In order for the princess ...

Copyright (c) 2020 by Randall R. Peterson ALL RIGHTS RESERVED This is a work of fiction. All persons, locations and actions are from the author's imagination or have been used in a fictitious manner.

In order for the

Princess

To have a happy ending … something

Bad must happen to …

The Frog

By R. Peterson

In the kingdom of Nodnol, which everyone but the stuffy old turkey-woman who ran the realm’s library called Nod, there lived a much-more-than-beautiful princess that rich and handsome suitor-princes came constantly to admire … and to court  with hope in their hearts.

One day the princess, whose name was Harper, because on the day she was born the king heard angels playing their instruments, was admiring her image in the castle moat when a diamond, from an expensive necklace she was wearing, fell into the murky water. “Drat! That stone was worth at least six kisses!” the princess moaned.

A frog who had been sitting in the shade under the drawbridge catching flies heard her cries and dove into the water. The frog searched through the mud until he found the diamond and then dropped it at the princess’ feet. “Really!” the princess laughed when the frog gazed at her with great expectations but she pressed her lips firmly together. “You may not even be a prince!”

Princess Harper called for her carriage and it arrived so quickly that when it left … a wheel ran over the frog’s leg and he was on crutches for a week!

-------2-------

The King and Queen decided that it was time for their daughter to be wed and they sent notices to every handsome prince and wealthy lord in the kingdom. Before long all the roads to Nodnol were filled with rumbling carriages, prancing horses and boys blowing trumpets to announce the arrival of each new guest. Of course a magnificent ball was planned and hundreds of suitors lined up to dance with the princess. By midnight the princess still had fifty dances written on her card and she was already exhausted. She tried to flee into the palace garden but the gate was locked. “Won’t someone help me?” she cried.

The frog who was catching flies next to the pond inside the garden heard her. He hopped over one of the walls and then stole a key from one of the palace guards. The frog gave the key to the princess. She unlocked the gate and once they were both inside, she locked the gate behind her.

The frog was delighted when the princess sat on a large, flat-rock near the water and began to sing. He was not musical at all but he croaked along with her under the moonlight and they both laughed. And they came close to kissing … but they didn’t.

-------3-------

The King and Queen were disappointed that their daughter had left the lavish party without choosing a soul mate … so they picked a husband for her. Prince Herman Gumtongue from Gorbalash, was tall and almost-handsome … but he had the intelligence of a rat eating its way through a library. The first time he met the princess he hung his head and looked at her shyly. He began to snort and then giggle. Soon he was crowing like a rooster. “I’ll be a kissin’ yaw every night,” he stammered. The princess burst into tears and then fled to her tower bedroom. She refused to come down while Herman prowled the castle looking for her.

The frog watched the whole sordid-affair from inside a large bowl that had been filled with tiny, tasty goldfish.  He hopped into Herman’s quarters when a servant left a door open and stole a piece of blank stationary with the royal crest of Corbalsh printed at the top. The frog penned an urgent message addressed to Herman, supposedly from his father. The note said he was needed at home immediately.

As soon as Prince Herman’s carriage rumbled across the drawbridge to take him home. The princess came down from the tower and she and the frog danced in the garden under the moonlight. She wore a white gown that shimmered each time she twirled and the frog rode on her shoulder.

Princess Harper was so happy she almost kissed him … but she didn’t.

-------4-------

A very powerful and wicked sorcerer who had come with the other suitors to court the princess was furious that he had not been chosen as her mate. While the entire castle was asleep, the horrible wizard, whose name was Briesmas, started a fire with his wand and then fled back to his dark-swamp fortress … riding and whipping a black horse.

When the subjects inside the castle finally awakened, the smoke from the many fires was chocking their lungs and burning their eyes.

The King and Queen tried to lead everyone to safety out the open front gate … but they found the entrance also was in flames.

-------5-------

The frog who had just been awakened from his very last dream was swimming in the moat when he heard the princess’ frantic cries. He knew he must save her. The frog leaped off the drawbridge over and over again filling his wide mouth with muddy water then spraying a pathway through the flames. When a way to escape the fire was finally clear, the King, Queen, and dozens of lords and ladies trampled the exhausted frog on their way to safety. The princess noticed her dearest friend at the last minute … and ran to save him. Heat from the fire had dried the path and the frog was quickly engulfed in flames. The last thing the princess saw was the everlasting love in the frog’s bulging eyes.

The King and Queen’s beautiful daughter refused to marry. She spent most of her days wandering through the beautiful garden inside her father’s castle grounds. A solid-gold statue had been carefully placed on a flat-rock at her request. It was near the shimmering pond and close to a constantly buzzing swarm of flies. Harper often cried, but sometimes she danced under the moonlight … and when she did something magic always made her smile. She never forgot that according to the laws of all fairy tales … in order for a princess to have a happy ending … something bad must happen to the frog. But Harper also knew, that a new and far-better fairy tale was often … just a story away.

The End ?