Once upon a time there lived a king, and he had three sons, handsome and brave, but the king was afraid that the princes would want to sit on the throne without waiting for his death. There were even rumors already circulating that they were patronizing those who could help them take his kingdom from the king. The king felt the approach of old age, but his mind and strength did not weaken at all, so he did not at all want to yield to his sons the rank that he bore with such dignity. So he decided that the best way to protect his peace was to delay time, luring his sons with promises, the fulfillment of which he would always be able to evade.
The king called his sons to their rooms and, having spoken graciously to them, added:
You must agree, dear children, that my advanced age no longer allows me to carry out the affairs of the state as diligently as in previous years. I am afraid that this might cause harm to my subjects, and I have decided to cede the crown to one of you. But in order to receive such a gift from me, you must, in fairness, try to please me and get something that will please me when I retire to the village. I think that a smart little dog could entertain me, and therefore, without giving preference to the eldest son over the younger ones, I announce to you that the one of you who brings me the most beautiful dog will become my heir.
The princes were surprised that their father suddenly wanted to have a dog, but for both younger brothers such an offer promised benefits, and they willingly agreed to go in search of the dog, and the eldest was too modest, and perhaps too respectful, to defend his rights. The princes said goodbye to the king, he gave them money and jewelry and added that exactly a year later, on the same day and hour, they should come to him with their dogs.
Before setting off, the brothers met at a castle not far from the city. They brought their closest confidants there with them and held a feast there. The three brothers swore to each other eternal friendship and that, fulfilling their father’s request, they would act without malice and envy and the one who was lucky would not forget the others in his happiness. Finally, they set off on their journey, having agreed upon their return to meet in the same palace, so that from here the three of them could go to the king. They did not want to take guides with them and gave fictitious names so as not to be recognized.
Everyone went their own way, the two eldest experienced many adventures, but only the youngest brother occupies me. He was courteous, cheerful and resourceful, distinguished by a remarkable mind, noble build, regular facial features, a dazzling smile and was extremely skilled in all activities befitting a prince. He sang pleasantly, he touched the soul with his soulful playing on the lute and theorbo, he knew how to draw - in a word, he was perfect in every way, and his courage bordered on insolence.
Not a day passed without the prince buying dogs, big and small, greyhounds, great Danes, bloodhounds, hounds, spaniels, lapdogs. If he came across a beautiful dog, and then another, more beautiful one, he would let go of the first one and keep the second one: he couldn’t lead a pack of thirty, or even forty thousand dogs, because he had no retinue, no lackeys, no pages. The prince walked forward and forward, never deciding how long he would go, when he suddenly got lost in the forest, where he was overtaken by rain and a thunderstorm.
He chose one of the paths at random, walked along it for a long time and finally saw a faint light glimmering ahead. That’s right, there is some housing nearby where you can wait out the bad weather until the morning,” the prince decided. Walking towards the light, he came to the gates of the palace. The gates were made of pure gold and decorated with carbuncles, which illuminated everything around with their bright and pure light. It was this light that the prince saw from afar. The walls were made of transparent porcelain, and on them the history of fairies from the creation of the world to modern times was depicted in multi-colored paints. The famous fairy tales about Donkey Skin, Vostrushka, the Orange Tree, Miliana, Sleeping Beauty, the Green Already and countless others were not forgotten here. The prince was very happy to see the image of Prince Fidget, because he was a distant relative. However, rain and bad weather prevented the prince from further examining the paintings, and not only because he was wet to the bone, but also because in those places where the light of the carbuncles did not reach, nothing was visible.
The prince returned to the golden gate and saw the paw of a roe deer on a diamond chain. He was surprised by all this luxury and how calmly and carefree the inhabitants of the castle lived. After all, he thought, who can stop a thief from cutting off this chain, picking out the carbuncles and becoming a rich man for the rest of his days?
The prince pulled the roe deer's paw, and immediately the bell rang, which, judging by the sound, was made of gold and silver. A moment later, the door opened, but the prince saw no one, only several hands appeared in the air, each holding a torch. The prince was so surprised that he did not dare cross the threshold, but then other hands rather decisively pushed him forward. He obeyed them in great embarrassment and, just in case, took up the hilt of his sword, but as soon as he entered the hallway, lined from top to bottom with porphyry and azure stone, two delightful voices sang the following song:
You would be in vain to be afraid of these hands:
Nothing here is hostile to you, Only the wondrous face is dangerous to hearts afraid of love.
The prince decided that he could not be so kindly invited into the palace as to cause him harm, so when he was pushed towards the coral door, which swung open at his approach, he entered without resistance into the drawing room, lined with mother-of-pearl, and then into other chambers, each decorated in its own way with such a multitude of pictures and jewels that the prince was simply dazzled. Thousands of lights burning in the living room from floor to ceiling flooded some of the other rooms with their light, although they also had no shortage of chandeliers, girandoles and shelves on which candles stood - in a word, the splendor was such that it was difficult to believe your own eyes.
The prince passed sixty rooms, and then finally the hands that showed him the way stopped him, and he saw a large comfortable chair rolling up to the fireplace. A fire immediately blazed in the fireplace, and the hands, which seemed extremely beautiful to the prince - white, small, plump and chiseled, undressed him: after all, as I already said, he was wet to the skin, and it was necessary to take care that he did not catch a cold. The invisible hands brought him a shirt so beautiful that it was just right to wear it on his wedding day, and a robe woven in gold, on which his monogram was embroidered with small emeralds. Then the hands moved the dressing table towards the prince. All the toiletries were also of extraordinary beauty. The hands deftly combed the prince's hair, almost without touching him, so that he was very pleased with their services. Then they dressed him again, but not in his own suit - they brought him a much more luxurious outfit. The prince silently marveled at everything that was happening, although sometimes he shuddered slightly from fear, which he still could not suppress.
Having powdered, curled, perfumed and dressed the prince so that he became more beautiful than Adonis, the hands led him into a magnificent hall, decorated with gilding and richly furnished. The paintings hanging around told the story of the most famous cats: here is Saloed, hanged by his feet at the council of rats, here is Puss in Boots, the Marquis de Carabas, here is the Scientist Cat, here is the Cat turned into a woman, and the Sorcerers turned into cats, and here is the Sabbath with all its ceremonies - in a word, the most wonderful paintings.
The table was set with two cutlery, and next to each stood a golden cellar; the table next to it was lined with bowls made of rock crystal and all kinds of rare stones - the abundance of them amazed the eye.
While the prince was wondering for whom the table had been set, he suddenly saw cats seated in the enclosure intended for a small orchestra; one of them held in his hands a score covered with strange notes, the other held a sheet of paper rolled up into a tube, with which he beat time; the others were holding tiny guitars. And suddenly all the cats began to meow in different voices and pluck the strings of the guitars with their claws: it was extremely outlandish music. The prince would probably have imagined that he was in the underworld, but the palace seemed too beautiful to him to allow such a thought. However, he still covered his ears and laughed heartily, seeing the poses and grimaces of the newly minted musicians.
The prince was thinking about the miracles that had already happened to him in this castle, when he suddenly saw a tiny creature, no larger than an elbow, enter the hall. The little one was wrapped in a black crepe blanket. She was led by two cats, they were dressed in mourning, in cloaks and swords, and they were followed by a long cat procession - some cats carried rat traps filled with rats, others - cages with mice.
