At midnight, the five princes, now in the form of swans, flew onto the terrace of Prince Javier's room and called to him.
Bleary eyed and bushy tailed, Prince Javier, woken up by the loud call, pushed open the cumbersome door to the terrace, only to discover in wonder that his five brothers were there, waiting for him. Ecstatic, Prince Javier dashed out into their embrace. "You're back! How lovely to see you all again! Oh, how I've missed you!" exclaimed Prince Javier, "Please do tell me that the spell is broken!"
"It's very nice to see you again, too, Javier," replied Prince Edmund, the eldest prince, "However, I'm afraid that the spell is not broken."
"Everyday at midnight, we're allowed to be back in our old forms for fifteen minutes," elucidated Prince Gregory, the second eldest, after perceiving the confused expression on Prince Javier's face, "Afterwards, we'll turn back to our swan forms."
"How, then, can I turn you all back forever?" enquired Prince Javier.
"This morning, we've been to see Sorceress Narcissa," responded Prince Adrian, the third eldest, "She has admitted to have casted the spell, under the command of whom she is forbidden to mention. And she said that the only way to break it is to knit a vest using thistles and thorns and let the person who ordered to have us turned into swans wear it, then that person will turn into a swan forever."
"But, you're not allowed to speak or utter a single word whilst knitting it," added Prince Richard, the fourth eldest, "Or else, the spell will become irreversible."
"Who dares do this to you?" exclaimed Prince Javier. Only after his persevering enquiries did the youngest of the five princes slowly respond. "The sorceress did give us a hint:
'She who harm'd thee is none
other than the mother of thy father's son.'"
"My mother!" exclaimed Prince Javier after hearing the riddle.
Why did Narcissa lie?
~To be Continued~
No comments:
Post a Comment