Castle in the sky

Mt. Maunganui, New Zealand

Below is the fairy tale my deranged imagination thought up one night a week or so ago, inspired by the thunderstorm that struck Tauranga with all its glorious thunder and lightning... you're welcome to have a read if you like or are looking for a story to tell your kids to get them to bed.

Just keep in mind this is in no way a literary masterpiece... it's written for my godson, Noah, for his second birthday.




Castle in the sky

A long time ago, during the times of gods and witches and fairies and magic, there was a young beautiful princess. She had silky black hair that falls onto her slender shoulders silently like midnight waterfalls, and eyes so dark and so deep you lose yourself in them. She was graceful and compassionate, and had a voice that put the Sirens to shame.

Understandably, her people loved her -- and she loved them. But on those cool summer nights, when she wander along the gorgeous sandy beaches of the kingdom by herself, her heart longs for something more; it longs for someone special, someone to give everything up for... someone to love.

She prays, on those nights, for her prince to come. And as if even God himself could not deny this stunning beauty, her prayers were answered. One day a prince from a faraway kingdom, handsome, strong, with a presence that demanded respect, came to visit the king, the princess thought her own heart had exploded into a thousand little pieces just so it could be a little closer to him, to get to know him, to love him.

And she did love him... the prince was charming and handsome and funny, and when he left the kingdom to return home he took away with him the most precious jewel of them all -- the princess herself.

But all's not as it seems. Upon their return to the island where the prince resided, he changed into someone else... something else. Controlling, obsessive, sometimes even violent, the princess was confined to the castle on the top of the island. A prisoner of the castle, of the island, of her own heart, her only friends were the passing sea birds and the butterflies in spring.

During these long periods of idleness, the princess took to watching the sky. Clouds especially fascinated her -- everchanging and free, the princess imagined what it would be like to live in the castle in the sky.

And like this, weeks turn into months, months into years. Having lost all hopes of every regaining her freedom again, and with her heart turned into stone, one stormy night, the princess decided to end the misery. In her most gorgeous dress (not worn since her departure from her father... oh how she missed him), she climbed up onto the clay-tiled roof of the castle, and in the roaring rain, she said one last prayer, for her father and her people as she prepared to jump off.

"Don't do it!" she hears a voice above her. Startled, she looks around for where the voice came from.

"Sorry to startle you, my lady," the voice was that of a young man, gentle and soothing. "But please, don't throw your life away."

"Who are you?" The princess said, more intrigued than scared.

"My name is not important", said the voice, "I have roamed the sky for so long and so far that I no longer remember it."

"I used to be a prince in a kingdom surrounded by enchanted forests. A wicked witch wanted me to marry her, but I refused. In her anger, she turned me into lightning, forever confined to my castle in the clouds, unable to leave or speak to anyone except in storms."

A fellow prisoner, the princess thought.

"I have watched you for years, my princess... and I have fallen for you hopelessly. How my heart ached not able to talk to you, to comfort you and keep you company in those cold, dark nights.. but now you're here and I finally get to talk to you, you are thinking of end your life..."

"But there is nothing for me to live for!" Cried the princess, "What can you do, take me up into the sky?"

"As a matter of fact, I can." said the voice, the sound of rain and wind suddenly calm now, "But you have to understand, by becoming lightning yourself, you will forget your name and where you came from, forever to live the life of nomads with me in my castle in the sky."

"Take me!" Said the princess, "Anything is better than this... I will wander the sky for eternity, my prince, as I will at least have you to keep me company."

As if on cue, the rain and wind returned, surrounding, engulfing the princess so densely one can hardly see her figure in the rain. With her arms open, the lightning struck -- the sword of blinding light striking her in the heart, then, as sudden as it began, the storm and lightning disappeared with the princess, and darkness consumed the island with eerie silence but for the crashing waves on the rocky coast.

Upon discovery of her disappearance, the prince was furious. Discovering the truth after consulting the royal witch, a revolting old woman with the smell of dead toads, the prince gave in to madness and assembled the largest army the world had ever seen in pursuit of the princess in the sky, abandoning his kingdom and people behind.

And so this pursuit continued until today -- the princess and her love wander the earth together, seeking their homeland and family, bringing storm and lightning wherever they go -- and the mad prince, hot in pursuit, bringing thunder as his army shook the earth with their footsteps and hoofs.

And that, noah, is where thunder and lightning came from... next time the storm comes, remember to say hi to the princess... there is nothing to be afraid of