Righteous Deception

April 2025. Short story draft, or outline of a fantasy book.

Scenes where the Princess adventures around, even though her to-be groom, the Prince, would prefer she stays at the castle. He worries about her, since there have been ominous sightings of a dragon, and the wedding is soon.

The Princess meets a young Unicorn in her adventuring. They become best friends, but the Unicorn wants to be kept secret as is the custom of her people. Only one Unicorn can be seen every 1000 years, and they come as wise council and peace-makers to the Humans. Unicorns are normally wise, but this Unicorn is young (only 500 years old), silly, and a risk-taker. Together they meet the Dragon. He is ancient and wise. He wants to find a safe place to live, since he was kicked out of his last home when knights stole his plunder. He did not fight them, and instead chose to flee, believing that the consequences of their greed, which often inspired them to violence, combined with their tendency to betray each other, as evidenced by the many petty fueds the Dragon had watched, would lead to unhappy lives for them all, which was revenge enough for the Dragon. The Prince’s and Princess’ kingdoms are separated by a valley with thick trees and brambles. The Princess and Unicorn help the Dragon hide there.

As the Prince frets more and more, the Princess grows sick of his company. She spends more time with her Unicorn friend, and gradually they become friends with the Dragon too. This leads to the Prince fretting more because she is gone more often. The Prince and Princess care about the marriage because both their parents say it is their duty, but neither of them are particularly fond of each other. That doesn’t matter to them very much, though. Their marriage will put an end to the war between the two kingdoms; that is noble.

One day the Prince disappears. Nobody can find him. The Princess is worried because war could break out between the two kingdoms. She, the Unicorn, and the Dragon search for the Prince but to no avail. Then one day they find out that he ran away with another woman from a distant land across the sea. The real reason he was fretting was because he was worried his infidelity would be found out. The Princess is very sad; her friends comfort her. The Princess decides not to slander the Prince, and instead to be the better person, and tell everyone that they couldn't find him, to preserve his image.

The two countries threaten war. The Dragon gets an idea. He scares farmers and acts like a typical bigfoot-like boogeyman so that everyone gets scared of the valley. Meanwhile, the Princess and Unicorn on their adventures spread false reports to the common folk of people being eaten. The two armies become so scared of entering the valley, for fear of meeting the dragon, that the two kingdoms cannot have the war. The second part of the Dragon’s plan involves the Princess and Unicorn. After hearing his plan, the Unicorn goes to her Elders to beg for permission. The elders disapprove after they learn that the Unicorn showed herself to the Princess. But, seeing the value in the plan since it aligns with their values of being wise council and peacemakers for the Humans, and since the world has entered a new millenium since the last sighting, they agree to let a different Unicorn reveal herself. So the Other Unicorn goes back and forth between the two kingdoms, checking in with the Princess often for historical context and relevant socio-cultural knowledge, while acting to the two Kings, Queens, and their courts like she’s this ancient spirit of the forest (which she technically is, but still). “The Dragon is an omen,” she says. “If you two make war, the Dragon will destroy you both; but if you two make peace, the Dragon will calm down and stop attacking.” After a while of dragging their feet, the two kingdoms broker for peace by other means.

The Dragon makes his home in the forest. The Princess is sad because her would-be husband left her and she can’t see her Unicorn friend anymore. The Other Unicorn roams the world, spreading wise council and making peace. The Dragon and Princess visit each other sometimes. Eventually the Princess becomes more involved in politics, marries, and settles down and has domestic and political adventures instead of exploring dangerous places. But she writes poems about the glory days.