Writing Prompt
Writings
Writings
STORY STARTER
Submitted by A.Brosien
A princess has been waiting in her tower for her Prince Charming to save her. But after 30 years, enough is enough, and she decides she's going to save herself.
Continue the story... (you could take this prompt more metaphorically, and write in any genre that fits the theme!)
Writings
“I’ll come save you soon, Mary!” Are the exact words repeatedly written on the letters I recieve for my birthday each year. Today I turn 30, and I’m tired. Truly, ‘Prince charming’ was supposed to save me years ago, but every letter he sends makes him seem like more of a prevaricator.
I glanced out the window of this small, unimportant tower that’s not exactly fit for a princess. My entire life I’ve been told stories of dangerous dragons and creatures lurking below, but I have never seen anything of the sort. I’m starting to doubt these stories.
My Flynn Rider has never come, and I doubt he ever will. I mean whats really stopping me from escaping this tower myself? I leaned out the window, peering down below at the boring cobblestone floor which is a home for weeds, vines, and who knows what else.
I decided to lean out further trying to spot a vine or rope of some sorts near the window that I could climb down, and I found just that. I smirked. “Who knew I was so lucky?” Before climbing down, I purposefully smashed an antique pot on the floor. Grabbing one of the shards, I hacked away at my long dress. Eventually I was left with a shorter version of that dress, giving myself more freedom to move.
I slid out out the window and clung to the vine, it was more slippery than I expected. I slowly climbed my way down, occasionally yelping when my hand came into contact with a thorn. I really hoped they weren’t poisonous. The climb felt like it was going on forever, and I was getting tired. Eventually I reached the end.
I hopped off the vine, shaking out my legs and arms. It felt nice to be somewhere new, outside of that old tower. It was a nice few seconds of freedom, but something felt strange. I looked down at my hands, they now had purple spots where the thorns hit. This couldn’t be good.
I felt my heart sink. Maybe I wasn’t as lucky as I had thought. I looked behind me, and my eyes widened as I was met with the faces of hundreds of guards in armour. They weren’t going to let me leave, I knew that.
I couldn’t move, literally. It was like I had been frozen. The last thing I could see through my increasingly blurring vision was the guards approaching me, and a sword coming straight for my head.
Oh. That escape plan didn’t go so well.
As Brenna sits and looks out the tower’s tall window she sighs about to fall asleep. She looks left and right, it’s been thirty years and there is no prince to be seen. Mother has gone out picking berries for dinner again, the same thing every day, berries and jam with toast. You’d think it was a nice meal for Brenna but she’s been eating it everyday, and if she refuses, she gets a beating. It was nice at first, but now it’s just repetitive. As she sits there looking out the window, she notices Mother has not come back yet, at her usual time. Time is hard to tell though with no clocks or anything but once the sun starts setting, that’s when she knows Mother comes back soon. But this time Mother does not return. Brenna waits and waits and waits but she never comes. She looks out the window one last time and decides this is the end of her Mothers’ reign. It is time she escapes.
—— —— ——
Brenna looks back out the window and the sun is setting against the green hills and white mountains. She takes a knife and cuts her long dress till it’s short and sews a pair of pants. She puts these on and slides on her Mothers’ slippers. She digs around in the closets and finds a rope that she attaches to the window. She makes sure it’s tight and secure before tossing on a sack with an unlit candle, matches, and some bandage cloth. She puts on her secret handmade cape, for this moment she was planning on escaping, and slides down the rope, touching the cold grass. She runs through the hills and tall spruce trees not caring where she end up, but knowing she has done it, she has once and for all, escaped.
Me and Ivy went to the park when we got there me and her Play for hours we played tennis basketball and we went on the swings and slide in the jungle gym. Then after we went to see the duck there was this duck we named the The duck Zuma, then we played with Zama for about 20 thirtyish minutes then Ivy and my mom called us. Ivy had to go home sadly, but I got to play for 10 more minutes then I had to go home to eat dinner with my mom and dad and my brother Zack and my two sisters rose and Michelle and my dog Lily we ate a lot of food then we went to bed the end
I wake up to the flutter of hits against the tall arching window from across my bedroom. My eyes stained of a good nights sleep so I make the effort to open my eyes and look at what is banging at my pretty window.
I groggily place my feet out from my bed and let it feel the sun soaked carpet on the floor. Today is a very bright day which means high hopes for me. It would just be perfect if today was the day I got to feel the bright raw sun against my body. Today will be the day he saves me.
