Once upon a time

Once upon a time, in a faraway land, a young Prince lived with his Princess in a shining castle.

Although he had everything his heart desired, the Prince was tired, cranky, and ready to snap. 

But then, one summer's night, an old woman rang the Prince and offered him 2 weeks away from work in return for 2 weeks of unpaid carer's leave.

Repulsed by her shocking offer, the Prince sneered at the idea and turned the old woman away. But she warned him not to be deceived by unpaid carer's leave, for two weeks away from work is still 2 weeks away from work. And when he said he would think about it, the old woman's gentile demeanor melted away to reveal a raging octogenarian.

The Prince tried to apologise, but it was too late, for she had seen that there was no love in his heart. And as punishment, she invited his older and less popular brother to visit, cursing the Prince to regret his decision.

Ashamed of his thoughtlessness, the Prince concealed himself inside his castle, with a mobile phone connected to the internet as his only screen to the outside world. The choice she had offered was truly an enchanted one and would last until the end of 2019. If he could request 2 weeks' leave, and have it accepted, he would earn her love and the spell would be broken. If not, he would be doomed to have a raging nonagenarian beast call him once a week for all time.

As the days passed, he fell into despair and lost all hope. For who could ever approve 2 week's leave, at such short notice, so close to Christmas?