- Harry AnderS -
Dutch psychotherapist and alternative writer

'Born to be a King'
- by Harry AnderS -

An inspirational fantasy

http://www.harryanders.com
harry@harryanders.com

    A retired psychotherapist meets a severely burnt little Gypsy boy, and takes him into his house.
The boy turns out to be the Heir to the Throne.
This emotional rollercoaster hints at past lives, spirit helpers, karma, the Power of Love, and contains several practical psychological concepts.
The story is written by a retired Dutch psychotherapist, living in The Netherlands, and specialized in supporting troubled children.

Chapter 14 ended with:

    I switched the lights off, and we crawled under the blankets.
Davey trustfully wormed himself into my arms, and fell asleep with a deep sigh of content.

    I couldn't sleep for a long time, and felt all worked up...
Every time I closed my eyes, I saw that beast... tearing his own son open in frustration, because his little butt hole was too tight for that big penis...
At last, I started to doze away.

    The door opened, and a small figure approached our bed.
He tried to crawl into it, felt Davey, walked around, and crawled onto my stomach with his nose in my left armpit and his arms around my neck.
Little Harry heaved a deep sigh, and fell asleep in his usual place.
The door opened again.
Another figure tried to crawl into the bed, felt Davey, walked around, and John melted against my other side with a deep sigh.

    I LOVE my boys.
I think I'm in love with all three of them!

Chapter 15. Harold Janovski Romani, my Gypsy prince, born to be a King.

    "Wakey wakey, rise and shine..." a joyful voice sounded into my ear.

    I yawned, stretched out, and lazily opened my eyes.
Still blinking, I stared into three pairs of eyes, belonging to three grinning boys, competing for the best place on my stomach.
Of course, my poor stomach wasn't big enough for all three of them...
Little Harry was squeezed in the middle, while John and Davey both tried not to fall off.
I put my arms around the huddle and held them close, marveling in the nice feeling of being together and loving each other.
    That is, until John's stomach started to rumble, and he chuckled:

    "What do you have for breakfast?"

    "I thought YOU would bring me breakfast in bed today?"

    "Who told you that?"

    "Again a disappointment..."

    "Come on, boys! Let's go downstairs."

    They left the bed and descended the stairs, leaving me alone in my big bed.
I drifted off again, smiling, and being hopelessly in love with my boys...

    I woke up to a delicious aroma caressing my nostrils.
Three proud looking boys with beaming faces entered my bedroom.
They carried a tray; filled with plates, a pile of toast, a pan with something hot that looked like greenish scrambled eggs, three glasses of milk, and a coffee pot.
They climbed onto my waterbed, and tried to find a cozy place next to me...

    "Look out! You are moving too much!" John warned, trying to keep the tray horizontal.

    Some of the milk spilled, but who cares?
All of us took a plate and some cutlery, and smeared a slice of buttered toast with what I assumed was another creation of our little cookie's cooking.
I couldn't determine what was in it, but it tasted wonderful; slightly outlandish, with a hint of onions and something indefinable but really delicious.
Eating dogs don't bark, and so all of us were eating in silence, savoring the tasty meal and licking our fingers.

    Too soon, all of the toast was gone, and Davey scraped the pan for the last crumbs.
The boys sipped their milk, while I sipped my second cup of coffee.
    Little Harry looked at me intently, making me think he could have brewed my coffee...

    "I didn't know you could brew real coffee. It tastes even better than when I'm making it myself!"

    He beamed at the compliment, and smiled from ear to ear.

    The alarm clock went off; reminding us of the forthcoming visits around ten o'clock...
John pushed the knob to silence the sound; and we left our bed.
We donned our neatest clothes; and went downstairs, while John helpfully carried the remains of our meal.
Davey helped John do the dishes; and little Harry attached his mask to his face with a little help from me.
We went to the living room, and sat down in anticipation of our upcoming visit...

    I was a bit nervous, and couldn't sit still.
Would those Romany Gypsies try to take their little Prince home?
How would little Harry react, if they asked him to join them?
Would he refuse, and decide to stay with me?
They were five to one (well... to one and three halves)...
I decided to hope for the best...

