Once upon a time, there was a little girl. Beautiful and quick-witted, she was loved by all she came into contact with. She had one desire in life, and that was to create happiness for those all around her.

As she was running around one day, with the clouds floating by and the sun shining down, she stumbled across a field of flowers she had never seen before. Unfortunately, she had been warned not to go beyond the tree line, for who knew what lay beyond it? In the distance, she saw another girl who looked to be about five years older than she. This stranger noticed her, started running toward her, and began calling for her to come and play. The younger solemnly shook her head, wishing to obey her father.

"Come, come! It is great fun! No harm can come to those who play among the wishing flower!" The elder girl called, tempting the younger child, who sadly shook her head once more.

"Papa has forbidden me from crossing this tree line. Though I will say it is tempting to run in the flowers with you."

The elder girl approached calmly and whispered to the young child.

"Shall I tell you the legend of the wishing flower then?" The young girl mulled it over, then gave in. She was curious about what lay beyond the trees in the forbidden field. The two sat, and the elder began the tale.

"Once there was a beautiful young lady and a dashing young man. Now, he was a very special man. He was a young prince. Unfortunately, he was rather selfish and uncaring." The elder paused for drama. The younger leaned in, listening closely.

"He saw the young lady and was instantly attracted. He tried and tried to get her attention, but she paid him no heed. Daily he bothered her, trying to gain her attention. She simply shook her head at him and continued her writing.

"He brought her flowers one day, sure that they would catch her eye. But she again refused his attention, and he stormed away with a scowl. As he did, he ran into a field of wildflowers. He sat and decided to cool down, thinking he would try again later with the young woman and eventually fell asleep.

"The young lady closed her book shop come dusk and started her walk home. She walked out of town and crossed a field of flowers. She noticed movement and started to approach it. She saw the young man and took pity on him. She sat and tried to awaken him.

"Eventually she grew tired, and she herself fell asleep," this prompted a gasp from the younger girl, who was listening eagerly to the story.

"What happened?" The young child asked. The elder smiled, and continued the story for the eager young girl with the wide eyes.

"The boy dreamed, and he dreamed of an elderly woman. She warned him of many things."

"What did she warn him about?" The younger asked, her eyebrows knitted.

"Here's what the old woman in his dream said:

'Be careful-what you see is not always the truth. Consider carefully how you act, for if you act wrongly, you will have to face the consequences-and they will not be good.'

"At this, the boy awoke, noticed the young lady asleep beside him, and smirked cheekily. He picked her up, but the sudden movement woke her, and she began to flail. The boy only held her tighter.

'Unhand me you brute!' The young woman spoke sternly to the man. He laughed and continued holding her.

'I said unhand me!' She hit his back, all she could reach due to him holding her over his shoulder.

'If you don't put me down this instant, I'll scream bloody murder!' He mumbled to himself incoherently, set her down, and backed away.

'Young man, this is why I haven't accepted your gifts or your attention. You are many things, but mostly you are immature. I will always refuse immature boys.' With that, she turned and walked away, heading into the forest.

"The boy was devastated. He scowled a bit, but then he noticed a flower he had heard had the ability to grant one wish. He plucked it and blew, scattering the seeds, hoping that the stories were true. A small bit of guilt tugged at his heart, but he ignored it. As the young girl was brought back to him, he was joyful to see that the tales were true. That joy was short-lived.

'I warned you. I have asked you to stop, to leave me alone, but you won't listen. You have disregarded all I've said, and now must face the consequences. A flower you shall become, a thorny one at that-for you shall not be picked without pain. And so no one else will make the same mistake, will become an honest flower of wishes, so white and pure. With this only innocent wishes with the intention being good and harmless can be made. Children will flock around me, but you will be cursed for the pain you cause. You are a thistle, and a thorn you shall always be!'

"As she spoke, she began to crumble into bits which floated in the wind. Her magic picked him up and began to carry him away into the forest. He caught one last glimpse of the young woman who had interested him. She looked carefree, but then she was gone, just a few last seeds drifting away.

"Thorns began growing from the young man, and eventually he was transformed, becoming a thorny stem and flower.. He was a thistle, quite an eye catcher, but painful for all who touch. He saw her drift away; left in her place was a single flower.

"It was white and sat among the wildflowers. The other flowers seemed to bend towards the white flower, as though they had been waiting for their long-lost mother.

"Some children came to play in the field the very next day and marveled at the beautiful white flower. A couple walked past the thistle, and the man tried to pick it for his girl, but pricked himself on the thorns.

'Ow! Stupid plant!' The two walked away, and the thistle boy was left to watch the children playing in the field. One picked the wish flower, and he heard a wish so sweet and pure, causing him to hurt even deeper due to guilt.

'I wish momma would make me a blanket for us to 'nuggle under!' Then she blew, and she blew hard. The seeds drifted across the field and landed in various places. His heart broke at seeing this, thinking that the last of her was now gone from him forever. A small tear slid down his stem, and he sat, watching the children play among the flowers.

"About a week later, many of the seeds sprouted and began to grow. They looked like his love's flower, but there were so many of them!. In time, more children came and blew on the seed puffs, making their simple wishes.

"One day, a little seedling landed beside him. It seemed somehow terrified of his large thorns, so he tried to strike up a conversation. But the wind came and it blew away again..

"Years passed, and the field was covered in fluffy white flowers. Children continued making harmless wishes, with the thistle watching sadly.

"Eventually the kings gardeners came and were digging up flowers for their queen. They came across the thistle, knowing the queen would love them. They carefully dug it up, roots and all, to take home to the castle. They found a few more, and collected them just as carefully. When finished with the last one and turned to add it to the rest one of them was dimly glowing . Then a brilliant light erupted, and when it faded, there was the prince who had gone missing so many years before.

"The gardeners sat in shock, and then they rushed him to the castle. They failed to notice that, as they left, the young man was weeping. The young woman was sitting in the field, left behind, her head in her hands, and she was weeping as well. Then the flowers began to envelop her, pulling her into them, comforting her. The girl and the prince were destined never to see each other again, for he was off to become the king of the land, and she was a wishing flower."

The young girl looked at the field, then back at the elder girl.

"So those are wishing flowers?" She asked, eyes wide with a look of sadness on her face. The elder smiled and nodded, the bright glow in her from before gone, resulting in her smile not reaching her eyes. She stood and waved to the young girl, heading back into the field. She stopped, looking over her shoulder at the young girl and the dashing man now leading her away, and she whispered into the wind:

"If only mankind could change for the better without being corrected I would have wished for your heart to change instead of banishing you to punishment. If only I had listened to my heart-I would have you and you would have me-and that beautiful child would be ours..."

As she spoke, she faded down into the field of the wishing flower one last time. As this occurred, one small, fragile seed drifted across the path of the young girl and her father, causing him to look, just to see an old friend wave and disappear forever.