In a certain fairy-tale kingdom there ruled a wise and kind king. The inhabitants approached him without fear for help, knowing that he would never ignore their requests. The king even arranged special days for those seeking his counsel, so that he could listen carefully to his beloved people and solve their problems.
Your Majesty, — a young woman addressed him on one such day, — only you can help us! Grandmother Wingrin has destroyed our entire garden and frightens the children. I tried to befriend her, but there is so much malice in her… Please help me, I beg you.
Oh, that Grandmother Wingrin, that's the tenth complaint today! I shall have to go to her personally and sort everything out!
Grandmother Wingrin was not a grumpy old woman at all, but a real witch! What mischief she did not commit: she could completely destroy a garden or vegetable patch, give harmful herbs so that a pet would fall ill… In short, she was quite a troublemaker!
She particularly disliked her kind and meek neighbour Ani, who worked hard in the fields with her husband, and their children were kind and polite to everyone. All this infuriated the old hag! She had spoiled their harvest and frightened the children in every way possible. But Ani did not even say a rude word in response; on the contrary, she tried to befriend her: she baked a special pie for her and brought it as a sign of reconciliation:
Grandmother Wingrin, forgive us if we have offended you, we did not mean to. Here is a pie with mushrooms as a sign of reconciliation.
With toadstools? — the old woman asked glumly.
I beg your pardon?
A PIE WITH TOADSTOOLS? — the old woman shrieked loudly.
Of course not! We gathered good ones for you with the children!
"We gathered good ones for you with the children!" — the old woman mimicked. — It's a pity they weren't toadstools, that would have been a nice treat for your children!
Grandmother Wingrin, — Ani spoke calmly but firmly, — what have we done to you? If the children were rude, you only need to tell us, and we...
How sick I am of you all! Goody-goodies, it makes me feel ill!
Grandmother Wingrin, I shall have to ask the king for protection, you will not listen to me!
Oh, how frightened I am, the king needs you and your little ragamuffins! Good riddance!
So when the king and his guards came to Wingrin's house in the evening, she was not very frightened or surprised, as this was not their first visit to her.
It's been a long time, Your Majesty, since you've visited me, I was beginning to miss you! — the old woman greeted her guests mockingly. — Will you have fly agarics or cockroach stew?
Wingrin, — the king began calmly, — you have not forgotten that you already have two warnings, this is the last one.
Oh, don't shoot me! — the old woman laughed mockingly. — What can you do to me, Your Majesty? I won't stop bothering that dreadful Ani and her children, maybe I'm just having fun this way! Who's to blame if that old hen has no sense of humour?
That's enough! — the king said firmly. — By tomorrow morning you must leave the kingdom, otherwise I'll have my guards escort you to the border with sticks!
Of course, of course, Your Majesty, I'll just prepare some little gifts for the journey, — the old woman hissed maliciously.
When everyone was asleep, the witch crept into her neighbour's house and bent over the cradle of Ani's youngest of three children, little August. She waved her hand over the child and recited her terrible incantations. Who knows how it would have ended if one of August's sisters had not woken up. The girl, seeing the witch, screamed in horror, and everyone woke up. But the old woman managed to finish reading the incantation. She smiled and waved goodbye to the frightened family with a terrible laugh and disappeared. From that moment on, the little boy became blind.
Meanwhile, in the palace, preparations were underway for the celebration of the princess's first birthday. The servants ran back and forth, some with decorations and others with refreshments for the celebration. The queen, holding her little daughter in her arms, kept glancing out of the window: she was waiting for her friend, the fairy Lina, whom she had not seen since the royal wedding! At last she arrived. Soon all the guests had gathered in the palace. And in the midst of the festivities, there was a crash of glass, a dark shadow darted straight towards the little princess, who was sitting in her soft armchair.
Well, hello there, little piggy! — came an evil, creaky voice, and before the good fairy could do anything, the dark shadow disappeared with a malicious laugh.
Wingrin! — the king said, either to himself or aloud, and he turned as white as the whitest snow with horror.
Yes, it was her! — the fairy said with a sigh. She stood next to the queen, who was holding the princess. The girl's pretty little face was now adorned with a small snout.
Lina, will you help? — the queen asked hopefully, holding out the baby to her friend.
Fairy Lina examined the princess's face carefully. At that moment, there was such silence in the palace that it seemed as if time had frozen. The fairy finally spoke:
The magic is black, ancient, and I cannot break the curse now, but…
WHAT DO YOU MEAN BUT, WHAT? — the king and queen asked simultaneously.
