Nevergirl
07.23.10
Alethea was the only child of the King of Taunder, but only a handful of people knew of her existence. She had been born with the mark, and thus was so valuable that she had to be kept safe and protected from any bad influence until she came of age. On the eve of this occasion, she sat in her apartment in the tall tower at the west end of the castle, undecided as to how she felt about the new life she was about to lead, come the morning. She glanced around at the plush prison she had been confined in since birth. She would be free of it soon enough, but at what cost? Her father was going to auction her off to the highest bidder, and she would be forced to marry a man she had never even seen a likeness of.
The king hadn’t come to see her in nearly a year – since her last birthday in fact, and she was glad of it. The man who had been a welcome visitor during her childhood, always bearing gifts pleasing to a little girl, had changed into a figure of hatred as she grew older and came to understand her predicament. Her mother had died while bringing her into this tiny world that was all she knew, so her only friend had been her old nurse who had tended to her since that day. She missed the old woman terribly; the sour-faced housekeeper who had been appointed as her companion after Nurse Ennie’s death served only to remind her of how much. Alethea smiled as memories of happier times danced in her head.
“I will never eat spring greens, Nursie. Never. You can’t make me.”
“Don’t use that word, or you might turn into a nevergirl. Then you’ll be whisked off to Neverland, where there is nothing but trouble.”
“What kind of trouble?”
“Well… dragons, for starters. Big, nasty ones that think nothing of stealing a nevergirl’s doll, or her favourite dress.”
Alethea, bored of dolls and dresses alike, had from then on tried to say “Never” as often as possible. Every time, she would receive the same admonition, always accompanied by a snippet of information about the horrors of living in Neverland. Fleeing from dragons, swordfights with bad men who wanted to kidnap nevergirls, even having to rescue one’s kitten from ogres – the girl delighted in it all. It was a game they carried on playing over the years, and tonight more than ever she wished she was a nevergirl instead of a princess born with the mark.
She looked down at her forearm, at the dark patch of skin shaped like an eagle in flight. It was only a couple of inches wide, and yet it held such importance. A king who took as his queen one who was born with the mark could expect great things to happen during his reign, but such girls were a rare occurrence. A big ceremony was planned for tomorrow, where she would be unveiled in front of a host of leaders of neighbouring and distant lands and sold, no doubt, to the richest among them. The king’s Scholars had been preparing her for this day since her thirteenth birthday. She had been taught to read the stars, to predict the fate of the coming year’s crops – nothing that any of the Scholars couldn’t do themselves, of course. Her real powers would not come into play until she came of age, when she would be allowed to read the Eagle Scrolls.
She looked around the room at the various paintings that adorned the walls. She hadn’t bothered looking at them in a long time. Pretty flowers, children dancing – they meant nothing to her. She had asked for a picture of a dragon, but her father had never brought her one. The only painting she liked was that of the rearing stallion, power and freedom exuding from its every sinew. Power she would certainly have one day, but freedom? She expected her new husband would treat her well, but he too would keep her closely guarded – “for her own safety” as he would no doubt say, like her father had done so many times before.
A knock on the door was followed by the entrance of the housekeeper, bringing Alethea a hot brew that would help her sleep.
“I made it stronger than usual – I thought you might need it tonight.”
“Thank you, you thought right.”
The woman left, and she slowly sipped on the drink. It was certainly stronger than usual, and she started to feel drowsy before she had drunk half of it. She decided to go out onto the top of the tower to read the stars one last time before she was too sleepy. Perhaps they would offer a glimmer of hope. Once outside, she was about to look through her telescope when something caught her eye in the sky. A black shape was making its way towards the tower. As it approached, she saw it was a winged creature, far bigger than a horse, that left a trail of smoke in its wake. It swooped down towards her and picked her up with surprisingly gentle claws. As they flew over the land – towards where she neither knew nor cared – she laughed at the thought of her father’s face when he found out she was gone.
The visiting dignitaries, while angered that their long journeys had been in vain, nevertheless offered their condolences to the king in a respectful manner. To lose a daughter in such a terrible accident was, after all, a hard knock for any man to take.
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Tags: Dragons, Fantasy, Flash Fiction, fridayflash, Writing
You own fantasy. Beautifully told. Your characters come alive.
A terrible accident it may be considered by her father and all the dignitaries but incredible freedom for the imprisoned princess.
Wonderful fantasy! Love how it went from a princess who knew exactly how her life would unfold to one who had no idea what will happen.
And she was flying! Just like her mark depicted. 🙂
Much to ponder here…did she leave for neverland with a dragon, or did she fall from the top of the tower in a terrible accident? Or perhaps both? 🙂 Brilliantly written!
I like the whimsy giving the tragic accident at the ending a flair of dreamland. Can wishing so hard for another world bring a terrible accident, one that we’re so certain is our hopeful destination? Frightful, but beautiful, thought.
This was wonderful. I liked this so much, I just read this to my son (Monsterbat). So… was the brew too strong or was she really ‘stolen’ by a dragon? I’m opting for the dragon, and I’m glad she got to escape. Well done!
Nice one! Escaping the shackles of duty and family in the claws of a dragon, wonderful.
You have a great flair for mysterious and thought-provoking narrative.
The characters in this are spot-on. And I loved the pace, the flow of this.
One hopes she slid through the accident and into Neverland. My favorite bit was ““Well… dragons, for starters.” That’s adult threatening at its finest.
Freedom, finally. I love the way you left the ending.
I like to think she’ll come back to take her rightful place as the heir to her father’s throne someday. Riding in on the back of a dragon, naturally.
