Friends for Life
The Beginning of an Unexpected Friendship
Once upon a time, in a small and happy town, lived Hugo and Elsie, who were always together and inseparable.
— Look, Elsie, an elf king! Doesn't he look strong? I could be the elf king too. See my pointy ears? — Oh, well, then I could be the most beautiful witch.
They were the best of friends, and no one could separate them. However, unlike the two of them, who had each other, deep in the forest lived a dwarf named Coby, who had no friends.
— Mom, let's go see the fruit fairies today! — Oh, Coby, can't you see I have a lot of work? I can't go with you. — Then, then, what if I went out by myself, huh? — My dear, I told you about the mean and hungry trolls that roam the forest. And usually they come out... — At night. I know. But I'll be very careful. — I'm sorry, Coby, but you'll stay here. Why don't you play with one of your toys? — Oh, Mom!
Later, Coby came to his mother.
— Mom, is dinner ready? Oh! Mom's asleep? This is my chance! Now I should go out!
Coby quietly slipped out of his house and left. Wandering around, he came across a village.
— Wow! So many people! I've never been to a human village before, have I?
Coby watched Hugo and Elsie playing together.
— Children? How much I'd love to be friends with them, but how can I do it? — Hugo, go and hide until I count to ten! — Ha ha! You won't find me!
When she closed her eyes, Coby took his chance and quietly went towards her.
— Oh!
Elsie's Kidnapping
Coby cast a spell on her, and she fell under the enchantment and followed him.
After a while, Hugo got tired of waiting and came out.
— Elsie! Strange! Did she go home?
Elsie was with Coby, who had taken her to another place, and now the spell was beginning to fade, for Coby was a young elf with not very strong magic.
— Oh dear! Where? Where am I? And who are you? — I'm Coby, and I want you to play with me. — What? But I don't know you! I don't want to play! Take me home! — No! I saw you playing with that boy. So, you can play with me too, right? Come on, don't be sad! Let's play!
Coby showed Elsie wonderful butterflies, offered her delicious chocolates, and even made faces to make her laugh. But Elsie was scared and unhappy. She didn't know that Coby just wanted to play. She thought he was a mean dwarf who had kidnapped her.
— It's no use! I've tried everything! You don't even laugh! — I just want to go home! — Oh, I think I did a bad thing. You see, I don't have any friends, and I just wanted to play with someone. I'm very sorry.
Hearing this, Elsie thought.
— Hmm, he's not that bad, but I can't trust him. Maybe if I play with him, he'll take me home. Okay, I'll play with you, but then you have to take me home!
Coby and Elsie Play
Coby was extraordinarily delighted. He promised to take her home, and they played happily.
Meanwhile, at home, Hugo had told everyone that Elsie was missing, and everyone was looking for her.
— Elsie! — Elsie! Where are you?
Everyone was worried. They searched for hours until dark. Finally, they all went home saddened. Elsie's parents said she was taken by bad people, but Hugo believed that perhaps a magical creature had taken her.
In the flower field, Elsie looked at the sky.
— Coby, you have to take me home now! It's getting dark! — It's dark, but your house is... far away, and at night the trolls come out, ooh!
Coby began to cry.
— All right. We'll go back tomorrow. For now, let's find a place to sleep. Trolls are huge, and they won't find us if we hide well.
A Night in the Forest
So the two walked a little and found a hollow tree. They hid there and prepared for sleep.
Meanwhile, in the village, Hugo couldn't sleep. He kept thinking about Elsie.
— I have to find her! Everyone's asleep. So I'm leaving now!
He snuck out into the night and went to look for his friend.
The next morning, when Elsie and Coby woke up, she asked him to take her home.
— Home? But why don't we play a little more? I know a place you'd absolutely love! — But, but Coby, I have to go home! — You don't like playing with me, do you? — No, no, it's not that! I like playing with you! Okay, let's go to this place!
Meanwhile, Hugo had reached the flower field.
— Hmm, isn't that Elsie's ribbon? If... no. I have to think positive. She probably tripped and got caught in the bushes, right? I have to find her!
He continued, hoping that everything would be fine. Now Coby was taking Elsie into a dark and vast forest.
— Coby? Where? Where are you taking me? — It's right here! Close your eyes!
Holding her hand, Coby pulled Elsie through some thick bushes.
— Now, open them! — Wow! Sunflowers!
The Sunflower Field
Yes, Coby had brought Elsie to a huge field, full of sunflowers. There were wonderful flowers, as far as the eye could see. The two children loved it very much.
Meanwhile, poor Hugo had reached the hollow tree.
— Oh, Elsie's ribbon again! Oh, no! What if an evil fairy kidnapped her? Or what if some goblin tricked her?
Now he began to search more and more hastily.
Elsie and Coby were playing happily, but it was starting to get dark.
— Coby, now I have to go home! — Now? Why? Can't we play a little more? — Listen, if it gets dark, the trolls will come out! You don't want that, do you? — Oh, okay, let's go back into the forest and find a tree to sleep in.
Elsie agreed, hoping that the next day she would convince him to take her back. However, as they were preparing to leave, the flowers began to rustle.
— Oh! What is it? — Maybe it's a mouse? — Ah! — Ah!
The Encounter with the Troll
— It's a troll! — Don't be scared! I was just walking around. Hey, you seem to be having fun. Can I play with you too? Oh! My name is Jamie. — Wait! You want to play with us? But aren't you supposed to be mean? — Of course not! I know everyone gets scared because I'm a troll, but I just want friends. — Oh! Just like you, Coby! — Well, yes, you can play with us! — Seriously? Yay!
And so, the three began to play together.
Hugo had now reached the dark forest and wondered where Elsie might be.
— I hope I find her soon. What if she's hurt? What if she's... — No! — Elsie!
Hugo ran through the thick bushes and found Elsie upset.
— I lost! It's not fair! — Poor Elsie, you can try again.
Reunion and New Friends
— Elsie? What are you doing? Who are they? — Hugo! You came for me! I missed you so much! They are our new friends, Coby and Jamie. They are very nice!
Hugo was shocked when he saw her playing with a troll and a dwarf. And, seeing that Elsie was so happy to see her friend, Coby felt very ashamed.
— Elsie, I'm very sorry I took you away from your friends and family! — Oh, it's okay, Coby. After all, everything turned out well, didn't it? — Well, not exactly. We still have to go back, you know, and it's a long way. — Oh, wait! Maybe this will help you. It's a magic hat. When you ring the bell and make a wish, it comes true. — This way we can all go home. But if you had this hat, why didn't you wish for friends to play with? — Because that's not how true friendships are made, is it? Anyway, bell, I wish to go home to Elsie and Hugo with them and Coby.
The bell rang, and soon they all arrived in Hugo's garden.
— We're home! Our parents and the others are probably very worried! — That's right, Jamie, can you wish for everyone to forget that Elsie was missing?
So Jamie wished, rang the bell, and erased this memory from the villagers.
— Uh, I guess you'll have to do that with Mom too.
They said goodnight and parted ways.
From then on, the four played together almost daily and soon became friends for life, proving that friendship has no limits. No matter how different a person is or seems, true friendship can emerge at any time.
