I have always wanted to illustrate a kid's story using plush. I think this might just be the story. BEHOLD THE FIRST DRAFT. I really need to edit this. It's almost been two months.
~~
There was once a girl who was the princess of lions. She would stand with them when the sun rose, guide them through their hunts, and at night, she would stand guard over the pride alongside the king. His man was golden and beautiful. She loved to pet his mane, which never failed to make him purr. All the lionesses, the cubs, and even the king himself were content knowing that the princess was standing watch. It was a wonderful life, but it was lonely. The princess loved her lion friends, but there were no other humans. She felt guilty for her thoughts of loneliness because she knew it was her duty to watch over the lions on the savanna. Still, she couldn't control her thoughts as she imagined meeting another princess or even a prince. The rainy season came and went, new cubs were born and grew up, but the feeling inside the girl only grew with time until one day, the lions woke to find her gone. They roared as they looked for her, but it was no use. She was gone. In the middle of the night while all the lions were asleep, the princess had left the pride for only a moment to get a drink of water from the nearby watering hole. A crafty vulture was perched in a tree.
"You look lonely," he chirped. The princess ignored him, knowing what tricksters vultures could be. "You know, you watch those lions and make sure that they are happy, but what about you? Are you happy?"
The princess turned and looked at the vulture. "Of course I'm happy. My lions are protected and well fed and many cubs have grown up while I watched."
"Yes, but it's always about the lions. What about you? What about your needs and wants?"
The princess stopped and looked at her reflection in the watering hole lit by the moonlight behind her. "What about me..." she trailed off. When she looked up again, the vulture was gone.
The princess stood at her spot and watched her reflection until the sun began to rise. She began walking toward that horizon. She walked past giraffes and elephants. She walked until the moon and sun had traded places many times. Finally she stopped, tired. She sat to rest and noticed a village that she had never seen before. She entered the village and found many others like her, except instead of being dressed in the furrs of a lion, there were other furrs and even some feathers. There was a man with long stork feathers and another girl that wore cheetah spots. "Where am I?" she wondered.
"Ah, we were wondering when we would see the princess of the lions," the cheetah princess smiled. She hugged the lion princess and called out to the others, "She's finally here!" Many animal princes and princess' gathered around her. They gave her food and provided her with a place to rest. Afterwards, they played music and games and danced until the moon was high in the sky.
"This was so much fun, but I've left my lions," the princess worried.
The cheetah princess laughed, "Don't worry, they'll be fine for a few short days out of the year. You need your rest, too. All the princes and princess' come here to rest and have some time for theirselves. If you only care about others, you're bound to become lonely and a little crazy."
The princess nodded. It was true. After another day of rest, she waved goodbye to her new friends and set back to her lions. She missed them and they all missed her. She explained to them that once a year, she would need to leave to have some time for herself. The lions were happy that their princess was happy and the princess was happy that her lions were happy. And so once a year, the lion princess makes a stop at the royal village to have some time for herself and returns refreshed and ready to lead a new generation of cubs to a bright future.
No comments:
Post a Comment