Nowadays the castle seemed alive, like a real home. Without the king's shadow, and with the joker's presence, everyone smiled—sometimes with reason, sometimes without.
One fine morning, the joker was resting in the garden. The warm sun stretched across his face, and the cool breeze wrapped him like a blanket. But this rest was not for long.
The princess walked toward him with a strange expression.
"Can you take me to the town, please?"
The joker tilted his head, confused.
The princess rolled her eyes. "I know you sneak out of the castle almost every day. I've never been outside. I want to see the town and its people."
He froze. He knew the risk—if they were caught, he would be executed. But even worse, the princess would be punished severely. Yet this was the first real request she had made of him. He couldn't accept, but he couldn't deny her either.
After a lot of convincing—and after falling victim to her pleading eyes—he finally caved in.
That afternoon, they set their grand plan into motion.
The princess disguised herself in one of the maid's dresses. The joker wore plain clothes and washed away his makeup. The maids pretended the princess was ill, while the workers spread word that the joker had injured himself and needed to be taken out for treatment. The knights were busy with lunch when the joker struck. With help from a few of his friends among them, the two slipped out.
For once, the castle didn't belong to the ruthless king—it belonged to the kind joker.
They fled to the town. For the first time, the princess saw his true face: his eyes shining, his pale skin almost glowing, his lips soft and pink as petals. He kept his tattoo hidden under a bandage, but people still recognized him. Maybe it wasn't his face they knew—maybe it was his soul, so bright that no disguise could cover it.
The princess felt alive for the first time. The streets were alive with color and sound. The smell of roasted lamb mixed with fresh bread, honey cakes, and fried pastries. The joker bought her a stick of candied apples—shiny red, sticky and sweet. She bit into it clumsily, sugar smearing her lips. He laughed softly mocking her.
She shoved him, cheeks red, but kept eating happily. They shared hot bread filled with melted cheese and herbs, roasted chestnuts still warm in their shells, and a cup of spiced milk that made her giggle as she coughed from the sharpness. Everything tasted richer, freer, than in the castle—because it was real.
The joker took her to a rose shop, then by the lake where they tried fishing but only ended up laughing when she squealed at the slippery fish. Later, they stopped to watch a fire-breather. The princess clutched the joker's arm as flames burst into the air, her eyes shining with wonder.
He turned all of her dreams into reality even though it would have cost him his life he knew her happiness was more than that.
In the town square, children were playing. Skipping rope, tag, blindfold-find, tossing pebbles into circles drawn in the dirt. At first, the princess hesitated, but soon she joined. She laughed as she jumped the rope, stumbled while trying to tag others, and shrieked when the blindfolded joker caught her hand by chance. For a while, she was no longer a princess locked up in a tower—she was just a girl, alive and free, running barefoot in the dust.
While she played, the joker slipped away and bought a small something for her. He also reunited with old friends, who promised to keep the visit secret. The whole town seemed to conspire with them.
Evening turned into night, the bright day melting into a dark, star-filled sky.
The joker climbed a tree at the edge of town, and the princess sat in his lap, gazing upward.
"Thank you for everything," she whispered. "I can't thank you enough."
He only smiled and patted her head.
She played with his hands, her voice soft but steady. "Why don't we run away together?"
The joker's heartbeat quickened. Even the night seemed to surprised even the stars forgot about the moon and started to listen to her.
"Let's run away," she insisted. "We don't need this place. We don't need the castle or its gold. We could live in the woods… have three children. Two girls and a boy. What do you say?"
He stroked her hair and wrote carefully: I would love to spend every second of my life by your side. But it wouldn't be right for you. You're a princess, rich and royal. I'm just a clown who makes strangers laugh on the street.
Her eyes filled with tears. She grabbed his hands, forcing him to look at her.
"Please… don't make me go back to that prison. Please. Let's run away. I promise I'll make you happy, no matter what."
The joker hugged her tightly, hiding her tears from the world, stealing them all for himself.
She trembled as she spoke: "I was four when my mother died. My father… he's a heartless monster, obsessed with power and money. He married her only for her fortune, then drove her to madness until she took her own life. I was trapped in that castle like a bird in a cage. I was so alone for so long."
Her tears soaked through his clothes. She clung tighter.
"Then one day, you came. You gave me hope. But I was afraid… afraid you'd give me light and then leave me in the dark again. But instead, you pulled me out of my loneliness. You gave me life. You stole me from myself—you stole my heart."
They sat there in silence. Silence that felt louder than any words.
Finally, he lifted her gently and wrote: Let's go back. I'll make the arrangements. Once I find us a place to stay… we'll run away, just like you said.
Hand in hand, they returned to the castle. The same way they left unnoticed, they returned unnoticed.
But neither of them slept that night. The princess lay awake, her heart racing from the confession she had finally voiced. The joker, on the other hand, stayed awake with a new purpose—the responsibility of finding them a future together.
The night itself seemed more beautiful than ever. Maybe it was the air, maybe the stars, or maybe it was their love. A confession so bright that even the stars ignored the moon, whispering instead about the beauty of the princess.