Reading the Dice: Fantasy Edition

Story 1: Searching for Laughter

***A note before the stories begin:

If you are reading this story collection on any site other than Wattpad, it has been taken without permission.

Please find your way to the Wattpad site; the site you're using could contain viruses and/or malware.

While you're at Wattpad, please drop a line to author CEBronk, letting me know where you found this story.

Copyright ©2023 Christine Bronk. All rights reserved.

These stories, or any portion thereof, may not be reproduced or used in any manner without the express written permission of the author.

All characters, incidents, and locations are products of the author's imagination; any resemblance to actual events, persons (living or dead), or places are completely coincidental.***

Dice Roll: Medusa, jester hat, carry stick, mug, potion, dizzy face, cage, ship, well

Once upon a time in the kingdom of Eda, a young girl toiled as jester to the king. The king was a very taciturn man and rarely laughed; hence, her job was nearly impossible.

The queen usually laughed at her jokes.

The young prince always laughed at her antics.

The young princess always laughed at her silly dances.

But the king never laughed at anything.

One night after her usual evening performance, she cried softly as she slithered to her room. "The king never laughs," she whimpered, tossing her bag of props into the corner and collapsing onto her bed. "Never even smiles."

A few of the snakes in her hair hissed sadly and she rubbed the bruises on her head.

"I know. I'm sorry. But the prince thinks it's funny when I drop the balls while juggling. You're supposed to dodge. Or catch the balls in your coils as a team. The princess usually likes that."

The snakes hissed silently in response. One of the scaly locks nuzzled her cheek, forked tongue flicking out to taste the salty trail of her tears.

The next day, she packed her things into a bag, tied the bag to a stick, and, throwing the stick over her shoulder, slithered out of the castle. And from the castle steps, she slithered through town and down the road. By the time she reached the next town, it was getting dark, so she went into an inn and slithered up to the bar, asking for a room, dinner, and a mug of rootbeer.

She ate and drank in silence, then went to her room and slept.

The next day, she found a magician's shop and asked, "Do you have anything that will help me make everyone laugh?"

The magician laughed as he replied, "No. Everyone has a different sense of humor, so there is nothing that everyone will find funny." Seeing her sad face, he held out a potion. "Here. I can't help you make everyone laugh, but I can help you find the wishing well. She can help you."

"How would a potion help me find a wishing well?" she asked, eyeing the glowing blue liquid in the crystal vial. Dust specks of silver and gold glinted from within the clear liquid, floating and swirling in the depths.

The magician grinned. "Only one way to find out!" He pantomimed drinking something.

"Okay," she said quietly. She opened the vial and drank the glowing, glittery liquid in two swallows, grimacing against its overly sweet taste and sugary, grainy texture. She set the vial down and looked around the shop. Nothing had changed. "Wh—" She grabbed at the table as dizziness overcame her.

She fell to the floor, asleep.

A rocking sensation was the first thing she felt as she woke up. Steady thumping, shouts, and a light jingling noise made her open her eyes. She was in a bed in an empty room. Several birdcages hung from the ceiling, swaying with the rocking, the feathered occupants singing. She got off the bed and went to the door, relieved to find it unlocked. She went outside and found herself staring at the deck of a ship, the sailors shouting and running around as they adjusted the sails.

"You're awake," the magician said, coming to her side. "Good timing! We're almost to port!"

"Why did you take me on this ship? Where are we going?"

"I said I'd help you find the wishing well," he replied with a smile. "And you seemed the type to get seasick, so I thought it'd be better for you to sleep through the journey."

She nodded. "Thank you. I do get terribly seasick."

"Good thing we're docking now, then!"

The magician accompanied her off the ship. They dodged around the busy sailors at the port and made their way through town.

Outside the city gates, they found a rocky trail into the woods.

They found the wishing well at the top of the hill beyond the woods.

She slithered up to the well, ducking her head under its roof so she could peer down into the depths. Her hands rested on the cool, smooth stones of the well as she called, "Wishing well! I have a wish! I wish the king would laugh!"

From deep down in the well came the sound of bubbling water, then a voice whispered, "Come down here, child."

She climbed up onto the well's edge and then jumped.

As she splashed down into the water, the chill of it cut through her, her teeth chattering immediately.

"Soak in the waters, child, and let the magic grant your wish," the voice whispered.

She sighed, hugging herself as she shivered, and leaned back, letting the snakes in her hair swim in the water. Under the surface, she heard whispers and she went still, listening.

Once the water stopped whispered in her ears, she sat up and reached out, fingers finding the rough rope ladder. She climbed back out of the well.

The magician grinned at her as he wrapped a dry blanket around her shoulders. "Did you get what you wanted?"

She nodded.

They journeyed back home and she returned to the castle.

That night after dinner, she began her usual routine.

She started with some jokes, and the queen laughed.

She then began the tale of her journey, poorly imitating the bard she'd heard at the inn, and the prince laughed.

She pantomimed the journey, hopping and dancing, waving her coily tail like it was the waves of the sea, making funny sound effects as she moved, and the princess laughed.

Finally, she told about her encounter at the well, and how she'd jumped into the wishing well, just so she could learn how to make the king laugh. She told them about the voices she'd heard in the water.

As she ended the tale, she asked, "What makes a joke funny?" She looked at them very seriously, then locked eyes with the king as she finished, "You do."

The king laughed.