The Agate Ring by Marisa Cooper (best books to read for self improvement .txt) 📖

Once upon a time there lived a beautiful, vivacious and charming queen. Her name was Queen Emma Katherine. She had long waves of red hair, emerald green eyes and a beautiful smile. Queen Emma Katherine was born under Pisces and always wore a dress of dark purple.
When Queen Emma Katherine was thirty-seven, she went on a diplomatic mission to see the Queen of the Elves, her close cousin, Queen Aolani Alaula. When she got there, Queen Aolani Alaula gave her an agate ring. Queen Aolani Alaula only explained that she might need it one day and sent her back, ridden with gifts from the Elven nation.
A year later, Queen Katherine Emma was pacing the throne room. One of the nobility, the Duke Hahnee Grayson proposed to her. He claimed that she needed someone as heir to the throne, and since Queen Katherine Emma had no children, she must marry him and proclaim his son, Count Gunther Grayson, the future king. However, Duke Hahnee was known to be cruel and Count Gunther was no different.
As she paced up and down in the throne room, Queen Emma Katherine absentmindedly twisted her ring. At the same time, she was wishing she had daughters who have the throne when she was old and gray.
Suddenly, there was a flash. When the flash disappeared, its place are two beautiful, auburn-haired girls. Queen Emma Katherine realized that the agate ring that Queen Aolani Alaula had given her had the power to grant wishes. She wished for daughters; she got daughters!
“My daughters!” Queen Emma Katherine exclaimed. “You have come to me by the wondrous magic of this agate ring. Because of this, you both shall be named the Abebi, which means ‘we asked for her and she came to us’. You, the eldest, shall be named Adrienne ‘dark one’ and you, my youngest, shall be named Agate, after the magical stone that brought you here.” She walked over to them and hugged them, too happy to speak any more.
Two months later, Adrienne came up to Queen Emma Katherine. “Mother,” she asked, “May I please use the agate ring that brought me into the world? I would love to make gold, jewelry, and all sorts of things come up for me!”
“But of course my daughter.” Queen Emma Katherine pulled the ring off her finger and offered it to Adrienne, who grabbed it greedily. “But I must warn you,” she continued as Adrienne started to tug the ring unto her finger. “If you ask for too many material things just because of greed, the ring would lose its power.”
Adrienne didn’t listen. She never did. She just did whatever she wanted to do and got away with it. Adrienne went up to her tower and twisted the ring whilst muttering under her breath “gold, dresses, jewelry, gold, dresses, jewelry.”
There was a sudden flash and the tower was filled gold, beautiful dresses, and pretty jewelry. Adrienne laughed and threw herself into the pile of stuff. She swam in the gold and put on the dresses and threw the jewelry into the air, still laughing her crazy laugh.
There was a knock. Adrienne stopped laughing and ran to the door. She opened and saw her little sister, Agate.
“May I please have the agate ring, Adrienne?” Agate asked politely. “Mother said I may use it too.”
“Go ahead and take the ring.” Adrienne snapped, disappointed at having been interrupted by Agate. “But be sure that you give it back to me when you’re done!” Then she threw the ring at Agate and slammed the door in her face, returning to her new-founded riches.
Agate went out to the courtyard, where several hundreds of poor stood waiting. “Come one at a time please. I can give you what you want.” Agate cried out.
One by one they came in front of her. “Please, mistress,” begged one, “give me back my house and earnings!” There was a flash and the beggar had her house and earnings back.
“Please give me food to last the day, Mistress!”
“Give me a new pair of shoes, Mistress!”
“Please give me a new hat for church, Princess!”
All these wishes were granted, and by the end of the day, about two-thirds of all of the poor in the kingdom were a little bit richer. Agate was weary, but glad she was able to help. Just as she was about to turn toward the castle, she saw a holy hermit coming toward her. “Princess Agate,” he said. “I have seen how kind you have been to those less fortunate than you. You have shared the wondrous magic of the agate ring you are named after, and because of that I will help you in all you need help in. What do you want most in the world?”
Agate thought for a moment and said, “Oh holy hermit, I don’t think I need anything more. I have people who love me, and those who I can help, and food and clothes and a home. What else can I need?”
“A wise speech,” the hermit declared. “A wise speech for one not yet thirty-somewhat years. But still, I will help you. I am right in thinking you want to have a dog, right?”
“Oh, yes sir.” answered Agate. “I would love to have a beagle about three or four years old. I would name her Lady.”
“You shall have her.”
And it came to pass. Agate soon found a lady selling dogs as she described and found her dream dog, bought her, and named her Lady.
Meanwhile, Adrienne was swimming in the money when a sudden thought occurred to her. What if Agate used up all the power of the ring? The thought of Agate using up the ring for her was overwhelming. She fainted.
When Adrienne awoke, she thought long and hard. Then she got it. Adrienne just had to get the ring and use up the power herself. Brilliant!
Adrienne used the ring time and time and time again to get herself the gold, dresses, jewelry, and latest electronics from the future. Finally, the ring faded and turned into a pale white stone. The magic had been sucked from it.
Meanwhile, Agate was still granting the poor their wishes, but not by the ring. No way Adrienne was going to part with the ring. She had it on her person at all times. She had to use the castle kitchens and forms to give the poor what they wanted.
Then the hermit came. “The ring that had given you the power to grant these people’s wishes has lost its magic. However, I can give it back. It will go into you though, and not the ring!”
He spun around, cocked like a rooster, and the magic went into Agate.
Adrienne never got to get another wish again, but she opened up a boutique and earned lots of money.
Agate settled down with a family. She became Queen when Queen Emma Katherine died.
And they all lived happily ever after.

The End.

Publication Date: 12-21-2010

All Rights Reserved

Dedication:
To my mom for having me write this for school years ago.