Very cool story! Like others have said, it was an excellent open ending. The lead up to the ending was excellent as well!
This is one of those stories you never want to end. I love this story and the mystery you pose with the ending. I hope she went somewhere else where she could happy. Either way, bravo!
Nice story. I totally bought that a dragon swooped in and kidnapped her, but on looking back I’m forced to wonder if something more sinister happened (i.e. the brew, drowsiness, and a very tall tower). Subtle. Nicely done.
What a wonderfully twisted fairy tale. She got her wish after all. Engaging story!
This is beautifully written – with subtle echoes of tales from many cultures. I love the ending. You have woven a beautiful web with your words. ~ Hazel
That’s a GREAT piece of dragonlore! What a fantastic job of communicating the history of the character you did, too. Wonderful job. 🙂
That was the best possible thing for her, I love how your characters always come alive, wonderful flash Maria!
Great story, pace and characters. Really enjoyed.
Yay to dragons! My bet is that the dragon took her away to join the other nevergirls into ogre battling. I like this ending better. 😉
I LOVE this Maria! You have such a talent for fantasy. I could see her dream for freedom, and her final release so easily. Just gorgeous.
Thanks so much for entering the contest – glad you didn’t miss the deadline.
This probably says something worrying about my mindset but I have no doubts our Nevergirl felt to her death. She died people. However – whether the dragon was real or not is irrelevant, she still got a happy ending. Great wee story!
I’d like to know more about Alethea. This is a delightfully whimsical tale. Good job!
Delightfully told story. I enjoyed it very much. OK, David, so she died, but this is fantasy, so it is possible to elaborate on this and bring us all the adventures her nanny had promised. I would love to read more!
Beautifully composed fantasy story. I could read longer pieces like this too. The cynic in me thinks she fell to her death. But the fantasy reader sees the set up for Nevergirl to begin a new life in Neverland.
Well written and paced, with characters that really jump off the page!
I’m not sure what happened there at the end. Did she succumb to the brew and fall to her death? Or did a dragon whisk her away? Or was the brew the dragon?
I really don’t want to know. I like having the rest of the story delegated to me. And, as an aside, I think it is a sign of a confident writer. You can take that to the bank.
Whether she fell off or was whisked away by a dragon, at least she got freedom. Personally, I hope she got whisked away by the dragon! Neverland sounds ace.
Well done!
Everything you write in this genre is beautifully crafted
– this reads like a fairy tale in the best tradition with enough ambiguity to really capture the reader’s imagination. Fab!
While I would love to think a dragon did it, the word “accident” at the end spells out another story. Well told. The princess was immediately sympathetic as a character, and the world easily understood.
Never say you will never find escape or a way out of a boring life. Great story. It was well written and your prose was beautiful. You rock!
Great title, great concept, great story, great ending.
I’m setting myself firmly in the camp that says she fell, no doubt about it, and that the dragon was a product of her own mind–a well-deserved ending to her life. My question is, was the strength of the drink perhaps due to an ingredient meant to kill her? The housekeeper seemed a bit sinister to me–or was that just Alethea’s aversion to her because she wasn’t her old nurse?
So many questions here. And so much left unsaid. I want more of this world–or of Neverland, at least. You never cease to amaze me with your tales.
“Alethea” – what a gorgeous name. I loved the whole feeling of this, the game played by the girl and her nurse, the mysterious mark and the powers she’d grow into and, of course, dragons and Neverland.
You can’t go wrong with dragons.
A part of my brain went off on its own and wondered if the accident was the young woman falling from the roof because of the extra-strong brew she was given.
All the elements that were left out just whetted my appetite for more.
Really well done.
A fitting way to end the story, I’m glad she went smiling.
Excellent job of reaching out and grasping the reader. I felt bad for her from the start, before forced to go through life as a prisoner “for her own safety”.
Well done
I’m late to the game here, but wow, just another spectacular post. In awe…
Better late than never! I am always impressed by the quality of your writing. Always powerful, no matter what you turn your hand to. With this one, I loved the whole concept of Nevergirl. Really great name. Really great story.
[…] Nevergirl, by Maria Protopapadaki-Smith […]
Beautifully done as always. Excellent. (I am voting for fell to her death in a drug-induced hallucination)
Very nice. The Neverland play with her maid is fantastic. It weaves her personality and important relationship into the piece and ties to the plot perfectly. Nicely done!
Thanks to all for the comments, and I’m glad the open ending went down well (unlike Alethea herself!)
In response to the question… yes, she dies, by hallucinating and falling off the tower. But nonetheless, she’s off to Neverland, and at least leaves this world happy.
At any rate, that’s what happened in my mind as I was writing the story – the open ending is there for you to make your own minds up 😉
@Travis King – the housekeeper is not sinister, merely dull and unpleasant, and lacking in Nurse Ennie’s imagination when it comes to all things Neverland.
Dang, I thought it was a happy ending. 😛
Rats! All your short stories leave me wanting more! I wish this was the beginning of a novel and we found out what happened to Alethea once the dragon released her from its talons…great job! 🙂
[…] Nevergirl, by Maria Protopapadaki-Smith […]
Just a quick note to Maria’s readers – there’s less than 15 hours left to vote in the contest. Have you cast your vote?
We’ll be partying at The Other Side of Deanna on Monday. I hope everyone can stop in!
Hi Maria. We’re having a party today – hope you and your readers can stop in: http://theothersideofdeanna.wordpress.com/2010/08/16/party-time/
Thanks so much for entering the contest!