Sleeping Beauty

By Catherine E. White

The people from a small town in France are outside the King's summer castle. The King goes out onto the balcony.

'We are very happy to tell you that we have a baby daughter. Her name is Aurora. Everyone is invited to a party, here at the castle, tomorrow,' he says.

The King goes back into the castle. The Queen is singing to the baby.

The party tomorrow is going to be wonderful,' says the King. 'All the people from the town are coming and, of course, we must invite the Flower Fairies.'

Everyone in the castle is very busy. The cooks are cooking delicious roast meats with vegetables and they are making delicious cakes, too. The cleaners are sweeping and dusting. The Queen's friends are picking flowers in the garden and putting flowers in all the rooms.

'Mmm...! The food smells delicious,' says the King 'And the castle is very pretty with all these flowers.' Little Princess Aurora is sleeping happily. She doesn't know there is going to be a party tomorrow. The next day the sun shines and all the men, women and children from the town come to the party. The children like the new baby and want to pick her up.

'You can pick her up later, when she wakes up,' says the Queen.

'Yes,' says the King. 'Come and sit down now. The food is ready and we're all hungry!'

'Look! Look! Over there by the trees,' says a little boy.

Everyone turns and looks at the trees.

'Oh!' says a little girl. 'Are they...?'

'Yes, they are,' says the Queen.

'They're the Flower Fairies!'

'Hello,' say the Flower Fairies. We've got some very special presents for Princess Aurora.'

'She's going to be beautiful,' says Fairy Daisy.

'She's going to be happy,' says Fairy Iris.

'She's going to be healthy,' says Fairy Sunflower.

'And...,' says Fairy Poppy...

'STOP!' says another Fairy.

'Who's this?' asks the Queen.

'It's Fairy Weed,' say the Flower Fairies. 'She's a bad Fairy! She must leave the party!'

'No, I'm not going to leave!' says Fairy Weed. 'I've got a present for Princess Aurora too! When she's sixteen she's going to prick her finger on a spinning wheel and die!'

'Wait! I've got to give Princess Aurora my present now,' says Fairy Poppy. 'I can't change Fairy Weed's present - Princess Aurora is going to prick her finger on a spinning wheel when she's sixteen. But she isn't going to die! She's going to sleep for a hundred years!' 'She isn't going to prick her finger on a spinning wheel, or sleep for a hundred years,' says the King. 'We must destroy all the spinning wheels in the town! Tomorrow, everyone must take their spinning wheels to the town square. We're going to destroy them all!'

The next day everyone takes their spinning wheels to the town square. There are big spinning wheels and small spinning wheels, new spinning wheels and old spinning wheels, new spinning wheels and old spinning wheels, and the King's men destroy them all.

'Thank you, everyone,' says the King. 'Thank you for your spinning wheels. I'm very sorry that you can't make your clothes now. But I want to help you. I'm going to pay the people in Paris to make your clothes for you.'

'Hurray for the King,' shout the people of the town.

'Hurray for our good kind King!'

Princess Aurora grows into a beautiful young woman. On her sixteenth birthday everyone in the castle is preparing for her birthday party. 'Come on, Molly,' she says to her dog. 'Let's go to the old tower. The door is always locked but today everyone's busy. Perhaps it's open.'

The door isn't locked! Princess Aurora and Molly go up the stairs. In a room at the top there's an old lady and a spinning wheel.

'What's that?' asks Princess Aurora.

'It's a spinning wheel,' says the old lady. 'You can touch it if you want.'

Princess Aurora touches the spinning wheel and pricks her finger!'

The Flower Fairies fly into the tower.

'Oh no! We're too late!' says Fairy Daisy, 'She's asleep!'

'She can't sleep alone for a hundred years,' says Fairy Sunflower.

'No,' says Fairy Iris. 'Everyone in the castle must sleep for a hundred years.'

Molly falls asleep near the bed. The King and Queen fall asleep on their thrones. The Queen's friends fall asleep picking flowers. The cleaners fall asleep sweeping and dusting. The cook falls asleep making a cake. The birds fall asleep in the trees. The cat falls asleep chasing a mouse. The castle is silent - everyone is asleep.

Everyone sleeps for a hundred years.

One day a Prince from Spain comes to the town. The people tell him about the sleeping Princess.

''I'm going to castle. I want to see the sleeping Princess,'' he says to his friends.

There are big trees around the castle and beautiful flowers are growing over the trees and the castle walls. The Prince goes to the old tower. He sees the sleeping. Princess. He kisses her hand and she wakes up!

'You're the Prince of my dreams!' she says.

'And you, Sleeping Beauty, are the Princess of my dreams,' he says.

Everyone in the castle wakes up! The Queen's friends start picking the flowers again, the cook starts making the cake, the birds start singing, the cat starts chasing the mouse and the Flower Fairies fly into the castle.

'Prince Carlos of Spain is here!' they say.

Princess Aurora takes Prince Carlos to the King and Queen.

'Mummy and Daddy,' says Princess Aurora, 'this is Prince Carlos. He's going to stay and come to my birthday party.'

'That's wonderful!' says the Queen.

'Yes,' says the King. We're happy that you're here. And thank you very much for waking us up!'

- THE END -

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