I groan as that noise just doesn’t want to stop. Letting my feet slide across the room, I see a flash of wings in the painful illuminating light. Too bright for me to see right away so I cautiously walk over with my long fingers covering my eyes, I see… a bird?
Not just any kind of bird. But a bird who wants something. That bird wants to invade my delicate room. But why? The bird is very pretty too in fact. With baby blue wings and a soft fluffy pink underside. It looks just like a bird from a fairy tale. Then I see its long slender beak.
I look behind my floralfull room. Inhaling the many diverse flowers overflowing the space. I let out a huff. Of course, that bird wants a drink from that very golden flower hanging above my bed frame. I shouldn’t be so surprised since I’ve encountered this many times before, but before the birds wouldn’t be so… desperate.
Then it hits me. This bird and I are quite alike, pretty and desperate for something we cannot have. I feel a wave of sympathy for this bird. So I gently let my hand open the gate for this fluffy ball of feathers to fly in not so gently to that very flower.
Seeing it sip that flower takes my lips to a slight curve, I wonder how it tastes? Maybe sweet, or sour, I won’t ever know unless I try it. The bird finishes its meal quite at a pace and returns to the window I’ve just let it inside from. Fluttering down on the windowsill it sings me a happy song, as if thanking me.
It is still there looking at me with eyes full of life. Finally lifting off. It flies out a few feet ahead then stops for a few seconds to look back at me. As if daugnting me to come with it. Like letting me out my window. Oh how badly I would like too. Pretty bird flies ahead as if knowing I’m coming too.
I’m sick of this curse I’m living. I cannot wait any longer in this tower, waiting waiting for a man to save me. I’ll never know what it’s like out there unless I try to know. This day will be in fact different. I am leaving this tower for good and I will be the one to save myself. I don’t know what will happen to me once I step foot out that window, but I’m already excited to find out.
Pretty bird im coming with you, but it’s already gone ahead.
It’s been said that a princess stuck, trapped, and forever doomed to waste away in the recesses of a castle is supposed to be saved by a Prince Charming. A prince strong and bold in nature, a hero charismatic and alluring. The one who would hastily gallop straight into the heart of danger and save me from this unsightly and retched place. I’ve been told that story for years, or at least that’s what the inscription that follows the mural painted on my ceiling says. Every night, I lie awake, staring at the grand depiction; dreaming, hoping, vigorously wishing that I would awake the next morning found by this angelic hero. But alas, on this day next week, I shall be approaching my 30th birthday, and this great Prince Charming has been nowhere in sight. I think it’s time to make a change. I think it’s time I save myself. I’ve spent the better part of my young adult life and childhood surrounded by these ashen grey stones. I’ve never seen the world; I’ve never truly experienced life. Enough is enough! It is time to take my life into my own hands! And it starts with getting out of here!
The dawn cracked through the the window beckoning me to wake into my thirtieth year. The golden sunlight edged across the vacant pillow beside me. It expanded, coming towards me, whispering light. Reminding me, that yet I grew an entire year older, I was a person frozen in time.
I had been waiting for this day. I had been clever and cunning and today was the day I was going to expand. I was going to burst out of the stone castle walls and evolve on the other side. I rolled out of bed, certain and determined. Walking to the window, I surveys the landscape moving my eyes along the path I had planned to take.
The tower was about 25 feet from the ground. Looking out the west window I had a picturesque view of rolling green hills, patches of wildflowers and a backdrop of the mountains. Scattered along the mountains vertical landscape was the settlement of The Green Dragon Tribe. Their thatched roofed houses stood out against the moutains green dense trees.
To the East, I could see more lush green landscape cut with a wide river. The river had been a constant participant in the symphony of the landscape. It became the base, keeping the tempo and inviting the woodland creatures to join with their melody. Across the river, was a forest. The forest was thick and overpowering. Focusing my gaze beyond was the tower metropolis of Libertas. That is where I was headed.
I had been bred to wait for the Prince of Libertas to save me from my isolated existence. Banashed by a Queen that feared my birthright. Today, was the day that the Queen had no choice but to accept her, and although she kept the Prince, she would not keep the throne.
A heavy sigh. Iris was so tired of wiping the pan in her hands, it shined like literal gold at this point! She frowned at her reflexion. Her makeup was on point, anyone would fall for a charming face like hers. That was her only consolation, for she had yet to meet her dear prince charming.
Would he have brown hair? Fluffy? Or maybe black hair? She was open to blondes too! Not that her standards were ghastly low— of course not! She was a princess, and while she completely supported the independance of women, believing they didn’t NEED men, damn she still wanted one.
