by Caitlin Hasson<\/p>\n\n\n\n
I\u2019m sixteen years old and doing an English Literature and Language combined A-level at Cirencester college. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Edward has lost his prince, his family, and his friends and now wants to take revenge in this reimagining of the Sleeping Beauty story.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n It was raining. It\nhadn\u2019t stopped raining for three days. The battle had started three days ago,\nand it hadn\u2019t stopped raining. The ground was slick with mud, dark with blood, and\nbodies littered the floor, dead.<\/p>\n\n\n\n There was no sign of stopping, the fight\nraging on through the night, constant and loud. It was a weary time for all,\nthough time was slow. The sun barely rose over the horizon before clouds\nblacked out the light. Still the battle raged on.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Hands,\nbloody and shaking, held on to a sword. Eyes, alight with determination,\nstared, unblinking. Edward staggered forwards. His opposition, in red tunic,\nred hose, red helmet, snarled. He moved awkwardly, like a puppet on a string.<\/p>\n\n\n\n All\nenemies must be killed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Around\nhim few were still standing and fewer were fighting. The dragon lay dead before\nthe castle. Its mighty wings sprawled across the wasteland that was once the\ncity. It was felled by the prince three days ago, starting the battle.<\/p>\n\n\n\n At\nthe dragon\u2019s head lay the prince. The princess stood over him, looking out\nacross the fields towards Edward. She wrenched her sword from his stomach. Her\nblonde hair was streaked with red and her night gown was ripped.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Just\nweeks ago, Princess Briar had been comatose. Since she had been woken by the\nprince, the real personality behind the sweet face had emerged. As the army\nfaced her, Edward began to wonder if the dragon-witch had the right idea. Maybe\nthe kingdom was doomed from the start.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Edward\nhad been raised in the castle, raised to defend the prince. Now the prince, his\nfriend, was dead, and Edward was the only one left to take revenge. The prince might\u2019ve loved the princess, but\nEdward did not.<\/p>\n\n\n\n He\nswung his sword at the boy in front of him, a boy named Richard who had once\nbeen a friend, too. Richard\u2019s puppet-like movements couldn\u2019t defend himself. He\nfell in an arc of blood and Edward stepped over the fallen body. The rain\nwashed away the blood on his chin and the tears that had slipped down his\ncheeks.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Briar\nstood before him. He could feel the power, the same sort of power that the\nwitch that had cursed her.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u2018Hello,\nEdward.\u2019 Briar stood and curtsied, like it wasn\u2019t a battlefield, like the\nprince wasn\u2019t dead.<\/p>\n\n\n\n He couldn\u2019t force words from his throat,\ncouldn\u2019t push them through his teeth and tell her how much he hated her, how\nmuch he wished to kill her, for this wasn\u2019t her kingdom. Not anymore. Instead\nhe asked her, \u2018Why?\u2019<\/p>\n\n\n\n In\nher other hand was the staff of the witch, a gnarled black thing with a green\ngem. Briar stared, transfixed by the gem.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u2018Did\nyou know,\u2019 she said, \u2018that the witch of this staff was my godmother. She was\njealous of my beauty, you see. Called me spoiled and bitter, and continuing\ndown that path would only lead to destruction.\u2019 She spun the staff like a sword.\n\u2018I told her that she was wrong. But she wasn\u2019t.\u2019<\/p>\n\n\n\n She\nheld the staff in front of her. A green light blinded him, and his body twisted\nout of his control into agonisingly painful contortions.<\/p>\n\n\n\n He woke up.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The\nforest where he lay was dark in colour and in atmosphere. No plants grew\nbeneath the trees here. The sky was black and there were no stars to guide him.\nEdward didn\u2019t know where he was. He was lost.<\/p>\n\n\n\n He\nwalked slowly, not knowing whether he was walking towards, or away from his\nhome. Dead leaves crunched under foot. Each step was a dull ache, and his head was\nthick and fuzzy, full of the murky green light he\u2019d last seen.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Edward\ngrew weary quicker than he expected and had to stop and rest. When he closed\nhis eyes and listened to everything but himself, he could hear the distant\nclang of metal on metal and the wind that carried the battle to him. But the\nbattle was over.