Awake While Beauty Sleeps [version 2]

"Gedoff me,Tommy, gedoff!” I said, snatching me hand away from him. He was holding tight so I had to struggle to stop me basket of blueberries from falling.
“See whatcha almost done? These be for Princess Rose's bir'day. Mama would give me a spankin' if I dun't bring 'em back,” I continued, shaking the basket under his small nose. Tommy giggled, the silly lad.
“Comma see, Jon, comma see,” he said happily, clapping his chubby hands together. I rolled me eyes and followed, keeping a careful watch on me precious blueberries. One can't ever be too careful with Tommy around. I didn't want him to come, but mama made me take him. Shes makes me watch him oft, 'cause I is older then he, me being already eight and him being only four. No amount of begging nor pleading makes her change her mind, so I is stuck with him. Tommy runs in front of me gleefully.

We reached the castle walls and slipped through the servants' entrance.
“Look Jon, look,” Tommy pointed, starting to giggle again. At first I didn't see nothing amiss. The servants' garden was full as ever. But then me noticed the quiet, and the fact that none were moving and how nobody seemed to be standing. All were sitting or lying or slumping over walls and on the floor and the benches.
All were sleeping.
Even Fluffer the cat was lying there and he weren't moving not a muscle. I looked at Tommy, all perplexed- like.
“Why's everyone asleepin'? Isn't there work to be doin'?” I asked. Mama had said that there ain't no time for playing that day, 'cause it was the princess's birthday and all and there was tons and tons to prepare.
We continued walking to the huge kitchen to give the blueberries to mama. She wouldn't be sleeping, that I knew for sure. Mama never slept when there was work to be doing. She always is as busy as buzzing bee, making food for all them nobles. But the kitchen was as silent as the garden. Mama was slumped over the huge wooden table, snoring gently into a lump a dough. Her face were covered in flour, even more then usually, and her huge rolling pin were still in her hand. I was starting to get worried by then, but Tommy was happy as usual. He ran up to Mama and hugged her big leg.
“Mama! Mama! We got 'em blueberries mama, jus' like you asks us!” he shouted joyfully, but she weren't answering him. I put the blueberries down and took Tommy by the hand.
“Come, she's restin'. Lets go play.” I said, 'cause I know that's what Mama woudda wanted.
“Stay outta the way,” she woudda said, “An' take Tommy with ya”. So we played Hiders and Finders in the sleeping castle and I pushed the questions outta me head.

Evening fell, and still me and Tommy were the only people awake. We went back to the kitchen, 'cause we were both getting hungry. I went over to Mama, and I shook her arm.
“Wake up, Mama. I is hungry.” I said. She didn't move. I saw her breathing so I knew she was only sleeping, but why didn't she wake up?
“Mama, wake up,” I said again. Tommy began to crying I was feeling tears in me eyes too, but big boys don't ever cry, so I blinked them away.
“I is hungry, Jon” Tommy wailed, so I tried waking Mama up again. At last me own hunger was gnawing too badly so I went to the larder and took out some bread and split it in half and Tommy and I ate it hungrily. There were other foods at the table, lots of them, but I knew it was for the princess's banquet, so I didn't dare touch them. Tommy and me didn't wanna play no more, but we didn't wanna go to sleep in our bed without Mama there, so we ended up curled on the kitchen floor between mama's legs and we went to sleep there.

In the morning, not a thing had changed. We took more food from the larder and went looking around. We played again Hiders and Finders, but this time both me and Tommy were the finders and we were finding someone else who was awake. But we didn't find no one but sleeping people in the servants wing. So we gave up and played chase. At night we slept again next to Mama's feet.

The next day I thought that mayhaps all the awake people were not in the servants' wing, but in the rest of the castle instead. So we went into the halls of the castle, all shaking and scared- like, 'cause we were never allowed to go there before. But there everyone was all asleep too, snoring in colorful dresses and tight pants and strange hats I had never seen the likes of ever before. Me and Tommy had some fun trying them on, 'cause the people were all sleeping anyways so what do they care?

At night we went back to the kitchen again. I had started liking night when I didn't feel alone, 'cause I am asleep just like everyone else. But I got scared sometimes that when I went to sleep I would not wake, just as everyone else.

So me and Tommy managed somehow, waiting for the world to wake once again. The days started turning to nights and the nights to days and I was sure weeks and months and maybe even years were going past but I wasn't feeling it. The days were one big blur, exploring the castle and eating from the larder and sometimes even going to the woods for a bit, just to hear other things moving and to pick more berries, 'cause we finished the blueberries already. But we had to stop that after a while, 'cause huge thorn bushes started to growing around the castle, and it pricked too much to pass them. I felt they was trapping us with the sleeping peoples forever more.

