Dream Catcher

Chapter Four: Prince

Chapter Four:     Prince

“Prince River glanced around his surroundings cautiously, carefully letting his eyes analyze the layout before acting on instinct.” I whispered letting Tracy’s eyes swell with excitement. This time, she didn’t interrupt to inform me I was telling the story wrong. Instead, she curled up in my lap pulling her knobby little knees up to her chin and wrapping her scrawny little arms around them. I gently stroked the soft curls out of her hair and took a deep breath. “A sinister gleam took place in his eyes as a small smile crawled across his face. He looked back at the girl, almost asking her permission to go. She nodded though she didn’t quite understand what she was telling him.”

“What was she telling him?” Tracy asked after a beat. I looked down. Confusion was clear on her face. I laughed. To a five-year-old, my story must have gone way over her head. I thought about the next part carefully, still petting her hair.

“Well, before I continue there’s something you must know. Prince River lived with the girl.”

“He did?” She asked curiously. I nodded.

“Yes, ma’am. They both lived in a small castle with dozens of other little boys and girls around the same age. Prince Rive was, well, the prince to all of them. Except for the grownups. You see, the grownups kept a watchful eye on the kids. They made sure every single one of them was bathed, fed, and slept when they had to. I’m sure they loved the kids, only they didn’t feel it. To the children who lived in the castle, the grownups were mean and evil and didn’t want them to have any fun at all.”

“No fun at all!” Tracy gasped. “Were they witches?”

“The children thought they were.” I explained carefully. “And so Prince River did everything in his power to cause trouble for the grown-“ I paused peering down at the small child in my lap and smiled, “for the witches.”

“What’d he do?” She yawned, her eyes growing heavy as naptime crept closer and closer towards her. I kissed her head.

“I was just getting to that. You see, the girl loved River and, to honest, she was the reason he was the Precious Prince of the castle. She was the one who found him and took him to the castle in the first place. She was the one who showed him how to break out of the castle and play freely outside their walls. But she didn’t think he’d get addicted to breaking out, and she certainly didn’t count on the fact that every time he did break out, he’d take her along for the ride.”

“He loved her!” Tracy shrieked. “Sissy, he loved her!” Tracy’s words started a slow burn that spread quickly across my face. I glanced away, but not before she saw me blushing. She laughed and nestled her head against my chest. I held her tighter. “He loved you.” She murmured. “He loved you, sissy. He did.”

“You mean the girl?” I corrected, but my words were in vain. We both knew better. Before Tracy could say anything else, I cleared my throat. “So the girl gently tugged on River’s elbow and took him to the side. He looked at her and smiled as she frantically asked what he was planning. You see, Prince River never actually explained his plans to the girl, he just hoped she’d go along with whatever crazy scheme he was planning, and this was no exception. When the girl was finished asking what he was doing, he simply smiled and patted her on top of the head and whispered ‘keep an eye on the witches’. The girl blinked twice not knowing what else to do as River slowly backed away. She turned on her heels, fixing her eyes on the head witch. Her stomach dropped. She knew she was going to get in trouble, she knew the witches would put her in the dungeon, but she didn’t care. She just watched and waited for River’s cue.”

“What happened next?” Tracy asked half in a daze. The other half of her mind was engrossed in the story, wildly daydreaming about her fair prince. I felt a smile crackling against my lips as I leaned in to whisper the rest of the tale into her ear.