The Princess Who Never Smile

Once upon a time, in a faraway land, lived a princess who refused to smile. Never once, as far back as anyone could remember, had she ever curved her lips in pleasure. Her father, the King, offered a chest of gold coins to whomever could bring a grin to her face. Jesters, in their rainbowcolored outfits with bells jingling, came from far and wide to perform their jokes and antics. People of royalty brought sparkling gems to make her smile. Even the poor village folk presented their most precious treasures to offer as gifts, but the princess remained ever grim. Finally, the Kingdoms Sorcerer decided to give it a try. Surely a magic act would bring a smile to the Princess's face. He arrived in his flowing black cloak and pointed hat with clouds of smoke encircling him like snakes. Bowing to the King, Queen, and Princess, he jiggled his wand and a bolt of lightning appeared in mid air, followed with a pop by a treasure chest, which floated downward to the floor, landing with a soft thud. With a snap of his long, elegant fingers, the lid sprung open, and colored balls, shiny toys, and books of all kinds spilled out onto the castle floor. "Surely my Princess will smile at these gifts," the Sorcerer said. The Princess stood and walked to the chest. Studying the contents, she nudged a few items on the floor with her slipper, and sighed. She returned to her throne, unaffected by the treasure chest. "You do not smile at my gifts," the Sorcerer roared. "They are magic!" Shaking her head back and forth, she answered, "I see nothing to smile about." Outraged, the King stood and faced his daughter, "You are a spoiled brat, and I am sick of your behavior!" He stormed from the room, and the Queen jumped from her throne and lifted her skirts to rush after him. The Princess remained in place, unaffected by her parents' tumultuous exit. The Sorcerer studied the girl without speaking. With a moan, he paced back and forth, stopping now and then to gaze at the Princess. Finally, he turned on his heel, stiffened and jiggled his wand. POOF! To the amazement of all assembled, the Sorcerer and the Princess disappeared. The Princess zoomed through a vast tunnel filled with green smoke and fast-running breezes until finally with a plop, she landed in a cold, stark room all by herself. A bed was shoved in the corner, and a rustic wooden table with one lonely chair sat in the middle of the room. A tiny window was perched high on the opposite wall. POOF! In a puff of gray smoke, the Sorcerer appeared. He scrutinized the Princess with a glint in his eye. "Hello, my Princess. I hope you find your accommodations adequate." "What? You mean this dungeon? I think not. What am I doing here anyway?" "My dear Princess, I'm tired of you distressing my friend, the King. I'm going to keep you here until you learn to smile." "You can't do that....er, or can you?" the Princess asked. "Makes no difference to me, anyway. I'm not happy and I'm not going to smile."

"Suit yourself!" With that remark, the Sorcerer disappeared in the gray smoke. The Princess sighed and took a seat at the ratty old table. AAAAAARRRRRRR! A roar outside the window startled the Princess. With knees knocking, she crept over and peeked out. "Oooooh!" she murmured. A dragon paced back and forth outside the window. As large as a castle, its shiny green skin had an eerie luminescence that made it glow. It had lively brown eyes, and when it opened its mouth, she could see a fiery orange tongue. The dragon looked toward her and stiffened. Opening its mouth, it roared and shot out a monstrous red fire that whished toward the window. "OOOOH!" The Princess jumped back as the heat from the flame warmed her face. "I guess it wouldn't be easy to sneak out of here," she murmured. She never went near the window again, although she heard the dragon roar every day. The Princess led a lonely existence. If only she would smile, the Sorcerer would let her go free, but she intended to smile only when it felt right, and by golly, she wasn't happy, so that was that. The Sorcerer sent in servants with food and water twice a day, but the Princess was miserable with those women. After a while, they refused to serve her, merely handing in the plates and pitchers through an opening in the door. This left the Princess alone and unhappy. To her surprise, she missed companionship. Frequently, she talked to herself, since there was no one else. After several months of this, she found it gave her little comfort. One day, as she heard the dragon roar, she inched to the window and peered out. The creature, still chained outside, was swishing its mighty tail back and forth while looking her way. "I am so lonely," the Princess murmured. "I could even talk to that disgusting animal." "So why don't you?" Wide-eyed, the Princess looked around. No one was in the room with her. She directed her gaze to the dragon and he spoke. "I suppose you are surprised that I can talk. "I should think so. No one told me you could speak." "You didn't ask." The Princess found the dragon to be a good conversationalist and she spent most afternoons engrossed in lively discussions with him. Alas, though, she never smiled. One day, a roar from outside the window awakened the Princess. She rushed to the opening and looked out. "I'm glad you're there. I've got a thorn in my foot," the Dragon said. "Look here." He raised his monster foot to the window so the Princess could see a thorn lodged between his toes. "Yuck, I don't usually touch reptilesanimals, you see," the Princess stammered. The dragon

returned her gaze with pain-filled eyes as a tear glistened down his cheek. Touched, the Princess braced herself and reached out the window to her friend. She grabbed hold of the thorn, and with a quick tug pulled the awful thing out. A look of relief passed over the dinosaur's face. "Thank you," he murmured. "You're welcome, my friend," the Princess replied. The most amazing thing happened--a brilliant smile appeared on her face. With a flash, the Princess found herself in the windy tunnel again, speeding along to parts unknown. Before she had time to think, she arrived with a plop, back in her Father's castle, just as she had left it. Stunned she looked around. Nothing had changed. The people were assembled. The Sorcerer stood before her, and her parents had already left. One thing, however, was different--the Princess was smiling. The Sorcerer returned her grin with one of equal sparkle and turned to make an announcement. "The Princess has smiled, and my work here is done. I have just have one other matter to tend to. I would like to present my nephew, the Prince of Dragn." With a swish of the Sorcerers wand, the boy emerged from the crowd and approached the Princess. His familiar brown eyes spoke to her, and she knew it was her friend from the other world, changed from a dragon to a prince. Her smile shone brighter still. "Now that the Princess can smile, she will find the happiness of friendship will keep that sunshine on her face," the Sorcerer announced. He nodded to the two before disappearing in a cloud of gray smoke. And the Princess smiled forevermore.