 The following story has been told many times before, and will be told many times again. Legends grow with each retelling as details change depending on the person telling the story and the person who is listening. This then is our version of the tale, both familiar and very new. We hope that you enjoy our original take, a classic story. Once upon a time, a princess lived in a beautiful castle, which sat in the middle of a green field, surrounded by tall trees, a high mountain, and a large cool lake. The princess was known throughout the land for her wisdom and kindness, and all the people of her kingdom were happy and content. Everyone lived in harmony. The people of the lake would supply the kingdom with delicious fish, while the mountain dwellers found metal and ore for building houses. The forest folk and the farmers provided food and clothing for all who required it. Everyone was at peace, and they thanked their wise princess daily for watching over them and keeping them comfortable. Then one day, without warning, a large beast appeared at the gates of the castle. He was a mighty monster, with large tusks and flaming red hair. The beast lived in the desert, where the harsh winds and the blazing sun had made him strong and powerful. The creature was tired of his dusty life in the hot sand. He had an eye for shiny trinkets and wanted to enjoy the beauty of things that sparkle, with pretty lights that dance in the sun. With a loud roar, the monster announced that he was taking control of the castle. All of the kingdom's gold and silver and precious stones now belong to him, as did the people's food and clothes and even their homes. The royal guards tried to object, but the monster paid them no heed and sat himself in the large throne at the center of the castle. He was too strong and too fierce and far too powerful for any of the kingdom's soldiers to tell him what to do. But the princess was wise above all others, and in the face of this large beast's challenge, she knew exactly what to do. She left the castle, setting off on a long journey into the deepest, darkest woods at the edge of the kingdom, where the sun is dappled by the leaves of the trees and where fairies frolic and enormous golden spiders spin beautiful webs. Here, in the deep woods, the princess found what she had been looking for, a small hut, the home of a humble young boy who had been raised by forest creatures. The boy was small and weak, but the princess knew that he had a good heart and that he was brave, more courageous than any in the kingdom. The princess told the boy of the enormous monster who threatened their entire land, and she explained to him her clever plan to force the beast to give back the throne. The princess knew that the boy had, in his possession, a special tool, a magical item that might well be the only thing in all the land that could overcome the beast. Together, the princess and the young boy travelled back to the castle. In they strode together until they stood in the castle's throne room where the mighty beast sat, admiring the pretty lights that the castle's stained glass windows reflected across the hall. It was then that the young boy pulled from his bag his special tool, his trusty bug-catching net. The beast turned his head suddenly to see the source of the shining light. The boy had made the net himself, from the golden silk of forest spiders, and it sparkled and shone more than anything else in the whole castle. The beast couldn't take his eyes off the net. Eagerly, he reached out to take it, but the boy leapt out of the way at the last second. The princess was indeed wise. She knew that while the beast was strong, he was not very fast. This young boy was far too small and quick for the monster to catch him. The monster chased after the boy as he dove and weaved his way around the throne room. Again and again, the beast tried to catch him, and every time, the boy was just a little too fast for the beast to lay a claw on him. Round and round they went as the beast tried desperately to grab the bug net. Finally, with an enormous thud, the beast flopped onto the floor, dizzy and tired from his futile efforts. The great beast sighed and admitted defeat. He had been beaten. The throne belonged to the princess once again. The princess smiled. She was indeed wiser than any in the land. Helping the beast to his feet, she made him an offer. If he was tired of his life in the desert, and he yearned for the beautiful shimmering of gold, then there was a place that he could go that would bring him greater joy than even the castle's great throne room. And so, the beast travelled back with the young boy to his home in the deep, dark forest. Here, the light from the trees made patterns on the ground that filled the beast with glee, and the beautiful golden webs of the forest giant spiders made him smile, enjoy and wonder. The young boy returned to his simple life in the forest, keeping a watchful eye on the beast to make sure he behaved himself, which he did, from then on, forever. As for the princess, she began again to rule her kingdom, serving her people, and making sure that they were happy, well provided for, and kept safe from anyone who might wish to cause them harm. She was, after all, a very, very wise ruler.