The Twelve Dancing Princesses
"The twelve princesses are fairy tale, then again what isn't these days?"
Summary
The Twelves Princesses were the daughters of the King Cole Highlander, some were with his wife and others were born from his mistresses. He was without a male heir and kept his daughters hidden from the world, so as no man could try and win their hearts and steal them away along with the Throne. But as the King aged, he sent his daughters out as diplomats and heralds in order to find a male heir or at least suitable husbands for each of them. They went to many balls and parties, traveling far and wide across the Freelands, dancing the night a way seeking lovers and suitable husbands. During the Great Rebellion and the sacking of the Imperial City, the murder of King Cole Highlander and his wife, and the fall of the Kingdom of Man their last known locations had been lost. Some say they all died that night, while others say they went into hiding with their prospective spouses and lovers. Also according to legend they each had a treasure with them, a jewel or cyrstal of some sort they could use to find each other some day. Regardless, it has been roughly 2000 years since then even if they did survive the Great Rebellion. In addition it wouldn't matter if they were Aasimar or not, for not even Aasimar could cannot survive that many years. The story has fallen into obscurity and is more or less a fairy tale for little girls who dream of being princesses.
The Twelve Princesses were, in order of birth:
- 1.) Princess Scarlet Highlander the Red, the eldest known for her red hair and cloak... not much else is known as she was a secretive woman with a secretive life. She was the most likely candidate to take the throne all those centuries ago.
- 2.) Princess Snow Highlander the White, know for her pale skin and closeness with Dwellers in the Eastlands. Though some mocked her for it, her dealings with them did open up trading with them and their craftsmenship.
- 3.) Princess Ariel Highlander the Blue, known for her dealings the Vedalken and water people of the Shoal and Riverlands. She too was mocked for closeness, but she was able to open new routes of trade and goods.
- 4.) Princess Goldilocks Highlander the Yellow, known for her golden hair and her criminal record. She was known to be one of the most troublesome of the princesses and yet was rarely truly punished for her crimes.
- 5.) Princess Briar Highlander the Purple, known for her love of money and a businesswoman. She negotiated with the New Bloods and did her best to prevent the war, but ultimately she failed and disappeared just before the war truly began.
- 6.) Princess Cinderella Highlander the Black, known for black hair and her obsession with things to be clean. She was a stalwart person and did her best to promote hygiene and sewage systems for all the major cities.
- 7.) Princess Rapunzel Highlander the Green, known for her exceptionally long hair and fear of the outside world. Her agoraphobia and desire to remain her tower made her less than popular princess but she did little harm because of it, her tower disappeared and her with it at the beginning of the war.
- 8.) Princess Winter Highlander the Gray, known as a cold and calculating woman. She was very private person as well, and was known to explore the most dangerous and lonely places in the Freelands and settled many hermitages during her travels.
- 9.) Princess Bertha Highlander the Orange, known for her love poetry and children. She was the most humble of the princesses and rarely was adorned in her royal regalia, it made her a princess of the people through her charities and such.
- 10.) Princess Alice Highlander the Pink, known for her mental illness and often hidden away. It is unclear what the source of her "madness" was, just that she was a danger to herself and others.
- 11.) Princess Belle Highlander the Teal, known as an inventive artificer and a learned mage. She was known for her intelligence but hardly stood out when compared to her other sisters in reputation, but pushed for schools to be created to help others achieve their own dreams.
- 12.) Princess Dorothy Highlander the Brown, the least well known of the sisters and hardly stood out when compared to them. Not much else is known about her.
Historical Basis
The story itself is very much true, but the question remains: what happened to the princesses? There is no known tangible of what exactly happened to them. There are records of what was done with the remains of King Cole and his wife, but there are no such records for the twelve princesses.
Spread
The story itself was most likely spread from survivors of the Great Rebellion, Knights and Knightly Orders most likely. The story was probably spread as a means of inspiring loyalists into action and restoring the Kingdom of Man, but seeing as the twelve princesses never resurfaced into the world in the past 2000 years... it is not very likely they ever will.
Variations & Mutation
Some versions say that the princesses fled to the west and hid in the Drowned City of the Vedalken, others say they went east to the Iron City of the Dwarves, some say they went south to the Rock and took refuge among the scum that live there, and more heretical and blasphemous folk claim they went north and are hiding among the Elves of Avalon. Some more fanciful legends say they fled to other Planes like the Feywild, the Shadowfell, the Moons, and the Suns. Some even claim they were hiding in plain sight among the common folk, even within the Imperial City itself at the heart of the Freelands.
Cultural Reception
A couple hundred years ago, the story was a symbol of hope and the return of the Kingdom of Man... but it has been ages since the fall and all have given up hope of them ever being seen or heard from again. Today it is nothing more than a pretty fairy tale for little girls.
In Literature
Occasionally Bards sing songs and recite poems about the twelve princesses and the legends associated with them, but its mere background noise these days found at parties and at random inns.
In Art
Some artists have painted frescos and portraits of the twelve princesses and the Great Rebellion, such a story has inspired a many of artist to portray them over the centuries.
Date of First Recording
2000 years ago
Date of Setting
At the cusp of the Great Rebellion
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