The Golden Castle

Once upon a time, a princess was born in a magnificent golden castle on a cloud, which, since our story is about a poor farmer’s family, really has nothing to do with anything, but that’s the best way to start a fairy tale.

The farmer and his wife had a daughter named Andi who was the joy of their world. One day, when Andi was fifteen, a terrible drought struck the land. It was blistering hot as Andi walked to the village, where she heard two girls bickering:

“These shoes look better on me!"

“Well, I found them first!”

But that wasn’t the important part of the conversation. The important part of the conversation was when one of the girls mentioned the Great Dragon Who Lives on the Mountain, and the rumors of her mystical powers. Andi herself had heard of the dragon’s powers. She decided to visit her.

“Umm…hello? Great Dragon Who Lives on the Mountain?” Andi called into the darkness.

“Fee fi fo fum…” growled the dragon. “Oh, forget it. What do you want?”

Andi explained her situation to the dragon, who agreed to provide her family with food at a price: Andi was to be her servant for five years. Andi thought of her starving parents and consented.

The dragon, whose name was actually Monica, kept her promise, and though Andi’s parents missed her, there was little they could do about it. It turned out that all Monica wanted was company. She gave Andi lessons in magic and told her tales of ancient history. One of these tales was of the evil witch who had turned Monica from a beautiful princess into a dragon.

Filled with indignation for her friend, Andi vowed to find the witch and get her to reverse her spell. She set on a quest to find Warthog Palace, the witch's home.

Andi had traveled for miles when she saw a group of winged monkeys. “Hi, could you tell me where Warthog Palace is? ” The monkeys advanced menacingly. “Hey, look!” Andi said. “Bananas!” She quickly made her escape.

Andi then came upon a magnificent sphinx. When Andi asked for directions, she replied, “I will help you only if you solve my riddle. If you guess incorrectly, I will attack. A rooster’s egg is on the top of a roof. Will it roll down the left side of the roof or the right side?”

“Umm…Left! No, right! Wait a minute! Roosters don’t lay eggs!”

“Very good.” The sphinx smiled and directed Andi towards her destination. She also gave her a bucket of water, saying mysteriously that when the time came, Andi would know how to use it.

As Andi neared the palace, she saw the witch waiting for her. “STOOOPPPP!" Andi screamed. The witch stopped, raising her eyebrows. Embarrassed, Andi said, "I have a bucket of water; I can make you melt,” upon which the witch suddenly broke into tears.

Utterly bemused, Andi tried to console her. Wailing, the witch told Andi her ugliness was the reason she was evil. No one had ever asked for her hand. In fact, no one had ever asked for any part of her body, and bitterness had infested her soul. She had tried to change her appearance, but casting spells on oneself was impossible.

Using her new magical skills, Andi turned the witch into a beautiful maiden. Ecstatic, the witch reversed her spell on Monica. Together, Andi, Monica and the witch used their magical powers to end the drought over the land. Monica, Andi and her parents lived together in a golden castle on a cloud, the witch married a handsome prince, and of course, they all lived happily ever after.