Opposites Attract
By Allison Fullen
Grade 7
Presque Isle Middle School
Mr. Blackstone
Once long ago, in a land not so far away, lived a Prince. Nobody knew his real name. Everyone called him Prince H, and that’s it.
Now one day, he decided he needed a girlfriend, for once he was crowned king, in only a few days to come, he felt he should have a wife to be his queen. But he wanted one that he knew well and actually loved with his heart. So, he got into his best suit, shined his shoes all by himself, and bought a brand new crown.
Then he walked himself to the village, where he was going to mingle with some girls. He went to the park, the lake, the café, a school, the forest, and even the barbershop, but he didn’t find any girl who was special. He had met tons of girls who he exchanged numbers with to be friends, but he hadn’t quite found what he was looking for. He knew everybody had flaws, but with the girls he had encountered that day, they all had one thing he couldn’t stand! And that was the fact that all the girls loved him because he was a prince.
He decided that he would just give up and go home, when he heard a soft whimpering somewhere in the distance. It had been late at night, so no one else was around. He followed the sound until he came to a stop in a meadow, at a blossom tree. There, lying against the tree was a dog. The prince thought it was a Husky, for it looked like one, and had all the same characteristics as one that he could think of. Beautiful, intense blue eyes, pointy ears, and different layers of colored fur.
Prince H knelt down to pet it, and when he did, he realized why the dog was whimpering. The dog had a thorn in his paw! He didn’t know how to pull it out, and he felt so bad for the dog that he began to call for help.
“Help, help! Somebody please, summon the animal shelter! Can anybody hear me?”
***
“C’mon Redgie, let’s go outside!” Alela stood by the door of her cottage holding a leash. She was about to take her Husky, Redgie for a walk. The dog came trotting along beside her and she hooked the leash to his collar. “Good boy, if you’re good during this walk, you get a treat when we get back!” She patted his head and was about to head out the door when her mama called to her, “Don’t be gone long Aleshae, we will be having our dinner in an hour or so, and don’t forget to pick up some water in the nearby river.”
Aleshae was Alela’s real name, but she preferred her nickname.
“Ok, we’ll be home soon, and I won’t forget the water like last time,” she said, “Bye Mama, see you tonight!”
And with that, Alela and Redgie set off. They walked through their small village, past the little Indian family who had moved in next door, and over the bridge that led to the Big Village. That’s what her village called it. The village where the king lived, everything was big and overdone; it’s too much for Alela’s family, that’s why they fled to the meadow. Later, other families followed. Now they have a village of their own called “Mayae Lehow.” She never had bothered to ask what it meant, so she wonders about it often.
Redgie started barking, which interrupted Alela’s thoughts. “What is it boy,” she said, “Stop tugging on the leash! Redgie, stop, I can’t hold on much longer, you’re pulling too hard!” Redgie finally broke free from Alela’s grasp and he went running towards the blossom tree orchard. Alela shrieked in horror and tried to run after him, but he was too quick. She stopped running and fell to her knees. How could this of happened? She thought, I thought I held on hard enough!
She said aloud to herself, “Great, Mama is going to freak, and I still haven’t gotten her water for dinner and it’s getting dark. I better head back.”
She started to head towards the river but then turned around to look for Redgie, hoping to see him coming towards her, but instead the Orchard stayed silent. She called out to him before she ran off, “I’ll be back for you, Redgie! I love you!”
***
Prince H was just about to give up calling and head home when he saw a light. It was like a warm, friendly glow, coming from behind the tree. He turned around to see a girl, holding up a lantern. She was wearing a tribal print dress, with a headband and boots, and her arms were covered in bracelets, Prince H also noticed on the inside of her wrist, there was a golden arrow imprinted. Her hair was a sandy brown and in a single braid down her back. Her skin and face were a pale color. Her eyes were blue, but red from crying, the prince guessed, but even with that, she was the most beautiful thing he’d ever seen!
She looked straight into his eyes. He stared back until finally he broke and said, “Hello, I’m Prince H from the neighboring village, and…”
The young girl cut him off, “If you are a prince, then where is your crown?”
She gave him a truly curious look. The prince hadn’t even noticed his head was empty and his suit and freshly shined shoes were stained. She continued, “Never mind, what are you doing here and.” She stopped in the middle of her sentence and looked down at the dog whimpering in the prince’s arms. She set her lantern on the ground and started to cry as she hugged the dog. The Prince stared at her with wonder.
The girl pulled the thorn from the dogs paw. “Redgie,” she said, “I missed you, don’t ever run away again! I was worried sick!”
She looked up at the prince. “Hi, I’m Alela, and before I cut you off, I heard your name is Prince H? I’ll just call you H for now. Prince sounds too…official.”
For once in the prince’s young life, he felt in love. He didn’t love this girl just because of her striking beauty, but because she, out of every girl he had ever met, actually liked him for him. Not because he was a prince, not because he himself, was rather handsome, and not because of his money and good fortune.
“Alela, you have made my heart complete! Would you do me the honors of being my wedded wife, and make me the happiest person in the world?”
Alela began to cry all over again. But instead of crying because of sadness, she was crying because of laughter. “If you think I’m going to marry you just because you found my dog, you’re mistaken. Sorry, but I’m too young to leave my family, and my mom is getting older. I need to be there for her in case something should happen. We can still be friends, anyways thank you for finding my dog, I need to go now, bye!”
With that, Alela set off with Redgie, and left Prince H there under the blossom tree. The Prince was stunned, but not in a bad way, but in a rather curious way. He wondered why the girl, Alela, was so hard to get. He had thought for sure the feeling was mutual but he was wrong. He started to head home with a sense of determination in his heart.
For the next few years, Prince H went back to the village where Alela lived, to try and win her heart. When finally one year, he succeeded. They got married two days later, and lived their lives happily together. They went on adventures, had kids, and eventually passed away. For years after, the story of Alela and Prince H was told. It was proof that it doesn’t matter who you are, or where you come from, everyone deserves to live happily ever after.
Editor’s note: This story is part of the 2015-16 Young Author anthology.
