Deprecated: Class Jetpack_Geo_Location is deprecated since version 14.3 with no alternative available. in /home/saaleha/public_html/wp-includes/functions.php on line 6085
A fairytale for Aaminah – Poems, Pictures & Prose by Saaleha Idrees Bamjee

A fairytale for Aaminah

Once upon a time, in a land far, far away, there lived a handsome prince in a big castle by the sea.
When this prince was a little boy, he was cursed by an evil wizard who was jealous of the little child and all the wealth he would inherit.
Because of this curse, the handsome prince lost his voice and could only speak for a minute every day at midnight.
One day, a brave and beautiful princess rode by the castle on her magnificent white stallion.
She had just come back from battling a fearsome dragon who threatened the villagers in a nearby hamlet.
The princess was thirsty and just a little peckish, as dragon-slaying did have the reputation of building up quite an appetite.
She stopped her stallion at the little stream that ran pass the castle.
She and her steed were enjoying the refreshing waters when the stallion suddenly whinnied and looked towards one of the castle’s turrets.
It was then that the princess heard the most beautiful singing.
The voice was strong and rich, and reached the very heights of the heavens.
It was like something straight out of American Idol.
The princess said, “I don’t often say this, but this is easily the best performance I’ve ever heard. This guy definitely has the x-factor.”
She got on to her trusty stallion and dashed off for the castle gates.
The walls were fairly easy to climb and within two winks the princess had scurried up to the tallest turret.
She found herself in a dim and dusty room with only the glow from a fireplace as illumination.
“You’ve got some really bad feng shui going on in here. I’ll give you the number for my guy, he’s really good,” the princess said.
The figure in the corner stared at her in amazement and coughed.
The prince had never seen anything as beautiful as her.
But how would he tell her? His minute was up.
The princess gave the prince a quick once-over. “Not a bad looking chap,” she thought. “With a shave, a new haircut and some styling, he’ll be fit for royalty.”
She nodded at him and said, “You’re a quiet fella aren’t you? I like that. I will marry you.”
The prince reached for his notebook and pen and quickly scribbled, “Er…ok. But what about this curse?”
“Curse, shmurse,” she said. “This is a blessing. A husband who doesn’t nag? What more could I want?”
And with that she slung him over her shoulder and jumped out of the window to land squarely on her waiting steed.
She lived happily ever after.

Published by

saaleha

I am a writer and photographer (look up my work on www.shootcake.com) based in Johannesburg, South Africa. I have an MA in Creative Writing from the university currently known as Rhodes. My writing accolades include winning the 2014 Writivism Short Story Prize and the 2020 Ingrid Jonker Poetry Prize for my debut collection, Zikr.

7 thoughts on “A fairytale for Aaminah”

  1. Best fairytale yet!
    🙂
    I do like the role reversal here.
    Perhaps you’re on to something? 🙂
    Future generations of female’s don’t have to be the distressed maiden after all 🙂

Leave a Reply