In one small but very beautiful town lived a family: father Andrew, mother Anna, daughters Milana and Amelia. When the girls were still little, the family was very close-knit. Mum and Dad had always dreamt of having two daughters, and when their cherished dream came true, they couldn't have been happier. The family often held celebrations, Mum baked pies, and in the evenings the whole family would gather in the large, bright room. The entire household would enjoy a friendly tea together.
In winter the whole family would go to the hill to sledge, in summer they'd go to the river to swim and play badminton. In autumn everyone would pile into the car and drive to the forest for mushrooms, and in spring they'd plant the entire garden with flowers that bloomed until autumn itself. And so they would have lived, rejoicing and loving one another, if one fine day…
The morning gave no hint of trouble. The children went off to school, Mum and Dad to work, and when they returned, they found a strange telegram in the letterbox: "Coming. Meet me. Aunt Yadwiga".
Aunt Yadwiga was a distant relative of Dad's. She lived in a small abandoned village near a cemetery, she had neither cat nor dog, let alone children, she had never loved anyone and there were even rumours that she consorted with dark forces.
What could this be about? We haven't seen each other in so many years.
Said father Andrew.
Yes, strange. But perhaps after all these years Aunt Yadwiga has changed.
Mum supposed.
Hurray, hurray!
The children shouted. They loved it when guests came to visit. They didn't know how wicked and envious their relative was.
That day it rained from morning. The sky was covered with clouds, lightning flashed, crackling peals of thunder constantly sounded. Such a terrible wind blew and the trees swayed with such frightening force that it seemed they would break at any moment and crash down onto the house with their entire spreading crowns.
There was a knock at the door. The children rushed to meet the guest, laughing loudly and shouting: "Auntie, Auntie's arrived! Hurray!"
On the threshold stood Yadwiga. Immediately she struck Milana with her umbrella, pinched Amelia and croaked:
Now shut your mouths! I don't like it when little brats swarm around me and disturb my peace.
And a terrible life began. Every day quarrels occurred in the family. The children completely stopped obeying their parents, Mum and Dad rowed every day even over trifles. The family was falling apart, no one went for walks together anymore, there were no tea parties or celebrations, everyone sat in their own rooms. And if something bad happened to someone, the others only rejoiced.
One day there was a knock. Opening the door, Dad saw an envelope on the doormat. Inside was a ticket for a ship cruise for the whole family. Andrew had already forgotten how he had once chatted with his colleagues at work and how he had dreamt aloud about such a voyage on a ship with the whole family. Perhaps one of them had decided to help?
They needed to leave the very next day, everyone began packing, not suspecting that it was Yadwiga who had decided to destroy them completely, having cursed the journey to a deadly misfortune — a shipwreck.
On the second day of the voyage, from early morning the sky was covered with heavy, terrible clouds. Mum and Dad were still quarrelling, the sisters weren't making peace either, constantly playing nasty tricks on each other. They didn't even notice when the storm began. Enormous waves battered the ship from all sides, testing its hull for strength. And then, unable to withstand the blows of the elements, the ship cracked and simply began to break apart into two pieces. Panic broke out on the ship, passengers rushed every which way, paying no attention to one another…
Andrew opened his eyes and froze in horror. Where was he? What was this? Where were his wife and children? Around him was forest, the father found himself mysteriously in the woods. But what a forest it was! All the trees looked at him with human eyes, the birds had thorns instead of feathers, and the plants moaned as if calling for help. This was an enchanted forest. Gathering his last strength, Dad stumbled off to search for Anna and the girls.
Anna, Milana, Amelia! Where are you?
Andrew shouted weakly and with strain. But his cries drowned in the moans of the plants. Suddenly he saw that a horde of enormous ants with fangs was dragging his injured wife into an anthill. He ran up, desperately grabbed his wife's hand, began to pull and… from exhaustion lost consciousness. Dad came to because Anna was pouring water over him. She didn't have a single wound on her.
Andrew, you won't believe it! It's simply a miracle! This stream has living water. It healed all my wounds instantly.
And Mum pointed to the stream flowing nearby.
The children, the children, where are our girls!!! We need to find them as quickly as possible. There are so many dangers here, and they're so defenceless!
Dad shouted.
Mum and Dad rushed with their last strength to search for the children. Anna and Andrew ran, shouted and called for their daughters. Now their strength was running out, all hope was lost, night was falling. Suddenly they were blinded by a bright light that appeared from beneath the earth, and a lunar path descended from the sky. These two lights joined, and before them appeared a strange female figure, one half of her body was black as tar — darkness, and the other bright white — light. This was the Mistress of Light and Darkness.
You seek your daughters? Give your lives in exchange for their lives, and I shall return them home!
Take mine!
Anna sobbed.
And mine!
Andrew roared with his last strength.
Before them the earth opened up, they took each other's hands and jumped into this abyss. The chasm immediately disappeared, the earth closed and the light went out.
Meanwhile the girls came to on scorching sand. Around them there wasn't a tree or a bush — this was a real burning desert. Golden sand sparkled under the sun's rays, the air smelt of something very cloying, and in the distance they heard music, as if a thousand beautiful birds were producing gentle trills. The girls felt as if they were being rocked, as in childhood, in a cradle.
I'm so sleepy.
Milana whispered quietly and closed her eyes. But Amelia — the elder sister — suddenly remembered how in childhood Mum had told the girls about quicksand that drags you into an abyss from which you can never escape.
She shouted:
Open your eyes! I love you, little sister! We need to get out of here, otherwise we'll die and never save Mum and Dad.
Suddenly some unknown force picked up the sisters and carried them through the air like feathers. The girls closed their eyes in fear and surrendered to this unknown force.
In the middle of the enchanted forest, in which the trees, flowers and birds had become alive, sparkled with bright colours and sounded with kind songs, beside the stream with living water, a glade suddenly appeared, covered with rainbow flowers and green silky grass. In the middle of the glade swayed a snow-white enormous hot air balloon, ready for take-off. To prevent it from taking off prematurely, mighty oaks held it with their magical branches. The balloon was waiting for its passengers.
Mum and Dad didn't perish, that unknown force brought them together with the girls aboard the hot air balloon. The family was reunited and all exhausted but happy set off on the long journey home. Anna, Andrew and the girls never learnt that this difficult trial was the work of Yadwiga, who never appeared in their lives again. And the cottage in which the old woman had lived vanished entirely along with its cunning, deceitful and vile mistress.
From that moment the family became strong and united. The sisters shared secrets with each other, helped their parents in everything, and Mum and Dad never quarrelled again, because a strong family — that's what matters most!
