A Blessing On Your Child
by Diana Metz
It happens once in a while. It's really no one's fault, just a twist of fate. Yes, very twisted.
Renika was running late. The last blessing had not gone well. Triplets...ugly triplets. Identical homely triplet Princesses whose mother was so unimaginative as to name them Una, Runa, and Luna. The best blessing would have been to bestow some measure of beauty on the runts, but that might have sounded insulting. The incessant screaming gave Renny a headache. The Queen, thinking she was being original, dressed the little monsters identically so even with her magical abilities, Renny could not keep them straight. After blessing the same brat twice with long life, Renny gave up, mumbled something incoherent and waved her wand. Now she was running late.
No one noticed the ruffled fairy as she took her place at the end of the line of supernatural godparents. Renny smoothed her hair and looked at the others in front of her. This must be a very rich king to be able to afford so many blessings. Renny hardly caught her breath before the steward called her name to come forward and make her invocation. Renny looked helplessly at the other fairies as she stepped forward.
Renny looked into the crib and panicked when she realized she didn't know whether this baby was a boy or girl. The blessing gown was green and devoid of lace. She stalled by taking out her wand and waving it in intricate patterns over the cooing infant. Renny turned to Bellisant and mouthed the word wisdom; Belli nodded toward a witch three placed down the line. Beauty? A nod at Morton. True love? Another nod. Well, what was left? The royal parents were getting impatient and so was the audience (many had come for the feast and hadn't eaten that morning in anticipation). Renny knew she had to do something fast. Mouthed bravery? Belli's eye widened and she shook her head slowly.
Renika cleared her throat and placed a hand on the satin-smooth forehead. "From near and far across the land this child will be known for exceptional bravery and strength as well as courage in the face of adversaries and quick-thinking in a crisis. So blessed be this child." A flourish of the wand and a faint orange glow over the crib signaled the fulfillment of the Renika's obligation as a fairy-godmother. In dead silence and under royal glare, she stepped back in line.
Bellisant leaned over. "Odd blessing for a Princess, don't you think?"
***
Marianna sat motionless while her mother's hairdresser pulled and twisted the silky yellow curls into a work of art. The beautiful dress she would wear to the ball was getting a final primp, each pearl accent was double checked, the lace pressed flat, and satin polished to a blinding sheen. All this preparation was driving Marianna crazy. Her feet twitched in anticipation for the hours of dancing that lay before her.
This was a special day for the Princess. This was her eighteenth birthday! Months of planning and an insane amount of money had been spent to celebrate the occasion. The guest list went on forever, every eligible young gentleman across the land was coming, and enough young ladies to even the numbers. Marianna's favorite foods were being prepared and her favorite colors of rose and teal hung from every rafter, window, and balcony. This was her day and she didn't want anyone to forget it. Little did the Princess know, there was no chance of anyone forgetting this day.
At exactly 6:00 the orchestra playing in the great ballroom fell silent and a single trumpet sounded. The heads of hundreds of guests turned as the King and Queen entered the hall. After a minute a chorus of trumpets sounded. Large double doors were pulled open by knights in full armor. From out of a bright shaft of light stepped Marianna, Princess of Fortuna. With slow, precise steps she entered the great hall and traveled the long velvet carpet. The guests bowed in perfect choreography as the Princess passed. In silence Marianna knelt before her parents.
"We honor this day of your birth." The Queen bent and placed a diamond necklace around her daughter's neck.
The King took a gold and diamond crown from the velvet-lined stand and nestled it among his daughter's golden curls. "Know that we are proud of you and acknowledge you as heir to the throne."
Princess Marianna rose, turned to those assembled, and curtsied. A tremendous cheer filled the hall. The orchestra began to play and Marianna chose her first partner of the night from one of the many possible husbands-to-be her father had invited. Marianna's steps were perfection, she even made the prince's unpracticed moves look good. After the first dance more couples took the floor. Marianna complimented her partner and moved on to the next perspective fiancé. She felt as if she were shopping for a new pony.
Long into the night the orchestra played and young people danced. Parents watched their children and maneuvered for alliances. The punch bowl and hors d´ oeuvre trays were refilled countless times. The shadows did a brisk business in clandestine kisses. Marianna had narrowed her choice of hopeful marriage candidates down to three. Prince Katagin was her first choice with a sizable fortune and impeccable dress, but Marquis Notella had a beautiful villa near the sea and a stable of snow white stallions, and though Marcus Corvin was not a noble, his father was owned fifty frigates. She would leave the final choice to her father.
Mingled among the multitude of guests were the wizards, witches, and fairies who had been present at the infant Princess' christening. The witches had gravitated to the refreshment tables and dabbled with the punch between bites of cheese puffs. One wizard slept behind a potted fern while the other danced outrageously among the youngsters. Three fairies looked down on the party from the rafters, sprinkling it with magic dust. A single fairly sulked in a corner.