And so sucked into her fantasies, a dreamy sigh leaving her perfect lips as she imagined a handsome prince in a pristine white suit, she paused.
Swiftly yanking the pan up once more, almost hitting her perfect nose in the process, Iris gasped. Her dark complexion, the thick curls on her head, her sharp brows and lushious lashes— she looked better than any man!
… Her smooth skin would look utterly dashing against the contrast of a pristine white suit. From years upon years of cleaning, her arms had to be toned, right? She flexed, staring intently at her reflextion in the pan. Okay maybe that was a bit of a stretch, but hey, there was movement!
Launching herself to her feet and setting off into a sprint to the bathroom, she resolved to herself— Iris was about to be a changed woman! Men were weak, worthless, incompetent, and incapable of simply locating a lost princess! Idiots!
And who wasn’t an idiot? Iris! How come she’d bever thought of it before?! She locked herself in the bathroom, pausing to stare in the actual mirror, pan be damned. “Who is that handsome devil?” she muttered, eyeing her reflection and pulling at the collar of her dress. With a slight smirk at her little joke, she wasted no time in ripping off the showers curtains. Poor quality things, really.
You know what? Never mind. The shower curtains were thick, forged through hardship, managing to survive through thick and thin with their immense strength! With a gusty grunt, a short heave of breath, she was able to remove them, her muscles flexing as she clicked her tongue under her breath, a low and husky sound. (Shrieked when the thin fabric slipped off the rings attaching them to the pole.)
Shoving the window open, Iris’ dark eyes set with determination, a fire of newfound confidence aflame, she inhaled sharply. Oh, the grass outside… She wrinkled her nose, holding back what she was sure was a manly war cry building up in her chest. (A sneeze.)
Silently cursing her allergies and narrowly holding back the urge to verbalize her hatred of men, she tossed the curtain outside, her body swooping to follow right after it. A makeshift parachute.
And if it wasn’t working very well, no one was there to lay witness! “Oomph!” she puffed, wiping off her dress. She’d forgotten her heels, and so she swiftly ducked back into the front door, because that aas absolutely still an option. Even if the kidnapper was not home. And quite the dunce. Why had she even stayed for so many years, again?
Oh, yes. It was a great chance to meet the love of her life—- at home in the castle, not a single eventful moment occured! And no charming prince who’d tel her she was lovely every moment of the day! Criminal, it was.
Stealing the boots of a burly man, chunky on her feet, she scoffed. Hell no, but she wasn’t about to run barefoot in the forest! The pain of the rocks might’ve actually killed her.
And then she ran. Ran until her legs ached and her chest heaved with every loud breath. Spotting a merchant, Iris contemplated her choices. One, ask the merchant for a ride to the village, hope he wss friendly. Two, avoid at all costs, as he could be a murderer.
“Lady Luck, please, from one lovely lady to another, make this man not be a creep.” The princess muttered under her breath, stepping forward.
And how did it go?
She hitched the ride. The old man was reaching his eighties— surely, a kind and warm old man, who leveled her a soft smile and nodded at her requezt for a ride.
And as she was getting off at the very front of the village, he raised a gray brow. “My payment?” he snickered, his narrowed eyes devoid of the innocent elderly warmth from before. No, instead they were masked with suggestive filth. She was right— men sucked! She was better than any of them.. Iris reacted like any other reasonable princess.
“Oh, HELL NO!” she screamed, ripping off one of her far too large boots and beating the bald man’s head in, once he’d stepped too close. “I’m also broke!” she shrieked, decking him in the face with the leathered heel. She then kicked off the other boot, sprinting out to the capital in a sprint.
“MOTHERR I’M BACK!!” The princess screamed, her arms flying back and forth in furious chops.
Wrote this completely unedited like, on the spot, totally gave up, a little lazy. 😭😭🙏🙏
Once open a time there was a princess and she had a really mean mom\witch and she trapped princess penelepe in the tower for the rest of her life. She was so scared but after 30 years she finally thought enough is enough. So she dicided to save herself so she climbed out and the princess was so scared bc she was hurt on the inside and outside. She hadn’t seen the outside for ages she was so happy,scared,sad she did not know how to feel. It was so scary but then she heard a noise coming from the forest she thought it was an animal but no it was a human how does she know you might ask? Well when she was standing there in fear she heared another sound\voice it was like a loud explosion but it was like someone screaming at the same time.she was scared but then she said to herself she got this and no one can stop her. So she went into the woods and she started to look and look and look but she didn’t see anything but then she saw a small white object and she started looking at the white object and she said it was like a note of some sort so she went up to it and picked it up and read it it said that the sound you heard was a magical sound only u can hear it. She thought for a second and said that the whole thing was just crazy and so she went to the palace and told the king and queen every thing so then they said that the princess could be there adopted daughter and the gaurds would look for the mean mean witch.
