Ebony Queen: A Bedtime Story

            Once upon a time, in a land far, far away, there was a small kingdom ruled by a very beautiful queen. This queen ruled her land with joy and grace, which made everyone in the land love her deeply. Each day, the queen would greet her followers with a big smile and wish that they would have a terrific day as they went about their everyday business.

            One day, the Queen awoke as she did everyday and prepared to greet her followers, but discovered that one of her followers had done something unthinkable within the kingdom. This follower, who was one of the Queen’s favorite subjects, had fallen for someone in another village and was moving away without saying goodbye.

            The Queen’s heart was broken and she fell into a deep depression for several days. All the Queen’s friends and family did all they could to break her dreadful sadness without any luck. This saddened all of the Queen’s followers within the kingdom because they couldn’t see her beautiful smile as they went to work and school.

            So one day, when things were looking completely grim, a stranger rode into the small kingdom upon a black stallion. This stranger rode through the center of the kingdom and was astounded to see that no one looked up from their chores or even smiled as he passed.

            He came across three people standing in the market, each looking more depressed than the first.

            “Excuse me,” the stranger called towards the three people as he dismounted. The young woman in the trio stepped forward silently as the stranger approached.

            “Why does everyone in town look so sad?” he asked once she was close to him.

            “It's our Queen, sir,” the woman replied, tears rising in the corners of her eyes. “She has grown sad and no one can break her from it.”

            The stranger listened to the woman’s tale intently; he could feel himself starting to become quite sad like everyone else. He knew he had to do something quickly before he fell victim to the sadness in the kingdom.

            Without delay, the stranger hopped onto his horse and rode swiftly to the Queen’s castle. He entered the throne room to find the Queen silently weeping.

            “I beg your pardon, my Queen,” he said as he approached. The Queen looked up at the stranger tears falling softly from her lovely cheeks.

            “Who might you be, stranger?” she asked.

            “I am a traveling bard, my Queen. I wander these lands of yours bringing joy and cheer to those I meet.”

            “Well you are much too late, for there is no joy within these lands anymore I’m afraid,” she responded.

            The stranger reached into his knapsack and produced a small book, which he then held out to the Queen to examine. She felt the weight of the book upon her fingertips, and then stared at the image upon its leathery cover. On it was a beautiful little blue bird with its wings fully extended in flight.

            “Why do you show me this?” the Queen asked as she handed the book back to the stranger.

            “It is where I write my stories, each one guaranteed to bring joy and happiness to anyone I tell them to.”

            The Queen looked at the stranger not wanting to believe the man’s boastings.

            “Very well, stranger,” the Queen spoke as she wiped away her tears. “You have one chance. If you succeed in returning joy to my heart, I shall bestow upon you the title of my personal storyteller. However, if you should fail, I shall banish you to the farthest reaches of the land never to return.”

            The stranger nodded his head confidently. He opened his book to a tale and immediately began to read aloud what was written in the pages. He read for several long moments, pausing briefly to see if the Queen’s demeanor had changed. Unfortunately, there was nothing new in her look.

            He continued to read the tale, but the next time he looked up into the Queen’s eyes, he was amazed to see that the tears had stopped falling down her lovely cheeks.  He read more and this time when he took a glance from the pages, he saw that the frown, which had been frozen on the Queen’s lips had been replaced by the most amazing smile he had ever seen.

            By the time he finished the story, the Queen was outright bursting with laughter. It was so loud that it echoed off the walls of the castle and floated on the breeze throughout the entire kingdom.

            When the followers heard the Queen’s laughter, slowly the terrible sadness that had plagued them for days was starting to lift. People everywhere began to smile at the joyous sound that came from the castle.

            Once she was able to speak again, the Queen looked at the stranger, overjoyed that she was once again filled with happiness.

            “Congratulations, stranger,” the Queen proclaimed, “you have fulfilled your promise and have returned my kingdom to its former glory. As promised, you will now be my personal storyteller from this day forward.”

            Outside, there came a tremendous uproar of cheers and applauds as the news flowed throughout the streets to everyone.

            Everyday from that first day, the Stranger meets with The Queen and he tells her funny stories and puts a smile on her face that is felt by all of her followers. And they lived happily ever after. 

The End