Every poison has an antidote. And the princess, when she comes of age, will be able to free herself from the curse with the help of the power of love and friendship.
So the evil witch Wingrin left the kingdom, leaving behind her terrible gifts as a parting gesture.
Sixteen years passed. During all this time, the young princess never once left the palace grounds and had no friends. She spoke only with her parents, teachers and a few loyal servants. Those who were not frightened by the princess's appearance and who loved her for her inner beauty.
Decembrina, as the girl was called, loved to read in the pavilion of the royal garden. This morning was no exception. The princess paid no attention to the commotion that was now taking place in the palace; she was absorbed in her book.
The servants, meanwhile, hurried to set the table, whilst the king and queen were terribly nervous, waiting for the prince-bridegroom!
Decembrina, my dear, come along! The prince has already arrived and wants to meet you.
Why?
Why? You know about the curse: only love and friendship can break it!
Mother, this is already the seventh one this month! What love, what friendship? They are afraid of me, — the princess replied sadly.
The pig's snout had indeed disfigured the girl's face. And the so-called suitors, who dreamed of becoming famous, of becoming heroes who would break the curse, fled in disgrace. Moreover, after the very first meeting with the poor girl, without even speaking to her. Yet Decembrina was very kind and intelligent, and everyone who knew her saw her inner beauty, not the mark of the terrible curse.
My dear girl, give him a chance at least! If he just talks to you, he will immediately understand what a wonderful person you are! — the queen pleaded.
Very well, Mother.
Standing next to the king in clothes embroidered with golden threads was a prince. He was from a distant kingdom and, as soon as he heard about the curse, came immediately. However, he was not motivated by a desire to help the unfortunate princess: he dreamed of becoming famous and becoming the king of such a wealthy kingdom.
The door creaked, the prince turned to the princess with a forced smile. And suddenly he turned pale, shrieked like a little girl, and, backing away, jumped out of the window. Fortunately, it was the first floor!
The king wanted to bring the prince back, but his daughter stopped him:
No, Father.
My dear, another will come, do not be upset.
Yes, of course. I'll go to the garden, — the princess was already used to such a reaction, it only sometimes made her sad that these princes did not even want to talk to her, to get to know her.
"Will I really stay like this forever?" — sighed the princess, and a couple of tears fell on her book.
And then the wind carried an unfamiliar melody to her. Such a magical one that the girl, forgetting her sadness, decided to find out where this music was coming from. Decembrina approached the fence of the royal garden, the sound went beyond the palace grounds. Curiosity overcame fear and the prohibition to leave the garden, and Decembrina did something uncharacteristic for her for the first time: she climbed over the fence.
The girl found herself in a small forest, in a clearing of which sat a shepherd boy, and around him grazed sheep peacefully. He had brought his flock here for the first time today because of the lush grass. There was no need to fear wolves; they had never been here, and his dog, called Faithful, would not let anyone hurt them.
Just now, sensing the princess, the dog decided to head towards her. The girl, frightened, stepped back, and a branch under her foot cracked loudly. But Faithful wagged his tail and began to fawn on the princess, so her fear quickly disappeared.
Hello, friend, — said the boy, turning towards the branch.
Why "friend"? Aren't you frightened of me? — the girl asked with interest. For the first time, a stranger had not shrieked upon seeing her.
Faithful doesn't approach evil people, and he didn't even bark at you. And why should I be frightened of you?
Can't you see what I look like! — the princess wanted to cry, perhaps this boy was just mocking her?
No, I can't see: an evil witch made me blind when I was little, — and the shepherd boy told her everything he had heard from his parents, and the princess told him her story.
They quickly became friends, agreeing to meet at this place and tell no one about their friendship. Adults might forbid it: where had anyone ever heard of a shepherd boy and a princess being friends?
So the summer flew by. The shepherd boy taught the princess how to make pipes, from which such magical music flowed, and Decembrina told him magical fairy tales or sang songs to her friend.
I don't believe you're ugly, because you're so kind. No, that's not true! — the young shepherd boy often said to the princess.
No, my friend, it is. Princes jump out of windows in horror! — sighed the princess in response.
They're just fools! You have to see and hear with your heart, and I know: you're beautiful!
The princess's cheeks always turned pink at these words, and she genuinely wished that her dear shepherd boy were a prince. Their friendship remained a secret. Sometimes Decembrina would tear the hem of her dress climbing over the fence. But she would sew it all up so skilfully and expertly that it was impossible to guess where it had been torn.
