Once upon a time in a confusing, startlingly bland wasteland known as northeastern Massachusetts, there lived six girls, all fair of face and soft of heart who had but one desire; to witness the beauty of three boys, princes of the far away kingdom of Oklahoma. Enchanted not only by their lovely countenances, but also by their ability to pluck out of the air, notes the world had never known before, these girls were in a desperate plight. One, the fair Princess Stefanie, was known to go into fits of hysterics whenever their magical music could not be heard. Lady Meghan of Emilio would stay locked in her chambers for hours, staring at pictures of the princes, sighing over and over in absolute solitude. (It was said that she once killed one of her nursemaids who tried to take the picture away.) The Princess Corinne of the Northern Boarder was badly afflicted, weeping at the mention of the princes’s names, resorting to acts of violence when they were criticised by her court. She tore at walls, screamed in a manner most unseemly for a princess, threatened to swallow lead. Her mother, the Queen, was deeply concerned. Princess Laura, good and faithful sister to Stefanie, was given to fits of giggling at the sight of the princes. Her complete state of bliss would grow and grow until her mother would insist on locking her away in the tower, where she would weep out of longing.

There were also two other Princesses who claimed love for the fair princes Hanson of Oklahoma; the good Princess Carly who was very well intentioned and loved them honestly and honorably, but who found herself not at the level of obsession of her fair sisters, and the fickle Lady Kayte of Emilio. She found herself so unable to choose between the princes that she went mad. She was thrown into the tower (the fair Princess Laura having been let out) and never heard from again.

And so they pined away the hours, planning their weddings, listening to the enchanted music of the princes. The eldest, the Honorable and Illustrious Prince Clarke Isaac would have made a stellar mate for any of the girls. He was brave, romantic (He was said to have written one maiden, a letter so beautiful that his younger brothers grew jealous and had it tossed into the moat.) and possessed a voice that was worthy of the angels alone. The young Squire Zachary Walker would also have been a worthy husband, one who would make his lady laugh until her sides grew sore. He was a boy of energy and grace, not to mention a particular beauty, even if it was still yet undeveloped. It was though, the young Prince Jordan Taylor (He demanded to be called Taylor at all times.) who made the princesses cry out for joy, praise and thank the heavens for his very creation. He was the most singularly beautiful creature who graced the Earth; eyes that captured the hues of she sky and the depth of the ocean, a voice that melted their hearts, and a nose that bore the marks of integrity and character like none they had ever seen. He was perfection. The Princess Corinne had his image painted in her chamber in forty-seven different spots. (There is a legend that tells of a secret opening in her chamber where the Princess painted her own tribute to the princes, but no evidence of this has ever been found.)

On a particularly sunny day in March, the girls were gathered in the weaving room of the Stevens Palace on the River, talking and laughing as they usually do, speaking of their beloved princes, when the good and noble messenger arrived. The Dame Karen, mother to Princess Carly, not knowing the consequences of her actions, handed the Princess Corinne a letter. Alas! The Princes Hanson were coming to rescue them out of their solitude! What followed was hysteria, weeping, swooning in every corner. They had been saved. The Princes were to host a ball at Tsongas, the newly built castle on the river, but only a select few were invited! The Dame Karen, in the confusion, had lost the list of those chosen! What were the girls to do? The Princess Corinne, being the most practical and knowledgeable in the group, declared that they must journey to the far away kingdom of Lowell . They must visit Tsongas in person and make sure that they were all on the list.

And so they planned, morning, noon and night. They exhausted their messengers trying to receive more information about the ball. They collected enough gold to bribe the gate keeper. They stocked enough provisions for them and their whole party. The good Princess Laura, although truly devoted, was weakened from her never ending state of bliss and opted to stay at her Palace at Point. She would await incoming messengers should they bring word.

The day quickly approached. They knew that the journey would make all the difference, that if they arrived early enough, they would surely be granted a spot. But then, just as they were about to depart (the Lady Kayte and Princess Carly still being part of the happy group) the Princes Hanson, at their Grand Palace at Tulsa, received word of something the fair Massachusetts princesses did not know. Tsongas, a place of beauty and order before word of the Prince’s ball spread, was besieged! It had been lain to waste by dozens of messengers and the caravans of other princesses (although let it be known that none were so fair or honorable as those above mentioned in our story) who desired audience with the Princes Hanson. There are others who say that there was no official treaty between the princes’s father, the good King Walker, and the evil King of the Castle Tsongas (his name having been erased by history). Whatever the cause, the ball at Tsongas was duly canceled and the princesses returned to their palaces to weep once more.

