Princess Saralynna

Part One: The Princess of Garren

Writer's Note:
This short story is dedicated to a dear Facebook friend of mine, who has a disability (Cerebral Palsy). She is a really good person who loves Disney,  Harry Potter, and anything fantasy. She loves to cosplay, and loves Disney princesses. The more I pay attention to some of her life that she shares on her Facebook, on how much she struggles with her condition and how hard she works to overcome it, the more I look down at Disney and shake my head that they hadn't made a disabled princess yet.

So, until Disney starts acting like a better, happily-ever-after company like they should, and actually make everyone's dreams come true, I have made this short story of three parts. It is not only for my friend, but also for those who may struggle with a disability: whether you have autism and a learning disability like me, Cerebral Palsy like my friend, or any kind of condition that seems like an obstacle in your way. I hope this story gives you inspiration to soar above all the odds, like that one, little bird who was last to leave the nest, but was the first to fly the farthest.

We're not broken. We're not damaged. We're not invisible.
We are loud. We are proud. We are beautiful. We are invincible.
Our wings may be broken, but our hearts are not. And we will survive against all odds to show others that we can fly, even with broken wings.
---JamKittensFanfics
P.S.: Saralynna is pronounced "Sara-LEENA".
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Never give up on those you love. Persistence and patience is required to nudge the frightened horse in the right direction.
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When Princess Saralynna was born, she was a healthy and beautiful little girl. Her parents---the king and queen---were in awe by their first child. Despite expecting to get a boy, King Oswin was happy with the new baby girl; she proved to be as strong as a boy would be, even at such a very young age. While the princess's father went on about how strong she was, Queen Adalynn went on about her unusual, blue eyes. "Oh, they're just like Tomlyn's!" she would say; Tomlyn was her late nephew.

Everyday, the couple went on and on about how proud and joyful they were of their new daughter. It was a big deal in the Kingdom of Garren, because poor Queen Adalynn had gone through five miscarriages. Once Saralynna was born, she refused any of the wet nurses to breastfeed the child and did it herself instead. Which wasn't very common throughout the generations of the royal Garren family. Even Adalynn's own mother had a wet nurse feed her. But this was a very important and special event that happened. The queen even preferred to keep the little lovely, rosy-cheeked princess with her at all times. The king would describe her as "a mother bear keeping careful watch over her cub, even in a place of no danger."

As Princess Saralynna grew, her mother doted on her more and more, while her father boasted about her progress of becoming a "stronger young lady". At the age of five, the princess was taught a little bit of etiquette and was required to walk. However, despite a fast and healthy growth, it took Saralynna a long, slow time to begin to walk. But when she tried to walk on the day of her 6th birthday, the king and queen noticed something very wrong. Saralynna could not walk. Every-time she tried, the poor child would fall back down. Her legs seemed to be weak and slightly deformed. Noticing the deformity, the queen flung two hands to her mouth, her big green eyes widened in surprise and horror.

"Oh, no. . . . Oswin, dear, she can't be. . .?"

The king gave no response to his wife as he stared wordlessly at their beautiful child. Beautiful yet broken child. Princess Saralynna looked at both of her parents, confused and worried at their expressions.

"Mumma? Da?" she wondered in a small, innocent and tentative voice. Queen Adalynn sighed softly, helping the girl up to her feet. "Everything's okay, my little songbird. Come, it's time for tea." Adalynn picked up Saralynna, bringing her back inside of the castle, her husband by her side. Both king and queen did not bring up the situation. That was something they had to discuss alone, without their daughter within earshot. As the months passed into years, Princess Saralynna grew and grew. As she was still unable to walk, she used long, wooden sticks as crutches, or her own little carriage---complete with one small, yet sturdy horse---to carry her about. The king and queen forbid her of riding the pretty, black little beast (whom the princess decided to name Sherly Su), for fear of her falling off. The princess was also allowed to ask the castle's guards for assistance; carrying her to and from her bedroom, if need be. Other than that, Saralynna was mostly confined to the castle, working on her studies, piano and etiquette lessons, and so on, all in her bed. Today, she laid in the bed, doing her homework for her history lesson. Her tutor hadn't come today; she was grateful for that. Her tutor was a boring, old man who droned on and on about the importance of the history of her "royal ancestors". It was nice to not have him hovering around her, for once.