THE END
Princess Aura was in the midst of her daily cleaning ritual and checking off tasks completed on her honey to do list she made and completed for 30 years. She was in a darkness feeling hopeless and feeling not wanted for the internal beauty she possessed that was rarely recognized or she felt valued by others but only wanted for the outside beauty.
On this paricular day Princess Aura was overwhelmed with a warmth that surrounded. Suddenly there was a bang behind her and she felt a weight lifted off her battered soul. Time stood still and all noise ceased to exist. There came a gentle loving voice she found familiar that said “It’s Time.””It’s time for better day’s to fulfill your dreams and attract the Unconditional Love you always deserved. You have been the strong one for far too long lay all that baggage at his feet. Free yourself of the bondage you placed so perfectly on each energy center because of years of self-doubt, fear of failure, resentment, shame and guilt. Forgive yourself and others and let go completely. Believe in surrender, faith and release control. The energy you give so freely and naturally away to others do that for yourself. Pour that unstoppable force you have into your cup. Change your thoughts change your life. The Magic will effortlessly happen. From that day on she focused on her journey of searching for freedom. Opening each unhealed wound one by one, cleaning it at the root, and allowing the time for proper healing.
She delved into many self help books, podcasts, watching endless hours of spiritual Gurus, Masters and Stoics. PhD’s who specialized in ptsd, grief, anger and emotional suppression. The Beautiful Princess Auras next series will address all her work she put into her healing journey. The Princess recently had four triggers in one day and her shadow could not be contained. This time she worked through all her emotions and feelings for a few days. Aura had a profound breakthrough that led to the Princess finding Unconditional Love within and falling in love with herself. Princess Aura was ready to respond to that voice she heard 3 1/2 years ago which was her lower, higher and present conciousness that spoke to her. That was guided by her higher power and spiritual team. A force of coming together to finally break through to her layers of armor and walls built around her precious heart. She spoke to the unseen presence she felt and heard that fateful day “ She found the love she was waiting and searching in others for her whole life was inside of her all along to rescue herself. She realized she was both Hero and Villain in her search for her Fairytale Love Story. Her intitial anger, sadness, resentment and disappointments she deflected on friends, family and lovers she realized it was how she felt towards herself for accepting the bare minimum. It was better than nothing. Always giving more of her energy to see them smile and happy. Princess Aura truly gave without intention and If she could help to make anyone’s life easier Aura’s heart smiled. It would deplete her energy and when not returned even the slightest made her question her self worth and felt if she was of importance they would make the effort. If they truly wanted to they would. It was publicaly displayed time with other’s. She repeated to herself that became her daily Mantra, “My shadow is now fully loved and will no longer be neglected. I will now love without condidtiions first to myself next to others and have discernment for true reciprocation of the level I give.” The Princess shouted to the Village. “Here comes my shine without the armor ready or not. The Union of two souls that find each other through Divine Timing when both are ready. Intertwined Redmancy love that will feel like home. ❤️
For thirty years, Princess Elysia sat in her tower, gazing out the lone window that framed the entire world. The kingdom stretched far beyond the horizon, a place she had only seen in storybooks and through the fragmented tales whispered by the birds that perched on her windowsill. They told her of kingdoms rising and falling, of people who fought for their lives and freedom. She envied them, but she also listened. Slowly, she pieced together a world that had forgotten her.
She hadn’t always been confined. She had been a child once, a princess with a future. But that had ended the day her mothers trembling hands had placed her in the tower. “It’s for your safety,” her mother had whispered, tears staining her cheeks. “The king… the court… they fear what you might become.”
Elysia hadn’t understood then. She was only eight. But years of isolation sharpened her mind, and the truth became clear: she wasn’t locked away for her safety. She was locked away because of her power—a spark of magic that ran through her bloodline, one the court feared might grow too strong. Her childhood dreams of rescue had withered, replaced by a bitter understanding that no one was coming for her.
One evening, as she gazed outside the window, the weight of it all became too much. The endless waiting, the stolen years, the emptiness—it had to end. Her gaze fell to her hands, roughened from years of grasping stone, from experimenting with spells from her mother’s old book she had snuck with her. She clenched them into fists.
