Thread by @not_h8

#sangcheng #chengsang

Once upon a time a prince doll, he was meant to be part of a set with his princess, but fate had it and he was made alone, he sat in an antique shop, on the top shelf, dreaming a distant life he never had,

Longing to be complete.

One day an abandoned doll arrived into the antique shop, he sees the prince up in the top shelf, with a distant look on his face, of longing and loneliness. he feels for the prince and wishes to speak to him, maybe befriend him, maybe sooth both of their pains together,

But with a broken wrist and a wronged leg he cannot climb so high to get to the top shelf, so he hides away behind the decoration fan display to stare at him, wishing, dreaming to meet the lonely prince

Months pass, and one day a group of girls arrive at the shop to find something new, they pity the lonely prince who's so way up, no one wants a lonely prince.

The observe an touch the furniture and dolls, unheeding to the shopkeeper request to not touch, to be careful.

They find the abandoned doll,

"Is the shopkeeper mad? Why would he have a broken doll, look at it's leg it's moving all bad."

"Look at it's wrist, it's broken, it's useless."

"Put that ugly thing down, there's a new toy shop down the street we can find new prettier dolls!"

The girls left, but the prince had heard their words, is there a new doll in the shop? Why did he never notice? He should greet all dolls who arrive in his kingdom, at night he climbs down from the top shelf, on a quest to find them.

The abandoned doll sees the prince leaving his shelf and quickens to hide behind the fans display again,

It's exciting! It's new! But... Why would the prince climb down? Does he have any business today with his people? Oh how he longs to talk to the prince but...

If the prince would've come down before, he surly surly would've talked to him! Greet him pleasently and introduced himself properly..!

But...

He used to stare at him from afar for so long, he feels suddenly so embarrassed to approach

Would a charming elegant prince ever wish to talk to a broken and abandoned doll like him? What if the prince isn't lonely, but is too important to talk to people daily? What if he made him lonely in his head and is quite happy? Oh he cannot approach, not like this surly.

The prince searched high and low for a the new doll, and once he wasn't able to find them on their own he approached the jester on strings

"Hello jester"

"Your highness, nice of you to come down from your high shelf after so long, do you have a business with little old me?"

"I heard there's a new doll in the shop, I wish to greet them, do you know we're they are?"

"A new doll?" The jester laughed, "it depends what his highness considers new!"

"What do you mean?"

The clown smiled, "there are no new dolls in an antique shop your highness, you might get luckier in the toy store down the street"

The jester laughed at his own joke whilst the prince almost reddened with anger at the joke on his own expense

"you better be careful with your words clown," he sneered "I just might tie your stings an you'd spend all night fixing it"

The clown only laughed harder as the prince decided to leave, he doesn't need to deal with fools.

The prince meant to search for more clues, he came upon a drawing no doll he knows could've made, but the night was over, and he had to climb all the way to the highest shelf, to sit and wait for another day for a companion, a partner he never had.

Another day had passed, and the night came, the prince kept dreaming of adventures and joy, a voice woken him from his sleep, a song, he peered down from his shelf and saw unfamiliar sillouette dodging behind the shelves, he went to search, but was unable to find the bird song

He continued on, it must be the new doll, he reached the ballerina, who was dancing a wonderful ballet, but with no music

"Ballerina, why do you dance with no music?"

The ballerina bows mid dance to the prince, and continued with her elegant moves "your highness," she greeted

"my music box broke, it's being fixed by the storekeeper, so I dance with no tune."

The prince was puzzled "was the song I heard yours?"

"No, your highness, it was the new doll's! They offered their help and gave me a tune for my music!" She gleefully shared

"so you have seen the new doll?" he inquired

"Yes, briefly in midst of my dance, I saw a glimpse of a beautiful face of a kind hearted doll, my heart had warmed and my pace picked I will replay the song at heart as I prepare for my show"

"Have you seen where the doll went?"

"no, but maybe another might know, I barely keep track of movement of others as I turn." The ballerina kept dancing and the prince went, in his search for the new doll.