    At a quarter to ten, a big van arrived and parked along our driveway.
Another car parked behind the van, and our lawyer left it and hurried to our front door.
The big van opened, and three men and two women descended one by one.
All of them were dressed in beautiful foreign clothes with strange colors.
They looked around curiously, and approached our front door...

    Our lawyer spoke a couple of words to what I assumed was their interpreter.
The interpreter turned around, spoke a few words to the others, and all of them followed him to our house.
Little Harry and John hurried to the front door, to open it and let them in...

    John entered our living room first, turned around, and beckoned the others to follow him.
Our lawyer, three other men, a young woman, and an older woman carrying a sobbing little Harry, entered our living room and looked around with curious eyes.

    "Welcome into our humble home!" I greeted them, pointing to the circle of chairs.
    "Please, sit down, and maybe I could offer you a cup of coffee or tea?"

    One of the men turned around, and translated my words into the foreign language.
One by one, all the men approached me and performed a deep bow.
They told me their names, touched my outstretched hand, and took a chair.
The young woman didn't touch my hand but stared into my eyes, making me shiver with the intensity of her look.
She looked right into my soul, nodded, and took the next chair.

    The older woman approached me, put little Harry down, and warmly embraced me.
She told me a couple of words I didn't understand, and I looked questioningly at little Harry...

    "That's my grandma, Dad. I recognized her immediately. She is sort of a Queen, the mother of my father. She tells you she blesses you, and she thanks you for helping me to grow up...
    "This man is my uncle, the youngest brother of my father. The man over there is our photographer, and I think he wants to take a couple of pictures to show them at home. The other man is our translator, and he's helping us to understand each other. The other woman is... what's the right word? We are calling her our Wise Woman, and she can look into your soul and tell who you really are. She can talk with our ancestors, and she's always giving advice to our people."

    The interpreter translated little Harry's words, and all of them nodded.

    John and Davey entered the room, carrying a tray full of cups, a pot of coffee, a pot of tea, and a cookie jar.
Soon, everybody was drinking coffee or tea and eating cookies.
Now and then, one of them looked at their little Prince, and I could feel their respect and love.

    Little Harry crawled onto my lap and possessively leaned into me.
I could feel his little heart, beating a bit faster than normal. Obviously, he was just as tense as I was....
What would happen to him? What did they expect from him? Would they try to take him 'home'?
He placed his hands firmly onto mine, thus preventing my arms from opening up and letting him go...
I was happy that he wanted to be with me, and sent him my love.
That seemed to calm him down.

    Little Harry's uncle started to speak, translated by the interpreter.

    He told us how, two years ago, a detachment of police officers raided their camp, looking for their Leader, accusing him of robbery and murder.
They distracted the police, while their Leader and his family headed for their hidden caravan, already attached to a car in the woods.
They escaped to a foreign country, promising to return after the turmoil had calmed down...
Their Leader was guiltless; but he had the bad luck to resemble some dark haired murderer, seen in the company of a white-haired little boy; and the gadjo's wanted to have a scapegoat.

    After a few months, their Wise Woman sorrowfully told them she had contacted the spirits of their Leader and his Wife, who had both departed this life.
She couldn't contact their little son, the six-year-old Heir to the Throne, Prince Harold Janovski Romani. She was sure he was still alive, but didn't know where he was living now...
Until yesterday, everybody had been mourning about their beloved King and Queen; and praying for their little Prince to be able to find his way back.
They couldn't crown another Leader as long as their real Heir to the Throne was alive, so they had to wait until he showed up...
 
    They waited until yesterday; when, out of the blue, a foreign lawyer faxed them and asked them about a little Gypsy boy called Harold Romani...
Their substitute Leader and little Harry's godfather, Michail, immediately phoned me and had a conversation with the boy; to be sure he was their own little Prince Harold.
The same afternoon, they took off to our country with the first private aircraft they were able to charter...

    Silence fell over the room.
Little Harry looked at his own people, wide-eyed, and started to sob.
    He looked at me, and sniffled:

    "Sniff... I didn't know that they loved me THAT much..."

    The interpreter translated little Harry's words, having tears in his own eyes.
Many others took their handkerchiefs, and wiped their eyes as well...

