So Many What-Ifs

The castle walls stood wide and tall
“To protect”, they said, “should villains call”
The princess in its highest keep
“To protect”, they said, “our moats run deep”

The princess grew up all alone
Her father fighting for his throne
Her mother long gone, lost at sea
The guards her only company

She longed to see the town below
Where she was not allowed to go
Her only window placed so high
That all that she could see was sky

The castle guards stood at her door
“To protect”, they said, “an oath we swore”
Its lock was made from sturdy steel
“To protect”, they said, “from those who’d steal”

The friendly guards would tell her tales
Of fights where righteous knights prevailed
But most just glared and held their tongue
The nice ones never lasted long

In search of ways to pass the time
She’d stack some furniture to climb
She’d reach her window, up the wall
To watch the town, she’d risk a fall

The castle’s moats stretched wide and long
“To protect”, they said, “from forces strong”
The water filled with dang’rous beasts
“To protect”, they said, “from being seized”

She had a tutor, old and frail
Whose lessons she would oft derail
Whenever they’d have class outside
She’d drift towards the waterside

He’d call her back, voice laced with fear
His words undoubtedly sincere
The water’s whispers just too sweet
Its vows of friendship hard to beat

The castle’s dungeons large and cold
“To protect”, they said, “each foe we’ll hold”
Its bars and chains a frightful sight
“To protect”, they said, “from witch and wight”

Her nights would oft be plagued by dreams
Of clanging chains and tortured screams
With each new fright the need would grow
To know just what went on below

She’d asked the guards but they’d stayed mum
Her tutor lied, tried to play dumb
For while she’d seen him climb those stairs
He claimed he’d not set foot down there

The castle guards were fully armed
“To protect”, they said, “from being harmed”
Their weapons sharp, their shields unmarred
“To protect”, they said, “our gates are barred”

She’d watch the guards as they would march
Around the grounds, prepared to charge
At enemies she could not see
Who surely would be forced to flee

Their knights forever off to war
On orders from their king afar
His daughter wondered where they’d gone
What battles they had lost or won

The castle’s drawbridge drawn up high
“To protect”, they said, “to swim’s to die”
For five young men, the bridge came down
“To protect”, they said, “our throne and crown”

The princess sensed the tension, when
Intentions never mentioned meant
Each man would visit with the king
In formal wear, and bearing rings

A seamstress made her three new gowns
Embroidered each with golden crowns
Her tutor came to say goodbye
She cried for what that signified

The castle granted with her hand
“To protect”, they said, “our wealth and land”
Their vows exchanged, their match a fact
“To protect”, they said, “we need this pact”

The princess knew she should have fled
Each day spent wed brought more regrets
His eyes betrayed unspoken needs
Revealed a heart that beat with greed

The only upside to this turn
The smidge of freedom she had earned
A bigger room, no guards outside
She went for walks - at least, she tried

The water stirred when she was near
“To protect”, it whispered in her ear
Its shadows rose up from the deep
“To serve”, they whispered, “souls we’d reap”

Intrigued, she ventured closer still
Convinced they bore her no ill will
She stared until, to her surprise,
The depths gazed back with yellow eyes

She noticed something probe her mind
Its presence strange, yet not unkind
She thought of questions, things unsaid
Of all the times she’d been mislead

The shadows told her all they’d learned
“To protect”, they said, “this throne unearned”
“He lied to hide affairs depraved”
“To serve”, they growled, “we’ve been enslaved”

A plan began to crystallise
But she’d need space from prying eyes
The shadows vowed to help her out
To buy her time to plot and scout

Her husband grabbed her by the arm
“Your wandering will cause us harm!”
His voice was curt but she inferred
He had not overheard a word

The shadows roared, the water soared
“To protect”, they pledged, while she explored
When she was done, the water waned
“To serve… deranged”, the guards complained

Her husband first, an easy mark
His arms her prison, after dark
She poured him drinks to take control
Cajoled until he’d take a stroll

She lured him to the waterside
Intoxicated, he complied
He hit the water with a splash
His thrashing over in a flash

The shadows cheered through swirls of red
“To protect”, they said, “we’d kill each threat”
Their savage ways left her unfazed
To live, she had no time to waste

Her father was a cautious man
Requiring a different plan
Obsessed with foes who never showed
She’d bring the danger he was owed

