A story for Daddy

Once upon a time, there was a little girl who lived with her mommy and daddy in the middle of a deep dark wood. Even though she was the only child in the forest, and so the only child she ever got to play with, she was not lonely. She had her chores and a little schooling to keep her mornings busy, and in the afternoon, she had her fairy friends to keep her company.

Now those who say there is no such things as fairies have never been alone in the woods, sitting quietly for long enough. Anyone who has sat quietly a long time in a deep and dark forest knows there are fairies. Who else makes the leaves dance, or the gather water in leaves, or make stump wells, or carve chairs out of the stones?

Now this little girl, never saw the fairies, and she never looked for them, because everyone knows that once you see a fairie, you change instantly. If the fairies don't like you, you are either struck dumb; but if they do, you become a fairy yourself. So the little girl instead of looking for them, would talk with them, and they would show her the secrets of the forest. That was how she found the squirrels nest with tiny babies in it. That was also how she found the spring that fed the stream that ran by her house. That was also how she found the cave.

The cave was not far from the little girl's house, but it was so well hidden that only a very adventurous person, or one led by fairies would find it. It was so well hidden because it was the place where the local dragon hid its hoard. The local dragon never bothered the little girls family because it thought they had nothing it wanted. However, it terrorized the nearby towns, but catching wheat fields on fire, then stealing everything of worth from the houses while the people were putting out the fire. Even worse, it would sit in the moat and boil the water so nobody could get in or out of the castle. It would not move until the queen herself threw in some of the royal treasury. Not only that, it would sneak into the dungeons, up through the castle and into the royal nurseries and frighten all the little princes and princesses out of their wits. It would then take the golden toys and trinkets back to its secret hoard in the deep dark woods.

Needless to say, the King was beside himself wondering what to do. Little did he know that the fairies were fond of this King because he didn't chop down their forest. Little did he know that the fairies had shown the little girl the dragons cave. Little did he know that his own son would slay the dragon.