The prince could not come to his senses from amazement - he did not know what to think. The black figure approached him, and when she threw back the cover, he saw the White Cat, the most beautiful of all that ever was and will be in the world. The cat seemed very young and very sad; she purred so tenderly and charmingly that her purring penetrated into the very heart of the prince.
“Welcome, son of the king,” she said to the prince. – My Purr is very glad to see you.
“Mistress Cat,” replied the prince, “you generously gave me the most gracious welcome.” But it seems to me that you are not an ordinary animal: the gift of speech with which you are endowed, and the luxurious castle that you own, eloquently testify to this.
“Son of the king,” said the White Cat, “I beg you, do not speak politely to me.” My speeches are artless and my customs are simple, but my heart is kind. That’s it,” she continued, “let them serve us dinner, and let the musicians be silent, because the prince does not understand the meaning of their words.”
- Do they really say anything, madam? – the prince was surprised.
“Of course,” answered the cat. “We have poets here who are endowed with remarkable talent. If you live with us, perhaps you will appreciate them.
“I only need to hear you to believe it,” the prince said kindly. “But still, madam, I see in you a cat of a rare breed.”
Dinner was brought, hands belonging to invisible people served the White Cat and her guest. first they put two broths on the table - one from pigeons, the other from fat mice. When the prince saw the second of them, he choked first, because he immediately imagined that they were cooked by the same cook. But the Kitty, guessing from his expression what was on his mind, assured him that his food was prepared separately, and he could eat whatever he was treated to without fear that there would be mice or rats in the food.
The Prince did not force himself to ask twice, confident that the Kitty would not deceive him. He noticed that on her paw there was a portrait in a precious frame hanging - this surprised him very much. Believing that this was a portrait of Master Cotaus, he asked Kitty to show him the portrait. Imagine his amazement when he saw that it depicted a young man of such beauty that it was difficult to believe in such a miracle of nature, and at the same time he looked so much like the prince, as if the portrait had been painted from him. The cat sighed and, becoming even more sad, fell silent. The prince realized that some extraordinary secret was hidden behind this. But he did not dare to ask, fearing to anger or upset the White Cat. He started a conversation with her about the news that he knew, and made sure that she had heard a lot about matters relating to the reigning persons, and in general about everything that was happening in the world.
After dinner, the White Cat invited her guest into the living room, where a stage was set up on which twelve cats and the same number of monkeys performed a ballet. The cats were dressed as Moors, the monkeys as Chinese. It’s easy to imagine how they galloped and jumped, sometimes digging their claws into each other. This is how the evening ended. The White Cat wished her guest good night, and the hands that had brought the prince to her picked him up again and conducted him to a chamber of a different kind than those he had already seen. These were not so luxurious as they were exquisite: their walls were completely covered with butterfly wings, forming a pattern in the form of a thousand different colors. There were also feathers of rare birds, perhaps not even seen anywhere except in these places. The bed was covered with gauze linen, decorated with many bows. And the mirrors stretched from floor to ceiling, and their carved gilded frames depicted many small cupids. The prince went to bed without saying a word, because it was impossible to carry on a conversation with the hands that waited on him; He slept little, and some vague noise woke him up. Immediately the hands lifted him out of bed and dressed him in a hunting suit. He looked into the castle courtyard and saw more than five hundred cats - some of them were leading greyhounds on a leash, others were blowing a horn; a big holiday was being planned - the White Cat was going hunting and wanted the prince to accompany her. Helpful hands brought him a wooden horse that could gallop at full speed and walk at a slow pace. The prince was stubborn at first, not wanting to sit on it. After all, I’m not the knight errant Don Quixote,” he said. But his objections came to nothing; he was seated on a wooden horse. The saddle cloth and the saddle on it were embroidered with gold and diamonds. The White Cat sat astride a monkey of unprecedented beauty and splendor. Instead of a black blanket, she put on a dashingly twisted cavalry cap, which gave her such a determined look that all the surrounding mice were scared. There has never been such an amazing hunt in the world; cats ran much faster than hares and rabbits, and when they grabbed the prey, the White Cat immediately gave them their share to eat. It was funny to watch their deft moves. The birds also did not feel safe, because the kittens climbed the trees, and the beautiful monkey raised the White Cat even to the eagles' nests, placing Their Highnesses the eaglets in her power.
At the end of the hunt, the White Cat took a horn no longer than a finger, but it produced such a loud and clear sound that it could be heard ten leagues away. She sounded the trumpet two or three times, and in the blink of an eye all the cats of her kingdom appeared to her. Some arrived by air, others sailed in boats by water - in a word, no one had ever seen such a huge gathering of cats. They were all dressed differently, and the Cat, accompanied by this solemn retinue, went to the castle, inviting the prince to follow her. He had nothing against it, although it seemed to him that such a dominance of cats smacked of evil spirits and witchcraft, but most of all he was surprised by the White Cat herself, speaking in human language.
When they returned to the palace, the Cat put on her long black blanket again, then she and the prince had dinner, he was very hungry and ate with great appetite. Drinks were served, the prince drank the wine with pleasure and immediately forgot about the small dog that he was supposed to bring to the king. Now he wanted only one thing - to purr with the White Cat, in other words - not to leave her even a step. They spent their days in pleasant amusements, sometimes fishing, sometimes hunting, then performing ballets, organizing equestrian competitions and inventing many other amusements. The White Cat also often composed poems and songs, so passionate that it was clear that she had a sensitive heart; Only those who love speak such language. But White Cat's secretary, an elderly cat, had such poor handwriting that although her works have been preserved, they are impossible to read.
The prince forgot everything - and even his homeland. The hands I have already mentioned continued to serve him. Sometimes the Prince regretted that he had not been born a cat, then he could have spent his whole life in this pleasant company. “Alas,” he said to the White Cat, “I will be so sad to part with you.” I love you so much. Become a girl or turn me into a cat. She listened favorably to his wishes, but answered in vague terms, so that he understood almost nothing.
Time flies quickly for one who knows neither worries nor sorrows, for one who is cheerful and healthy. But the White Cat knew when the prince should return, and since the prince no longer thought about returning, she herself reminded him of this.
“Do you know,” she asked him, “that you have only three days left to find the dog that your father the king wants, and that your brothers have already found dogs, and very beautiful ones at that?”
The prince came to his senses and was surprised at his own carelessness.
“What secret magic,” he exclaimed, “made me forget about what is most important to me in the world?” This is about my honor and glory. Where can I find a dog that will help me get the crown, and where can I find such a fast horse that will overcome a long journey?
The prince was overcome with anxiety and became noticeably depressed.
“Son of the king,” the White Cat told him in a gentle voice, “don’t worry, I’m your friend, you can stay with me for one more day, from here to your kingdom there are only five hundred leagues, and a nice wooden horse will take you there in less than half a day.”
“Thank you, beautiful Cat,” the prince answered her. - But it’s not enough for me to return to my father, I have to bring him a dog.
“Take this acorn,” said the White Cat, “there is a dog in it, which is more beautiful than the Great Dog Sirius.”
- Oh, Mrs. Cat, Your Majesty deigns to laugh at me.
“Put the acorn to your ear,” the Cat advised the prince, “and you will hear barking.”
The prince obeyed, and immediately the dog barked: Woof! woof! The prince was extremely happy, because a dog that can fit in a stomach must be very tiny. He wanted to crack the acorn, he was so impatient to see the dog, but the White Cat said that the dog might catch a cold on the road and it was better not to disturb it until the prince appeared before his father, the king. The Prince was showered with gratitude and tenderly said goodbye to the Cat.
