It was ages ago when I come across a short story in a collection of fantasy short stories. The book is entitled “The Best of Fantasy” or something like that…many authors (famous, I think…I was too young then) contribute to the collection, one being “The Blue Vase” or something like that…
I couldn’t find this book at the library who I borrowed it from ten years ago, so I guess I will have to ask for help…
In the collection, one of the story is based on a novel (or two) which the author wrote about. It is like a little sub-plot in the story. It’s about 2 brothers, both princes, who are on the run and raising popular support against the tryant of the land. One of the brother is of elf-kind (not actually as in LOTR"s definition of elf). They are called the “Sun Kings” are something like this. I remember the author is called Tracy something…but I couldn’t recall…
Defintely not Dragonlance. I might be wrong about the “Tracy” part (my memories are all jumbled up).
I try to say more about the short story in the book - the two princes seek refuge from a snowstorm in a simple farmhouse. The farmer let them stay but his son was not happy (The name is Wulf or something like that…?) because they don’t have enough provisions for themselves, let alone to entertain guests.
The two princes, however, have food with them which they share with the farmer’s family. Later that night, it seem that Death and his cohort was hunting and they will come by this family. So the two of them got out harps and play songs and feed the family so that despair could be driven away and Death will not visit.
When they were sleeping, Death visited and one of the prince (the one with elf-blood within him) confronted Death and struck a bargain (I forgot what it is) or drove him away because of his unique identity and authority. The farmer’s son saw all this.
Later, the farmer’s son, thinking all poor they all are but how rich those two strangers are, went to steal something from the two princes. The father woke up and stopped the son but the son was angry and struck out at the father. That was when one of them suddenly sprang up and restrain the son while saying something like “You can take my belongings, but you shall not strike your father”.
If I am thinking of the correct book, you can search here to possibly find the story. It only lists up to the year 2000, but you’d probably recognize the cover of the edition you read fairly easily. Clicking on the thumbnails will give you more details.
This sounds like The Silver Sun to me, by Nancy Springer. Hal and Alan are the main characters, Hal is the Prince of Isle (he is King of the Setting Sun) and Alan is the Lord of Laueroc (he is the King of the Rising Sun). The Silver Sun on Amazon.com–this is not the original cover. The copy I have (which I cannot find) has a picture of Hal and Alan and a horse on the front cover.
Other books in this series were The White Hart (about Hal’s ancester Bevan), The Sable Moon (about Alan’s son Trevyn) and The Golden Swan (about Trevyn’s son Dair).
The anthology that you read was Top Fantasy, edited by Josh Pachter. It contains the Nancy Springer story “Amends, A Tale of the Sun Kings,” which is set in the same word as the books mentioned by Kat in her post. Another story in the volume is “Blue Vase of Ghosts” by Tanith Lee. It also contains the story “The Smallest Dragonboy” by Anne McCaffrey.