There was once upon a time a Princess. Many suitors came to the palace to court her, but it appeared to the Princess that each of them looked at her without really seeing her.

"They act as if a princess is nothing more than her lovely crown and royal gowns," she said to herself.

"Sometimes I wish I was little again," the Princess reflected after one of these encounters. She dug up her childhood favourite ball, the one that sparkled as she threw it high into the sky. She carried the ball into the palace yard and began throwing it higher and higher.

She threw it extremely high one time, and when she went to catch it, she tripped on a tree stump. The ball landed in the royal well and plopped down! She dashed over to get her ball before it fell too far, but she couldn't see it in the water by the time she arrived.

"Oh no!"  "This is terrible!" she mumbled. A little green frog poked its head above the water at that same moment.

"Perhaps I can assist you," the Frog said.

"Yes," the Princess replied. "Please get my ball!" says the narrator.

"No problem," the Frog responded. "But first, I'd like to ask you a question."

"What do you mean?" the Princess said.

"Today is for you to spend time with me," the Frog said.

"I'm not sure what that means," the Princess said.

"Just spend some time with me today," the Frog said again.

"All right, fine!" the Princess exclaimed. "Please get my ball now!"

"I'm on it," the Frog declared. He dove down to the bottom of the well. He rose a few moments later, holding the ball high in one hand.

"Thank you," the Princess responded as she took it from him.

She walked away. 

The Frog said, "Wait a minute!" "You promised you'd spend some time with me today!"

With a shrug, she said, "I already did." And the Princess returned to the palace by foot.

There was a knock on the door that night over dinner with her family and royal advisers. When the servant opened the door, no one was there. The Frog cleared his throat as he stood low.

"Today, the Princess promised to spend time with me," the Frog exclaimed as loudly as he could. "So here I am."

"Daughter!" said the King from across the table. "Did you, as he claims, pledge to spend time with this Frog?"

"In a way," the Princess said. "Oh well, come on in," she continued after a brief hesitation.

The Frog hopped over to the royal supper table after the servants swiftly placed a fresh place setting for him.

The topic of conversation turned into a source of concern in the kingdom. The royal advisers were confused about what to do.

"If I may, Father," the Princess said. "Perhaps we could – "

"Stop!" said the King, stopping her. "Believe me, I have enough advisers."

"If I may," said the Frog, who was talking for the first time at the table.