Once Upon A Time: All Is Well That Ends Well

Once upon a time there was a king who had seven sons and a daughter. His wife had died a few years earlier. The king loved his children and they were living happily, in the most beautiful castle you could ever imagine.

Unfortunately, their happiness did not last for long, as is often the case with happiness. One day King fell sick. They called many healers from all over the country, but no one could cure him. Healers were baffled as they could not determine the cause of King’s illness. With each passing day King’s health weakened, after few months, he lost his sight and was then confined to his bed.

His children were saddened by these turn of events. They worried for their father, but most importantly they worried for their country. They didn’t want to lose their father. After all, they had already lost their mother.

One day a beggar came to their door when Princess was taking a walk in palace’s garden. She saw the beggar near palace gate and called him. She gave him money and food. She asked him to pray for their father’s health. They needed him, so did their nation. Her father was a fair and kind king, he was loved by all his subjects.

The beggar was very much obliged by the kindness Princess had shown him. He told her that he knew of a way to cure her father. She was very excited and asked him to tell her, she was willing to do anything for her father. All of them were prepared to do whatever it took to cure the ailing King.

He then told her that there is a magic tree on a rock, beyond the dark forest, whose leaves could cure any disease. Leaves must be boiled in water and then the King needed to drink that water. As soon as he would drink it, his health would be restored and he’d also get his eyesight back.

She told this to her brothers. They were all very hopeful for this was the first time they were hearing about a possible sure for the King. Eldest Prince decided to go himself to fetch these leaves. After saying goodbye to his father, he left the palace. For three days and three nights he traveled through the dark and dense forest and reached the other side. There he saw a rock and at its top there was a tree. It wasn’t difficult to find at all. It was the only tree on a rock, as far as he could see. He was so glad to reach his destination with such ease.

He crossed the field to get to the rock. As he got closer, he realized that there was an old man sitting on the grass right below the looming rock. When the old man saw the Prince, he asked him why he had come there. The Prince told him that he wanted some leaves from that tree. But now that he looked at it he realized that it would not be easy to climb the rock. He was thinking about it when the old man informed him that there are stairs at the other side, he also warned him that once he started climbing up the stairs he must not look back no matter what he saw or heard. It was an odd warning but the Prince thanked him anyway.

Prince went to the other side and started climbing up the stairs. He heard his name, as if someone from faraway was calling him, and without thinking about it he looked back. He was instantly turned to stone.

Back at the palace everyone was anxiously waiting for his return, but when he didn’t come back after a fortnight they all became very worried. They decided that one of the younger princes should go after him. If he were in trouble then help him and also bring back the leaves. Before the younger Prince embarked his quest, he gave a flower to his brothers and sister. The flower was a gift from a magician and it had the ability to change color according to the situations in which its owner might found himself. The Prince told them that it would turn black if he were in trouble. After reassuring them he left in search of his brother and the magic tree.

He didn’t come back either and at the fourth day the flower turned black. One by one all seven brothers left on this quest but none of them came back.

At last, after waiting for many days, Princess decided to go after her brothers. She asked for King’s permission, who didn’t want her to go, as she was the only child left in the palace, but she insisted. Her brothers were in trouble and she couldn’t stay at the palace doing nothing. Besides she also needed to get those leaves from the magic tree. The lives of all her family members depended on her. She just hoped that she wasn’t too late.

The next morning, she left the palace without telling anyone. After a three days long journey she reached her destination. She saw that an old man was sitting there. She asked him about her brothers. The old man told her that seven princes came to get the leaves from that tree, but they were all turned into stones, because they didn’t heed his advice. He told her that there are stairs to reach the top of the rock, but she must not look back once you started climbing up, no matter what she heard or saw. Princess thanked him and went to the stairs.

She saw statues of her brothers and felt very sad. She thought that there must be something very tempting which they couldn’t have resisted or maybe they didn’t take the old man’s advice seriously as it was very strange. To be on the save side, she decided to take precautions. She took some cotton and put it in her ears, this way she would not be able to hear anything. Then she put a blindfold to her eyes so that she couldn’t see anything and started climbing up the stairs with very cautious steps.

She had already counted the steps so she would know when she reached the top. After the fiftieth step, which was the last, she took off her blindfold and also took out cotton she had stuffed in her ears. Now she cut some leaves from the tree and started walking down the stairs. As she passed her brothers they turned back to normal and all of them reached the bottom together. They were all very happy to be alive and safe. They thanked their beloved sister. They wanted to thank the old man too, but they found out that there was no one there. The old man had vanished. They decided that he must had been there only to help them and now he was gone. Right now, they were just happy to be able to return to the palace unharmed, and with the cure for their sick father.

The beggar was right, King’s health was restored, and all was well in the end.

© 2018, Fizza Younis. All Rights Reserved

P.S. Dear all, do let me know what you think of this piece of fiction. I’d love to hear some thoughts. If I get positive response then I plan to keep doing “Fiction Friday” posts, for as long as I am able to.

Originally published at iambookseater.wordpress.com on September 20, 2018.