“Believe me,” he said, “the days that I spent next to you flew by so unnoticed for me that it’s sad to leave you.” And although you are the queen and your court cats are much more witty and courteous than ours, I still ask you: come with me.
In response to this proposal, the White Cat only sighed deeply. They broke up. The prince was the first to arrive at the castle, where they agreed to meet with the brothers. Soon they arrived and were very surprised to see in the palace a wooden horse, more playful than all the horses that were kept at the riding school.
The prince came out to meet the brothers. They hugged and kissed and began to tell each other about their travels. But our prince did not tell his brothers what had happened to him: showing them the pitiful little dog that had previously turned the spit wheel, he assured them that she seemed so pretty to him that he decided to bring her to the king. No matter how friendly the brothers were with each other, the two older ones were secretly glad that the younger one had made such a bad choice. They were sitting at the table at that time, and one nudged the other with his foot, as if to say that they had nothing to fear from competition on this side.
The next day the brothers all left together in one carriage. The two eldest princes were carrying two dogs in baskets, so beautiful and fragile that it was scary to touch them. And the youngest was carrying an unfortunate little dog, turning a spit, so dirty that everyone shied away from it. The princes entered the king's chambers. The king did not know which of the dogs to choose, because both dogs brought by the older brothers were almost equally good. The brothers were already challenging each other for the right to succeed the king, when the younger resolved their dispute by taking out of his pocket an acorn donated by the White Cat. He quickly split it open and everyone saw a tiny dog lying in it on a fluffy bedding. The dog could jump through the wedding ring without hitting it. The prince put her on the ground, and she immediately began to dance the sarabande with castanets as easily as the most famous of the Spanish dancers. The dog shimmered with all the colors of the rainbow, and its soft fur and ears hung down to the floor.
The king was very embarrassed: the dog was so good that there was simply nothing to complain about.
However, the king did not at all want to part with his crown. Her smallest decorations were dearer to him than all the dogs in the world. Therefore, he told his sons that he was very pleased with their efforts, but they had so successfully fulfilled his first desire that, before keeping the word he had given them, he wanted to test their zeal once again. He gives them a year to find fabric so thin that it can be passed through the eye of the finest embroidery needle. All three were very upset that they would have to go searching again. But the two princes, whose dogs were inferior in beauty to the one the younger one brought, agreed. And everyone went their separate ways, saying goodbye not as friendly as the first time, because the dirty little dog turning the spit somewhat cooled their brotherly feelings.
Our prince mounted a wooden horse and, not wanting help from anyone except the White Cat, on whose friendship he hoped, he hastily set off and returned to the castle where he had once been so well received. All the gates were wide open, and the castle, the windows, roof, towers and walls of which were illuminated by thousands of lamps, presented a wondrous spectacle. The hands that had served the prince so well before met the guest again and, taking the magnificent wooden horse by the bridle, led him to the stable, while the prince went to the chambers of the White Cat.
She lay in a small basket, on a white satin pillow, very elegant. True, her nightcap was in disarray and she herself seemed sad, but as soon as she saw the prince, she began to jump and frolic, showing him her joy.
Although I had reasons to expect that you would return, son of the king, she said, I confess to you that I still did not dare to hope for your return. I usually have no luck and my wishes don't come true, that's why I'm so pleasantly surprised.
The noble prince showered the Kitty with caresses. He told her how his journey had ended, although, apparently, she knew everything even better than he did. He also said that the king wished to have a piece of cloth delivered to him that could fit into the eye of a needle. In truth, the prince admitted, he did not believe that this whim of the king could be fulfilled, but nevertheless decided to try his luck, relying on her friendship and assistance in everything. The White Cat thought about it and said that this was not an easy task, but, fortunately, in her castle there were skilled spinners among the cats, and she herself would put her paw to the work and hurry the spinner, so let the prince not worry and not look far for what he would rather find with her than in some other place.
Hands appeared, they brought in torches, and the prince, following them along with the White Cat, entered a majestic gallery that stretched along a huge river, over which an amazing fireworks display was lit. Several cats were to be burned in its fire, which were first judged by their entire form. They were accused of devouring the roast prepared for the White Cat's dinner, devouring her cheese, drinking her milk and even plotting against her person in collusion with the Slasher and the Hermit - rats very famous in the area - La Fontaine considers them to be such, and this author always speaks only the truth. However, it turned out that the case was not without intrigue and many witnesses were bribed. Be that as it may, the prince begged for the culprits to be pardoned. The fireworks did not harm anyone, and no one in the world had ever seen such beautiful, amusing lights.
Then they served an exquisite festive dinner, which gave the prince more pleasure than the fireworks, because he was very hungry, although the wooden horse rushed him very quickly - at such a speed the prince had never had to gallop before. The following days passed in the same way as they passed the last time - in all sorts of festivities with which the inventive White Cat entertained her guest. This was probably the first time a mortal had such fun with cats, without any other company around.
True, the White Cat was endowed with a lively, responsive and extremely versatile mind. And she was such a scientist as cats are not. The prince was sometimes simply amazed.
“No,” he kept telling her, “there’s something wrong here.” You have too many extraordinary talents. If you love me, lovely Pussy, tell me by what miracle you reason and think so wisely that you are fit to sit in the academy among the greatest minds?
“Stop asking me questions, son of the king,” she said. – I have no right to answer them, you can make any assumptions you like, I will not challenge you. Be pleased that when I am with you, I do not let out my claws and take everything that concerns you to heart.
The second year flew by as quickly as the first. As soon as the prince wished for something, obliging hands immediately brought it to him - be it books, precious stones, paintings or antique medals. It was enough for him to say: I dream of getting such and such a jewel from the collection of the Great Mogul or the Persian Shah, such and such a Corinthian or Greek statue - as the object of his desires, out of nowhere, appeared in front of him, delivered by someone unknown. This had its own charm - after all, for a change it is nice to be the owner of the most beautiful treasures in the world. The White Cat, who never for a moment forgot about the interests of the prince, announced to him that the day of his departure was approaching, but so that he would not worry about the linen he needed, she prepared him the most wonderful fabric.
“But this time,” added the Cat, “I want to equip you for the journey as befits a prince of your high birth,” and, without waiting for the prince’s answer, she made him look into the castle courtyard. There stood an open carriage made of gold, painted with scarlet paint and all decorated with gallant sayings that pleased both the eye and the mind. The carriage was harnessed in fours to a dozen snow-white horses in harnesses made of scarlet velvet, embroidered with diamonds and trimmed with gold plates. The inside of the carriage was upholstered with the same velvet, and behind it followed a hundred carriages: each drawn by eight horses and in each sat noble nobles in luxurious clothes. In addition to them, the carriage was followed by another thousand guards-bodyguards, whose uniforms were covered with such rich embroidery that it was not even visible what material they were made of. And the most amazing thing is that there were portraits of the White Cat everywhere: among the inscriptions on the first carriage, and in the embroidery on the uniforms of the guards; her portraits also hung on ribbons over the camisoles in which the nobles who made up the retinue were dressed, as if the White Cat had awarded them this new order.
“Go,” the Cat said to the prince, “and appear at the court of your father the king so solemnly that, seeing all this splendor, he will not refuse you the crown that you deserve.” Here is a nut for you, but be careful not to break it before you appear before the king - in it you will see the canvas that you asked me for.
