Once upon a time there lived a husband and wife, very important nobles. They wanted to have a son, but as luck would have it, there was no son. One day a nobleman met a wizard on the street:
- Signor wizard, what should we do? We really want a son!
The wizard handed him an apple and said:
“Give this apple to your wife, and in exactly nine months she will give birth to a wonderful boy.”
The husband returned home and gave the apple to his wife.
- Eat this apple and we will have a wonderful boy. That's what the wizard said.
The wife was delighted, immediately called the maid and ordered her to peel the apple. She peeled it, took the peel for herself and then ate it herself.
On the same day, a noble lady and a maid each had a son: the maid was as ruddy as an apple peel, and the lady was as white-faced as a peeled apple. The nobleman loved Apple and Peel as if both were his sons. The boys grew up together, went to school together and loved each other like brothers.
Time passed, and Apple and Peel became adults.
Once they heard that one wizard has a daughter, as beautiful as the sun, but it is impossible to see her: she never leaves the house and does not even look out the window.
Apple and Peel ordered a large horse to be cast from bronze, empty inside, and hid in it, taking a trumpet and a violin.
The horse's legs had wheels. The young men began to turn them around from the inside and went to the wizard's palace. As they approached, they began to play the trumpet and violin. The wizard saw a musical bronze horse through the window and let him into the palace to amuse his daughter. And she really liked the wonderful horse. But barely
the girl was left alone when Apple and Peel jumped out of the horse. She was afraid of the young men, but Apple and Peel calmed her down:
- Don't be scared. We came to admire your beauty! If you order us, we will leave immediately. But if you like our music, we'll stay and play some more. Then we will hide in the horse, and no one will know that anyone was here.
Apple and Peel entertained the wizard's daughter for a long time, but she did not want to let them go.
- Come with us! Become my wife! - Yabloko burst out.
The girl agreed; all three hid in a wonderful horse and - goodbye to the wizard's castle!
The old wizard called his daughter, but she did not respond. He began to look for her - she was nowhere to be found. And the gatekeeper knew nothing... Then the wizard realized that he had been deceived, and became terribly angry. He ran out onto the balcony and shouted three curses after the fugitive:
“Let my daughter meet three horses: gray, bay and black!” Let her like the gray horse, in this horse she will find her death!
- Let her meet three puppies - white, red and black! Let her like the black one - she will take it in her arms, and death will befall her!
“Let her die on her wedding night when a huge snake crawls into her bedroom!”
At this time, three old women and three fairies passed under the balcony, and they heard everything. The fairies were tired from the road and decided to turn into an inn. They entered there
and one says:
- So that’s where the wizard’s daughter is! If she had known about the three curses that her father threw after her, she would not have slept
she's so sweet.
Meanwhile, the wizard’s daughter, Apple and Peel were sleeping peacefully right there on the bench. But Kozhura did not sleep very soundly: either sleep did not come to him, or he knew that in such cases it was better to sleep with only one eye. Anyway, he heard one fairy say:
— The wizard cursed his daughter and wished her a meeting with three horses - a gray, a bay and a black. She will jump on a gray tree, and it will destroy her.
“But,” the other objected, “if someone manages to cut off this horse’s head, nothing will happen.”
“And whoever finds out about the wizard’s predictions and tells another person will turn into a marble statue.”
“The magician wished her to meet three puppies - white, red and black,” continued the first fairy. “The magician’s daughter will take the black puppy in her arms.” And death will befall her.
“But,” the second objected, “if someone manages to cut off the puppy’s head, nothing will happen.”
“And the one who finds out about these predictions and tells another person will turn into a marble statue.”
“And he also said that on the wedding night a huge snake would crawl into the bedroom and the wizard’s daughter would die.”
“But if someone cuts off the snake’s head, nothing will happen.”
“And the one who finds out about this and tells another person will turn into a marble statue.”
So Kozhura learned three terrible secrets and could not reveal them to anyone, otherwise he would have turned to stone.
