Metal Band One-Shots

Sleeping Beauty (Elommy)

 Tommy had been riding through the forest for the last hour and had found nothing. He'd heard plenty of old stories about a castle that used to be here, a grand one filled with life and laughter. There had supposedly been a curse that caused the place to fall into ruins and disappear, but it was also supposedly still out there somewhere, waiting for the curse to be broken.

 So far, Tommy was rather skeptical of this, as he had found absolutely nothing. He didn't know why he had gone looking, anyway. Did he really think he would find some cursed castle hidden deep in the woods?

 Soon he came to what looked like a towering wall of thorny bushes. Curious as to what was on the other side, he cut through the bushes with his sword, carving a path to the other side. He stopped and stared at what he saw.

 It was true. There was a castle, only time and neglect had never gotten to it, as the stories told. This place was in perfect condition, as if no time had passed.

 Tommy walked through the courtyard and into the open front doors of the castle. Everywhere he looked, every room he walked into, there were people. They weren't dead, but sleeping. It was a deep enough sleep that whenever Tommy tried to rouse them, they still slept on.

 He kept on exploring until he found a room near the top of the castle. He opened the door to see a young woman lying asleep on the bed. He stepped closer, and saw she had a pretty face. When he touched her hand, it was warm. How long had she been sleeping for?

 "C-can you hear me?" he asked.

 No reply. Of course there wouldn't be, he thought. She was in a deep sleep.

 He had seen many other sleeping people in this place so far, but something about this woman fascinated him the most. Judging by her clothing and the décor of the room, she had been someone important.

 "I wonder who you were," he said aloud.

 It took him a while to bring himself to look away from her, but eventually he rode home.

 However, he returned the very next day, and went straight up to that room. She was still there, in the exact same place.

 "Hello," he said a little timidly. "I don't know who you are, or if you can hear me. My name is Tommy. I'm not going to hurt you. I was just...curious about you. I can't help wondering how this happened to you. I'm sorry it did, though. I would have liked to talk to you." He touched her hand. "Perhaps you need some company. I might be able to find a way to fix it for you."

~~~~~~

 For weeks after that, Tommy went back there as many times as he could, nearly every day. He wouldn't go every single day, and he would leave at various times so no one would suspect anything of him.

 He didn't tell a soul about what he had found. Why he chose not to, he wasn't sure. Every time he thought about telling someone, he just didn't. He kept his mouth shut and continued to sneak away.

 As for the sleeping woman, he wasn't sure to think when it came to her. He would go up to her room, sit down next to her, and simply talk to her. She never stirred, and never talked back to him, but he had the feeling that somehow she could hear him. There was something about her that kept bringing him back to that same place. If it were a different time, perhaps they would have been friends. That was what kept drawing him back here, he thought, that she must have been the sort of person he would want to be friends with.

 On one of his visiting days, Tommy said to her, "This must be strange, me coming to talk to you all the time. I would think it's been a long time since anyone last spoke to you. I don't even know your name, or what you're like, but...I like you. Whoever you are." He leaned over and gave her a kiss on the cheek. "I hope you don't mind. If you do, I'm sorry."

 The woman opened her eyes, looked at him, and said, "I don't mind at all."

 Tommy was so startled he fell off of the bed. "What-how-you're awake!"

 "Of course I am," she said. "Haven't you heard stories about curses being broken by kisses of love? I listened to you, you know. Everything was so quiet for such a long time. And then you came, and I listened to every word. I only wished I could talk back to you. You've grown fond of me, despite knowing nothing about me. Your kiss was one of genuine affection."

 "Oh." Tommy got back up on his feet. "Well, now that you're awake, can you tell who exactly you are?"

 She smiled. "It's Elize. Princess Elize. Everyone else should be waking up soon. Come with me, and we'll put some life back into this place."