“Dear White,” the prince said to her, “I am so touched by your kindness that I confess to you that if you agreed, I would prefer to spend my life next to you than to chase honors, which I may have the right to count on elsewhere.”
“Son of the king,” answered the White Cat, “I am sure that you have a kind heart, and this is a rare commodity among crowned people.” They want everyone to love them, but they themselves do not love anyone. But you prove that there are no rules without exceptions. I appreciate your devotion to the White Cat, who, to tell the truth, is only good for catching mice.
The prince kissed her paw and set off on his way. If it were not for knowing that the wooden horse needed less than two days to deliver the prince five hundred leagues from the White Cat’s castle, it would be difficult to imagine the speed with which he rushed this time: the same force that inspired the wooden horse so urged the prince’s current team that he and his companions spent no more than a day on the road - without ever making a halt, they arrived at the king, where they had already his two eldest sons appeared. Seeing that their younger brother did not show up, the princes rejoiced at his slowness and whispered to each other: Here you are lucky, he probably fell ill or died, he should not be our rival in the important matter that remains to be decided. And they unwrapped the fabrics they had brought, which were indeed so thin that they fit into the eye of a thick needle, but they did not fit into the eye of a thin one, and the king, very pleased that there was a pretext to challenge their rights, showed them the needle that he had in mind: By his order, the city councilors brought it from the city treasury, where it was kept under strong locks.
This dispute caused much murmur. The friends of the princes, especially the eldest, whose painting was more beautiful, said that this was an empty quibble, and it smacked of chicanery and trickery. And the king’s supporters argued that since the conditions were not met, the king was not at all obliged to renounce the throne. The bickering was put to an end by the wonderful sounds of trumpets, timpani and oboes - it was our prince who arrived with his magnificent retinue. Both the king and his two sons were amazed at such splendor.
Having bowed respectfully to his father and hugged his brothers, the prince took a nut covered in rubies from the box and cracked it. He hoped to see the vaunted canvas there, but there turned out to be a smaller hazelnut. The prince broke this nut too and was very surprised when he found a cherry pit in it.
Those around him looked at each other, the king chuckled quietly: he was making fun of his son, who turned out to be such a simpleton that he believed that he could bring a piece of linen in a nutshell. And why, strictly speaking, would he not believe it if the prince had already happened to get a dog that fit in his stomach? So, the prince split the cherry pit, it turned out to be a cherry kernel, then a roar arose in the hall, everyone said one thing in unison - the prince had been fooled. The prince did not answer a word to the ridicule of the courtiers - he split the kernel, it turned out to be a grain of wheat, and inside it was a grain of millet. Well, well! At this point the prince himself began to doubt and muttered through clenched teeth:
- Ah, White Cat, White Cat! You laughed at me!
But as soon as he muttered these words, he felt that a cat’s claws had dug into his hand and scratched him until he bled. He could not understand why they scratched him - to cheer him up or, conversely, to deprive him of courage. And yet, he split the grain of millet, and what was the surprise of those gathered when the prince pulled out four hundred cubits of canvas of amazing beauty - it depicted everything that exists on earth, birds, animals and fish, trees, fruits and plants; all sea rarities, shells and rocks, all heavenly bodies - the sun, moon, stars and planets. It also depicted kings and other sovereigns who ruled at that time in different countries, as well as their wives, lovers, children and every single one of their subjects, so that even the most wretched ragamuffin was not forgotten. And each was dressed according to his position and according to the fashion of his country. Seeing this canvas, the king turned as pale as the prince had blushed before, embarrassed by the fact that he had been looking for the canvas for so long. They brought a needle and pulled the fabric through the eye six times in one direction and the other. The king and two eldest sons remained sullenly silent, although the painting was of such rare beauty that from time to time they were still forced to admit that the world had never seen anything like it.
Finally the king took a deep breath and, turning to his sons, said:
“In my old age I have no greater consolation than to see your respect for me, and therefore I want to subject you to another test.” Go wandering for another year, and whoever, after this period, brings back the most beautiful girl, let him marry her and upon marriage receive my crown: after all, my successor must definitely marry. And I promise, I swear that I will not hesitate any longer and will give him the promised reward.
Of course, this was unfair to our prince. Both the dog and the linen he brought were worth not one, but ten kingdoms. But the prince had such a noble heart that he did not contradict his father and, without further words, got into his carriage. His entire retinue followed him, and he returned to his dear White Cat. She knew in advance what day and time he would arrive - his entire path was strewn with flowers, and incense was smoked everywhere, and especially in the palace. The White Cat sat on a Persian carpet under a gold-embroidered canopy in the gallery, from where she could see the prince ride up to the palace. The prince was greeted by hands that had served him before. And all the cats jumped up on the drainpipes and from there greeted him with loud meows.
“Well, son of the king,” said the White Cat, “have you returned again without receiving the crown?”
“Empress,” he replied, “your favors helped me earn it, but it seems to me that the king is so sorry to part with it that if I received it, his grief would be much stronger than my joy.”
“It doesn’t matter,” she objected, we must do everything to achieve it. I will help you with this, and since you need to bring a beautiful girl to your father’s court, I will find you one who will help you earn a reward. In the meantime, let's have fun, I ordered a naval battle between cats and evil nearby rats. My cats may be embarrassed, they are afraid of water, but otherwise they would have too great an advantage, and justice must be observed as much as possible.
The prince was delighted with the wisdom of Lady Kiska. He lavished praise on her for a long time, and then they went out together onto the terrace facing the sea. Cat ships were large pieces of cork bark on which cats swam quite deftly. And the rats connected together many eggshells - this was their fleet. The battle was fierce, the rats rushed to swim more than once, and they swam much better than cats, so that victory passed to one side or the other twenty times. But Admiral Kotaus of the cat fleet plunged the rat army into despair. He devoured their leader - an old, experienced rat who had traveled around the world three times on real large ships, but not as a captain or sailor, but as an ordinary lover of lard.
But the White Cat did not want the unfortunate rats to be completely destroyed. She was a wise politician and believed that if there were no mice or rats left in the country, her subjects would indulge in idleness, which could cause her damage. The prince spent this year the same as the previous two, that is, he hunted, went fishing or sat at the chessboard, because the White Cat played chess well.
The prince could not resist from time to time again starting to ask her about the miracle of her ability to speak. He wanted to know if she was a fairy, or maybe she had been turned into a cat by witchcraft. The White Cat always said only what she wanted to say, she answered only what she wanted to answer; in this case, she got off with meaningless words, and the prince soon realized that she did not want to let him in on her secret.
Nothing passes so quickly as cloudless and serene days, and if the White Cat had not remembered the time when it was time for the prince to return to court, he himself would no doubt have forgotten about it. And so, on the eve of the day when he had to return, the Cat told the prince that it depended on him alone whether he would bring one of the most beautiful princesses in the world to his father’s court, and that the moment had come to break the spell of the evil fairies, but for this the prince must decide to cut off her head and tail and immediately throw them into the fire.
- How! - exclaimed the prince. - My beloved Belyanochka! Am I really going to commit such a crime and kill you! No, you just want to test my heart, but believe me, it will never change the friendship and gratitude that it has for you. “Calm down, son of the king,” she objected. “I don’t at all suspect you of ingratitude, I know your valor, but our fate is not for you and not for me to decide.” Do as I ask and we will both be happy. I swear on the honor of a noble cat, you will be convinced that I am your true friend.
