Fate's Crooked Sword

Here we begin an unfortunate tale
of a girl swept in stories and fantasies made
of the life of the living
and ruin of all,
with none left behind-
even beauties in balls.

Here in this present
there lived no fair world-
a girl in a village
of family unknown.
A day's solid journey
brought ends to her paths
and stood her before
a castle unscathed.
She broke through the gate
and wandered throughout,
finding some people
whom gathering brought.

The day in the age and the year being set
brought ladies and women and all among rest,
but none knew the rumour
or task up for call.
None knew the horrors
of royalty's gall.
Here brought before them a ball to announce
a prisoner taken
as man's final trounce.
King would come down
and choose from the best
and take all the others
as slaves for his crest.

Hiding the meaning
of the day's sudden call
the royal viziers
now proclaimed for the all -
they hurried the crowds
into courtyards to start
the secret assemblage
of workers apart.

Returning again to our character prompt -
the heroine brought
from far off, yet not sought.
She hurried along with the rest of the crowd
and turned to the left
when the arrow said naught.
In all of this noise
and confusion unfound
we see her still wand'ring
through labyrinths around.
She hurried along, avoiding the rest,
dreaming of endings
like Cinderella's test.

So came along: the answer to prayers-
a beauty, none other than
Charming, himself.
He saw her before him
and knew her to be
another great worker-
a beautiful bee.
His father decided
that village and town
alike were to bring
a hundred score down.

But she knew no other,
she thought of the best
and figured this wonderful
man was the test.
Here if she passed,
the life of her dreams
with sudden awakening
would break all the seams.
She dreamt of the ladies
that broke all the rules
and made it to royalty
from down in the dunes,
not knowing that really
the fairy tales were
just stories made up
to lighten the world.

He took her by hand
and led her through maze
bringing her back
to crowds grown untame.
Beware, though, the prince
knew not what he'd done
while bringing a child
along for the fun.
They spoke through the journey
and took their time down
never behaving,
but never quite frowned.

The time turned to evening
as stars glittered high
revealing the entry
to procession of town.
The prince led her in,
announcing to all
that here was the somber
occasion for fall.
The queen was no more
and the king too would go,
and none of the cousins
or relatives grew.
So here it remained
to take from the rest
a bride for the prince
of family sans crest.

He watched as the people
walked through the way,
waiting for choices
that'd never be made.
But he knew from start
his answer belonged
to one who would come
too late to this show.

Our heroine watched
right from his side,
waiting for answers
that'd bring her to bide.
But just at the moment
when his eyes caught hers
the long and awaited-
the angel occurs.
His answer was founded
in one like himself -
the last then remaining
of family and crest.
He hurried to her
forgetting ourselves
and leaving the others
for kingdom's last quest.

The girl still believing
the end was not found,
she hurried right after
the love she had crowned.
She knew that the answer
couldn't be so.
She knew there was something
still in the fro.
So she arrived just at the scene
to know she was wrong,
but she couldn't come clean.

She made up a dream
of curtains and lace,
of flowers that bloom
and leaves, fallen grace.
She never believed
the stories were lies,
so how could her dreams
be left as mere sighs?

She followed behind,
while the rest were in chains
hoping for some sort of
sanctum and rain.
But nothing arrived
and hence she became
a slave of some sorts
with wrong sorts of fame.

She got just her dream
the love of her life,
just short of becoming
a legal bound wife.
But here we see ends
to all of the hopes,
to dreams of the beauty
and leveled out slopes,
to fragile and elegant
risings in tale,
the weak and the poor
above rich and still veiled.
Here we have watched
the fall of a girl
from little known family
and small closed off world
try to become
a different amount
of worth in a human
than birth had besought.
And here we can learn
a lesson of sorts
that one never plays
with fate's crooked sword.