As the sun dipped below the horizon, painting the tower walls in hues of orange and pink, Elysia sat on the cold stone floor, her back against the heavy oak door. Her fingers traced the grooves in the stone as she stared at the window, her mind a storm of memories and thoughts.
For decades, she had dreamed of a knight in shining armor bursting through that very door, his sword gleaming, his hand outstretched to take her to freedom. But those dreams had faded into nothingness, replaced by the bitter sting of reality. No one was coming. No one had ever even tried.
Her hands clenched into fists against the stone. The quiet fury that had smoldered within her for years flared to life. “I’m no damsel,” she whispered, her voice barely audible in the stillness of the room. She pushed herself to her feet, the words reverberating in her chest. The weight of them was grounding, empowering. As the last light of the sun disappeared, leaving the room bathed in shadow, she turned her gaze to the door.
No one was coming to save her. But she could save herself.
The lock on her chamber door was old and rusted. Elysia crouched before it, holding a stolen hairpin between her fingers. She had spent years studying this lock, it’s mechanisms as familiar to her as the lines of her palm. This was her chance.
The hairpin wobbled in her hands as she slid it into the keyhole. She took a steady breath, her heart pounding in her ears. Each twist, each scrap of metal against metal, sent a jolt through her body. Her mind raced with doubts—what if it didn’t work? What if the guards caught her? What if this was all for nothing?
But then she remembered the birds’ tales of a world outside these walls, a world she had never seen but longed for with every fiber of her being. She couldn’t stop now.
The final tumbler clicked into place. The lock gave a small, reluctant snap, and Elysia froze. She stared at the door for a moment, disbelief washing over her. Slowly, she pushed it open.
The hinges creaked loudly, and her heart leapt into her throat. She held her breath, listening intently. The muffled voices of the guards down the corridor didn’t change, their low, bored chatter continuing uninterrupted. She exhaled slowly and slipped into the hallway.
The air in the corridor was heavy and damp, the flickering torchlight casting distorted shadows against stone walls. She moved quietly, her bare feet making almost no sound on the cold floor. Each step brought her closer to freedom, but the tension coiled tighter in her chest.
As she approached the spiral staircase, she paused. The guards were just around the corner. Their voices drifted toward her, fragments of idle conversation mixing with the clink of their armor. Elysia pressed herself against the wall, her fingers brushing against the dagger she had taken from her father’s old study years ago.
She waited, her breathing shallow, until their voices grew quieter. Timing her movements carefully, she slipped past the staircase and into the shadows. Her heart pounded, every instinct screaming at her to run, but she forced herself to stay calm.
The staircase spiraled down into darkness, the air growing colder with each step. The faint smell of earth and iron filled her nose as she reached the bottom. There, looming before her, was the gate.
The iron gate was massive, its surface etched with glowing runes that pulsed with faint blue light. Elysia stopped, staring at it in both awe and frustration. This was the final barrier, the last obstacle between her and freedom.
She crouched low, her hands trembling as she touched the embroidered vines on her gown. Her mother’s magic had been stitched into the fabric, woven into symbols she had spent years deciphering. Slowly, she traced the sigils in the air, her fingers glowing faintly as she channeled her magic.
The runes on the gate flared brighter, resisting her spell with a surge of heat and light. Sweat beaded on her forehead, and her chest ached from the effort, but she didn’t stop. She poured everything she had into the spell, her determination burning brighter than the magic itself.
Finally, the runes shattered, their fragments scattering like shards of glass. The gate groaned, its hinges straining as it swung open. Elysia stumbled forward, the cool night air rushing over her like a wave.
For the first time in thirty years, she stood beneath the open sky.
She didn’t stop to savor her freedom. Not yet. Instead, she turned back to the tower, its dark silhouette stark against the moonlit sky. This wasn’t just about escaping. The people who had imprisoned her—who had stolen decades of her life—needed to answer for what they had done.
Her feet carried her back to the castle, her dagger clutched tightly in her hand. The halls were eerily silent as she made her way to the king and queen’s chambers.
When she pushed the door open, they were there, asleep in their bed. She stepped closer, her voice steady as she spoke. “Did you think I would stay silent forever?”
The king stirred, his eyes widening in shock. “Elysia?”
“I’m no longer your prisoner,” she said, her voice firm. “You will answer for what you’ve done—to me and to this kingdom.”
She didn’t strike. Not yet. But she left them with a promise of reckoning.
As dawn broke, Elysia rode into the horizon. She wasn’t just free—she was determined. The world had forgotten her, but it would soon remember.
She would make sure of it.
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