At the thought of cutting off the head of his dear Kitty, so charming and graceful, tears welled up in the prince’s eyes again and again. He again, with the most tender words, persuaded her to spare him from such an assignment, but she stubbornly insisted that she wanted to die by his hand and that this was the only way to prevent his brothers from receiving the crown. In a word, she convinced the prince so ardently that he, trembling all over, drew his sword from its sheath and with an unsteady hand cut off the head and tail of his dear friend. And then a marvelous transformation took place before his eyes. The White Cat's body began to grow, and suddenly she turned into a girl, and into such a beauty that it is impossible to describe. Her eyes captivated hearts, and her tenderness held them captive. Her posture was majestic, her whole appearance noble and modest, she was both smart and courteous, in a word - above all praise.
The prince, seeing her, was amazed, but so pleasantly amazed that he decided that he had been bewitched. He was speechless, he looked at the beautiful girl and could not get enough of it, but his naughty tongue was unable to express his amazement. The prince recovered only when suddenly many ladies and gentlemen appeared, on whose shoulders the skins of cats or cats were thrown, and they all prostrated themselves before the queen, rejoicing that she had again regained her natural human form. She answered them so kindly that you could immediately see what a kind heart she had. After speaking for a few minutes with her courtiers, she ordered that she be left alone with the prince. And then she began her story.
“Don’t think, prince, that I have always been a Cat or that my origin is unknown. My father was the ruler of six kingdoms. He loved my mother dearly and allowed her to do whatever she pleased. But she loved traveling most of all, and so, when she was pregnant with me, she wanted to see the mountain about which all sorts of miracles were told. On the way to this mountain, the queen was told that nearby there was an ancient castle where fairies lived, and that there was no more beautiful castle in the world, at least if you believe the legend that has reached us, because no one can judge this, for no man has ever set foot there; one thing is certain - in the fairies’ garden there grow such beautiful fruits, juicy and tender, that no one has ever tasted.
The queen, my mother, was suddenly overcome with such a frantic desire to try these fruits that she turned towards the castle. She approached the gates of a magnificent dwelling, which sparkled with gold and azure stone, but in vain she knocked on the doors, no one appeared to answer her knock - it seemed that the castle had died out. However, this obstacle only increased my mother's impatience; she sent her servants to bring rope ladders to climb over the garden wall, and they succeeded, if the walls did not begin to grow of themselves before their eyes. Then the queen's servants began to tie one ladder to another, but the ladders broke under those who tried to climb them, and people fell to the ground, breaking their arms and legs or falling to their death.
The queen fell into despair: she saw the branches bending under the weight of the fruits, which seemed unusually tasty to her, and decided that if she did not taste them, she would die. And so she ordered luxurious tents to be pitched near the castle and lived in them for a month and a half along with her retinue. She did not sleep, did not eat, but kept sighing and talking only about the fruits of this impregnable garden. Finally she fell dangerously ill, and no one could ease her suffering, because the inexorable fairies had never even shown themselves to the queen since she pitched tents near their home. All the courtiers were in terrible grief. Only tears and groans were heard in the tents, and the dying queen asked those who served her to bring fruit, but she wanted only those fruits that were denied her.
One night, when she managed to fall asleep for a while, she woke up and saw that a little old woman, ugly and decrepit, was sitting in a chair at her head. Before the queen had time to wonder why the ladies of the court allowed the stranger to approach her person, she suddenly said:
“Your Majesty bothers us very much, stubbornly wanting to taste the fruits from our trees.” But since this is about your precious life, we decided to give you as much fruit as you can carry with you and eat here on the spot, but for this you must give us a gift.
“Oh, good mother,” exclaimed the queen, “say, I’m ready to give you my kingdom, my heart, my soul, just to eat your fruits, I don’t mind giving anything for them.”
“We want,” answered the old woman, “for you to give us the daughter you carry in your womb.” As soon as she is born, we will take her in with us. We will raise her ourselves, we will give her all the virtues, beauty and learning, in a word, she will become our child, we will make her happy, but remember that Your Majesty will not see her before she gets married. If you agree to these conditions, I will immediately cure you and take you to our garden. Although it is night, you will see everything as if it were day, and you will be able to choose whatever you want. And if my words do not please you, good night, Madam Queen, I'm going to bed.
No matter how cruel your conditions are,” the queen answered, “I accept them, because otherwise I will die: I feel that I will not last a day, and therefore, by dying myself, I will destroy my child.” Heal me, wise fairy,” she continued, “and allow me to exercise the promised right without delay.”
Touching the queen with her golden wand, the fairy said:
“May Your Majesty be freed from the illness that confines you to your bed,” and immediately it seemed to the queen as if her body had been freed from the heavy and rough clothes that constrained it, only in some places she still felt their touch - the disease must have struck her especially deeply in these places. The queen called her ladies and, smiling, told them that she felt great, now she would get up, the tightly locked, impregnable doors of the magic castle would finally open in front of her and she would be able to eat the wonderful fruits and take them with her.
Every single one of the ladies imagined that the queen was delirious and in her delirium she was imagining the coveted fruits. Without answering her, they burst into tears and went to wake up the doctors so that they could see what was wrong with the queen. And the queen was in despair at this delay. She ordered her dress to be brought to her immediately - the ladies refused, the queen became angry and blushed. Those around her decided that she had a fever. However, the doctors came and, after feeling the queen’s pulse and generally doing everything that was required in such cases, they had to admit that the queen was completely healthy. The ladies of the court, realizing what a mistake they had made out of zeal, hastened to make amends by dressing the queen as quickly as possible. Each one asked her forgiveness, everyone calmed down, and the queen hurried after the old fairy, who was still waiting for her.
The queen entered a palace that was so beautiful that no other palace could compare with it. You will easily believe me, prince,” added the White Cat, “if I tell you that this is the very palace where you and I are now. Two other fairies, younger than the first, met my mother on the threshold and greeted her kindly. She asked them to immediately take her to the garden, to the trellises where the best fruits grow.
“They are all equally good,” answered the fairies, “and if it weren’t for your desire to pluck them yourself, we could simply call them and they would come to our call.”
“I beg you, madams,” exclaimed the queen, “give me a pleasant opportunity to see this miracle.”
The eldest of the fairies put her fingers in her mouth and whistled three times, and then shouted:
Apricots, peaches, cherries, plums, pears, cherries, melons, grapes, apples, oranges, lemons, currants, strawberries, raspberries, come to my call!
“But those whom you call,” the queen was surprised, “ripen at different times of the year.”
“It’s not like that in our garden,” answered the fairies. – All the fruits growing on the earth are ripe, juicy all year round and never rot or become wormy.
And at that moment all those whom the fairy had called appeared - they rolled and jumped, all interspersed, but did not wrinkle or get dirty, and the queen, eager to fulfill her desire, rushed to them and grabbed the first ones that came to her hand. She did not eat them, but greedily swallowed them.
Having satisfied her hunger a little, she asked the fairies to lead her to the trellises to admire the fruits before picking them.
“Willingly,” all three answered, “just don’t forget about the promise you gave us, you can’t back down from it.”
“I am sure,” said the queen, “that it is very pleasant to live with you, and your palace is so beautiful that if I did not dearly love my husband the king, I myself would willingly stay with you.” So don't be afraid, I won't break my word.