    Suddenly, the Wise Woman turned towards me, and stared into my eyes.
I felt her eyes piercing into my soul, seeing through me and looking for the bare essence of my inner self.
    She nodded; and started to speak, translated by the interpreter:

    "We all greet you, once our Beloved Leader; and we offer you our sincere loyalty."

    Huh? Did I hear that correctly?
What did that interpreter try to tell me now? I should have been their Beloved Leader?
This had to be a mistake... I clearly must have misunderstood him!
I asked the interpreter for clarification...

    He translated my question to the Wise Woman, but she shook her head and started to speak again:

    "Once, you were our Beloved Leader. In that life, you had two sons and three daughters. Your oldest son became our new Leader, after some gadjo murdered you. After your oldest son died, his oldest son, Janov, became our new Leader; and he is the father of our little Prince Harold...
    "You certainly are one of us, being the Great Grandfather of our little Prince Harold Janovski Romani, and we all greet you and offer you our sincere loyalty."

    All the people rose from their chairs, performed a deep bow, and confirmed their loyalty to me, once their Beloved King...

    I was totally speechless, and didn't believe a word of what that Wise Woman told me!
I didn't remember anything about being a King... and I was sure they were making a tremendous mistake!
I was nothing but a retired psychotherapist who wanted to be left alone in peace, and certainly not their Beloved Leader...

    "I am sorry, but I think you are making an enormous mistake! I am not a Gypsy or Romany, and I am certainly not your Leader!"

    The Wise Woman beckoned me to her chair, and told me to kneel down...
Suddenly, I knew exactly what I was supposed to do. Don't ask me how...
Little Harry seemed to know what was happening too, because he left me and silently climbed onto John's lap.

    I went to the Wise Woman, sank onto my knees, and bowed my head.
The Wise Woman put one hand between my eyes, and the other hand at the back of my head.
She closed her eyes, and started to hum monotonously...
Immediately, I felt totally calm and at ease, while a powerful energy engulfed me.
I was sure I had used that same power myself many times, to help other people remember their past lives. Maybe I had once been a Wise Man myself...
I closed my eyes, let myself go, and waited...

    The humming intensified, and everything became a blur.
My consciousness left my brain, and it traveled back along my timeline...
Several memories passed by, until I stopped in my trapper life and recognized my son, who was now 'little Harry', and our best friend, who was now 'John'.
The humming changed, and I left those memories and traveled even further back...
I stopped again, now sitting in the middle of a huge crowd around a big campfire.
I WAS their beloved leader...

    I was their uncrowned King, their Leader, sitting amidst my own people; but, at the same time, I looked at myself from a distance...
I saw a huge and impressive man, having a small boy on his lap of around seven or eight years old.
Another small boy, of around ten years old, proudly leaned against his side.
Three small girls were fighting for the best place on his wife's lap.
All children were naked and browned by the sun with a beautiful golden tan.

    Suddenly, I was very surprised... JOSHIE?
That small boy on my lap was my little brother, Joshie!
My little brother, who returned to the earth as 'Jack' and was John's real father, was actually once my youngest son...
I also recognized my youngest daughter, who now was 'Mary', Davey's mother...
My oldest daughter was today 'Trudy', John's mother...
I was sure my middle daughter was now little Harry's own mother, 'Maria', coming from a Northern country...
I looked at my oldest son, the Heir to the Throne; and a name entered my mind: 'Nicky'.
Who could that boy, 'Nicky', be? I didn't recognize him...

    Another small boy approached us and climbed onto my lap; next to my youngest son, Joshie, who returned as Jack...
My heart jumped up with joy when I recognized JOHN!
Jack and John were once soul mates; when Jack was my youngest son and I was the beloved Leader of my own Gypsy people!
They were inseparable, were always together, and had lots of fun being naughty, even after they became grown-ups...

    Now John's father showed up. He embraced me, and proudly ruffled John's hair...
My heart leapt up in my chest with pure joy, because I immediately recognized my soul mate, LITTLE HARRY.
Little Harry was once my very best friend, and the vice-Leader of our Gypsy people, and John's father...
No wonder John was so fond of him, and always ready to defend him with his own life!

    Our vice-leader had a younger brother, and now I recognized DAVEY!
Davey was once little Harry's younger brother...
No wonder they were befriended again!

