The Naughty Fairy...

Once upon a time in a faraway kingdom, there lived an old woman named Mrs. Tubby. She was a jolly old woman who lived alone in a nice cosy & beautiful cottage in the woods. The cottage had cute little wooden doors and windows, a small kitchen and a warm bed for her beside the window through which the sunlight sneaked in every morning. She had a cow, to provide her with milk and a nice little garden in front of her cottage with shady trees laden with fruits, neat rows of planted vegetables and colourful flower beds. Everyday Mrs. Tubby used to get up in the morning, feed the cow some green grass, milk the cow, sweep and clean the cottage, pick some fruits, vegetables and flowers from the garden and then get ready to go to the nearby market in the town. The jolly old woman used to sell the milk, fruits, vegetables, & flowers at the local market and make a living & while coming back in the evening she used to get the things she needed and the grocery. This was the same routine that Mrs. Tubby followed year after year, but she was happy and content with her life.

The woods in which she lived was indeed very picturesque, with tall green trees, soft blanket of grass on the ground, chirping birds, colourful flowers, frolicking animals & a beautiful little pond with lotus and lilies right in the midst of the woods. There was a little secret of the woods that not even Mrs. Tubby knew; every night of a full moon day the fairies descended from fairyland near the pond. They used to swim in the clear water of the pond, sing songs, play around, have fun and fly back to the fairyland before the dawn; they loved this place very much.

On one full moon night when the milky rays of the moon had illuminated the ground & the stars were twinkling, a group of fairies came to the pond as usual to play, but this time the fairies were accompanied by a naughty little fairy named Teeny, who used to play pranks on everybody, but they all loved her. They all began playing around the pond, some were singing songs and some others swimming in the pond.

But naughty Teeny was quite enjoying her view of the woods from the tree top, suddenly while looking around she saw dark smoke rise up the sky through a chimney, she wondered, “Who must be staying in these thick woods” & the curious little fairy flew from the tree top to see from where the smoke was rising. The cold breeze of the woods was freezing her wings, yet she flew swiftly in the direction of the smoke. She reached Mrs. Tubby’s cottage. Mrs. Tubby had completed all her chores and was off to bed; she pulled the warm quilt over her and went off to sleep by the window side. Teeny peeped in slowly through the window without making any noise, she saw a beautiful cottage though small but very clean, she then glanced around & saw the old woman sleeping on her bed. She thought, “What a jolly old kind woman she looks!! But poor thing has to stay all alone in these woods and has to do all the things by her without anybody helping her; must be pretty hard for her to manage all the chores”. While lurking around the cottage an idea crept to her mind, she wondered “Why don’t I stay with this old lady here for some days as such I have been in the fairyland for so long, I need a change & it would also be quite fun & adventure to stay in these woods with this kind woman”. She then flew back to the pond to tell her friends about her plan they were all shocked to hear at first but later on all agreed owing to her persistence; she also sought the permission of fairy godmother to stay on earth & Fairy godmother happily agreed. Teeny flew back to the land before dawn & when she reached the cottage she saw that Mrs. Tubby was still in the bed fast asleep. Teeny quickly took her magic wand with a ‘swish’ and a ‘swish’ there she completed all the chores that Mrs. Tubby had to do; she cleaned the cowshed, fed the cow, milked it, weeded the garden, watered the plants and trees, collected the fruits, vegetables and flowers for Mrs. Tubby’s market day, prepared yummy breakfast of scones, coffee, freshly baked cinnamon bread and marmalade with a single wave of her magic wand ‘swish’,  she then cleaned the cottage spic and span and when all her work was done, which she had finished in no time, she transformed in to a white furry cute little cat and started mewing. Mrs. Tubby woke up with a start she wondered from where was the mewing sound of a cat coming. She got out of the bed and went in to the kitchen and saw a cute little cat was curled up on the kitchen floor; Mrs. Tubby was amazed to see the cat and was happy too. She thanked god that he had answered her wish and sent a cute cat to keep her company. She named the cat “snowy”. Mrs. tubby said “snowy wait dear I will milk the cow and give you some fresh milk to drink, you must be really hungry, and then I need to get ready to go to the market”. Mrs. Tubby whiffed the sweet aroma of marmalade, coffee and scones, she turned and saw that the breakfast table was laden with all the goodies, she was indeed startled to see it, she also looked around and saw that the cottage spruced up, she went out and was quite astonished to see the garden weeded, cowshed cleaned & cow fed with green grass. She sat down & wondered “Who could have done these things, cooked for me and completed all my chores”, but she could not get a clue about it, she was happy, she thanked god for helping her, fed snowy with some warm milk, took the basket of fruits and vegetables and went to the market, she was still thinking and wondering about who could have helped her, but was happy to have got a little companion. Back in the cottage, teeny transformed into a beautiful girl and completed all the leftover chores of the old woman. She cooked the supper and transformed back in to a cat and lay in the corner of the house. In the evening Mrs. Tubby returned back to the cottage, tired. She was spellbound to see the sight that her supper was cooked and the dishes done. She was surprised but too tired to think about it, she quietly ate the scrambled eggs, mashed potatoes and bread with freshly skimmed dollop of butter which was a delicious supper. She then fed snowy with a glass of milk and went off to bed. Teeny felt very happy indeed.