The fairies, very pleased with her words, opened all the gates and gates to the queen, and she remained in their garden for three days and three nights, not wanting to leave - she liked the fruits so much. She picked fruits in reserve and, since they never spoil, ordered four thousand mules to be loaded with them to take them with her. The fairies gave the queen skillfully made golden baskets so that she would have somewhere to put the fruits they had donated, and presented her with many precious rarities. They promised the queen to raise me like a princess, to endow me with all the perfections and to find a husband for me, and they would notify the queen about the wedding day and hope that she would come to the wedding.
The king was happy that the queen had finally returned, and the whole court was happy, the balls gave way to masquerades, horse competitions and all kinds of feasts, and at them, as a special delicacy, fruits brought by the queen were served. The king preferred them to all other treats. After all, he knew nothing about the agreement that the queen concluded with the fairies, and often asked her what country she had visited and where she managed to find such amazing fruits.
The queen answered that they grow on a mountain, almost inaccessible, but another time she assured that they grow in the valleys, and then in the garden or in a dense forest. The king marveled at the queen's contradictory answers. He tried to ask her companions, those who accompanied the queen on the journey, but she ordered them so many times to remain silent about her adventure that they did not dare open their mouths. However, seeing that the time would soon come for her to give birth, the queen began to think with anxiety about what she had promised to the fairies, and fell into deep sadness. She sighed every minute and changed before our eyes. The king lost his peace. He began to ask the queen to tell him what was troubling her, and after painful hesitation, she finally confessed to him everything that had happened between her and the fairies and how she had promised them to give them the daughter she would give birth to.
- What do I hear! - exclaimed the king. “We don’t have children, you know how I dream about them, and in order to eat a few apples, are you able to promise your daughter as a gift?” So you don't love me at all.
And he showered the queen with such cruel reproaches that my unfortunate mother almost died of grief. But the king was not content with this - he ordered the queen to be locked in a tower and guards placed around her so that she could not communicate with anyone except those who served her, and then he removed all the courtiers who accompanied the queen to the fairies' castle.
The discord between the king and queen plunged the entire court into terrible despondency. Instead of their previous clothes, everyone put on others, expressing universal mourning. As for the king, he was inexorable - he no longer wanted to see his wife and, as soon as I was born, he ordered me to be brought to his palace so that I would grow up near him, and my unfortunate mother would remain a captive. The fairies, of course, knew about everything that was happening. They were angry - they wanted me to live with them, they looked at me as their property and believed that I had been stolen from them. Before finding a way of revenge commensurate with their anger, they sent a magnificent embassy to the king, inviting him to release the queen from captivity, return her to his favor, and asking him also to give me to the ambassadors so that they could raise and educate me themselves. But the fairy messengers were so tiny and ugly - they were ugly dwarfs - that they were unable to convince the king. He rudely refused their requests, and if they had not hastened to leave, perhaps they would have had a very bad time.
Having learned what my father had done, the fairies became extremely furious and, having brought terrible disasters upon his six kingdoms in order to devastate them, they also sent a terrible dragon, who poisoned the places where he passed with poison, devoured men and children and destroyed trees and plants with his breath.
The king was in despair, he asked all the wise men of his kingdom about what he should do to save his subjects from the misfortunes that had befallen them. The sages advised him to call the best doctors from all over the world and bring the best medicinal drugs, and in addition to promise life to criminals sentenced to death who wanted to fight the dragon. The king liked this advice and followed it, but it did not help. People continued to die, and the dragon devoured all those who decided to fight him, so the king had to turn for help to the fairy, who had patronized him from an early age. She was very old and hardly got out of bed, the king himself went to her and began to reproach her that she saw how fate was pursuing him, but did not want to help him.
“I can’t do anything,” said the fairy. You have angered my sisters. We have equal power and rarely act against each other. Better appease them by giving them your daughter - the little princess belongs to them. You put the queen in prison, but what did this glorious woman do to you that you treated her so cruelly? Decide to fulfill the word she gave to the fairies, and, believe me, you will be showered with benefits.
The king, my father, loved me dearly, but seeing no other way to save his kingdom and rid it of the destroyer dragon, he told his fairy friend that he decided to follow her advice and was ready to give me to the fairies, since she assured me that I would be cherished and cherished, as befits a princess of my birth, that he would also return the queen to the palace and asked the fairy to tell whom he should entrust to carry me to the fairy abode of the fairies.
“The princess in her cradle must be carried to the top of the Flower Mountain,” answered the fairy, “you can even stay nearby to witness the celebration that will take place there.”
Then the king told her that in a week he and the queen would go to this mountain and let the fairy warn her sisters so that they arrange everything as they see fit. As soon as the king returned to the castle, he sent for the queen and received her as kindly and solemnly as he had angrily and sternly sent her into captivity. She was dejected and so changed that he would have had difficulty recognizing her if his heart had not assured him that this was the very woman he loved. With tears in his eyes, he asked her to forget all the sorrows that he had caused her, and assured her that he would never again upset her with anything in his life. She answered him that she had brought these sorrows upon herself by recklessly promising the fairies to give them her daughter, and she could only be excused because she was then waiting. The king told his wife that he had decided to give me to the fairies.
At this point the queen began to oppose his intentions. One would have thought that this was some kind of fate and that I was forever destined to be the subject of disagreement between my parents. My mother moaned and cried for a long time, but did not achieve what she wanted (the king saw what terrible consequences entailed disobedience to the fairies, because our subjects continued to die, as if they were to blame for the sins of our family); then at last the queen yielded, and everything was prepared for the ceremony.
I was placed in a cradle made of mother-of-pearl, decorated with works of the most exquisite art. The cradle was all entwined with fresh flowers and garlands of multi-colored precious stones, which sparkled so dazzlingly under the rays of the sun that it was painful to look at them. The luxury of my outfit surpassed, if possible, the luxury of the cradle: my swaddling clothes were fastened with large pearls. Twenty-four princesses of the royal family carried me on a special light stretcher; the princesses were dressed differently, but as a sign of my innocence they had to be in all white. And the courtiers walked behind us - each in a place appropriate to his rank.
As they climbed the mountainside, everyone heard melodic music that was getting closer and closer. Finally the fairies appeared - there were thirty-six of them, because they called all their friends. Each sat in a pearl shell, larger than the one on which Venus appeared in the depths of the sea. They were carried by sea horses, which walked rather uncertainly on the ground. The fairies were dressed more luxuriously than the first among the earthly queens - but at the same time they were old and ugly. They held an olive branch in their hands to let the king know that by his obedience he had earned their favor. And when I was handed over to their hands, they showered me with such stormy caresses that one would think that from now on they had no other goal in life than to make me happy.
The dragon, who took revenge on my father at their command, followed them on a diamond chain. The fairies passed me from hand to hand, caressed me, gave me many happy properties, and then began the fairy dance. This is a very cheerful dance: it’s hard to even imagine how briskly the old ladies galloped and jumped. Then the dragon that had devoured so many people crawled towards them on its knees. Three fairies - those to whom my mother promised to give me - sat astride him, and placed my cradle in the middle, and as soon as they whipped the dragon with a magic wand, he spread huge scaly wings, thinner than the finest silk. On this dragon, the fairies headed to their castle. My mother, seeing that I was hoisted onto the back of a terrible monster, could not resist and began to scream. But the king consoled his wife, referring to his fairy patroness, who assured him that they would not do anything bad to me and would take care of me in the same way as they would in his own palace.