    The humming faded away, and everything was a blur while I returned along my timeline.
Trembling all over, I found myself back in my living room, still kneeling, with my head slumped down on the floor.
I tried to get up, and finally succeeded to look around, squinting...
Little Harry sat next to me, and carefully wiped my sweaty forehead with a tissue.
    He handed me a glass of water, looking a bit worried:

    "Feeling better now, Dad?"

    I nodded, still being unable to utter a word.
I gulped down the water, and that helped. The trembling stopped, and I was able to take my little soul mate into my arms.
He smiled, and melted into me with a reassured face.
My soul mate; once our vice-King, and John's father, and Davey's older brother...

    I was curious about who 'Nicky' would be...
So far, I had recognized all the people from my past lives, except for 'Nicky'...
Would I meet him as well, in this life, just like all the others who were brought to me?

    I got up, put little Harry down onto my empty chair, and went to the toilet.
When I returned in the living room, little Harry was talking to his Grandma and to the Wise Woman.
    He translated everything to John and Davey:

    "When Dad was our Leader, he had two sons. The Wise Woman tells me that his oldest son is now living somewhere close by, and his name sounds like 'Nicky'...
    "Dad's youngest son returned to the earth as his own little brother, Joshie. After Joshie died, he returned to this village as my Big Friend, Jack...
    "Dad's youngest son had a soul mate, who returned to the earth as 'John'. Jack and John were once soul mates, and now they are father and son...
    "Dad also had three daughters; and all of them returned to the earth as well. Now they are John's mother, Davey's mother, and my mother...
    "In that life, Davey and I were brothers. No wonder that in this life we are feeling like brothers again, and that he is such a good friend...
    "Dad and I were soul mates, and we were always together. I was our vice-leader; and I got one son, who now is my big brother, John. Once, I was John's Dad...

    Little Harry grinned, and got a naughty look in his eyes:

    "So, John, I expect you to be a good son, and to do what I'm telling you! Now get us another cup of tea and some cookies from the kitchen..."

    All of us started to laugh, and that cleared the air.
We were able to breathe again, after listening to all those revelations!
John and Davey obeyed and went to the kitchen; where they started to rummage with the cups.
Soon, they returned with tea, coffee, and more cookies.

    John was still looking surprised, and muttered:

    "It's really unbelievable! All of us are related to each other..."

    Little Harry frowned, and thought aloud:

    "Maybe, that's the meaning of the term 'soul mate'... You meet each other, and your soul already knows that once you were mates..."

    The Wise Woman looked at little Harry and asked, translated by the interpreter:

    "Please, tell us what happened to your face... You are looking quite different from what I'm remembering..."

    Now, little Harry told them everything; speaking his own language, translated towards us by the interpreter:

    He told them about their caravan being set on fire, about Jack paying the hospital and everything else, about living with John's family but in reality living in Jack's house.
He told them about everybody calling him a 'freak' and an 'alien', and about his sneaking to the neighbors in the dark or via the backyards.
With tears in his eyes, he told them about Jack's sudden death, about a stranger living in Jack's former house; and how he was afraid of the stranger and ran away...
Now he is calling the stranger 'Dad', and he loves him dearly. 'Dad' is buying everything for him: his clothes, his new desk, and his mask to hide his scars.
With a proud face, he told them about our psychic medium Christian; and what that medium had told us about our past lives.
He told them about the appointment with a transplant clinic, and that he hoped to get a nice new face within a few days!

    "Dad, will you help me peel my mask off? I want them to see my scars..."

    I helped him peel his mask off; and, without any shame, he turned around and showed them his so devastated face:

    "This is me, after our caravan was set on fire. Since that time, I am your Prince Freaky Alien..."

    Mouths opened and closed, eyes bulged, and breaths halted in sudden shock...
None of them had expected to see their little Prince with such a devastated face...
Everybody needed at least some time to get used to the terrible sight.
Then, all of them started to blow their noses, and talk at the same time.
Finally, little Harry's grandma rose from her chair, and everybody went silent.

    She told us they were very pleased that I wanted to take their little prince under my wings and educate him until he would be old enough to take care of himself.
They were very poor, and couldn't afford any expensive operations or skin grafts to help him properly.
My lawyer had faxed them all the data they needed, and they had already put their heads together to decide what they should do...
In unison, they had decided to grant me full custody over their little prince, until he would be old enough to claim his leadership.
Now they wanted to hand me all the papers regarding their Heir to the Throne, Prince Harold Janovski Romani, allowing me to adopt him as my own son...

