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My Sleeping Beauty

Briar Rose, the crown prince of the once again forgotten kingdom, was bored. He was the step-son of the original Briar Rose, but nobody knew that, or that the terrible spindle curse was passed down to him.

The second time finding out about the curse, they were smarter about it, and informed the prince of what would happen. They kept him under close watch, but didn't know about the kings affair with a servant woman.

She raised him, and told him to be careful, since the curse could be passed down to him as well. He managed to evade it, until he was 21, and pricked his finger on a broken shard of something he had found in his room.

The king was more than happy to bustle everyone out of the kingdom to avoid talking about the affair, and Briar had been left in a tower alone.

He had been waiting for someone to come find him for a century. He was asleep, but his mind had woke up long ago, aware of everything. He needed desperately to be saved.

It was lucky, then, that a messenger happened to stumble upon the wrong path, that led to the castle.

—————

Prince Phillip was a disappointment. He had never saved a princess, or fought a dragon, or done anything spectacular. His older brother was the star—dazzled in trophies and titles. So, of course, when a messenger brought news of a royal hidden in a castle, he jumped at the chance to prove himself.

"You've never fought before." His father reminded him over dinner as they contemplated his request. "If there's a dragon waiting, then what happens? You'll be killed!"

"Let him go." His older brother said, lounging in his seat as he tossed pieces of fruit in his mouth. "He's old enough for his first quest."

"It's not a quest, it's a death wish."

"He'll be fine." His mother told the king, piling more food on her sons plates. "Maybe he'll bring someone home!"

"And maybe the guards will bring his dead body home!"

There was a beat of silence. Phillip sighed.

"Do you not believe in me, father?" He asked quietly.

His father sighed. "I do, Phillip, of course. But I care more about your wellbeing. I don't want to lose my son."

Phillip wanted nothing more than to make his father proud. If he succeeded, then his father would finally be proud to have him as a son.

"I'm not the heir. It'll be alright if by some chance I die. But I'll be safe. I'll train until I leave—really train. I promise."

"You aren't going to die, Philly." His brother said. "We'll send our best guards with you."

By "best guards" they probably meant his usual ones. That suited him fine.

"Alright." He said. "When do we leave?"

——————————————

Two days. Phillip trained for two days, and decided he was ready to go. He was tired of the pitying looks the staff gave him, and he wanted to prove himself, the sooner the better.

His father gave him a pouch of coins, his sword, and armor. He was fully prepared to fight a dragon if he needed.

However, he didn't need to.

The trip was boring. They camped out, then left in the morning, then rode the horses till it was time to set up camp again. It was maybe a two days trip, and they reached the tower in no time.