Renika hadn't actually been invited to the birthday celebration. Bellisant had talked her into coming, told her no one would remember her botched blessing. Belli had been wrong. Renika could have handled it if people had been mean or slighting to her, but they simply ignored her as if she weren't there. It's hard for one to act superior when no one's paying any attention to you at all. So Renika spent the joyous occasion on a dusty chair, nursing a cup of tepid lemonade.
A momentary pause from the orchestra was filled with the ring of the bell tower chiming midnight. At the last toll a shower of confetti rained down on the revelers. In all the noise, and while everyone's vision was obscured by tiny bits of paper no one noticed a change in Prince Katagin. When a large warty ogre threw the punch bowl across the room people noticed. Screams and chaos ensued. People couldn't get out of the doors fast enough so they crushed against the walls, trying to disappear into the wallpaper.
Marianna stood in the middle of the empty dance floor and stamped her foot. "No! No! No!" She advanced on the beast, shooing at him. "Get out! I don't want you here!"
The ogre-prince tipped over a refreshment table and tore at the floral displays. He shoved stunned servants out of the way and gnawed on candlesticks. He didn't stop until a manicured finger poked at him. He turned a red eye on his assailant. The beast took one look at the satiny cloud confronting him and laughed. He put a lumpy hand on the perfectly coiffed forehead and pushed the prissy-looking girl to the floor.
The wizards approached, arms outstretched. Before they finished their intricate hand waving a pair of gilded chairs were thrown at their heads. Without a second glance, they ran for the doors. Two witches glared at the third. "Grinella, this is your work!" With a guilty shrug, the third witch disappeared in a puff of green smoke. The others followed in their own blue and orange smoke puffs. The three fairies in the rafters swooped down and smacked ogre's mold-green bald head with their wands. In three quick snaps the wands were broken in two and tossed onto a puddle of onion dip. In shocked horror, the fairies flew back to the safety of the rafters. The royal guards made a feeble attempt to wade through the terrified crowd. After getting a good look at the beast they changed their minds and focused their efforts to clear the room instead.
Princess Marianna got to her feet, carefully bushing off her skirt. She looked around her at the horrible mess that had been her beautiful party only minutes ago. In a split second she was in front of the monster. "You horrid creature!" The toe of Marianna's glass slipper sunk deep into the ogre's shin. "You are RUINING MY PARTY!!!" A very sharp lace-covered elbow dug into the bulging green belly.
The doubled-over ogre swung wildly at the Princess who danced easily away from his grasp. Choosing easier victims, he staggered toward a crowd of quaking old matrons. He was stopped by a blow to the ear by a flowered parasol.
"GET BACK HERE, COWARD!" The parasol struck again before shattering. "I'M NOT DONE WITH YOU." The Princess pulled a candle from a wall sconce and jammed it into one huge nostril. "HOW DARE YOU SCARE MY GUESTS AND BREAK MY PRESENTS!" She grabbed a swollen ear and pulled the beast across the room. "THIS IS MY SPECIAL NIGHT AND YOU HAVE RUINED EVERYTHING."
"Be careful, dear," the King stepped from behind his throne. "I think that thing is Prince Katagin."
"I don't care WHO he is, LOOK AT THIS MESS!!" The Princess dragged the now terrified ogre to the last thing standing, the multi-tiered, rose and teal birthday cake. "Why not make this night a COMPLETE DISASTER!" She took a handful of thickly frosted almond cake and jammed it into the blubbering mouth. "And don't forget the ICE CREAM!" A bowl of strawberry ice cream, spoon and all, followed the cake.
The ogre's eyes bulged and he clutched his throat. The ugly face puffed up from an allergic reaction to the sweet desserts. He fell to the floor in apoplectic spasms.
In the silence of the shocked onlookers one voice rang out: "Yes!" Renika no longer slouched in the corner, but stood on a chair to get a better look at the excitement. The lukewarm lemonade had been spilled on the guests next to her.
Princess Marianna wiped her cake-covered hand on the ogre's grimy shirt then she grabbed one of his ankles and dragged him to the ballroom doors. Guests moved quickly out of her way. The ineffectual guards now pointed their swords at the unconscious beast. "Take him outside," Marianna said dismissingly. "If he transforms into Prince Katagin you can let him back in." It took five guards to pull the monster outside.
With a negligent wave Princess Marianna commanded the orchestra to play. She looked at the row of noble suitors who stared at her, open-mouthed. After a moment Marquis Notella smiled and stepped forward to dance with the incredible Princess.
In the coming years Queen Marianna was known as a formidable foe, in and out of her royal court. While King Notella dealt with the daily battles of the barons' petty complaints, Marianna happily maneuvered courtiers into doing anything she wanted. The great fairy-godmother, Renika was in much demand and was happily able to pick and choose the blessing she attended. Prince Katagin opened the Katagin Castle and Monster Reserve where he met his wife, a werewolf named Brinitta and lived happily ever after (on nights without a full moon).
Read more short stories by Diana Metz here...