Once upon a time, in the palace of swan country, there was a magic lake. And in the lake there lived some elegant swans.
When the lake turned lilac, it meant that the water had saved enough magic. As long as someone led the swans to dance water ballet in the lake, it would summon a magical wishing fountain. Aside from being able to make a wish, the person who summoned the fountain also had the power to make other people's wishes come true.
That day, the king of Swan Country was dancing around the palace like a maniac. He asked his ministers,'' What do you think of my water ballet, is it elegant ?''
The ministers saw that the king's movements were rusty, and his bones were creaking with every movement, so the ministers just stared, not knowing how to reply.
One of them changed the subject,'' Your majesty, you must be tired, drink a cup of water first.''
The king waved his hand to refuse,'' The kingdom is in the middle of a drought, we need to save as much water as possible.''
The king continued to practice until he was drenched in sweat. Because the king had wanted to save water, he had not taken a shower in seven days! So, the room was filled with an overwhelming stench.
At that moment, a messenger rushed into the room and said,'' Your majesty, the magical lake has changed colour!''
'' Really? I'll go and summon the wishing fountain now!'' The king rushed out of the room, with the ministers all hurrying after him.
When the king got to the lakeside, he saw that the lake was a shade of lilac, just as he was about to jump into the lake, all the swans swam away from him as fast as they could.
The king stared blindly,'' Why are they flying away?''
One of the ministers replied truthfully ,''Your majesty, you haven't had a shower in seven days, so the smell of sweat scared all of the swans away.''
Another minister begged,'' Your majesty, please don't go into the water, if you pollute the magical lake, the swans won't have a home anymore.''
The king sighed,'' I guess the only plan is to host a 'Swan Ballet Competition' to stop the drought.''
A week later, the 'Swan Ballet Competition' was officially held in the place. The entire kingdom was very excited, and everyone went to watch it.
The king announced,'' Let the 'Swan Ballet Competition begin! Everyone, please welcome the first competitor!''
A middle aged man wearing a wizard's robe came to the edge of the lake, making the entire audience amazed. Surely this man couldn't be a ballet dancer, could he?
While the audience waited on tenterhooks for the man's performance to begin, he just danced around at the edge of the lake, mumbling,'' Rain, rain...'' He was performing a rain dance.
The king immediately disqualified him,'' Next'' He barked. The second competitor was an adorable little girl who jumped into the lake without a second thought. In her left hand she held a bar of soap and in her right hand she held a sponge. She started to take a bath while singing
The king immediately cried out in horror,''Aaaa! Take her away"
One by one the competitors all had a go but none of them were successful, failing to summon the wishing fountain.
Finally, the last competitor's turn arrived. She was called Claudia, and she was dressed very elegantly. She was wearing a beautiful swimsuit made out of feathers, and she looked like a swan herself.
YOU ARE READING
The Swan Princess and the Ugly Ducklings
AdventureLucy grew up on a duck farm, and she was always laughed at for leading her ducks around all day long. But she had a talent for dancing, and was so good at it that the prince of Swan Country came to her for lessons so he could dancing with the swans...
