Once Upon a Time there was a Princess trapped in a castle under a curse. It was guarded by a Dragon. Knights came from all around to slay the Dragon and save the Princess. The Knights fought with valor, ready to give their lives. But they soon learned that the Dragon would not kill them. It simply threw them back over the wall, never harming a soul.
The Knights grew braver and bolder as they feared less for their lives. They started attacking the castle in groups, but still the Dragon would not hurt them. After each battle the Dragon was covered in wounds.
For years the Knights fought the Dragon and for years the Dragon threw them back over the wall. 50 years past and word got around. Princes and Kings began seeking the Dragon out to slay it and save the Princess from her curse. Soon, armies amassed against the castle. In droves the Dragon threw them back over the wall.
75 years past and people began to forget the Princess and her curse. The quest seemed fruitless and fewer Knights visited the castle everyday. Then soon it was every week, until it was once a month. Months turned into years and finally 100 years had passed.
After what seemed like decades since the last visitor, the Dragon sighed as one final Challenger rode in on his steed. He was young and hopeful. The myth of the Dragon and the Princess was old and he almost hadn't believed it. But here was the Dragon standing before him, tired and scarred, burnt and broken.
The Dragon stared at him with deep blue eyes and laid its head before him. Confused and fearful the Knight slit the Dragon's throat. He didn't believe his luck, had he done what so many others could not? In a mad rush he galloped toward the castle, dismounted his steed, and scaled the tower where he knew the Princess was waiting.
There she stood, her back to him, staring out the window. Her hair was long and her face was young as if the curse had happened yesterday. The Knight grabbed her hand, "HURRY", he exclaimed! He hardly noticed her red eyes which seemed to burn through his skull.
They rushed down the tower staircase into the courtyard toward his steed. They came to a jolting halt as the girl pulled back against him.
“What's wrong,” he asked? Finally turning to look at her he noticed her skin was changing color. Her body was turning a deep umber red, claws grew out of her fingers and her hair lit up in a blue blaze. Her face grew outward and she started to form the shape of a dragon. Wings split out from her back and she tripled in size within seconds.
A huff of fiery laughter burst from her nostrils. The Knight was flabbergasted, "What happened to the princess?!" he demanded.
With a smirk of its lips the Dragon revealed its jagged teeth
"You killed her..." the Dragon hissed.
"NO!" the knight was aghast.
"I killed a dragon", he exclaimed!
"You misunderstand the nature of our curse" the Dragon began pacing around the court, hungry for blood.
"Our forms were swapped until one of us died, you killed the Princess, so I survived."
The Knight was frozen with shock as he looked around for the Princess he had killed. He saw her body, strewn across the court floor bleeding from her neck. He fell to his knees and cried, longing for death. The dragon promptly granted his wish and burnt him to a crisp.
Satiated with his flesh the dragon approached the Princess's body. She looked at her fellow prisoner who over the years had become her best friend. The Dragon encompassed the Princess's body with her wings. Fiery flames whipped around the Dragon's blue mane searing down its shoulders and surrounded the Princess.
A spell seeped from the Dragon's lips, "You may belong to those who hurt you, or you may belong to those who loved you. The choice is yours." the Dragon released the princess and the Flames left ashes on the ground.
They shifted like sand and rose as something came out from underneath. A tiny head peaked out, blue eyes looked up, and wings split the ashes apart as the Phoenix stretched out to embrace her new life.
The Dragon smiled and the court under her feet rumbled as she lifted off and flew away. The Princess chirped, barely able to talk. She was only a hundred and twenty years old, which was a baby for dragons. She spread her wings and zoomed off after her friend. They lived happily ever after.
