//------------------------------// // The Pony Princess and the Frog // Story: Fairy Tales of Equestria // by VioletRose13 //------------------------------// Once upon a time in a kingdom far away, there lived a princess named AJ. She was an honest, hard working pony, even though she was supposed to be royalty. One day feeling a bit hungry, Princess AJ had found a golden apple tree near her castle. When she went to pick an apple out of the basket under the tree however, her hoof slipped and she accidentally dropped the golden apple she chose. It rolled away from the princess and it fell right into the stream near the castle. "Oh, consarnit! My apple! Shoot, I can’t reach it from here!" She exclaimed, desperately trying to grab the fruit with her hoof. But as she tried to grab it, the golden fruit was floating farther and farther away from her grasp. Then all of a sudden, Princess AJ heard a strange little sound. "Ribbit!" The Princess’s eyes widened in surprise and she jumped. She whipped her head around fast and she looked behind her only to see a small grayish green frog with blue eyes sitting on a large rock on the stream's edge. She let out a surprised cry and nearly fell off of the bank and into the water, but then she soon calmed down. "Oh! Sorry, I didn't mean to scare you." The frog said nervously. “No, it’s ok… Wait, did you just… talk?” The Princess asked, shocked. “Yep, I sure did.” The frog answered. “Tell me, is there something I can help you with?” “I dunno. Could you… get my golden apple? I dropped it into the water and I can’t reach it. Can you help? I mean if it ain’t too much trouble.” Princess AJ said. The frog thought about the mare’s request for a few moments, then he spoke again after a few quiet seconds. “Okay, I’ll get you back your apple if I get something in return.” He said, nodding his head. “What is it that ya want?” Princess AJ asked. “Well, I know this might sound a bit silly, but if I get your golden apple… would you be my friend?” He asked. “Your friend?” She asked, raising a confused eyebrow at the tiny creature. “Yes. And would you invite me to dinner at the palace tonight? And after dinner, would you… oh, I dunno, maybe… let me sleep near you?” He asked. “I don’t… know…” The Princess stammered, unsure of what to do. “C’mon! Please? Please? Pretty please? Pretty, pretty, pretty please?” Princess AJ thought about the frog’s terms; they sounded more than reasonable, if not a bit unusual to say the least. And then she finally said while nodding her head, “Alrighty, squirt. Ya got yourself a deal.” “Really? You really, truly mean it?! Oh, thank you! Thank you! Thank you, Princess AJ!” The frog cheered, jumping for joy. “I promise I won’t let you down!” “Yeah, yeah, yeah. Ya gonna get my apple for me or what?” “Oh, yeah! Right! Sorry.” And with that, the frog jumped off of his perch and into the water. Princess AJ had waited for the frog to return and soon enough, her patience was quickly paid off. The frog had retrieved the golden apple from the other side of the stream and he gave it back to the Princess, who was truly grateful. But when it was given back to her, Princess AJ was so happy to get her fruit back that she had completely forgot her promise to the frog. “Thanks, bye!” Princess AJ said before running off with her golden apple. So, Princess AJ took the golden apple with a satisfied smirk on her face and she ran back to castle, leaving the frog behind. At the stroke of sunset, the frog decided to go to the castle to remind the Princess of her promise from earlier that day. He knocked on the door and patiently waited for somepony to answer. Soon enough, the Princess herself answered the door. “Hello?” She called, looking for the one who knocked. “Hi, AJ.” The frog said, waving his flipper in the air. “You?! What are you doin’ here?” She asked, shocked. “What am I doing here? Are you serious, Princess? Don’t you remember the promise you made me this morning?” He asked. “What promise?” “You know? Your promise to invite me to dinner tonight if I saved your golden apple? Remember now? C’mon, a promise is a promise.” “Oh yeah, that promise. Ugh, fine! C’mon in, frog. Make yourself at home. And try not to track mud in here. My parents would kill me if there was mud on the carpet.” The frog happily hopped his way into the castle with a smile on his face; the Princess however, felt otherwise. She wasn’t very thrilled having a frog in her castle or as a dinner guest and she rolled her eyes and let out a silent groan as she closed the door behind her. That evening, the frog and Princess AJ had dinner together and to her surprise, it didn’t turn out like the Princess thought it would. Instead of it ending in disaster, she was actually having a good time. The frog joked and she laughed, he danced and she clapped; it was so much fun. When it was time for bed, Princess AJ led the frog up the stairs to her bedroom. As they entered, the frog hopped off of the Princess’s back and onto the bed in the middle of the room. “Ready?” He asked. “Uh… I… I guess.” Princess AJ stammered. That night, after everypony was sound asleep, the frog slept beside Princess AJ, her back facing him. But he didn’t care, he was happy anyway. But sometime late into the night, Princess AJ woke up to the sound of a hissing near her ear. She sleepily opened her eyes, looked, and she saw that there was an enormous Star Spider standing right in front of her face. She was now wide awake and she sat up in terror as the arachnid inched its way closer to her. “Agh! Star Spider! Get away from me, ya glowin’-in-the-dark varmint!” She quietly screamed. “Don’t worry, Princess! I’ll get rid of it!” The frog cried, standing up. There was a fierce battle, but in the end, the frog won. He threw the Spider out the open window, shut the window, and locked it. Princess AJ applauded and cheered the frog’s performance. “Oh, thanks so much, frog.” She whispered. “No problem, Princess. I couldn’t let you get hurt.” The frog said, hopping back to the bed beside the young mare. “There must be a way to thank you. How about… a kiss?” The frog’s eyes lit up. “A kiss, you say?” “Yeah.” And to prove her point, Princess AJ took the frog in her embrace and she gave him a big kiss full on the lips. And very much to her surprise, the frog had transformed into a handsome stallion with a light bluish gray coat, blue gray hair, and blue eyes. Princess AJ gasped and her eyes widened as she stood up. “Oh thank you! Thank you, Princess AJ! Thank you so much!” The stallion cried. “You’re… welcome, but… wha’? Who… who are you?” The Princess asked. “My name is Prince Shill.” The stallion answered. “And thank you so much for releasing me from my horrible curse!” “Your… curse?” She asked the Prince. “Yeah. A curse.” “What in tarnation are you talkin’ about?” “An evil witch cast a spell on me a few years ago, all because I was always lying and being deceitful to other ponies less fortunate than me. And she said I can only turn back into a prince if I was kissed by a true princess and you proved to be just that. So, what do you say, Princess AJ? Will you be my bride?” “Yes! Of course I will!” And the two shared another passionate kiss and the very next day, Princess AJ and Prince Shill were married. Princess AJ had learned that a promise is a promise and to always keep any promise she made and she and Prince Shill all lived happily ever after.