It was a warm day in July in the village of Lardonia. Sunny, a light breeze, and it seemed like the perfect day. But 21-year-old Julia, lying on the floor, could not be more displeased. She was grounded, not allowed to go anywhere, forced to stay at home as her annoying 12-year-old twin brothers (and mom’s ‘perfect little boys’), Alex and Connor, played around her.
Her mom Elizabeth walked into the room, basket in hand. “I’m headed to the market. Do you all want anything?”
“A new storybook!”, exclaimed Alex.
“Another teddy bear!”, said Connor.
“How about you, Julia?” asked Elizabeth.
“Eh, I could use three roses for the flower vase in my bedroom, I guess. The vase would look better when there’s actually something in it,” muttered Julia.
So, Elizabeth headed to the market, quickly finding a book and a teddy bear for her sons. “Now, where do they have flowers?”, she wondered. She wandered for hours, walking away from the market, before finding a garden in the middle of nowhere.
“Oh, here we are,” she said, and picked a few roses. Suddenly, a giant black basilisk swooped in and landed in front of her. She immediately ducked her head, avoiding the basilisk’s gaze.
“You shouldn’t be here!,” he bellowed. “This garden is enchanted, forbidden from entering, or face a terrifying punishment.” Elizabeth was quaking in fear.
“What do you want?” she squeaked out.
“Bring me your eldest daughter, with milk and fruit in tow,” spoke the basilisk.
The mother returned home, roses, teddy bear, and storybook in hand. “Here you are,” she said to her kids.
“Thank you, Mama!”, exclaimed Alex and Connor.
“Thanks,” said Julia simply.
“Julia,” said Elizabeth. “I need you to do something else for me.”
The next day, Julia headed to the garden, walking with a basket of milk and fruit for hours, grumbling more and more as she continued.
“This is worse than being grounded,” she said. “Why the heck am I being forced to bring this stuff to a...basilisk? Whatever that is.”
She finally reached the garden. Soon after, the basilisk flew and appeared before her. Julia looked to the ground, refusing to gaze at anything but her feet.
“Are you the basilisk?” she asked. “Well, here’s your stuff. Bye.”
“Wait!,” the basilisk roared. “You must feed me. And you may not leave until you do.”
“Are you kidding me?!” Julia groaned.
After eventually feeding the basilisk, Julia gathered her things to begin home.
“You will bring me the same tomorrow, and do so for three days,” the basilisk said just as she was leaving.
Julia rolled her eyes and started the walk home. Over the next three days, Julia did as she was asked, and fed the basilisk tons of fruit and milk. As Julia was leaving the last day, the basilisk stopped her.
“I need one more thing,” he said, as a sword emerged from the ground. “I need you to cut my head off.”
“Now THAT I will gladly do,” Julia said curtly.
Julia strided towards the sword, picked it up with ease, and beheaded the basilisk with one quick swipe. She tossed the sword aside, picked up her basket and started to walk away. Abruptly, the ground and garden bushes began to shake. She turned back around to see a bright light emerging from the basilisk’s corpse. A blinding flash burst from the basilisk, and a handsome prince appeared. Julia looked at the prince in shock, mouth agape.
“Finally, I’m free!”, exclaimed the prince. “I’m Shaun, the prince of Lardonia and its surrounding villages,” he said. “Last year, I had this girl infatuated with me, trying to get me to fall in love with her. After I rejected her, she chased me into this garden and turned me into that horrible creature.”
“Well,” said Julia. “Glad to see you’re back to normal, but I have to get home.”
“Wait!,” said Shaun. “You know, since I am already 22, I’ve been looking for someone to love, rule alongside for when I become king. And you just cared for me, even as a horrible, ugly basilisk. Will you...marry me?”
Julia’s jaw dropped to the floor, but only for a moment. “I never thought I’d consider marrying a prince that used to be a giant snake, but…”
One week later, Julia and Shaun were married, and the village of Lardonia and the others nearby celebrated at the prince’s castle, complete with decor, cake, and music. Shaun stood in front of all of the guests, and clinked his glass to gain everyone’s attention.
“Thank you all for coming to celebrate this wonderful occasion,” he said. “We hope you all enjoy the festivities tonight. But most importantly,” he said as he turned to Julia, smiling from ear to ear. “Thank you for saving me, and giving me a new lease on life.” Shaun leaned over and kissed Julia as the crowd cheered and tossed roses into the air, thankful that the prince, soon to be king in a couple months, returned, and now had a princess alongside him to help the growth and prosperity of Lardonia.
“White Concrete Castle” via
UnsplashAuthor’s NotesI tried to add more personality to the characters, who don’t even have names in the original. I specified what exactly the kids wanted their mom to get from the store, and how Julia feels as though she is less important than her brothers, or “mom’s perfect little boys”. I also went from three daughters to one daughter and two sons. I wanted to show how Julia is more alone and somewhat disconnected from her family by being the only daughter. Julia is given a somewhat sarcastic and displeased attitude, but becomes happier by the end of the story. Everyone has a specific name to give the story a more human element.
Bibliography. “The Three Roses” from The Key of Gold by Josef Baudis.
Web source.