The queen calmed down, although she was very sad to part with me for such a long time, and even through her own fault, because if she had not wanted to taste the fruits from the magic garden, I would have remained in my father’s kingdom and the sorrows that I have to tell you about would not have fallen to my lot.
Know, son of the king, that my guards built a tower for me, in which there were many beautiful rooms - for each season of the year, and in them expensive furniture, interesting books, but there were no doors in the tower - it was possible to enter it only through a window located very high. The tower had a beautiful garden with flowers, fountains and arches of green alleys that protected from the heat in the midst of the heat. In this tower, the fairies raised me, surrounding me with care, even more than they promised the queen. I was always dressed in the latest fashion and so luxuriously that if anyone saw me, he would think that I was wearing a wedding dress. I was taught everything that a person of my age and background should know. I didn’t cause the fairies any trouble - I learned everything with indescribable ease. They liked my meekness, and since I had never seen anyone but them, perhaps I would have lived in peace until the end of my days.
Fairies constantly visited me riding on the dragon, which I already told about. They never mentioned a queen or a king, they called me their daughter and I believed them. In the tower, only a parrot and a small dog lived with me, which the fairies gave me to entertain me, because both were endowed with intelligence and spoke human language. One side of the tower faced a ravine, along the bottom of which a road stretched; it was full of potholes and overgrown with trees, which is why, since I was placed in the tower, I have never seen anyone driving along it.
But one day, when I was standing at the window, talking with a parrot and a dog, I heard a noise. I looked around and saw a young rider who stopped to listen to our conversation. Until then, I had only seen men in paintings. I had nothing at all against this unexpected meeting and, not suspecting how dangerous it is to contemplate an object worthy of love, I came closer to get a better look at the young man, and the more I looked at him, the more pleasure it gave me. He bowed low to me, not taking his eyes off me, and it was clear that he was in difficulty looking for a way to talk to me: my window was located very high and he was afraid that he might be heard, and he knew that I lived in a fairy castle.
It got dark quite unexpectedly, or, more precisely, we simply didn’t notice how dark it got: the young man blew the horn several times, delighted my ears with its sounds, and disappeared. But it was so dark that I didn’t even see in which direction he galloped away. I was deep in thought; the chatter of my parrot and dog no longer gave me the usual pleasure.
Meanwhile, they spoke very funny, because magical animals are endowed with wit, but my thoughts were occupied with other things, and I did not know how to pretend. The parrot noticed this, but he was cunning and did not show what observations he had made.
I got up at dawn. And she immediately rushed to the window. I was pleasantly surprised to see a young gentleman at the foot of the tower. He was wearing a luxurious outfit. He probably put it on for me, I thought, and I was not mistaken. The young man spoke to me through a kind of mouthpiece that amplifies his voice, with its help he told me that until now he had been indifferent to the beauties he had met, but my beauty in the blink of an eye struck him so much that from now on he simply needs to see me every day - otherwise he will die. I was very pleased with his kind words, but was upset that I did not dare answer him: after all, to do this I had to shout loudly, and then the fairies would hear me better than he. I had flowers in my hands, I threw them to him, he accepted them as an untold mercy, showered them with kisses and began to thank me. Then he asked if I would allow him to come to my window every day at the appointed hour and if I would agree to give him something as a keepsake. I had a turquoise ring on my hand, I tore it off my finger and hastily threw it to the young man, making a sign, because I heard the fairy Villainess, who was bringing me breakfast, approaching the tower on her dragon from the other side.
The first words she uttered when she was in my room were: I smell a human voice! Seek, dragon! What happened to me! I froze with fear at the thought that the dragon would fly out through another window, pursuing the young man who was no longer indifferent to me.
“You are, of course, joking, my good mother,” I said (the old fairy demanded that I call her mother). “You’re kidding when you say you can smell a human voice.” Do voices smell? And if this is so, what mortal would dare to climb this tower?
“You’re right, my daughter,” she answered, “I’m very glad that you reason so wisely, it’s just that my hatred for people is so great that sometimes it seems to me that they are nearby.”
She handed me my breakfast and my spinning wheel.
When you eat, sit down to work, you spent yesterday in idleness,” she said, “my sisters will be angry.”
And in fact, I was thinking so much about the stranger that I didn’t touch my work.
As soon as the fairy flew away, I stubbornly threw away the spinning wheel and climbed onto the terrace to see as far around as possible. I had an excellent telescope - everything was visible to my eyes, I looked around and saw my stranger on the top of the mountain. Surrounded by a lush courtyard, he rested under the shade of a rich tent woven with gold. I realized that he was the son of some king living next door to a magic castle. Fearing that the terrible dragon might smell the young man if he came to the tower again, I ordered the parrot to fly to this mountain; there he will find the one who spoke to me, let him ask him on my behalf not to return again, because I am afraid that the fairies, vigilantly guarding me, will play a cruel joke on him.
The parrot fulfilled my instructions, as befits a smart bird. The courtiers were very surprised when he, flapping his wings, landed on the prince's shoulder and whispered something in his ear. The prince was both pleased and saddened by this embassy. He was pleased that I was worried about him, but the obstacles that prevented him from talking with me depressed him, although they did not extinguish his determination to gain my favor. He bombarded the parrot with questions, and the parrot, in turn, bombarded the prince with questions, because he was naturally curious. The prince asked the messenger to give me a ring to replace my turquoise one: the prince’s ring was also made of turquoise, but much more beautiful than mine, it was cut in the shape of a heart and studded with diamonds.
“In fairness,” said the prince to the parrot, “I must treat you as an ambassador.” Here is my portrait, do not show it to anyone except your charming lady.
And he hid his portrait under the parrot’s wing, and the parrot carried the ring in its beak. I waited for the return of my green messenger with an impatience hitherto unknown to me. The parrot announced to me that the one to whom I sent him was a powerful sovereign, that he received him in the best possible way and I should know: from now on he lives and breathes only for my sake; even if coming to the tower threatens him with danger, he is ready to die rather than not see me. This news plunged me into terrible anxiety and I began to cry. The parrot and the dog began vying with each other to console me, because they loved me dearly. Then the parrot gave me the prince's ring and showed me his portrait. I confess to you that the opportunity to contemplate up close someone whom I had only seen from afar brought me incomparable joy. I liked the prince even more than before; My head was crowded with many thoughts, both joyful and sad, which led me into extraordinary excitement. The fairies who came to visit me immediately noticed this. They decided among themselves that I was obviously homesick and needed to find me a husband from the fairy world.
They went through many suitors and finally settled on the dwarf king Migonne, whose kingdom lay five hundred thousand miles from the castle. But this did not bother the fairies. The parrot overheard what was said at their noble council and told me everything.
“Oh, my dear lady,” he added, “how I pity you if you have to become Queen Migonnet.” The king is a freak who is scary to look at. I am very sad to tell you this, but, to tell the truth, the prince who loves you would not even take him as a lackey. -Have you seen him, parrot? “Of course,” he answered. – We grew up on the same branch. - So how is it on a branch? – I asked again. Well, yes,” said the parrot. – Migonnet has eagle claws on her feet.
This story plunged me into deep grief. I looked at the portrait of the handsome prince, I understood that he gave the parrot a portrait only so that I could see him. And when I compared the prince with Migonnet, I lost my taste for life and was ready to die rather than marry a dwarf.
