Part Two….The Asian Prince

He was handsome as princes are expected to be and the ladies of the court simpered and fluttered their fans whenever he was around but Jang Lee Hwan did not fit the usual expectation of what a prince was suppose to do. He hated life within the palace walls with all of the rules and protocols. The retainers shook their heads in frustration with every rule that he ignored. Servants were allowed to speak freely in his presence and he was known to drink and play Go with his palace guards. Lee Hwan was known to play jokes on those in the palace and would often hide from his palace instructors sending servants scurrying about the large palace complex calling out his name. Still he was bored with his life. Something was missing. Where was the adventure that he could only read about in the books of the palace library?

.Then one day a sorcerer came from the west and was invited to stay at the palace for a few days. The Prince spent much of his days watching as the sorcerer performed magic, brewed potions and asked question after question of the man. He heard tales of the many lands that the wizard had visited and tales of strange creatures that had been encountered. At night the Prince had dreams filled with the wonders that he had heard about and when he woke the next morning it was with the determination that he would seek out some of these for himself, if only he could escape the palace.

Lee Hwan began to make plans and while visiting the local market with his guards he spotted the wizard entertaining a large crowd in the market center. Spotting them, the wizard, with a wink at Lee Kwan, involved several of the guards in one of his routines and while the others were distracted by this Lee Hwan took the opportunity to slip away. On the outskirts of the market he quickly purchased a few supplies and then eagerly set off to see what the world had to show.

Merric

Merric filed what he had seen in the back of his mind. One day he might have need of this information but for now he was going to check out the castles mouse population and headed in the direction of the kitchen.

The kitchen had been a scene of frantic activity early in the evening when he had looked in but now all way quiet. The kitchen cat and the char boy lay sleeping beside the fireplace. Most of the food from the banquet had been eaten and what had not been eaten had been cleared away.  Merric went to explore the larder for where there was food; mice could not be far away.

A large cheese wheel sat on the cooling shelf but something else caught his eye. In the corner was a mousetrap and in the trap was a piece of cheese. Staring at the cheese and muttering to himself was a mouse.

 “Ah the wonders of cheese! And sprung cheese is by far the best.” 

And with a flick of his paws the trap snapped and the cheese flew across the room…landing right at Merric’s feet.

“What do we have here? A thief in the Royal Pantry?” and with a small squeak the little mouse began to race across the kitchen floor with Merric close behind him

And then with a pounce Merric snatched up the little mouse,  

and with a quick toss the little mouse was in his mouth only Merric’s jaws were being held apart and try as he might he could not close them. 

“Spare me Sir Cat, as I am the only support for my three blind uncles and if you do I will give you a meal unlike any that you have had before and I will tell you wonderful tales of adventure while you dine.”   

 

Tournament

Tournament after tournament took place and with each event the King became more frustrated as his daughter continued to show no interest. "All day long the people of my kingdom are enjoying themselves and yet I can not bring a smile to the lips of my own child. The Queen and I have given her everything that a princess could want but still she is not content."

“Last year we were able to find a bride for our son with little problem at all” exclaimed the Queen, “a lovely girl even if she does complain of the bumps in her mattress.” Ceara promised the King and Queen that she would have an answer for them the next morning.

That evening while the Court and all the visitors reveled in the Great Hall, Ceara sat in her room gazing into a crystal ball. There she saw the image of a young man hurrying toward the castle. In his arms he held a goose and clinging to his jacket was an old woman, running to keep up with him. Clinging to the old woman's apron was a tailor and to him clung a scullery maid and so on, as a human chain made its way to the castle... Ceara put the crystal ball away and returned to the castle's great hall to watch the evening's entertainment, secure in the knowledge that by morning all would be well with the young princess. The vision within Merlin's crystal clearly showed a visitor approaching the castle who would present a sight that even the Princess could not resist. Ceara also knew that the presentation of the Goose Who Laid the Golden Egg to the King would insure prosperity and a place at court for the young man.

The King had spared no expense in presenting entertainment for his guest. There was a great feast followed by a display of fireworks presented by a traveler from the Far East, musicians from the south performed while a dancer twirled about and a famed opera singer sang an aria. 

Even Rufus got into the act. 

Merric, meanwhile, had gone down to the depths of the castle, searching for adventure in that curious manner of cats. As he approached the bottom of the stone steps he could hear the scurrying sound of little feet and he quietly crept toward the doorway. As he drew nearer the sound became clearer. It sounded like the rattling of bare tree branches in the wind.  A light glowed from the end of the long tunnel like hallway. Merric crept closer and closer until at last he stood before an open doorway. There is the light cast by a single candle he saw a strange cloaked figure and heard a strange chanting sound. Merric, the cat of a wizard, recognized the chanting of a spell.

Suddenly from the dark recesses of the room came the sound that had drawn Merric here and from the darkness came a strange and frightening sight. The sound of rattling bones was heard as skeletons rose from the dungeon floors and began to move about the room. The chanting stopped and the bones crumbled back to the floor. “Soon” said the wizard as he turned to the doorway.

Travelers

Everywhere you looked there were travelers heading to the castle and the great tournaments. Some with the hopes of winning the hand of the princess and others looking for other rewards.

”I am invited to all of the great tournaments and my balancing act is surpassed by none. I have just returned from walking atop the Great Wall of China. With such an accomplishment I have no fear of the measly wall about this castle!” boasted the Wonderful Humpty Dumpty.

