Honeycomb by Joanne Harris (book series for 12 year olds .txt) 📕

And the courtiers would nod their powdered wigs, click their gilded nails and smile—oh, just a little, to avoid cracking their makeup.

Every visitor to the court was shown the marvellous singing bird. Emperors; kings and pontiffs came to hear its song of freedom. They all agreed that the King’s lovely bird was the most wonderful and unique creature they had ever seen or heard.

As for the sparrow, it sat and watched the royal court through the golden bars. It watched the fawning courtiers in their silken coats and high heels, bowing so low as the King approached that their wigs almost brushed the parquet floor. It watched the servants in their grand liveries, and the musicians in the gallery. It watched the battery of chefs that brought the King his meals every day, and the Royal Taster, who tried every dish. It saw the royal children in their whaleboned corsets and taffeta skirts, pale from lack of sunlight and melancholy from lack of play. It saw the dancers and courtesans, the eunuchs and the pages; and sang its song of freedom as they listened in envy and wonder.

But by night, when the courtiers were asleep, the other sparrows would fly in through the open window, and there they would perch on the furniture and on the silken draperies, and talk to their friend in her golden cage, and try to persuade her to leave with them.

“Why do you stay here?” they asked. “The bars are surely wide enough for you to squeeze between them and escape. Why do you not fly from your cage and join your people in the sky?”

But the sparrow always replied, “I could never do such a thing to my King and his people. You see, these folk are all prisoners here. And if I fled, they would never hear the song of another sparrow.”

65

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RINCE

In a neighbouring land there lived a prince who longed to be King in his father’s place. But the King was reluctant to give up his crown; besides which, his only son was arrogant, and stubborn, and rude, and the King feared for his kingdom. The people, however, favoured the Prince, not because he was good or kind, but because he was quite the opposite.

“A Prince should not be ordinary,” said the Prince to his servants. “He should be noble, contemptuous, and proud. Common politeness and courtesy are for the common people. I am a King, not a commoner.”

The servants nodded politely, as their Prince expected. No one even dared point out that he was not yet King. Besides, they thought, the old King would die, and then the Prince would claim the throne. And those who had earned his favour would be rewarded for their loyalty.

And so the Prince continued to grow in arrogance and cruelty. He poured contempt on everyone: women; foreigners; the old. He flew into violent rages if he did not have his way. And when the King, his father, criticized his behaviour, he screamed such insults at the old man that the King was close to disowning him.

But the Chancellor said, “Your Majesty, beware of acting hastily. The common people admire your son, and if you were to take action, then there might be serious consequences.”

And so the King forgave the Prince, hoping for better next time.

But the Prince soon got used to his father’s tolerance. He spoke out ever more loudly against anyone who offended him. Servants who failed to cater immediately to his whims, day or night. Courtiers who did not laugh at his jokes. Ordinary people, just for being too ordinary to understand his regal commands. Most of all, he spoke out against the reigning monarch, his father.

“When will the old fool abdicate?” he said. “Better still, when will he die?”

The King overheard these comments and was angered and hurt by them. Once more, he came very close to banishing the Prince from his court. But his advisors, who feared the Prince and wanted to earn his favour, said, “Patience, Your Majesty. He will learn. Surely, your wise example will calm his youthful high spirits.”

And so, once more, the King allowed his son to insult him, hoping that his own dignity would eventually mellow the young man’s pride.

Years passed. Nothing changed. The Prince grew increasingly arrogant. The old King, though now very frail, seemed no closer to passing on the throne. But the Prince’s behaviour, if anything, grew more unreasonable than ever. Even for his most fervent admirers, it was no longer possible to blame his behaviour on youthful high spirits. He insulted everyone he met. He seemed to respect only wealth, and those who were as offensive as he was himself. He poured contempt on the ordinary folk, and if anyone spoke against him, would fly into a rage, saying:

“I am a Royal Person! Your common rules do not apply to me! How dare you expect me to conform to the manners of the populace?”

Finally, after one such fracas, the old King lost his temper. “You have learnt nothing,” he told his son. “Henceforth, I disown you as my heir, and shall pass on the throne to my brother’s kin.”

At first the arrogant Prince was stunned. Then he, too, lost his temper. He said to the old King, “You sad old man. You have no power. The people will never stand for this.”

And he was right. The people, having been told for so many years that kings should be above the rules of ordinary folk, rebelled and came out in protest against the old King’s decision. They mobbed the palace; attacked the guards; threw stones at the old King’s carriage. In fear for the kingdom, the old King finally gave up his crown, and his son became king in his place.

But the new King was not happy. He found that Kings had duties to perform, and that many of them were burdensome. He found that he had no more time