The Frog Prince and the Golden Promise

Princess Arabella had never heard the word "no" in her entire life.

She lived in a magnificent castle with seventeen rooms just for her toys, ate cake whenever she pleased, and owned more golden things than she could count. Her favorite treasure was a golden ball that shimmered like a tiny sun. Every afternoon, she tossed it high into the air by the old stone well in the palace garden, watching it sparkle against the sky.

One summer day, Arabella threw the ball higher than ever before. Up, up, up it sailed—then down, down, down it plummeted. Her stomach dropped as she heard the sickening SPLASH.

"No!" she shrieked, peering into the well's dark depths. The water was so deep and murky that she couldn't see the bottom. "My ball! My precious golden ball!"

Arabella stamped her silk slippers and wailed so loudly that birds fled from nearby trees. She'd never lost anything before. She'd never NOT gotten what she wanted.

"Why such terrible crying?" croaked a voice.

Arabella jumped. On the mossy edge of the well sat the ugliest frog she'd ever seen.

His skin was bumpy and green as old cheese, and his bulging eyes looked in two directions at once.

"A frog can't help me," she sniffed, wiping her nose on her velvet sleeve.

"I can dive deeper than any creature in this kingdom," the frog replied. "I'll fetch your golden ball—for a price."

"Money?" Arabella brightened. "I have rooms full of gold coins!"

"I don't want gold." The frog's throat puffed in and out. "I want to be your friend. I want to eat from your golden plate, drink from your golden cup, and sleep on your silken pillow."

Arabella wrinkled her nose. Be friends with a disgusting frog? Ridiculous! But she wanted her ball desperately.

"Fine, yes, whatever you want," she said quickly, crossing her fingers behind her back.

The frog dove into the well with barely a ripple. Arabella waited, tapping her foot. Minutes crawled by. Just when she thought he'd drowned, the frog surfaced, holding her golden ball in his wide mouth.

"My ball!" Arabella snatched it and raced toward the castle.

"Wait!" the frog called. "What about your promise?"

But Arabella was already gone, the garden gate slamming behind her.

That evening, the royal family gathered for supper. Arabella had just bitten into her favorite honey cake when she heard it: Splish, splash, splish, splash.

Something wet was climbing the marble stairs.

Then came a knock at the dining hall's golden doors. "Princess Arabella, let me in. You made a promise by the old stone well."

Arabella's face turned as red as the cranberry sauce.

"Who's that?" asked the King, lowering his fork.

"N-nobody," Arabella stammered.

The King's eyebrows rose. He walked to the door and opened it. The frog hopped inside, leaving wet footprints on the polished floor.

"Your Majesty," the frog bowed. "Your daughter made a promise to me."

The King listened to the frog's story, his face growing stern. "Arabella, is this true?"

Arabella slouched in her chair. "Yes," she whispered.

"A promise is a promise," the King said firmly. "Especially a royal promise. Invite your guest to dine."

Arabella wanted to disappear. The frog hopped onto the table and ate from her golden plate.

He drank from her golden cup, his long tongue slurping loudly. The Queen covered her smile with her napkin.

After supper, the frog followed Arabella to her bedchamber. "I'm tired," he yawned, showing rows of tiny teeth.

Arabella stared at her beautiful silk pillow, then at the cold, clammy frog. Something twisted in her chest—not anger this time, but shame. The frog had helped her when she'd cried. He'd kept his promise. And what had she done? Run away.

"I'm sorry," she said quietly, and meant it. She picked up the frog—he felt cool and smooth, not slimy—and gently placed him on her pillow.

The moment the frog touched the silk, golden light exploded through the room. Arabella stumbled backward, shielding her eyes. When the light faded, a young prince stood before her, wearing emerald-green clothes.

"Thank you," he said, smiling. "A witch cursed me to be a frog until a princess kept her promise to me. Many tried and failed. You're the first who chose to do what was right, even when it was hard."

Arabella's mouth hung open. Then she started to laugh—really laugh, not her usual tinkly princess giggle.

The Prince became Arabella's first real friend. And though she still loved golden things, she learned to treasure something even more valuable: her word.

Because promises, she discovered, shine brighter than any golden ball.