Soon the towers of the castle could be seen. Banners waved in the bright sunlight and the crowds grew larger as merchants lined the roadway, hawking their ware. The travelers began to find spots to set up their tents and to prepare for the coming tournament. Ceara and her friends continued on to the castle gates.

Rufus & Gingerbread Boy

 As Rufus stretched he caught sight of what appeared to be a small, brown boy running along the road. Behind him ran a rag-taggle group of people and animals led by a little old woman and a little old man.  The young boy called out as he ran, “Run, run, fast as you can. You can’t catch me for I’m the Gingerbread Man!” Suddenly he stopped at the water’s edge looking for a means to cross to the other side.


“Climb on my back.” Said Rufus, “and I will swim to the other side.” Glancing back to where the crowd could be seen running toward him the Gingerbread Man turn to Rufus. "Promise to get me safely to the other side?” and he climbed upon the back of the small fox. Rufus quickly slid into the water and began to swim toward the opposite shore

“ The water is quite deep here. I fear that I might get wet!” said the little man. 

"Can you stand on my head, Gingerbread Man, or you will get wet." So the gingerbread man pulled himself up and stood on the fox's head.

The current became stronger and once more the little man cried out in fear, “The water is lapping at my feet!”

"Can you move on to my nose, Gingerbread Man, so that I can carry you more safely? I would not like you to drown." 

The gingerbread man hesitated. “You won’t eat me, will you?”

“Of course not, I am a fox of my word and I will see you safely to the other side.” And with that the gingerbread man slid onto Rufus’s nose and they continued to the other shore. The little man climbed down and said, “I will owe you a favor and hope to repay it one day.” He turned, scampering away and calling back, “run, run, fast as you can! You can’t catch me , I’m the gingerbread man!”

Meanwhile Ceara was comforting the old man and the old woman over the loss of the fine gingerbread man that they had planned to take to the nearby castle as a gift for the Princess. The King had offered the hand of his daughter in marriage to the person who could make her laugh and the couple had hoped that their gift would insure that their son would win her hand.   

     

Ceara decided to join them as visit the castle to watch the festivities.  Along the way they encountered many others heading toward the castle. Some were knights in armor, others were entertainers of various sorts and Ceara delighted in listening to their tales of adventure as the journey toward the castle continued.  

Frog Prince

Ceara, Merric and Rufus quickly descended the stairway and as they stepped outside the door closed behind them without a trace. When they were once again on the path, Ceara turned to look back at the tower and could see the young prince making his way slowly up the side of the tower as a smiling, golden haired maiden looked down at him.

The trio resumed their journey through the lush green valley. Flowers bloomed while butterflies fluttered about and birds sang from the trees or soared above in the bright blue sky. They soon reached a small wooded glade near a waterfall and stopped for a rest.   Rufus curled up for a nap and Ceara sat back to enjoy the beauty that was all round them  Merric went off to explore the nearby stream. He sat at the edge of the water and watched as fish swam lazily about in the clear water.  Looking out across the pond, he thought that he spied a frog wearing a crown but knew that could not be so he stretched out further for a better look.

Rufus mumbled in his sleep and Ceara smiled as she wondered about the dreams that ran through his mind.   Suddenly Ceara heard a loud splash and saw Merric tumble into the pond. With a quick snap of her fingers, she had him back up on the bank looking only a little the worse for his misadventure. “I think that you need to sit over here in the sunshine and dry off before we continue our journey.” Merric shook himself, sending water flying about and waking up Rufus. On a nearby lily pad, a frog wearing a small, golden crown jumped away.    

Rufus the Red

"The name is Rufus the Red and I am grandson of the great explorer Reynard. I am sure that you have heard of him." And Rufus continued to chatter on about the amazing adventures of his grandpere. "Why once he even journeyed to the Dark Continent and met a man who lived in the trees among great hairy creatures and grandpere said that it was difficult to tell him from the creatures....  

 The miles went by quickly as Ceara listened to his tales while Merric, with a bored glance back at them, scampered ahead on the trail.


"and his call would send shivers down your spine."   

" And once he battled a great monster that lived in a loch...a monster so fierce that none could defeat him."  

"Stories to tell my own grandchildren one day, that is what I am after." Rounding a bend, Ceara suddenly stopped and Rufus ran into her. Picking himself up off the ground he peered round her to see why she had stopped and there standing in the middle of nowhere was a tall tower. Singing could be heard coming from within the tower.   

 "Hello" Ceara called and the face of a young maiden appeared at the tower window.

"Company! Oh how wonderful. Do come in for a spot of tea." and with that a stone panel moved and a passage way with stairs was revealed. Over tea and crumpets the maiden, Rapunzel by name, told how she came to be in the tower." My guardian wished for me to marry the king of a far off land but my heart was given to the prince next door and when I refused I was sent here until I changed my mind."

The story was interrupted by the sound of a voice calling from below the window. "Rapunzel, Rapunzel, let down your golden hair." And with a smile Rapunzel raced over to a chest near the window and pulled out a long rope which appeared to be made from golden hair. She quickly attached it to a ring on the stone wall and then to the small coronet on the back of her head. With a smile she turned back to Ceara and her friends. "He does not know about the stairway and this makes him feel so brave." and she tossed the end of the rope out the window.