The evil witch Wingrin sat as always in her cave, stirring some concoction in a cauldron. When suddenly a mosquito buzzed something in her ear. The concoction flew to the side, and the witch, hissing: "Well, no!", turned into a raven and left her dwelling.
The witch learned of the secret friendship, and she was very displeased! A black whirlwind swept up the shepherd boy and carried him away to who knows where. The poor princess did not know what to do, she wept, and Faithful whimpered beside her.
Don't cry, my dear, — the girl heard a gentle voice. It was her mother's friend, the fairy Lina.
How can I get him back? — the princess asked through her tears.
I'll tell you everything, but will you have the courage, my dear? The road is full of all sorts of dangers.
I will, I will! — the princess assured her hastily. — Help me get him back.
The fairy told her in detail about the road to the evil witch. Lina could not go with Decembrina — the curse would not allow it. And the girl had to set out alone. Decembrina did not return home: she was afraid that the king and queen would not let her go, and set off immediately along an unfamiliar path.
DON'T BE AFRAID OF ANYTHING AND LOOK ONLY AHEAD! — the fairy said to her as a parting gift.
For three whole days the girl walked through the forest, eating berries and drinking water from a spring. But her strength did not leave her. On the contrary, with every minute, with every hour, her desire to save her friend only grew stronger. At last the forest ended, and ahead was a field with exotic flowers. It seemed as if the rainbow itself had settled here, the birds sang so sweetly that you wanted to stop and listen, listen…
This was the kind of magical trap Wingrin had devised: if you lingered here for a few minutes, you would become a flower. Or perhaps a bird — whatever happened. But Decembrina seemed not to hear or see what was happening around her, because now there was nothing and no one more important to her than her friend August.
After the magical flowers came thickets of thorny bushes. The princess's dress now looked like rags, the thorns left marks on her arms, but the brave girl walked only forward.
At last, after a couple of days, the road of stones began, the road to Wingrin's dwelling.
Stop! Don't go there! Death awaits you there! — malicious hissing was heard from right and left, but the princess remembered that she had to go only forward!
When she entered the cave, the witch was already waiting for her.
Well, hello there, little piggy, — Wingrin greeted the girl mockingly. — I've been waiting for you!
Please let August go!
Who needs him! Little piggy, maybe I should restore his sight? But I'm afraid the boy will run away from you! — the witch laughed maliciously.
Return him, if you can, — the girl held back her tears. She understood that the witch was partly right. — I can become your prisoner, just let him go!
Oh no, too easy for you! — the witch shrieked. — Your shepherd will become a beautiful golden statue and will decorate my little home! It will be cosy!
Wingrin began to cast a spell. Small lightning bolts flew from her hands, and very soon they turned into a ball of fire. In its bright light, Decembrina finally noticed her friend in the corner of the cave: he was unconscious.
Wingrin was already directing her ball towards him, but in the very last second Decembrina managed to shield August with her own body. The girl saw how the tips of her fingers turned golden, how her strength was leaving her. She seemed to be falling asleep. But, to her surprise, she noticed that Wingrin, instead of rejoicing, turned into a black soap bubble and burst.
"Well, that's it, — thought the princess, — at least August will be alive!"
Fragments of phrases echoed in her head: "Magic, black, ancient. THE POWER OF LOVE AND FRIENDSHIP!" Decembrina came to herself when someone gently touched her shoulder.
Hey, wake up!
August was sitting beside her, and now he could see!
The princess was very happy, but, remembering the curse, turned away:
Don't look at me!
Why? — the shepherd boy asked genuinely surprised.
I'M UGLY!
It seems to me you're being hard on yourself! Even when I was blind, I knew you were beautiful!
Look, here, if you don't believe me! — August handed the girl a small mirror. The princess could not look in large mirrors. And only this small one was always with her, and now it must have fallen out of her pocket.
The girl looked at her reflection fearfully, but she did not see a pig's snout. A beautiful girl looked back at her!
SO THIS IS THE POWER OF LOVE AND FRIENDSHIP!
Yes, it is, — came the fairy's voice. Now that the curse was broken, she could escort them back to the kingdom.
The happy king and queen joyfully welcomed their daughter and her friend. They quickly became friends with the boy's parents. Everyone was happy when August and Decembrina decided to marry. And the phrase "Love and friendship will conquer all!" became the most beloved saying for all the people in the kingdom.