The next day, the young men and the wizard’s daughter arrived at the post station, and three horses were already waiting there - gray, bay and black. They were sent away by Yabloko's father.
The girl immediately jumped up.
But Kozhura pulled out his sword and cut off the horse's head.
- You're crazy! Why did you do this?
- Sorry, but I can't talk about this.
- Apple, Peel has a hard heart. I won't go any further with him.
But Kozhura said that he himself did not know why he cut off the horse’s head. Well, something came over him. And the wizard's daughter forgave him.
The travelers drove up to the house, and three puppies ran out to meet them: white, red and black. To the girl
I wanted to pick up the black man, but Kozhura pulled out his sword and cut off his head.
- Get away immediately, you cruel man! - she cried.
At this time, Yabloko’s parents came up and greeted their son and his bride with great cordiality. And when they learned about her quarrel with Kozhura, they began to ask so fervently for him that the girl again forgave everything and made peace with him. During the feast, everyone was having fun - only Kozhura sat to the side of the festive table. He was preoccupied and thoughtful. But no one ever found out why he was sad.
- Not really! “Nothing happened,” he answered everyone, and went to bed before everyone else. But instead of his room, he went to the young people’s bedroom and hid there under the bed.
Soon the young people went to bed and fell asleep. But Kozhura was not sleeping and suddenly he heard that the glass was breaking. He sees a huge snake crawling through the window. With a blow of his sword, Kozhur cut off her head. The noise woke up the bride. She sees Peel in front of the bed with a drawn sword, and meanwhile the snake has disappeared.
- Murderer! Grab him! The peel wants to kill us! I have forgiven him twice, but this time he will pay with his life.
Kozhura was seized and thrown into prison, and three days later they were led to the gallows.
“There’s nothing to do... Die anyway,” said Kozhura and asked to fulfill his last wish. Before his death, he wanted to say a few words to Yabloko’s wife.
“Remember,” began Kozhura, “how we stopped at the inn?”
“Yes, I remember,” answered Yabloko’s wife.
“When you were both asleep, three fairies came in.” From one I heard that the wizard threw three curses after his daughter. He predicted that you would meet three horses, and the gray one, if you sat on it, would destroy you. But another fairy said that you need to cut off the horse’s head - then nothing will happen. And the third fairy
she said that if anyone finds out about the wizard’s predictions and passes them on to another person, he will turn into a marble statue.
At these words, the unfortunate Peel’s legs turned to stone.
“Enough, enough,” cried the young woman. She understood everything. “Don’t tell me anything else!”
- Die anyway! - Kozhura objected. - So know everything. Three fairies said that you would meet three puppies. - And he spoke about the wizard’s second prediction and became petrified to the neck.
- I understood everything! Poor Peel, forgive me! Don’t say another word,” the young woman begged.
But in a weakening voice, because his neck had turned to stone and his jaws began to turn into marble, he spoke about the wizard’s last terrible curse - about the snake.
“But... whoever talks about this... will turn into a marble statue,” and fell silent, petrified from head to toe.
“What have I done,” Yabloko’s wife cried in despair. “Now this faithful soul is doomed... But maybe?.. Yes, only my father will save him!”
She took paper, pen and ink and wrote a letter where she begged her father to visit her.
The wizard loved his child more than anything in the world. He immediately got into the carriage and rushed to his daughter at full speed.
“Father, dear,” said the daughter, hugging the wizard. “I ask you for mercy!” Do you see this poor marble youth? He saved me from three of your curses and turned me to stone. Revive him!
“For the sake of my love for my daughter,” the wizard sighed, “I forgive him.” He took a bottle of balm from his pocket, sprinkled it on the marble statue, and Peel came to life, became rosy and healthy, as before, and he was solemnly led home with music and singing. And the people greeted him:
- Long live Peel! Long live Peel!
Translated from Russian · original on wisdomlib.ru