The prince flicked the coin into the chasm.
It flashed, flipping in the sunlight, and vanished.
The prince leaned further over the chasm, trying to see into the darkness.
Instantly the boy sensed danger.
He hauled open the window in his tower, about to call out a warning.
But he was too late.
Suddenly, something rose from the chasm.
At first it looked like the shadow of a ghost. Then it took on the form of smoke floating into the air. Then it gathered, like a flock of tiny birds. Only it wasn’t a flock.
It was a swarm.
And they weren’t tiny birds. They were—
“Wasps!” the boy shouted.
The prince’s wishful toss of a coin had disturbed a nest of wasps.
Very.
Angry.
Wasps.
Swiftly the boy stepped back from his window, set his teacup on the table with lightning accuracy, and ran for the spiral staircase. He moved quickly and precisely—there is a difference between panic and speed.
He reached the downstairs level—a library full of books—then shouldered his way out the door and into the bright sunlight.
He dashed heroically across the park toward the prince, who was already flailing and stumbling and trying to swat the wasps away.
Suddenly the boy had the prince’s hand in his grip. “Come with me!”
The prince did not resist.
Together they pivoted in a single motion, away from the chasm.
The door to the tower stood open before them.
The boy and the prince ran as fast as they could, hand in hand, outpacing the crazed and confused wasps before bolting through the open door and slamming it shut behind them.
They stood close enough for the boy to feel the heat coming off the prince’s skin and the sweet scent of his perspiration. Hewas aglow with relief and gratitude as he gazed into the boy’s eyes.
“Thank you,” the prince panted, a smile crossing his charming face.
“Are you hurt?” the boy asked.
“No. But I dare say my wish may never come true.”
The boy smiled. “I dare say… mine just did.”
And with that, the boy and the prince fell into each other’s arms, their lips locked together in a kiss so true it could outlast time.
From that day on, they lived happily ever after.
