6-70. The Frog Prince

Once upon a time, there lived a king with a beautiful daughter. She liked to play with her golden ball by the pond near the forest. One day the princess accidentally let the ball fall into the pond. Splash !
     "Oops! Oh no!" she cried. She tried to find her ball in the pond, but the water was too deep. The princess began to cry very loudly. An ugly frog sitting on a rock by the pond heard her.
     "Boo-hoo-hoo! Now what will I do? I have lost my golden ball forever!" she said.
     "What is the matter, princess? Why are you crying?" the frog asked.
     "I am crying because my golden ball fell into the pond," she answered.    
     "Do not cry. I can help you!" said the frog.
     "How can this ugly frog help me?" the princess wondered.
     The ugly frog paused. "Hmm. What will you give me for finding your golden ball?" he asked.
     "I will give you whatever you want, dear frog," the princess promised. "I will give you my jewels. I will even give you the golden crown I am wearing."
     "I do not want your jewels or your crown," answered the frog. "But promise me this: take me back to the castle and let me sit by you and eat with you. And you must kiss me too. Promise me! Then I will go down into the pond and get your ball."
     "Oh, if I must, yes! I promise you all that you wish," the princess consented. "Now please hurry!"
     So the frog hopped into the pond and retrieved the golden ball. He tossed it onto the grass.
      The princess was very happy. "Oh, my golden ball! Thank you, frog!" she said. She picked up the ball and hurried away.
      "Wait, wait!" called the frog. "Take me with you! I cannot run as fast as you can."
     But the princess ignored him and hurried back to her castle and closed the door. "The frog is talking nonsense. The forest is the right place for a frog. Life in the castle is not for him!" she said to herself.
     The next day the frog hopped up to the castle door and knocked. "Oh, princess! Princess! Open the door for me."
     "Oh no! It is the ugly frog! Make him go away!" the princess told her servant. The servant went to the door and told the frog to leave immediately. She slammed the door in the poor frog's face, but the frog did not go away.
     "Princess, princess! Open the door for me. Keep the promise you made to me. If you don't open the door, I will cry here day and night until you do! Open the door!"
      The king noticed that his daughter was bothered by something. "My child, what are you afraid of? Is there something scary outside?" he asked.
      "No, it is nothing," she answered. "It is only a disgusting frog!" She then told her father how the frog had helped her.
      "Dear child, you must keep your promise to the frog. A promise is a promise. Go and let him in!"
      So the princess let him in, and they all sat down to eat.
      "Lift me up beside you, princess," the frog asked, but the princess didn’t want to.
     "Dear, a promise is a promise," said the king. "You should not make a promise if you do not intend to keep it."
      The princess did not want the frog near her, but she could not disobey her father. So she let the frog hop up beside her.
      "Now push your golden plate nearer to me. I am hungry and I want to eat with you," the frog said. The frog enjoyed all of the food, but the princess had no appetite because she did not like being near the ugly frog.
      After dinner the princess went to her room, but the frog insisted on following her. When she closed the door, he made his last demand.
      "Dear princess, it is time for you to kiss me! If you do not, I will tell your father!"
      "Oh! Nooo!" the princess protested.
     She grabbed the frog and threw him against the wall. "Now you will be quiet, you ugly frog!"
      "Ohh!" groaned the frog. Then it was very still.
      The princess quickly regretted what she had done. "Oh, is he dead? Oh my, what have I done!" She picked up the ugly frog very tenderly, but the frog still did not move. The princess felt very sorry for him. "He just wanted to be my friend. What have I done to this poor frog?" she said. And she kissed the frog as she cried.
      Suddenly with a bright flash of light, the ugly frog transformed into a handsome prince.
      "Wow! You broke the spell!" he said. "A long time ago, a wicked witch turned me into an ugly frog just because I did not like her. Only the kiss of a beautiful princess could save me. Thank you, dear princess!"
      The princess was overjoyed at the change. In no time at all, the prince and the princess fell in love and were married. And they lived happily ever after.