英语童话The_Princess_and_Frog青蛙王子.doc

The Princess and Frog
A king and a queen live in a large palace. They have a beautiful daughter. Her hair is like gold. The king and queen love her very much. They give her many nice toys.

　Now, it is summer time. Near the palace is a dark forest. There are many tall trees in the forest. In the middle of the forest, there is a small pond. On hot days, the pretty young princess plays near the pond.

　The princess has a golden ball. It is her favorite toy. She throws the ball high into the air, and catches it. Then she bounces the ball on the ground. The ball is fun to play with.

One day, the princess is playing with her ball. She sees a pretty butterfly, and chases after it. She wants to touch the butterfly. It is too fast; she can't touch it. She feels angry, and throws the ball at the butterfly.

　The ball flies through the air. It hits a tree, and rolls down the hill. The princess runs after the ball. It rolls faster and faster. The pond is at the bottom of the hill. The ball rolls into the pond.

The princess watches her ball. It slowly goes down to the bottom of the pond. The princess feels upset. She starts to cry. She will never see her ball again.

The princess hears a voice. She looks around her. There is nobody there. Then, she looks into the pond. There, she can see a frog's head. The frog is talking to her.
　　"Why are you crying, young princess?" asks the frog. "You make even the rocks feel sorry for you."
　　"I am crying for my golden ball," replies the princess. "It fell into the pond. Now, I will never see it again."

　 The frog wants to help the princess. He can swim to the bottom and pick up the ball. First, he asks the princess for something.
　　"I will help you," he tells the princess. "But first, you must give me something."
　　"I will give you anything," says the princess. "You may have my jewels, my pearls, even my golden crown."

The frog doesn't want to have those pretty things. What can a frog do with jewels? He wants something else.
　　"You must make me a promise," says the frog. "You must love me and let me stay with you. I want to eat at your dinner table, and sleep in your bed. Will you agree to do this?"

The princess quickly agrees. She wants her ball very badly. The frog dives into the water. In a moment, he comes back. He is holding the golden ball in his mouth. He jumps out of the water and puts it on the ground.

The princess is very happy. She picks up her ball, and runs away. The frog calls after the princess.
　　"Wait! Wait! Take me with you, young princess! Don't forget your promise!"

　The princess doesn't stop running. She is very happy to have her ball. She runs back to the palace. Soon, she forgets the poor frog. The frog sadly jumps back into the pond.

　That evening, the king, queen and princess are eating dinner. The food is very tasty, and they all eat it happily. Then, there is a knock at the door.
　　"Young Princess, open up the door for me," says a voice.

The princess runs to the door. She opens it, and turns white. There, sitting in front of the door, is the frog. The princess loudly closes the door, and walks back to the table.

The king and queen look at the princess. She looks upset. The king speaks to his daughter.
　　"Why do you look so afraid?" he asks the princess. "Is there a terrible giant at the door?"
　　"Ah, no," replies the princess. "It is an ugly frog. He wants to live with me."
　　"A frog wants to live in our palace?" says the king. "Whatever for?"

The princess tells her parents about her ball and the frog.
　　"This morning, my lovely golden ball rolled into the pond. I was crying, and this little frog came up to me. He offered to help me. First, I had to promise him something. He wanted to live with me here in the palace! I agreed, and he got my ball. Now, he is here. He wants to come in and live with me!"

　Suddenly, there is more knocking at the door.
　　"Princess, young princess," calls the frog. "Don't you remember your promise? Please open the door for me. I want to come inside and eat dinner with you."

　The princess turns white again. The king is quiet for a moment. Then he speaks to the princess.
　　"You must keep your promise," he says. "Go to the door and let the frog in."
　　"Do I have to?" asks the princess. "He is so ugly and smelly. I cannot eat with him here."

Again, the king tells her to open the door. Sadly, she gets up and lets the frog in. The frog follows the princess to her chair. Hop. Hop. Hop.
　　"Put me on the table," he says to the princess. "I'm very hungry."

The princess puts the frog on the table. He hops to her plate, and begins eating. The frog enjoys the food very much. The princess can't eat anything. She feels like throwing up!

Finally, the frog stops eating. He is full. Now, he wants to rest.
　　"Carry me to your bedroom," he tells the princess. "I am tired and I want to sleep a little. You can rest with me."

The princess begins to cry. She is afraid of the cold frog. She doesn't like touching him. Now, he will be sleeping in her nice, clean bed. The king is angry with the princess.
　　"Why are you treating the frog so poorly?" he asks. "This little fellow gave you your ball back, and you won't even talk to him. Shame on you! You must keep your promises. Take him to your room, NOW"

The princess must obey the king. She picks up the frog with two fingers, and takes him upstairs. Inside the room, she puts him into a dark corner. The frog doesn't want to stay there. The floor is too hard. He wants to sleep in her clean bed.
　　"Put me on your pillow next to you," says the frog. "I want to be comfortable.

The princess sighs. She doesn't want the frog near her. Instead, she throws him into her closet, and closes the door quickly. Now she feels better. She lies down in her bed and begins to sleep.

　The frog doesn't want to sleep in the closet. It is too hot in there. He calls out to the princess to let him out.
　　"Let me out, young princess," he cries. "Remember your promise. I want to sleep beside you on your pillow."

　The frog knocks on the door again and again. The princess can't sleep. The frog is making too much noise. She gets out of bed and walks to the closet.
　　"You are very noisy," she tells the frog. "I will let you sleep on my pillow. First, promise me you will be quiet!"

The princess lets the frog out of the closet. He hops to her bed. She lifts him up and puts him on her pillow. He is ugly and smelly, but she is very tired. She soon falls asleep.

　The next morning, the frog hops down the stairs and goes back to the pond. The princess is happy. Maybe she won't have to live with the frog after all. She stays inside to play with her ball. That night, at dinnertime, the family hears knocking at the door again.
　　"Princess, young princess. I am back. Please let me in," says the frog.

Sadly, the princess walks to the door and lets the frog in. The frog happily eats from her plate, and then he sleeps on her pillow again. The princess feels cold all over. She doesn't want to do this every night. What can she do?

　The next morning, the frog returns to the pond. At dinnertime, he is back at the front door. This time, the door is open. The princess is expecting him. The frog eats dinner, and then the princess takes him to her room. She lays him on the pillow, and they fall asleep.

　The next morning, the princess looks at her pillow. The frog is not there. A handsome young man is standing beside her bed. The princess is speechless.
　　"Thank you for saving me," he says. "I was once a prince from another country. A witch turned me into a frog. I lived in the pond for many years. Your kindness made me a man again. I am saved."
　　The prince asks the princess to marry him. She is very happy and tells him she will marry him. Together, they go to the prince's palace, where they live happily ever after.