A Fairy Tale

Once upon a time, there was a good King and his wife the Queen. They lived in the Kingdom of St. Paul, Minnesota, and their castle stood on the bluffs overlooking a beautiful river. The King and Queen had two sons,

Maximilian the Brave

and Lucian the Tenderhearted.

Everything was wonderful for the family and the Kingdom, except for one small detail. There was a monstrous Dragon who lived in the Valley of the Waterfall. Each day, Maximilian the Brave had to feed the dragon by throwing a handful of special Dragon food into the valley. No one had ever seen the dragon, but they heard his roars and knew that it would take a very brave knight to stand up to this terrifying beast.

One day, Maximilian the Brave wandered off by himself to ponder the problem of the dragon. He knew there had to be a way to relieve the Kingdom of its constant distress. But who would dare stand up against a dragon?

Suddenly he had an idea. "I am going to slay that dragon!" he said to his mother and father. "But Maximilian, you are so young! Aren't you afraid?" they asked him. "I am brave," said Maximilian, "and I have my trusty sword. I know I can do this!"

So his mother walked with him as far as the bridge that led to the dragon's lair, but from that point he had to travel alone. Soon he saw a gravel hill rise in the distance. "That's where I'll find the dragon," said brave Max. He climbed the hill with his sword, and when he reached the top he saw the huge, fire-breathing dragon! He was frozen with fear for just a moment, but then he stood up tall with his sword and slayed the mighty dragon.

He came down in triumph from the hill to his waiting family. "Hurrah!" the kingdom exclaimed when they heard the wonderful news. "Our Kingdom is at peace once more, thanks to Sir Maximilian the Brave!" During the celebration, Maxilimian took his brother aside.

"I defeated this dragon alone, but when you get a little older, you and I will go out together to the far corners of the world to save other kingdoms in distress. And someday, we will rule our own kingdom. We'll be good kings, just like our father, King Paul the Second."

The Kingdom of St. Paul and the royal family lived happily ever after.

The End.