The Ugly Prince who wanted to be Good

A Modern Fairytale

One upon a time, there was an ugly Prince who was shunned by all.

He had a scrawny body and a crooked set of teeth.

As pets, he kept a dog with two legs, a crow with a broken wing and a blind rat.

While the elder Prince and Princess were treated respectably, he was treated with utmost contempt by all the maid servants.

He spent most of his days playing with his ugly pets at the back of the Royal kitchen.

One day, when the Prince was ten, his uncle passed away in the town of Tifsim.

Tifsim was located at the edge of the Kingdom.

For the first time in his life, the King and Queen invited the ugly Prince to go on a journey with them – to attend the funeral.

The ugly Prince was thrilled. He counted the days to the trip.

Finally, the day arrived.

The ugly Prince tottered excitedly into the King and Queen’s carriage.

He climbed into his mother’s lap and smiled affectionately, “Thank you so much for bringing me on this trip Mother. I love you so much.”

The Queen was alarmed. She pushed him aside roughly and whispered into the King’s ears, “Ah, I forgot to make special arrangements to keep him away; He was supposed to be in another carriage.”

The ugly Prince was heartbroken, he suppressed his tears but a large stream of yellow snot drizzled down his nose.

The queen looked at him and smiled, “Ah, disgusting as usual. Good, this is the real you.”

For the next few days, the ugly Prince took every opportunity to forge intimacy with his mother.

Soon, the Queen grew ill and was unable to eat.

After five days, they finally arrived at the town of Tifsim.

As the carriage rode pass the streets, the ugly Prince saw many things that he had never seen before.

There were orphanages, monasteries, lunatic asylums and hospitals for infectious diseases.

They arrived at the funeral in time for the reading of his uncle’s last will:

“My days have finally come to an end and I bequeath my town to Prince Albert. He will inherit my position at the age of 18.”

The ugly Prince was shocked.

He looked at his parents but they remained expressionless.

That night, the town’s steward, a kind old lady born with one leg shorter than the other, came to him in his room.

“Young man, let me let you in on a secret.

There is a tradition in our Kingdom. As an unspoken rule, the younger princes are ill-treated by all so that they will never develop an ambition for the throne.

But there is an exception to this horrid rule.

Your great-great-great-grandfather loved his younger brother so. To protect him, he created the town of Tifsim.

Here, he housed all the misfits of the Kingdom. Here, everyone is treated with kindness and dignity.

For the past 200 years, this has been the case; That the younger princes, if born, be sent to Tifsim at age 18.

Your mother knew this from the moment she agreed to marry your father.

From the moment she conceived you, she knew that she would have to lose you. That is why she is suffering so much.”

The ugly Prince said sadly, “But my mother does not love me at all. She hates me.”

The old lady replied, “No. You are mistaken. She loves you so; but she is also a very weak woman. She is unable to love someone she is doomed to lose. So from the moment you were born, she made a decision to hate you.

Look at her now. She has become ill. Why is that so? Because being around you reminds her of how much she loves you and how soon you are destined to leave her and that is something she cannot endure.”

The ugly Prince wept, “What can I do to make her well again?”

The old steward paused for a long while. She took a deep breath and whispered, “This will be difficult for you but listen closely — Be the meanest, cruelest, stupidest, most disgusting boy you can ever be whenever you are in her presence.”

Soon, the funeral procession was over and the Royal family headed back to the castle.

When the Queen arrived at the castle, she collapsed and was bedridden for many days.

The ugly Prince remembered the words of the old steward.

When asked to have meals together with his family, he made it a point to eat as barbarically as he could.

When asked a question, he would mutter something horribly rude in reply.

When presented with opportunities of kindness, he would act cruelly in front of all and under the cover of darkness, do acts of kindness anonymously.

Soon, the Queen recovered from her illness and was able to carry out her daily functions.

Eight years passed and it was time for the ugly Prince to head to Tifsim.

Gently, he lifted his grotesque pets onto his carriage.

Just before he left, he turned his face towards his mother, and in his final act of love, opened his mouth wide like wild animal and let out the most horrific growl.

After that, he turned his face towards his pets, smiled gently and together they set off for Tifsim.

Many years passed.

The Queen was on her death bed.

A letter came from Prince Albert of Tifsim. On it was written:

“Dear Mother, thank you so much for loving me. I behaved wickedly in front of you, yet you gave me a home, good food and warm clothing. You allowed me to keep my pets even though they looked ugly. They offered me so much comfort when I was in the castle. On the day that I left for Tifsim, you assigned five carriages of the best palace guards to protect me. You loved me every day of my life but your love for me was killing you. For you to be well again, I had to become the worst creature that I could conceive of. But at your death bed, I want you to know, that I always knew that you loved me and I love you too Mummy.”

The Queen wept. With a smile on her face, she breathed her last.