Princess Lily lived in a bright, sunny castle with her mama and papa. She wasn't like the other princesses in the nearby kingdoms. Lily *felt* everything! A bumpy road felt like a giant’s rumble under her seat. A scratchy ribbon felt like a prickly bush. Sometimes, it was a little too much, but mostly, Lily liked feeling things.
One day, a handsome prince named Rowan came to visit. He wanted to find a princess to share his kingdom with. He tried a test! He showed princesses piles of fluffy pillows, but Lily said, “There’s a tiny pebble under this one!” He showed them soft blankets, but Lily felt, “A little stitch is poking me!” Prince Rowan was starting to worry he’d never find a princess who noticed *everything*.
Finally, Prince Rowan’s royal helper brought out a beautiful bed with twenty soft, downy mattresses. But hidden under the very bottom mattress… was a single, tiny, tickly feather! Rowan smiled, hoping this would be too small to notice.
Princess Lily carefully lay down. She wiggled and giggled. “Oh!” she exclaimed. “I feel something! It’s… it’s a tiny, tickly feather! It’s making me smile!” Prince Rowan’s jaw dropped. No one had ever noticed something so small!
“You are a true princess, Lily,” Prince Rowan said. “Not just because you can feel everything, but because you notice the little things, and you find joy in them. And you are very kind to tell me the feather is tickly instead of complaining!”
Lily smiled. She learned that being sensitive wasn’t a problem, it was special. And Prince Rowan learned that a kind heart and a noticing eye were the most important qualities in a princess. They spent the rest of the day playing gentle games and laughing, and Lily knew she had found a wonderful friend.
That night, Princess Lily drifted off to sleep, feeling the softest mattress and the tiniest tickle of the feather, knowing that being herself was the best thing of all. And Prince Rowan knew he’d found a princess who would always see the beauty in everything, big and small.