Categories
Ancient Past creative writing fiction

Midas

Golden sculpture of a woman

The King touched his daughter’s hair again, in his usual way, to reassure her. She became more radiant each time he did. That morning, five thousand suitors had laid siege to their home in Phrygia. It was the Princess’ eighteenth birthday.

The Princess spent her days veiled and curtained in ornate suites. She swam in a heated pool and tended to a greenhouse garden populated by Earth’s rarest flowers. But she was all alone. Women had been banished from court for fear they would harm her. Men, for fear they’d seduce her.

In response to her pleas, her father offered a cold warning about evil in the world. “My dear, you are afflicted with indescribable beauty. Learn to love the lonely hours.”

Later that night, the crowds were still chanting her name. All the palace guards were stationed at the outer gates. Advisors suggested moving the Princess to a safer location. But no amount of persuasion would change the King’s mind.

Sensing she was not being watched, the Princess slipped out of her room and ducked into a cupboard. Through the service corridors she ran, finally reaching an exit door. It was almost dawn.

As she hurried to the clearing, she tripped, fell and hit her head on a stone. She lost consciousness and slowly bled on some leaves. When she woke, she felt very heavy but managed to look down at her legs. She could see that they had changed into beautiful golden casts.

 

♕

Midas | SB

Image credit: Sculpture via pictography

By ΠιCΘLΞ

Life is short, so let’s be decent.

112 replies on “Midas”

Thank you so much, Joy. I wrote a prequel to this story but lost my nerve and took it down. I appreciate your encouragement. I hope you’re having a great weekend.

Liked by 1 person

By Post Author

The end is tragic but in the longer narrative, which I haven’t shared here, the results can be reversed. It is a fairy tale after all. I appreciate your compliment. Thank you. xoxo

Liked by 1 person

By Post Author

Oh, I misunderstood. In my mind, she was more bewildered than anything else at the transformation. She was never in control of her life and now that she was free, she was turning into a sculpture.

Liked by 1 person

By Post Author

Thank you very much for your lovely compliment. I am happy to have your reading of the story. It gives me some insight into what is happening from the Princess’ perspective. I enjoy leaving interpretations open because I gain so much from the interactions.

Liked by 1 person

By Post Author

Thank you so much for stopping by for a read. I was pleasantly surprised to find that post on your blog because you brought out the connection so clearly. I appreciate your kind words. Best wishes. ❤️

Liked by 1 person

By Post Author

Thank you so much for reading. It’s scheduled for February 10, the last time I checked the queue. I hope that everyone who requested it will come by to read. I had to write two follow up stories to get to the one that’s interesting enough to share. It took two weeks and a zombie edit on Thursday but I did it. My brain will never be the same. I feel like an omelette.

Liked by 1 person

By Post Author

Great questions. Usually, when I write these short stories, the universe of characters is so much more complex than what is shown. All of your questions have been addressed on my end but it would take a novel to reveal the answers.

Like

By Post Author

Her transformation is complete, as suggested by the image at the start of the story. I ended this excerpt with the slow transformation to highlight that the effects of the curse are not instantaneous. There are conditions attached, in my telling of it. Thank you for reading.

Liked by 1 person

By Post Author

Not you, too, Steph! (Wails). I really and truly did not expect anyone to like it that much. I have written other parts to the story since the 7th but I’ll keep writing and if one episode sticks out as a standalone feature, I’ll present it.

Liked by 1 person

By Post Author

Comments are closed.