The Princess Who Never Smiled

Laughing Stocks

Passersby immediately stopped in their tracks when they heard the wonderful sound ring out through the air. They were in awe at the sight of the Princess smiling and laughing, and they all thought to themselves that her laughter was perhaps the most beautiful sound they had ever heard. Not only that, but it was contagious too (as laughter tends to be), and soon everyone who was standing nearby began laughing along. The Princess had tears of merriment rolling down her cheeks and her laughter could not be contained, sometimes drifting into sweet silence before returning more boisterous (and contagious) than before. All the while, Jack continued to trace his fingers up and down the soles of her feet, stopping every now and again for a moment to let her catch her breath before continuing the tickling. The Princess had gone her whole life without smiling or laughing, and now she had no choice but to surrender herself to the wonderful, enveloping sensations. A Washerwoman who was standing nearby and laughing along merrily decided to help the Princess further. The Princess had been tied up in her peasant clothes, which meant that she had no sleeves covering her arms... or her armpits. The Washerwoman adorned a mischievous grin as she reached into her washing bag, pulled out a brush and used it to gently scrub the Princess's right armpit. The Princess howled with hysterical laughter and tried to pull herself leftwards so as to escape the unbearable tickling of the Washerwoman's brush. However, the Guards had done too good a job of securing her in the stocks, and so she was helpless beneath the tender tickles of the Washerwoman, and of Jack who continued to softly and incessantly stroke the soles of her feet. The Princess was not sure how much more of this she could take, but she was drowning in a sea of laughter and could barely get any words out. Just then, a Maid who had been on her way to work before coming across this wonderful scene emerged from the joyous crowd, and began using a feather duster to tickle the Princess's other armpit!