Princess Pria and the Grumpy Troll
A troll blocks the bridge to the castle. The knights want to chase him away, but Pria asks a question instead.
Everyone in the kingdom of Brightvale knew about the troll under Stone Bridge. He was big and grumpy, and he growled at anyone who tried to cross.
"We must chase him away!" said Sir Reginald, clanking in his armor. The other knights raised their shields. "Charge!"
But Princess Pria held up her hand. "Wait. Has anyone ever asked him why he's so grumpy?"
The knights blinked. Nobody had.
Pria walked to the bridge alone, carrying a basket of warm muffins. The troll leaped out. "GRRRR! Nobody crosses MY bridge!"
Pria didn't run. She sat down on a rock and offered him a muffin. "I'm Pria. You seem really upset. What's wrong?"
The troll stopped growling. He looked at the muffin. He looked at Pria. Then, to everyone's surprise, his big lip began to tremble.
"Every day, people stomp across my bridge," he said. "Clomp, clomp, clomp! Right over my head! I can't sleep. And nobody ever says hello. They just yell 'Troll!' and run."
Pria nodded. "That sounds really hard. I'd be grumpy too."
Together, they came up with a plan. The villagers laid soft moss on the bridge so footsteps were quiet. They put up a sign: "Please say hello to Gordo!"
Soon, Gordo the troll had so many visitors that he started a little muffin stand under the bridge. He was the friendliest troll in all of Brightvale.
Sir Reginald bought two muffins every morning. "Princess," he admitted, "your way was much better than charging."
Pria smiled. "Sometimes the bravest thing isn't fighting. It's asking, 'Are you okay?'"
⭐ The End ⭐
💬 Talk about it
- What did the knights want to do?
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Chase the troll away. - Why was the troll grumpy?
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People stomped over his head so he couldn't sleep, and nobody said hello. - What did Pria do differently from the knights?
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She asked him what was wrong and listened.