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Edward\nwandered day and night through the blackened woods. He could not rest. Every time\nhe closed his eyes he saw the friends he had been unable to save.<\/p>\n\n\n\n He\nsaw Briar sometimes, laughing, running through the leaves, the staff leaving a\ntrail of terrible green light behind her. Often he saw Philip standing just\nahead in a light that did not exist. He beckoned him sometimes, growing further\naway the more Edward walked. Sometimes he just stood and cried.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The\nghosts of battle grew louder in their cries and Edward knew he was taking the\nright path. He no longer felt hunger in his stomach or the ache in his bones,\nall he felt was the earnest desire for revenge.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The\ntrees whispered half-truths in the wind; words of betrayal and heartbreak. <\/p>\n\n\n\n The\nwind was silent. The battle fell still.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Through\nthe dense trunks of the trees, Edward saw a light. Exhaustion finally caught up\nto him, and Edward had to drag his body to the line. Weakness over came him and\nhe finally slept.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Briar sat upon her\nthrone. The halls were dark, twisting cracks winding up into shadows. The halls\nwere quiet, servants lost in time and place, sleeping still on the ground. Battle\nover and Briar victorious, she sat upon her throne and frowned.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Lying\nbeside her, green light illuminating the room, was the staff. It had called to\nher as a child, when it was still with her Godmother, whispered deeds that she\nwouldn\u2019t have dared commit then. She\u2019s committed them all now. The staff had\ncalled her the true queen, and had let the remaining castle court sleep, as\nthey did not deserve her.<\/p>\n\n\n\n On\ntop her blonde hair still streaked with blood was a twisted crown of thorns.\nBlack in colour and just as cruel as the staff. Briar sat upon her throne and\nfrowned.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Everything\nin her life had worked up to this moment. Every painstaking step she took to\nensure there were no suspicions had worked. She had pictured this moment, yet\nit still did not seem right.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Consort,\n<\/em>the jewel\nwhispered.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Briar\nnodded. In all her dreams, her night-time fantasies, she had had a consort. A\nman just as strong and proud as she. There were no such men.<\/p>\n\n\n\n She\nremembered Philip. Her beautiful Philip, lovely and golden. She had killed him,\nrun him through. His blood was still on her hands, dry and flaky. There was a\ndifference between taking the life of an enemy and the life of a friend. <\/p>\n\n\n\n You\nweren\u2019t friends, <\/em>the\njewel said. He just wanted the throne.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n There\nwas a fluttering outside and the faeries of Vescafo forest blew in. They were\nshort, stumpy, petty things, with powerful magic. They bowed deeply to her,\nvoices twittering. The three of them had raised her in those woods with the\nrest of the court and Briar knew when something was wrong.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u2018What\nis it?\u2019 she barked at them, unhappily.<\/p>\n\n\n\n They\nall twitched and stood. The first, swathed in bluebells and snowdrops, dropped\nto her knees and said, \u2018My Queen, there is a man at the edge of the woods.\u2019<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u2018A\nman?\u2019 she asked, delighted. There hadn\u2019t been any new men here for weeks. They\nhad all fled or been killed. It had just been Briar, alone, in the castle. \u2018Take\nme to him.\u2019<\/p>\n\n\n\n The\nlandscape was bland and barren as the journeyed to the forest\u2019s edge. The rest\nof the faerie court was gathered around a body, waving their arms and flapping\ntheir wings.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The\nsecond faerie with a dress made of rose petals let out a series of clicks and\ntwitters. Dressed in tulips, one of them hoisted the man up by magic. Briar\nleant forward to get a better look.<\/p>\n\n\n\n He\nwas vaguely familiar with his blood streaked skin and shadowed eyes. His hair\nwas damp when she stroked it. This was Edward, her Philip\u2019s closest advisor. Briar\nfound that if she squinted her eyes a bit he looked like Philip.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u2018He\nwill do,\u2019 she declared to the surrounding area. In her hand, the staff glowed\nbright.