Another day comes and goes, he reaches the porcelain doll figurines,

"hello prince" the dolls giggle in joy of seeing the prince

He scoffed and crossed his arms "hello," he didn't manage to ask his question before one interrupted

"we know you look for the new doll, but she's broken and ugly, she limps and hides away in shame, she's not worth your time." The prince frowned at those words, he didn't mind for beauty, and if the doll limps he can help them surely! but before he could say so another talked,

"she was abandoned you see, and for a reason for sure, no one leaves a doll on the streets unless she's not good enough, so for you to waste your time on her, is pointless there are much better companions for a prince like you." Their friend giggled and joined "like us!"

The prince thundered with anger, such ugly words and attitude towards artistic and kind doll, they barely even know! All those ugly rumors like this bring his anger to a boiling point.

"You better shut your mouth and never talk like so."

"Why? She's a broken doll anyways"

The porcelain dolls laughed, clearly not realizing they angered the prince

"never speak like that of another, I decide whom I shall befriend, if you dare speak like that again I will push you from the shelf you stand on, maybe the shopkeeper will glue you backwards!"

The porcelain dolls yelled in protest and cried at the angry prince, they weren't happy with him at all, he was no fun!

One pointed at the fan display shelf "your ugly princess is hiding behind the fans, now leave, you are not welcome on our gentle and delicate shelf anymore!"

The prince left, but not before shaking the shelf to scare the mean porcelain dolls from behaving the way they do, there's no gentleness and beauty in badmouthing another for appearence and for being a little broken!

When the prince finished climbing he saw silky brown hair and the most beautiful gem eyes he ever saw, but the rest of the doll hid behind the fans, they didn't move, as if it was midday and the store was open,

The prince took a step forward, heard a squeak and the doll hid.

He coughed, embarrassed, "are you the new doll?"

He saw the sillouette behind the fan move a little but stays silent

For some reason it made him snort, "I can see you behind the fan still you know. Why are you hiding? Am I scary?"

He saw hair and an eye again, "of course not your highness! It's just that, well.." the doll delayed

"Well?" He promoted

"I'm not presentable today, so I can't meet his highness!!"

The prince tried to keep his laugh in

"so are you not wearing anything?"

The doll squawked, a cheek reddening "of course not!!! I'm not just going around naked, I am not completely shameless your highness!!"

"So why are you not presentable? Are your clothes dirty? Unfit for wear? Is your hair tangled?"

"of course not!!! My clothes are perfectly fine, and I brush my hair daily, I wouldn't want to look messy!"

"then you are presentable, come here, I won't bite you, at least not because of silly things like this."

The doll thought for a moment, then he walked out, it's rather silly really to hide in embarrassment especially if the prince came all this way to look for him.

The prince was stunned, the doll was beautiful, no princess, but as beautiful as one.

The doll's limp and broken wrist rather than making them look ugly makes them look delicate, and the prince found it very princess like.

He decided.

"I will be your prince! So you may call me Jiang Cheng, but you must promise me to let me protect you, and let me be your companion!"

The doll was surprised at the bold declaration

"my prince? Why would you be a prince of a broken doll like me?"

Jiang Cheng pointed his finger at the doll's face,

"because you're pretty and delicate you're artistic and have a good voice, so of course you are supposed to be a companion of a prince, and I'm the best fit for the role, I'm strong and I can protect you!"

"You don't think I'm not good enough? I can't climb too high, and walking tires me easily, I can't fight well, I may paint and sing and write, but I can't do much else"

"so I will princess carry you anywhere, and I will fight your fights, I will listen to your song and admire your art, so come, I will not ask again." Jiang Cheng offered his hand

The doll thought for a moment, "my name is Nie Huaisang," he replied and took the prince's hand

Once upon a time, in a small antique shop a doll prince sat on the highest shelf, not alone, with a companion, not a princess -yet a beautiful doll, who's a little broken, and a little limping, but regardless, they looked just right together in their kingdom.

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