The Sleeping Beauty

Have you ever heard about the mosquito in The Sleeping Beauty? No! Of course you haven’t, I wasn’t mentioned not once! Never! I was never mentioned, and hell I was the protagonist!
I remember it like it was yesterday, I was young, bursting with energy, always on the lookout for some adventure.
This one particular day I was hovering around a forest and I happened to come across a huge palace. I thought it would be a great dug-out for me so I flew in to see what the place was like.
I entered and there by the fireplace! I couldn’t believe my eyes! It was true, the rumours were true, and there really was a dragon! My heart skipped a beat! I realized I was in the palace that the sleeping princess was in.
My curiosity got the better of me, so without disturbing the sleeping giant I made my way to the top of the palace, mid way I almost gave up! There were too many stairs, not that I had to climb but hey I’m just a tiny thing my wings can only do so much.
Finally after a good fifteen minutes I reached the top, there was no door so I flew straight in, and found myself in a bedroom. And there she was! This divine beauty, sleeping like an innocent child, nothing seemed to disturb her. So I went to her side and for the first time in my life of looking for adventure, for purpose, I had found it. I felt pity for her, she was wiling away her youth, the prime of her life! I decided that I would find her some one, some one who would wake her from her slumber and keep her happy ever after!
So I set out. I flew over the palace gardens, through weeds and thorns. I flew and flew until I reached the outskirt of the palace. I was so tired, almost ready to collapse and suddenly I saw some movement a mile away from me.
What luck! I could see a young man! He was on horse back, I flew closer to him and I was ecstatic to see that he was no ordinary lad. He was the prince of Hampshire.
He seemed to be looking for something, direction I believe, maybe he was in pursuit of the sleeping beauty, I thought to myself.
So I flew right up to him and began buzzing in his ear. And believe it or not! The man tries to swat me! I couldn’t understand why he’d want to hurt me, after all I was helping him, trying to show him the way to the palace. He tried it again, once, twice now I was really angry, so I bit him. And that enraged him some more, he began chasing after me; I saw this as an opportunity and flew in the direction of the castle.
Once I reached the palace wall, I noticed that the Prince had stopped a few yards behind me. He looked up and around and spoke to his horse, asking him something about how to get in.
I couldn’t believe he was this dim! All he had to do was go through the thorny shrubs to get to the other side!
I figured he needed me all the way to the top. So I began buzzing around him some more and he took the bait and followed me, and kept following me till I reached the palace entrance.
But there just as the Prince entered, his horse let out a loud neigh and woke the dragon up!
I could tell from his face that he wasn’t expecting a dragon there, and obviously he wasn’t prepared to fight it!
He had no chance! A forty foot tall huge dragon, he’d go down like that!
This was not going to be easy, the silly lad was running around, his horse had abandoned him, yes abandoned, he didn’t let the horse go, it’s not like how you read it earlier.
He was alone, his only companion was I and he didn’t even know it! He pulled out his sword and lashed it at the dragon to no effect. The dragon took one deep breath, and I knew he was going to let out fire, I had to act quickly, so I flew around the dragon, found a tender spot in the back and bit him as hard as I could. It worked! The dragon choked on his breath of fire, he immediately turned to see who had got his backside, and the prince took his chance and stabbed the dragon straight in the chest.
Relief flowed through me, as the dragon fell hard and heavy to the floor.
I saw the prince wipe a trickle of sweat from his forehead.
He took a moment to calm himself, and I parked myself on a pillar, I was watching him closely, he seemed alright, not a scratch, lucky, he was a pretty handsome fellow. Not half as bright though.
I saw him walk toward the stair case; finally he figured something out for himself! He began his ascent. Slowly and painfully I followed him, till he reached the top.
He entered the room apprehensively, looked around till he saw the princess fast asleep, he walked up to her, looked at her for a moment or two. I could tell that he was struck by her beauty. He touched her hair lightly, bent down and kissed her softly. He lifted his head, knelt down next to her waiting for her to wake. But she didn’t wake up, the prince looked as confused as I felt.
He kissed her again but to no avail. This was strange and frustrating. I had done everything, found her a prince, brought him to her, helped him kill the dragon and now when he finally kisses her she doesn’t stir!
I couldn’t take it any more! I went straight to her neck and bit her with all the frustration that had built up inside me.
She woke! I was taken aback for a second or two! She woke to my bite!
I moved away from her neck and sat on the bed, beside her.
She opened her eyes to see the prince standing in front of her. She then scratched her neck at the spot she’d been bitten.
“You saved me, oh! Thank you, thank you”, she told him. I couldn’t believe it! She didn’t take notice of me!
That was it! I wasn’t going to let all the credit go to this dimwit prince.
I began buzzing around her head, she sought me, and for a second
she looked at me, straight at me! I was going to get some attention after all that work, I thought.
Splat!
I felt excruciating pain all over my body, she had hit me! No not hit, she had tried to kill me! That lousy ungrateful woman! Beauty they called her, huh?? What had happened to inner beauty! The insane woman was trying to kill me. She’d got me once, she saw that I was still alive and moving a little and came down for a second blow! With all the little energy I had left, I pulled myself together and quickly got out of the way and flew slowly to the foot of the bed.
I watched them leave bitterly, hand in hand new lovers and I was left with no one and nothing!
Sleeping beauty’s story became famous and I? I went unnoticed!

I still live here, in the same room that sleeping beauty once slept. I live here alone, unnoticed. Merely another mosquito to the world.
But little do they know The Sleeping Beauty would never have been the tale it is weren’t it for me.

TRISHA ROY