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Edward\nwoke up in the dark, cold and tired. No light entered, yet he knew where he\nwas. The dungeons of the castle were as unforgiving from the inside as they\nwere from the outside. Something touched his hand, and he lay still while it\nwalked across.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Three\nlights appeared: red, blue and green. Three fae faces peered at him from the\nshadows, eyes sharp and faces curious.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u2018He\ncan\u2019t be the one,\u2019 one chirped.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Another\npulled the hand back. \u2018Don\u2019t touch him, the queen wishes for us to bring him to\nher unharmed.\u2019<\/p>\n\n\n\n The\nfirst scoffed. \u2018I wasn\u2019t going to hurt him. I wanted to make sure he was worthy\nof her.\u2019<\/p>\n\n\n\n The\nlast fae unlocked the cell door. Edward stumbled to his feet; his bones were\naching still, and he didn\u2019t think he could move anymore. That didn\u2019t stop the\nfae. They dragged him up and along the corridor. Despite their size, their\ngrips were bruising and the pace fierce.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Clouds\nof cold breath fogged up in front of him. Sleeping servants littered the\ncorridor, breathing regularly. <\/p>\n\n\n\n \u2018Did\nthey not wake up?\u2019 he asked, stumbling over someone\u2019s head. <\/p>\n\n\n\n They\ndidn\u2019t answer and instead pushed him roughly into the throne room. Upon the\nthrone, swathed in black and green, blonde hair standing out, was Briar. She\nmoved with grace that only an elven princess should have. Her cloak was long\nand thin, more for show than warmth. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Hands\npulled and pushed him until he was maneuvered into a bow. Briar tipped his head\nup. Her eyes were dark, evil. Her hands cold against his skin. She was wicked\nand cruel, nothing like the princess that Philip used to sigh about; but she\nwas a queen, cold like the women who\u2019s staff she wielded.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u2018Hello,\nmy dear,\u2019 she said. Hands skimmed his cheeks wandering to his hair, where she\nyanked his head back until he heard his neck crack. \u2018Lovely to see you again.\u2019<\/p>\n\n\n\n Briar\ndragged him up by the hair until he was kneeling before her.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u2018I didn\u2019t mean to leave you alive,\u2019 she told\nhim, stroking his hair. \u2018But I\u2019m glad I did.\u2019<\/p>\n\n\n\n Everyone\nwas either asleep or dead. It was just him. Briar patted him one last time\nbefore signalling something to the fae. He was wrenched to his feet and dragged\nfrom the room. Briar was still looking at him, as the doors closed, and\nstroking her staff.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The\ndungeon was still dark and cold, grazing his hand until they bled as he was\nthrown to the floor. The faeries twittered and shot off in a flurry of bright\nsparks.<\/p>\n\n\n\n There\nwas no time to waste He\ngripped two of the rough brown bars and tried to twist them. The flakes of rusting metal bit into his\nhands, but they both twisted. He wrapped his cloak around his hands and tried\nagain, this time twisting and shaking, each effort making progress until, by\nconcentrating on one he, could tear first one, then the other, loose through\nthe crumbling stone housing. Edward slipped through the gap and reached out\nuntil his hands brushed the wall. Keeping one hand on the surface as all times\nhe made his way forward in the dark, other hand reaching out and searching.<\/p>\n\n\n\n He\ntripped and stumbled over the slumbering bodies on the floor. They never woke.<\/p>\n\n\n\n His\nsword had been taken from him. He didn\u2019t know where it would be stored, but something\nwas pulling him forwards.<\/p>\n\n\n\n He clambered\nup steep stone steps that circled round and round and then came a short\ncorridor and a door at the end. He opened it slowly and blinked at the light.<\/p>\n\n\n\n There,\nin the centre of the room, was his sword. The blade shone against the light and\nwhen Edward held it he had never felt so powerful.<\/p>\n\n\n\n It\nwas time to kill a queen.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Her kingdom was\nbeautiful. Briar could see the villages from her window. The sun had barely\nskimmed the horizon and the valley in which the castle lay was already glowing.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The\nvillage was in disrepair. Nobody was maintain it, which made things look\nuntidy. It disturbed her, but the villagers were all dead. Everyone was dead.