Fear of Dragons

Once upon a time a young girl in a small village fell in love with a boy. It was a pure love, and a true love, and it thrilled her and scared her at the same time. It was giddy and new and made her feel special and important and valued. Over time the girl grew selfish, and vain, and proud and thought of herself more as a “princess,” and thought of the boy as less of a “prince.” As time went on she did and said mean, hurtful, spiteful things to the boy she loved most in an attempt to make herself feel powerful, and through her actions destroyed the love that she had once valued so.

The girl who was pretty and smart met many Princes, most of whom turned to frogs when she kissed them, and eventually she married a Prince with a big castle and many horses and much power. The girl, who WAS now a Princess had everything that she had ever imagine that she wanted, and she was glad for it, because she took pride in her accomplishment.

Days turned to weeks, which turned to months, which led to years and time passed, and as time is often wont to do it changed everything. The Princess grew into a Queen. It wasn’t easy being Queen and quite often she felt out of place in her own castle, but once she had a daughter her Princess filled her days with laughter and joy, and for the most part, she was happy.

More time passed, and the new Princess grew into a Woman herself. The Queen was so proud of her daughter, but saw that her great beauty at times made her treat others around her with less than kindness.

As the Princess became older the King began introducing Princes from other kingdoms in hopes that she would find one to marry. Many of the Princes had done great things – they had conquered other kingdoms, they had sailed over oceans, they had slayed fire-breathing dragons. They were great men in a world of lesser men, but The Queen worried about her daughter and the decisions she would make. The Queen had often thought of the boy she had loved, and regrettably, of her selfish actions, and she feared that the Princess might make the same mistakes.

One day the sky turned a hazy grey, and a Dragon from a faraway mountain descended upon the Palace and attempted to lay siege on the kingdom. He was a fierce dragon with piercing eyes and dangerous claws, and all of the visiting Princes suited up in their armor and grabbed their swords in an attempt to defend the kingdom they all hoped to marry into. The Princess – never one to shy away from a fight begged her mother to allow her to bear arms as well, and though the Queen knew the dangers she wanted nothing more than her daughter's happiness and reluctantly allowed her go with them.

The Princess' presence on the battlefield was not lost on the princes, and in their vanity, they made foolish mistakes when trying to defeat the dragon. One by one the great beast ate the young men until no one remained except for the Princess who was too shaken and scared by what she had witnessed to do anything but stare fearfully into the dragons' eyes. As she closed her eyes preparing and accepting that inevitably she too would make her way into the belly of the beast a great howl filled the air, and she opened her eyes to see a servant boy standing, holding a blood-stained sword that he had rescued form a fallen Prince and plunged deep into the dragons' heart, thereby saving the Princesses life.

She was forever grateful, and since the King would not consent to her marrying her “prince” she left the kingdom with her mother's blessing to live a quiet life in the country away from the Kingdom, and the fear of dragons.