It was in this time that Northeastern Massachusetts was a gloomy place indeed, the Lady Kayte having gone mad and the Princess Carly, exhausted from the preparation, decided that this was one quest she would abandon. And so the four valiant remaining princesses continued to work from their palaces, sending out their messengers daily, collecting more gold. Some say they resorted to occult and evil practices in attaining their goal, but this writer disagrees, arguing that they were too chaste of spirit to attempt such wickedness. They were assisted by many in this, their time of need, notably, by the humble banker Arnell, and the good Lord Kenneth of Pepperell, who championed the princesses and made their cause his own.

One day, the Princesses Corinne and Laura requested meeting with the faithful peasant Americus Onlinus, who was known to have ties to the fair Princes Hanson, and who was devoted as a dog, even if his services were costly. And on that very blessed day, he brought word! There would not be a ball. There would be a fair! The Princes were to host a fair in the wooded lands of far south, complete with games and merry making for all invited. It was a beautiful spot, one far better suited to the inevitable throngs who would come to see the princes. But then the Princesses began to realize; there were also problems with this new spot. For you see, at this Palace of the Woods, there are two distinct classes of people who are admitted. There are the families of noble birth and substance who are allowed to remain under the Grand Tent, and then there are those others who are not allowed in the tent but are granted admittance just the same. They are the groundlings, the dirty and worthless mass who desire audience with the princes and behave in a most uncouth manner. A girl such as this would never do to wed a Prince such as the Noble Isaac or Taylor the Beautiful. They would never choose a girl of such questionable lineage. But what then, should the princesses do should they arrive and find all the seats in the Grand Tent have been filled? The thought of standing outside the tent with the groundlings, weathering the elements and viewing the fair Oklahoma princes from afar, made the girls’s delicate stomachs turn. Not to mention the throng of loose women who would crowd the space, bearing their shoulders, flashing their wears, trying to tempt the Princes in their thin cotton garments. It was then that the four fair princesses made a decision. They would get seats in the Grand Tent, and they would pay any amount of gold to do it. There simply was no other way.

And so they began to devise a plan. It was the lovely Stefanie who would succeed. She found in her books of wisdom, the names of Faerie Folk who could work such magic. Living in the rough and untamed Lands North of the Border, these little people were skilled in the ways of magic, having many friends who lived in the Deep Woods in the south where the fair was to be held. The princesses, not the least bit afraid of the ogres and giants who lived in this land, planned a journey to the northern land to speak with the faeries. (Let it be said that the noble Laura opted to stay behind in the comfort of her castle. She would again anxiously await messages from abroad, notably from the good Kenneth, who was also setting out on a journey to secure spots in the Tent for the princesses. ) But alas, as much as she would have loved to have been there, the Lady Meghan was called away and could not visit the faerie folk. It seems she had to take part in a contest that was to decide who was more noble, she or the lovely but highly wicked Princess Jaqui of the West. She won. At any rate… Princess Stefanie and Princess Corinne set out on their journey to the faerie folk. When they arrived, they had to battle ogres and monsters who stood in their path, but they were slain easily enough. And so they consulted with the faeries, who demanded much more gold than they had originally planned. But alas, the fair princes of Oklahoma were worth the costly amount. And so they gave every ounce of gold they possessed and the spots were secured! (Although there was some controversy concerning the placement of the spots. They were originally placed on the Eastern side of the Grand Tent, where the Prince Taylor would often be known to stay, but the faeries made a horrible mistake and had to place them more to the West. No great harm was done.)

They returned triumphantly to the Palace at Point into the awaiting arms of their fair sister, the noble Princess Laura who had received word that the good Kenneth had also secured them spots. He had done battle with the evil sorcerer Nextus and had won! As a reward, he was granted four spots in the Grand Tent, although the spots the faeries had secured were closer to the front and nearer to the boys. And so the girls had their wish. The greatest dream of their lives had been fulfilled. They would see the boys in person and hear their beautiful music. Let it be known that there is more to this story, that they indeed went to the Great Woods to the fair, but the details of those events shall be revealed at a later time… until then…