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Her\nstaff was leaning against her throne and being away from it for so long was\nmaking her restless. She turned back to the window.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The\nkingdom was darker than it had been under the prince. It was swallowed by\nendless cloud. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Glowing\ngreen, the staff began to vibrate, letting out a high-pitched whistle. Briar\nran forward and gripped it in her hands. The magic inside was coursing\nfuriously and straining for release.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The\ndoor flung open.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Briar stared, the staff\nlimp in her grasp. It was pulsing.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u2018Edward?\u2019\nshe said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Edward\nstalked forward, hoisting his sword up until it was pointing at her chest. <\/p>\n\n\n\n She\ngripped the staff and started to chant under her breath. Edward couldn\u2019t let\nher finish, swinging his sword in an arc.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Briar\nducked and lashed out with her staff, catching him in the chest and throwing\nhim back. She was on top of him before he could react and pulled a knife from her\nsleeves. She stabbed downwards, but he grabbed her wrists hovering above his\nchest.<\/p>\n\n\n\n She squirmed,\nand screamed, more savage than queen. The staff was twisted out of her hand and\nlanded next to him. He let go of her with one hand to grab it, and her dagger\nlurched closer. He swung the staff and smacked into the side of her head. <\/p>\n\n\n\n The\nmagic ran up his hands. He felt powerful. He could rule the world.<\/p>\n\n\n\n With\none mighty effort, he stood and snapped the staff. The jewel smached against\nthe ground.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Briar\nstood, wobbling. She staggered towards the broken staff.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u2018What\nhave you done?\u2019<\/p>\n\n\n\n She\npulled out a longer blade from the back of the throne.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u2018You\ncan\u2019t win this,\u2019 she said, parrying his shot quickly.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u2018Neither\ncan you.\u2019 He ducked her swing and clashed their swords.<\/p>\n\n\n\n He\nhad a view of the forest from his position and could see faeries streaming\ntowards them. He had to finish this quickly.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The\ncrown was crooked in her hair as Briar was pushed back, falling off completely\nas she craned her head back to avoid decapitation. It clattered to the floor\nand Edward took the advantage when her eyes followed it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n He\nthrust his blade forward sharply and felt his arm slow as the blade reached her\nand sank deep inside. Her hands scrabbled against the blade as he pushed it\ninto her chest, just like she had done to Philip.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The\nfaerie court burst through the door and froze when they saw their fallen queen.\nThey crowded towards him and he was forced back towards the window, and then\nthe ground began to give way beneath them. He grabbed at the throne as the\ncastle began to crumble around them. The faeries fled. <\/p>\n\n\n\n As\nthe roof to throne room came down, Edward regarded the fallen queen with a curious\ngaze. He couldn\u2019t see how she could ever have been Sleeping Beauty.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"featured_media":0,"template":"","categories":[401],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-5457","project","type-project","status-publish","hentry","category-sixth-form-stories"],"acf":[],"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/uniofglos.blog\/creativewriting\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/project\/5457","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/uniofglos.blog\/creativewriting\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/project"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/uniofglos.blog\/creativewriting\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/project"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/uniofglos.blog\/creativewriting\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=5457"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/uniofglos.blog\/creativewriting\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=5457"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/uniofglos.blog\/creativewriting\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=5457"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}