The next morning when Mrs. Tubby woke up & saw that all her chores were again done like the previous day. She wondered “Who must be helping a poor old like me?” she turned around to snowy and said “It was you dear snowy that has brought me all the good luck. Thank you for being a part of my life”. Teeny felt happy to know that Mrs. Tubby was indeed a very considerate woman. Days passed by and now Mrs. Tubby was accustomed with the help and was leading a happy life with snowy. She had grown quite rosy in cheeks.

One fine day the Prince of that kingdom came to the woods with his men and guards for the sport of hunting. The Prince was a young and handsome lad. It was a bright sunny day and little he did expect that the there would be a thunderstorm brewing. Soon it became dark in the evening & it started thundering & lightening the Prince was following a deer on his horse, the deer sprinted swiftly in to the deep forest, suddenly the prince realized that he was in the heart of the forest & was lost. He had left behind his guards & did not know the way back to return. Back there his guards started searching for the Prince, it was dark everywhere except for the bright flashes of lightning periodically, making the friendly wood seem very scary with the loud thundering. The guards returned back to the palace after being unable to find the prince as the horses were getting very restless due to the loud sound of thundering. In the woods the Prince thought that it would be best to climb up a tall tree and rest on the branch because the wild animals would be on a prowl in the night. So he climbed up a tall tree and sat on a branch securely. It was a very dark, freezing & horrid night. The Prince fell fast asleep as he was tired with all the adventure and hunting.

As the sun rose in the sky, the prince was awakened by the first rays of the sun & the chirping of the birds. He rubbed open his eyes and looked around, the weather was quite clear now and the ground was scattered with leaves and twigs and was still mushy. The Prince glanced around from the tree top, he saw a small cottage with a garden in front, he wondered “Who must be living in these woods”, it was indeed Mrs. Tubby’s cottage. He could see the cottage clearly from where he was sitting; suddenly Snowy the cat came out of the cottage door and transformed into Teeny the fairy but hid her wings in case someone saw her. The Prince was dumbstruck at the sight that he saw, he could not believe what he had just seen. He was smitten by Teeny’s beauty and fell in love with her & vowed to marry her. Teeny however unaware of the Prince’s presence, was busy doing the chores of Mrs. Tubby before Mrs. Tubby woke up. The Prince got down from the tree, untied the horse and rode back to the castle. He was eager to tell his mother & father about the girl from the woods. As soon as the Prince reached the palace he ran over to his mother and father, who were very glad to see him. He told everything about teeny & how he wished to marry her, but the king & queen couldn’t believe what he was saying & thought that he must be ill, speaking about magic & all. The Prince tried to convince them but they did not listen to him instead asked him to take rest. The Prince was infuriated, he went to his room and locked the door, he did not allow anyone to come inside neither did he speak with anyone. The King and Queen grew worried about the young Prince & finally had to give in to his demands. They agreed to go and meet the girl. The next day the royal entourage along with the King, Queen and the Prince proceeded towards the woods. There in the woods Mrs. Tubby as usual was getting ready to go to the market, suddenly she heard a lot of noise and wondered what was it all about, she went outside and could not believe her own eyes, she was amazed and scared to see the King himself approaching the cottage. “Have I done something wrong? Why is the King & his guards coming towards my home?” she thought. She welcomed the King, Queen & the Prince into the cottage “My cottage is very humble for you your majesty, please forgive me.” She said and stood waiting with a bated breath. “No my dear old woman the cottage is fine and we have come here with a personal request” the King said, Snowy as usual was mewing and roaming here and there & the Prince was eying the cat suspiciously. The King further said, “My son wants to marry the girl staying here with you, who has transformed in to a cat”, Mrs. Tubby could not believe her ears “Your majesty I beg your pardon but I have only one cat and that is this snowy & she doesn’t transform into a girl she is just a cat”. “No I have seen her transform & do all the chores” the Prince said. The old woman turned towards snowy & said “I don’t know what these people are talking about snowy, but if you really are a girl then please do transform back. What is this all about” Then the white little cat transformed into a young beautiful girl. “Oh! My goodness, I cannot believe it, such a beautiful fairy”, exclaimed Mrs. Tubby. “I am Teeny the fairy everyone, I used to stay with this poor old lady as a cat and help her do all her chores.” Mrs. tubby was amazed to hear what teeny had said, she thanked teeny very much for her help, “Oh! Thank you very much kind fairy, you have indeed been very nice & kind to me. But do you want to marry this Prince who has come to come to ask for you?”. “I will think about it and let you know in 2 days” Teeny said. The royals agreed happily and went back to their palace. Teeny the naughty little fairy took the permission of the old woman & transformed into a beautiful bird & flew to the castle to know as to how is the young Prince. She used to sit in the balcony of the prince’s room & keep on staring at the Prince and noticing what he was doing, she found out that the Prince was a very kind, just and a good person & at the end of two days she finally agreed to marry the Prince but on one condition that Mrs. Tubby should also be allowed to come & stay with them in the castle, as she had grown very old to manage the things on her own, the King and Queen agreed and the Prince was much to happy. The entire kingdom was bedecked with lights and lanterns, the people were dancing, singing & celebrating, sweets and clothes were distributed amongst the poor and the Prince & Teeny were wed with all great pomp and gaiety.