    The secretary handed little Harry's grandmother a bundle of papers.
She took the bundle in both hands, bowed, and handed it to me...
I took the bundle, using both hands, bowed, and politely thanked her.
What should I do now? I didn't know anything about Romany decorum...
    I turned towards my little soul mate:

    "Is it polite to hand those papers to my lawyer, or what else shall I do now?"

    Little Harry laughed, took the papers out of my hands, and handed them to my lawyer.
Case dismissed...
    My lawyer accepted the papers, glanced at them, and his eyes grew big:

    "They have already translated everything into our language! Everything needed is in here, even the correct Rumanian seals from the authorities. Harold Janovski Romani IS in your custody since yesterday evening; and he will remain under your guardianship until he is eighteen years old!"

    "YIPPEE!" little Harry shouted at the tops of his lungs,
    "Now nobody can ever take me away from you, Dad! You and I will always be together. I am sooo happy!"

    He started to sob and laugh at the same time, grinning like crazy.
He kissed me wherever he could touch me, and soon my face was wet with his and my tears of joy.
From now on, he really and legally was my own son!

    After a moment, John and Davey claimed their share of the joy.
All of us cuddled together, embracing each other, and everybody's eyes were wet.
My dream had turned into reality.
I had a SON.

    After quite a while, little Harry thanked our visitors one by one.
He embraced them, and told them he would be back in his own country after he turned eighteen.
Most of them had tears in their eyes, and I could feel their love and compassion, radiating towards their little Prince.
Little Harry went to his grandma, and she took him onto her lap.
    They had some small talk, and suddenly little Harry started to beam:

    "Dad, all of you are invited to visit our people in Rumania! We will have a ceremony, to adopt you as Romany gypsies. You will have your own caravan in our clan, and you will be our honorary King until I am old enough to be the new Leader. Both John and Davey will be honorary Gypsy noblemen for the rest of their lives. When are we going?"

    Again, I felt overwhelmed by emotions...
When are we going?
The resilience of youth...

    "Please, tell your Grandma that I am very honored by her invitation; but let's first visit that transplant clinic and try to mend your face..."

    "Okay, Dad, that's what I want as well. But, after that, we have to go! I want to show you our mountains and woods. Promise?"

    "Yes, I promise."

    Little Harry talked to his Grandma again, and both of them seemed to be very pleased with my decision.

    We ordered pizzas, and our visitors really liked them.
After the pizzas were eaten, the photographer started to take a couple of pictures of all of us, alone and together.
Little Harry had to put his mask on, and the photographer took the next series of pictures.
We went into our backyard, and our little cookie proudly showed off his herb garden.
Everything was photographed, even little Harry peeking through the bushes in the corner and running away when he saw me waving...

    Finally, our visitors had to go home.
We said our farewells, and again we promised to visit Rumania as soon as little Harry had got his new face.
Until that time, we would keep in touch by email or by fax.
Everyone embraced everybody, even our lawyer who acted a little bit shy.
The big van arrived exactly on time; and, a minute later, our visitors were gone...

    Suddenly, our house was dead silent.
Still under the spell of the events, we cleaned up the leftovers and washed the cutlery.
The boys put the folding chairs back into the hallway closet.
I stored our precious legal papers safely away.
We rearranged the furniture, and put the dinner table back into its place.
Finally, we slumped down onto our couch, feeling very tired but happy.

************************************************************************************************************

Thank you for reading the next chapter of my emotional rollercoaster 'Born to be a King'.
Enjoy the reading, and help us make our world to be a better place!

Have a look at my OTHER story, about the same little Gypsy boy growing up in a secluded place in the Rumanian mountains; this time seen from his own point of view. You may click this link.
The other story is on Nifty in 'young-friends', and is callled: 'Born as a Prince'...

All my stories are on my own homepage as well: http://www.harryanders.com

I would LOVE to receive your comments.
Please, write me an email now and then...
Harry AnderS, Dutch psychotherapist and alternative writer.

harry@harryanders.com
http://www.harryanders.com