I Want To Be Your Canary...

She sat by the balcony of her room and played her tune. It was her violin and her voice that started to fill the atmosphere with beautiful melodies that even doves came to listen. She recalled her past every time she played her violin when she was a young princess hoping to see the world instead of being trapped in the clutches of her royal servants and dominant mother. The opportunity came when a troupe of actors performed a play for the royal family. She sneaked out of the castle with a pure, white hood and somehow managed to escape into the actors’ vessel unnoticed.

She hid herself in the actors’ room when she bumped into him. Blonde-haired and full of charm, he asked what she was doing in his ship. She tried to run but he pulled her back. Later, she lowered her hood, revealing her beautiful face unmatched like no other princess in the whole country. She introduced herself being the heir to the Alexandria’s throne, a princess on the run to see the world outside her prosperous kingdom. She pleaded him to hide her and let her travel until the ship arrived at its destination. He was rather surprised to see her but he willingly accepted her request. He knelt and said, “I hereby would willingly abduct the princess of Alexandria and swore to protect her majesty till we arrive at her majesty’s preferred destination.”

It was not a pleasant journey from Alexandria. The ship endured the frequent ocean’s rage and had to stop at neighbouring harbour to stock up supplies and repair the damages. He accompanied her wherever she went fulfilling his duty. There was once she tried to communicate with the locals however, her language usage was too complex after all she was used to speaking the nobles’. He then offered to teach her to use the locals’ with warmth and patience. She gladly accepted his offer and with few practices she managed to have a smooth conversation with the townsmen. Her quest to see the world has just begun by communicating with those around with the common language they used and she knew she only has one person to thank to.

Soon, her friendliness attracted the thugs who wanted to take advantage of her. But he was there to stop the harm to resume and rescued the damsel in distress. They spent time together eating, talking and discussing about their dreams and ambitions. Soon, as expected, he grew fond of her nature. There was once he told her about his past adventures, the pain he endured and how he overcame them. There was something that kept her hooked on his words and stories. She wondered how such a robust and ocean’s-best-friend man could talk about himself full of truth and sincerity of sharing his doubts on his life and his chained legs to his awful past. Unassuming and being true to oneself, it just was not his usual self when he was around with his fellow actors and friends. Perhaps, it was another side of him he often kept to himself.

All these while, he regarded her not being a princess on the run but as someone he could talk to. He did not care less about portraying himself being in the lower class in front of her. This was all she ever wanted besides seeing the world, and he had given her the most valuable treasure, seeing her as a human, not a high class royalty. Well, her trip came to an abrupt end when she learned about her mother’s passing. And, now her people needed her back to take the throne despite her being just a teenage princess, unprepared to be crowned as queen. She was forced to return to Alexandria and with a heavy heart, she left the troupe alone to find a way back. He found her escaping in the middle of the night, asking her to stay. However, she was obliged to fulfill her duty as heir although she did not want it. Once again, he knelt and told her, “I’m sorry that that I cannot protect you anymore, princess. It is here that I end my journey, your highness.”

He could only watch her leave as going back to Alexandria would be probably his death wish after abducting the princess. She cried as she went away, wishing she had more time to spend with him. She went to the nearest Alexandria’s outer post so that the royal guards would be able to recognize her and brought her back to her homeland. Back on the vessel, his crew told him that letting her go just like that was a mistake. They knew he had feelings for her but letting her leave without confiding his feelings was absolutely a blunder. He told them, she was going to be a queen; soon she might never need him to protect her. The Alexandrians would certainly fight till their last for the queen’s life. Feeling all gloomy, he returned to his room to reflect.

Days turned to weeks, weeks turned to months. He missed her so much that every minute he would sigh. By then, she was entitled as queen, doing what every queen does, to rule the country. Time and again, her memories with him came alive in her dreams. It just reflected how she was drowned in despair. Doing what needs to be done was never in her agenda yet she did her best for the sake of her people. It was sacrificial of her to put her people before herself and her dreams. She knew her late mother had done the same thing and it was her turn to carry on the burden of ruling Alexandria alone.

A few weeks later, Alexandria invited the Tantalus to perform an act called, “I want to be your canary”, Alexandria’s favourite play. It told about a lowly peasant and a princess falling in love only to be chained by the hierarchy. The main actor in black hood appeared as the queen silently watched the performance, paying little attention to what was going on. He said, “Long nights I have waited for this day to arrive, where art thou my beloved canary? Have you forgotten the melody we embraced together?” He continued asking where his beloved had disappeared to for they had promised to meet on that very day, to escape from the castle, to join him on an adventure of a lifetime. Finally, he said, “Is it because of this tattered hood and this hideous cloak that thou cannot recognize? If so, I shall present myself before thee. Where art thou my canary?” He lifted his cloak and hood and stood at the centre of the stage was someone she began to familiarize. With haste, she jerked up her throne and rushed down the spiral staircase and headed for the stage. Upon nearing the stage, her royal pendant passed on to generation after generation slipped out and fell to the ground. She looked back at her fallen precious memento of Alexandria’s treasure. She decided to let it go and dashed to the stage where the man she had been waiting for stood with a smile carved fondly on his face. The pendant was no longer seen as the crowd started to engulf its visibility from the corner of her sparkling eyes. A passionate hug ended the final conclusion of the act. And it would not have been complete without the long-awaited canary to return to where it wanted to be in the first place, right into his arms.