After the wedding naughty teeny transformed back in to a cat, the poor Prince begged her to come back into her original self but the naughty fairy wouldn’t budge she used to keep on roaming around the castle mewing, even the King, Queen and Mrs. Tubby begged her but the mischievous fairy did not pay heed to anybody. Days passed by and the Prince was feeling very lonely. The King and Queen couldn’t see their son in such a state and decided to get him married to a nice, beautiful Princess. The Prince was reluctant but finally agreed as teeny was still adamant. The Princess of the neighbouring kingdom whom the King & Queen had chosen for the Prince, had beautiful, shiny, silky long hair and sparkling white teeth like pearls. She was very proud of her hair and teeth and used to take utmost care, but the Princess was very cunning and had evil intentions about the Prince & his kingdom. She along with her father, the King of the neighbouring kingdom had hatched a cruel & evil plan to snatch the kingdom from the Prince & drive the King, Queen and the Prince out of the kingdom. Teeny came to know about the evil Princess and her plans and wanted to teach her a lesson. The King & Queen spoke with the King of the neighbouring kingdom & arranged for the Prince and Princess to meet & know each other. One day before meeting the Prince, the Princess was getting all the beauty treatments to look very beautiful so that the Prince would fall in love with her. Teeny transformed in to a mystical hawker woman & carried a basket of magical medicines with her and went to the castle where the Princess stayed. She went near the palace & told the guards that she had brought some medicines for silky, shiny hair and sparking teeth. The maid of the Princess who was passing by heard Teeny and asked the guards to allow her in the palace. The maid went & told the Princess about the hawker woman. The Princess was really excited to know and thought, “If my hair looks more silky and shiny and my teeth sparkling white, I will look more beautiful”. She invited the hawker woman in, who actually was Teeny the fairy, & asked her to give some medicines for her hair and teeth. Teeny immediately took out two bottles from her basket and said “My dear Princess this is a gel that will make your hair appear more shiny and lustrous, please apply the gel to your hair wrap your hair with a cloth keep it overnight and wash it off in the morning & this is a paste that will make your teeth look more pearly white and sparkle like the stars, apply it on your teeth keep the paste overnight & wash your mouth in the morning”. The Princess thanked her and Teeny took off from there. Teeny returned to the Prince as a cat & started mewing around him, there the Princess in her castle was too excited, she did as Teeny had told her & went off to sleep. As the sun rose in the sky the Princess go up immediately still dreaming about her looks washed her hair and her mouth and got ready, then she went to the mirror to take a good look at herself. In the mirror she saw that she had lost all her hair and had gone bald and there was not even a tiny single hair on head and in her mouth she could see only her gums and there was no sign of any teeth, she looked awful. She started screaming at the top of her voice & felt very cross & irritated. She started crying & did not understand what to do, she sent out the guards immediately to look for the old hawker woman but they could not find her and how will they as the hawker woman was Teeny who was roaming around in the Prince’s castle as a cat. The Princess felt very bad and told her father that she cannot marry the Prince. She went to meet the Prince & told him what all had happened & also confessed to him about her father’s evil plot she said “I think god has punished me for being so bad & evil, I am sorry, I hope, now that I have changed & mended my ways god will be kind to me”. When the Prince heard her he immediately understood that it was the mischievous fairy Teeny who had done all this. He went back to his castle & told his mother & father what had happened; they were quite satisfied to know that a big problem has been averted. He went to Teeny and begged her again to transform to her normal self & also told her about the Princess and how she was repenting. Teeny thought that it was enough that she had played pranks on her poor Prince & transformed in to her beautiful self, the Prince was excited to see her & thanked her, teeny said “Wait I have an important task to fulfil”, she went to the royal palace in the neighbouring kingdom & to meet the princess who was still very sad. Teeny met the Princess and told her everything and took out her magical wand & with a “swish” of it the Princess was back to her original self with beautiful hair and teeth, she thanked Teeny very much and told her that she will always be good person and that she had learnt her lesson. Teeny then retuned to her palace & asked for forgiveness from the King & Queen, & they both forgave her happily.

Mrs. Tubby also came to live with them in the castle & they all lived happily ever after...