So we explored the castle more and more 'till we knew everything there was to know about it.
One day we found some steps and we started climbing and climbing, going up and up and up, 'till our legs ached and we started to pant but at last we reached the top of the tower. There we found a lass, lying on a huge bed. We walked up to her slow- like, 'cause both me and Tommy felt that there was something different about her. We saw her and she was the most beautiful maiden we had ever seen, tons prettier then any of the maids in the castle or the sleeping noble ladies. Her hair was golden and her lips were pure red and she just was so pretty, lying there in a beautiful gown and I knew at once that this was Princess Rose herself.
“Kiss her, Jon,” Tommy whispered from besides me.
“Why?” I asked, feeling me face getting red.
“'Cause that's how you makes her wake up,” Tommy explained, and I had to smile, 'cause I knew he got that from all the princess stories Mama used to tell us. And then I wanted to cry, 'cause I wanted Mama awake again, and I wanted her to tell us stories again like she used to but big boys don't ever cry so instead I said; “But I ain't no prince.”
“Please Jon. Please try,” Tommy begged, his eyes wide. “I wants her to wake so badly.”
“So does I,” I whispered, and without thinking, I leaned over and kissed her quickly on the lips and pulled away quickly again and wiped me mouth on me sleeve, trying not to throw up. We both stared at her, wishing she would wake. Somehow we both knew that if she woke up, everyone would. Or we hoped, but whats the difference anyhow? But not a thing happened.

When the food in the larder finished, we started eating the banquet food. None of the foods had rotted or gone bad one whit, and the princess needed no banquet whilst she was sleeping.
Tommy and me waited, and we waited and we waited for the prince that had to be coming sometime to wake everyone up, 'cause they couldn't sleeping forever. But he did not come and still we waited and we waited more days and more nights and still not a thing.

So much time passed and everything stayed as was. Me and Tommy stayed the same and the castle stays asleep and no one woke up and the food never spoiled and the princess was sleeping and sleeping and sleeping. We had food and a place to stay, and it never got too warm or too freezing, but we were bored and all we had was ourselves and I just wanted all else to wake already and I wanted Mama to hold me again and to sing me to sleep and to tell me stories and order me around and even spank me when I don't do something. Tommy got quiet, he barely giggled any more. I understood him. I felt like I never wanted to smile for ever and ever again. I just wanted everything to be back the way it once was. Not a thing was changing and we were stuck in the quiet and the silence just the two of us, and sometimes we even ran around the hallways, shouting loudly just to hear the echos we made and it made it easier to pretend that we weren't alone. We waited for what felt like forever and ever and ever and I was scared sometimes that the whole world was asleep and only we were awake and no prince will ever come to wake the princess.

Me and Tommy waited for more days and more nights and sometimes we sat in the tower and we stared at the princess still sleeping as if she would wake up if we wished it hard enough. Oft I sat there alone, and I talked to her and told her things. I felt I could speak to her, even though she is the princess, for it's 'cause of her the castle is like this.
"Nufin' is changin',” I told her, just to let her know what's going on. She is asleep and it is her castle, so someone needs to be telling her and that someone may as well be meself.
"Years an' years have been gone by but I is still eight an' Tommy is still four an' you is still young an' pretty- like an' Mama's hair ain't turnin' white.” I don't tell her who Tommy and Mama are, 'cause she is the princess so she knows everything.
"An' it feels as only yes'erday me an' Tommy went to pick blueberries, for your bir'day they were to be, an' we comes back an' finds you all asleepin'. Do you knows why all is asleepin'? It be some curse, methinks. Curses oft fall on princesses such as youself, but I ain' t never before 'eard of 'em fallin' on whole entire castles.”
I wondered sometimes if she even wanted to hear. What do the likes of her care what an eight year old is thinking? But I told her anyways, 'cause I can't tell Tommy and I had to tell somebody.
"Tommy cries oft,” I told her. And one day I even says; “I wanna cry too, 'cause I jus' wannit t'end, an' I jus' wan' everyun to wakes up once more an' not to be stuck as this fore'er. But I dun't ever cry,” I added quickly. “I dun't ever cry, 'cause I is a big boy.”
When I talked to her, I wanted her to wake up even more, 'cause I felt like I almost knew her and 'tis a shame that such a beauty be stuck this way forever.

Then one day, after so long it felt that at least a hundred years had past us by, we heard a noise when playing Chase in the garden and we got a scare, 'cause we ain't heard another noise in so long. Me and Tommy ran back inside and into the main castle and we saw a man, another man, with a sword and a cloak and he was dressed all fancy like, but different from the sleeping nobles. We followed him silently, 'cause we were scared that he was a ghost or a spirit or something, 'cause he was awake and we were awake and everyone else was still sleeping. The man went up the stairs of the tower and Tommy tugged at me tunic and whispered;
“It be a prince, Jon. I knows it,” and he sounded all excited- like for the first time in ages. I wanted to be excited too but I was scared that he ain't no prince and I didn't wanna get me hopes up. So we sat down and we waited to see if anything would happen and we held each other and I felt meself shaking despite meself, 'cause what if he was the one, and what if he would wake the princess up?

And then suddenly everything started to stir and we saw the sleeping people moving and stretching and rubbing their eyes, and joy flooded through me and I felt happy again, and I had not felt happy for so long, and me and Tommy sat there and we stared at all the moving people. Then we remembered Mama and we ran back to the kitchen and we saw her there, standing up again and looking around all confused- like. She was moving, finally moving, and we ran up to her and I hugged her tightly and I didn't wanna ever let go. And Mama stroked me hair and held me back and asked where be the blueberries and I wasn't able to answer 'cause I was crying and crying and crying.