week 13 story: The Young Prince's Protector

             I could hear my master calling me. It was a few moments before the sun crawled over the horizon and everything was still. He called my name again but for some reason, I couldn't drag myself away from his child. I felt bad obeying my master and going on his hunt with him. But he had plenty of other greyhounds, I'm sure he did just fine without me. I wanted to stay home and spend time with the child. 

            I put the infant on my back, he had learned to hold on to me like I was his little pony. The child and I had just made it the courtyard when I heard a rustling from behind one of the rose bushes. I ignored it and turned my attention back to my small human companion. The little guy was just learning how to stand so he would grab onto my ears as leverage and pull his body up. He tumbled over backwards and I rushed to comfort him because I hated when he cried. In the middle of my famous belly snuggles, I heard the strange rustling again. This time I slowly crept towards the bush, careful not to make a sound, and made sure to keep the young prince behind me. Just when I was about to bounce on the bush, a maid dropped the wash bucket which made a loud commotion. This distracted me for a few seconds and when I turned my attention back to the infant, I saw a large grey wolf charging at him. I quickly made it to the boy, threw him on my back, and took off to his nursery. The wolf was faster but thankfully, I was the fastest hunting dog the prince had ever seen. 

            We made it to the nursery and I had just put the boy in his crib for safekeeping when the wolf bursted through the door. He snarled, bared his teeth, and pressed into his haunches ready to bounce. Even though he was untrained and clunky, he was still a vicious attacker and I had to use the best of my training to protect myself. After 20 minutes of growling, snapping, and wrestling, I finally defeated the invader. I dragged the body of the wolf to a closet, so hopefully the boy wouldn't see it. I didn't want to scare him anymore than he already was so I picked him up and out of his crib. He was terrified and clung to my neck. Just then, I heard the horns announcing the return of my master. 

            When I heard the horns, I took off so I could meet him at the front gates. I wanted to take him to the nursery myself so he could see that my time at the castle wasn't wasted. I went running up to hi but stopped but I saw the concern and horror on his face. I must've had something stuck in my fur so I crouched down at his feet so he knew I meant no harm. I barked at him and pointed towards the nursery, the same technique I used when we hunted. This worried the Prince and he began to make his way towards the nursery. As he got closer, he saw more evidence of a struggle and picked up his pace. By the time we were outside the nursery door, we were both panting. I nudged open the door so my master could see his young son: safe, healthy, alive. In the middle of all the chaos, sat his son on a pile of shredded blankets. My master rushed over to his son and sweeped him up. He took a moment to the examine the room. I once again pointed towards the closet door, where the defeated wolf lay. When my master opened the door, saw the body, and then looked around at the destroyed nursery, he realized what had happened. I protected his young prince from a cruel attacker. 

            Ever since this day, I've had the privilege to be head guard of the young prince. I can chose to hunt whenever I please. My little companion and I still spend many days in the courtyard, except now it's me trying to keep up with him. 

the wolf stalking the young child. 
source: Pikrepo

Author's Note

This story starts with a prince leaving to go hunting but his best hunting dog, Gellert, wouldn't come to him. he eventually gave up, left the castle, had a terrible day of hunting, and returned home angry. When he walked through the gates, Gellert came running up to him. The prince was taken aback when he realized that the mouth of his favorite dog was covered in blood. The prince had a terrible feeling that Gellert may have hurt his young child while they were playing. He took off to the nursery and as he got closer, he found more blood and more chaos surrounding the nursery. When the prince entered the nursery he found the child's crib flipped over and covered in blood. In a panic he tore through the room but couldn't find his young son. Angry and upset, the prince knew it had to of been his most loyal dog who destroyed his son. He plunged a sword into the dog's side and Gellert let out a yelp. At the same time, the prince hears an infant cry coming from beneath the cradle. There was his infant son, perfectly healthy, sitting next to a body of a defeated wolf. 

I wanted to tell this story from the dog's POV because I wanted to write about the fight between the dog and the wolf. I wanted to focus on the relationship that Gellert had made with the infant more so than the actual violence of a fight. I also changed the ending where Gellert dies because that just makes me sad. Instead I decided that the prince understands what happens right in time and doesn't end up hurting his favorite dog. 

Bibliography: Beth  Gellert Celtic Fairy Tales by Joseph Jacobs with illustrations by John D. Batten (1892).