To draw the king out to the grounds
The water pushed beyond its bounds
It rose up to the castle’s walls
About to spill into its halls

The shadows surfaced with the surge
“To protect”, they’d vowed, “we will emerge”
She’d never seen the guards this scared
“To serve!” They scattered, unprepared

She saw familiar yellow eyes
In bodies twice a human’s size
Inside and safe, the king yelled “Slay!”
At guards soaked through, in disarray

They disobeyed, recoiled, and howled
Took cover as the creatures growled
“Protect!” They yelled, and meant themselves
Her plan on track as bells chimed twelve

The dungeon’s entrance void of light
To protect, she wondered, or to hide?
No guards around, she walked right in
To live, she found the strength within

On slickened stairs, besieged by air
So stale it filled her with despair
Her right hand tightened round a key
She flexed the left one nervously

While passing rows of empty cells
The unease deep inside her swelled
What happened to their enemies?
To all those creatures that they’d seized?

The dungeon’s silence seized her heart
“To protect”, she whispered, breathing hard
Just then she thought she heard a noise
“To live…” A hiss, a broken voice

Ahead, a tiny ray of light
Revealed which cell was occupied
She swallowed hard, but kept her pace
Afraid to think of what she’d face

Her footsteps slowed, her heart it raced
Behind those iron bars, disgraced
A dame who once knew great acclaim
Sat underneath a dwindling flame

The dungeon seemed to shrink in size
‘To protect’, they’d said and meant their lies
The woman drew a rasping breath
To live at all she taunted death

The key she held with trembling hands
(A prize she’d swiped when waves hit land)
Was tough to turn with fingers slick
But in the end she heard a click

She stopped herself from rushing in
Was this the place she’d always been?
She gazed into her mother’s eyes
And wondered what she’d sacrificed

The dungeon held no captured knights
To “protect” they’d lied, had flaunted rights
The rightful queen they’d had detained
To protect their reign, they’d kept her chained

The princess probed the chains turned brown
And slammed the hefty key straight down
On links grown weak from built-up rust
Until the metal turned to dust

Beside the broken bonds she kneeled
She felt so overwhelmed she reeled
Her mother’s hands then found her own
Repaired the bond they’d hardly known

The dungeon’s entrance far away
‘To protect…’ those words she’d heard each day
Now stirred up rage, a war she’d wage
To save her mother from this cage

Her mother’s eyes, so like her own
Had dulled from all those years alone
Yet at her touch they seemed revived
The fighter in her still alive

But muscles atrophied, grown weak
Could not support her frail physique
The princess gathered all her strength
And carried her the dungeon’s length

The castle grounds a battlefield
“To protect”, they’d said, yet had to yield
Defeated guards bowed heads and bled
“To protect”, they’d said, yet most had fled

And in the centre of that scene
The king was held up in between
Three creatures, green, with scaly limbs
Their grins foretold a fate quite grim

Her nearest allies rushed to aid
And caught her mother as she swayed
“Our queen!”, they murmured, reverent
Their care for her was evident

The waters still, the king dethroned
“To protect…”, her father gasped and groaned
The princess met his pleading eyes
“To live”, he moaned, “I’d pay each price!”

“You would?”, she mused, as she drew near
“We do have cells to spare, I hear…”
His face betrayed a trace of hope
With ease he’d cope with threats this scope

The princess smiled, her mind unchanged
“I guess some chains could be arranged…”
“Yet why waste space, and guards, and bread
On one not missed if he were dead?”

The water rose when called upon
“To protect”, they pledged, “it shall be done!”
The king let out a plaintive wail
“To live-” he begged, to no avail

One final scream, one giant splash
“At last it’s time to start afresh”
Relieved, she watched the water spin
As many allies dove back in

“Much cleaner than a guillotine…”
Surprised, she turned to face the queen
Her mother’s voice was soft, but fierce
They shared a smile, their first in years

***

The castle walls stand wide and tall
To protect and serve, and welcome all
The princess spends her days outside
To live the life she’d been denied

With time to heal, their captors slain
Together queen and princess reign
With no new threats, nor foes to beat
A few new guards are all they need

Their wealth they share, their country thrives
All people free to live their lives
The water’s calm, the realm shines bright
While yellow eyes keep watch at night