alfred said before opening his eyes, only to meet with emerald orbs that were staring right back at him.
He was surprised by Arthur being back in his human form, after all these years, and it almost made him trip backwards in surprise. It made Arthur grin a bit, though the man looked awfully cold and pale without any cloths and. Alfred quickly undid his cape and put it around Arthur, “C’mon let’s get out of here, there’s no use to stay here any longer.” And as they both made their way out, the stone tower that had been held up with the same magic as Arthur’s Dragon transformation, started to crumble.
By the end they reached the border of the shadow, tower was long gone and the darkness started to retreat, only to show the most beautiful flowers instead.
“Prince Alfred!” Two worried guards made their way towards them as shock was still visible on their faces. They had probably been dead scared by the idea of having to return to the castle only to inform the King that his son had died after all.
“Americano came running back at us and we thought you died, we were getting ready to search for you just as the tower crumbled down and shadow started to retreat. We thought we’d lost you forever!” The other guard said and Alfred felt a bit guilty for them worrying so much about him.
“Oh, hi,” Alfred said sheepishly, rubbing the back of his head, “Sorry ‘bout that, I promise I won’t do it again okay.” The guards still seemed wary but nodded, not wanting to distrust their Prince though the man was a silly one who would probably forget about this promise as soon as he thought he could be a hero.
“But hey, chin up, I found someone whom I think would be wonderful to bring back to the castle! Can I borrow some cloths of you guys, I think I need my spare ones because the ones I have now are rather burnt.” And it was true; Alfred’s expensive cloths were full of small burn-holes and black with ash.
“Sorry,” Arthur mumbled, “I-I’m just not used to people being nice to me. All they’ve ever done over the years was trying to kill me, get into the tower, but little did they know that the moment they would step in they’d die. Many passed me and died that way, though I’m pretty sure people thought it was my fault as they kept sending more, all trying to enter the castle…”
“Don’t worry, Artie, it’s okay,” Arthur seemed to dislike the nickname but let it pass for now, plenty of time left to bother about that later, “I can understand. Now please were these cloths and I promise you a room in the castle! We’re gonna be great friends!”
“I knew,” Arthur nodded, “I knew someday my Prince would come.”
“That’s it for now, guys,” Arthur cut the story off, realising the kids were soon to be picked up by their parent again.
“Aww c’mon Mr. Arthur, what happened to them afterwards?”
“Yeah, what happened?” the curious kids started asking. Arthur couldn’t help but smile sweetly at them and decided it wouldn’t hurt to tell a quick version of the ending.
“They became friends,” He said, “Which eventually turned out to be love. Just like Alfred and I.”
“Did they rule well?” A boy asked, his toy car long forgotten as he’d listened to the story instead, “Were Arthur and Alfred nice Kings?” Other kids nodded in agreement, wondering the same.
“Alfred was to become one of the greatest Kings Spades has ever known,” Arthur explained, “Accompanied by his officially wed Queen Arthur. It’s impossible to have two kings, and since it’s only status, it doesn’t mind is the Queen is a boy or a girl.”
“That’s so sweet!” A girl said, “I want to meet my true love as well when I get the chance! Later when I grow up I’m gonna marry a really brave hero as well!” she said ti with such a determination that it made Alfred chuckle too as he skidded closer to Arthur, giving him a sweet kiss on top of his head.
Soon the kids were picked up by their parents though and as all waved goodbye and looked forward to next week, telling their parents excitedly about the story they heard, Alfred and Arthur found themselves alone in the room, cleaning up the last toys left behind by the children.
“Really now, Arthur, an Idiotic Prince and Lonely Dragon?” A small, lovely grin appeared on his face, “Why is it that you always get to be the cool creature!”
“Well,” Arthur said, “You got your hero-part, so you should be grateful.” He was about to put the last toy away as he could feel arms swing around his waist.
“Yes,” Alfred said, “I’ll be your Idiotic, Heroic Prince and you shall be my Lovely Lonely Dragon, who’s not lonely any longer because the Prince he waited for has finally come to save him and stay with him forever.”
//Author’s Note//
THEY ALL TURN OUT EITHER TOO LONG OR TOO SHORT, THESE STORIES THAT IS.
Omg I’m dead I never thought I’d write this much and I started so late omg this is going to kill my beta, ooops ;A;
But I LOVED writing this I just jkfdjngkjdfgnfjk I went all loose and this is stuff I just love to write. I love fairytales ok and I’ve been wanting to write something sweet as this for ages and despite it being a oneshot and people’s reactions being a bit fast, I still like it a lot and for once I’m proud!
This story actually reminded me of a story I used to love as a kid; The Pagemaster. Mostly because it’s a fairytale, I dunno, there’s no good parallel to point it out, but I got this feeling while writing ok!!
Excuse me for any fails! I hope you enjoyed it!
Sorry for not updating yesterday I didn’t like the song/theme and it all wouldn’t work for me so I just gave up on it the other days will work out find though, got nice plots ready for them, just a few days left though before I can call this summer camp complete. First to participate, and I really enjoyed my time!
See you next story <3
REVIEWS ARE LOVE especially after a story I worked so hard for and wanted to write so so so badly!
I do not own Hetalia or the characters, those belong to their rightful (awesome) creator, Hidekaz Himaruya!
(08/01/12)