I spent the night without sleep. The parrot and the dog entertained me with their conversations. Towards morning I finally dozed off, and then the dog, which had a keen sense of smell, sensed that the prince was standing at the foot of the tower. She woke up the parrot:
“I’m ready to bet,” said the dog, “that the prince is standing below.” “Shut up, rattle,” answered the parrot. – You yourself hardly close your eyes, and your ears are on top of your head, so you don’t let others sleep.
“We bet,” insisted the good dog, “I know he’s there!”
“And I’m sure he’s not there,” the parrot objected. “Didn’t I myself, on behalf of our mistress, forbid him to come here?” “Well, you made me laugh with your prohibitions,” exclaimed the dog. “Will a lover listen to anyone but his heart?”
And with these words, the dog began to tug at the parrot’s wings with such force that he became angry. The screams of both woke me up, they explained to me what they were arguing about, I rushed, or rather, flew up to the window and saw the prince - he stretched out his hands to me and through his mouthpiece announced to me that he could no longer live without me and begged me to find a way to leave the tower or let him in, that he swears by all the gods, heaven, earth, fire and water that he will immediately call me his wife and I I will become one of the most powerful queens in the world.
I ordered the parrot to tell the prince that his wish was almost impossible to fulfill, but still, relying on his vows, I would try to fulfill his request; but I beg him not to come here every day, because he might be noticed, and the fairies know no mercy.
He went overjoyed, inspired by the hope that I had given him, and I, having thought about what I had promised him, was completely at a loss. How to leave a tower that has no doors? And, moreover, having no other assistants except a parrot and a dog. And besides, I’m so young and inexperienced! And so fearful. I decided not to even attempt something in which I would never succeed, and sent a parrot to convey it to the prince. The prince wanted to commit suicide right in front of the parrot and instructed him to persuade me to come to him to see him die or to console him.
- Sovereign! - cried the winged ambassador, - there is no need to persuade my lady - she is full of desire to console you, but this is not in her power.
When the parrot told me about everything that had happened, I began to grieve even more. The fairy Villainess appeared, she noticed that my eyes were red and swollen, she realized that I was crying, and said that if I did not tell her the reason for my tears, she would burn me. Her threats were always terrible. I, trembling, answered that I was tired of sitting at the spinning wheel and that I wanted to weave nets to catch the birds that were pecking at the fruits in my garden.
“This is not worth crying about, my daughter,” she said. - I will bring you as many laces as you want.
And in fact, she delivered the laces to me that same evening, but told me to work less and preen myself, because King Migonnet would soon appear. I shuddered at this sad news, but remained silent. As soon as she flew away, I sat down to weave a net, but in fact I was weaving a rope ladder, and it turned out great, although I had never seen rope ladders before. True, the laces that the fairy brought were not enough for me, and she repeated:
- My daughter, your work is similar to what Penelope did, she doesn’t move, and you keep asking for new laces. “As you wish, good mother,” I answered, “but don’t you see that I don’t know how to weave nets, and only spoil everything?” But maybe you're afraid that I'll ruin you with these laces? My simplicity amused the fairy, although, generally speaking, she was always gloomy and very cruel.
I sent the parrot to tell the prince to appear in the evening under the window of the tower, where he will see the stairs, and what to do next, I will tell him when he comes. I actually tied the ladder tightly to the window, deciding to run away with it. But, seeing the stairs, the prince did not wait for me to go down, but he himself hastened to climb it and entered my room at the moment when I had already prepared everything for my escape. I was so happy to see him that I even forgot about the danger threatening us. He renewed his vows and begged me without delay to call him my husband. A parrot and a dog became witnesses to our wedding. Never before has the wedding of two such noble persons been celebrated so modestly and unnoticed, but never have hearts been happier than ours.
The prince left me before dawn; I told him the fairy’s terrible plan to marry me off to the dwarf Migonnet, I described to him the appearance of the freak - he inspired the same horror in the prince as he did in me. As soon as my husband left, the minutes seemed like years to me. I ran to the window, I tried to see it in the darkness, but what was my amazement when I saw a fiery chariot in the air, drawn by winged salamanders that were flying so fast that the eye could barely distinguish them. Bodyguards rode behind the chariot on ostriches. I didn’t have time to look at the monster that was flying through the air in this way, but I immediately realized that it was some kind of sorceress or sorcerer.
And after a while the fairy Villainess entered my room. “I have good news for you,” she announced. “Your fiancé arrived a few hours ago.” Get ready to accept it. Here is your outfit and jewelry. – Who told you that I want to get married? – I exclaimed. – I have no such intention at all. Send King Migonnet away, for his sake I won’t pin an extra pin: whether I seem beautiful or ugly to him, he won’t see me anyway. - Wow! - said the fairy, angry. - What a rebel! What a brainless girl! But I'm not kidding, I... - What else can you do for me? – I interrupted the fairy, blushing at her swear words. - What could be sadder than my fate - to drag out my days in a tower in the company of a parrot and a dog, admiring the terrifying sight of an ominous dragon several times a day? - Oh, you scoundrel! - the fairy cried. - And why did we care for you and cherish you? No wonder I told my sisters that they would repay us with black ingratitude. And she went to her sisters and told them about our quarrel. And they were all angry at my behavior.
The parrot and the dog began to ardently convince me that if I continued to be stubborn, I would bring upon myself terrible troubles. But I was so proud that the heart of a powerful sovereign belonged to me that I neglected both the wrath of the fairies and the advice of my poor little friends. I didn’t bother to dress up and deliberately combed my hair somehow in order to turn Migonnet away from me. Our acquaintance took place on the terrace. He went down there on his fiery chariot. Since dwarfs appeared in the world, never before has the world seen such a baby. He walked on the ground with his eagle paws and at the same time with his knees, because his legs were without bones, and in addition he still had to lean on diamond crutches. His royal robe, only half a cubit long, was trailing on the ground by a third. His head was the size of a huge barrel, and his nose was so long that a whole flock of birds sat on it - the dwarf was amused by their twittering; His beard was so thick that canaries had nests in it, and his ears stuck out a full cubit above his head, but this was almost imperceptible, because the dwarf wore a high, pointed crown to appear taller. From the flames emitted by his chariot, the fruits were baked, the flowers dried up and the springs in my garden dried up. He moved towards me, opening his arms, and I froze in place, rooted to the spot. The first groom had to lift the dwarf, but as soon as he brought him to me, I ran to my room, locked all the windows, and Migonnet went to the fairies in terrible anger.
They again and again asked him to forgive me for my instability and, in order to appease Migonnet, since they were afraid of him, they decided at night, when I was sleeping, to bring the dwarf into my room and, tying me hand and foot, load me into his fiery chariot so that he would take me away with him. Having made such a plan, the fairies almost did not scold me for my behavior. And they just said that we need to try to atone for my guilt. The parrot and the dog were very surprised at such condescension of the fairies. “My heart senses evil, madam,” the dog told me. – You can expect anything from fairies, especially from the Villainess. But I laughed at her fears and began to wait impatiently for my dear husband. Also burning with impatience, he did not hesitate to appear: I threw him a rope ladder, determined to escape with him. He easily climbed into my room and began to speak to me such tender words that even now I do not dare to remember them.
We were talking as serenely as if we were in his palace, and suddenly someone broke out the windows of my room and the fairies flew in on their terrible dragon. Following them in a fiery chariot was Migonnet, followed by his bodyguards on ostriches. The prince fearlessly drew his sword, thinking only about how to protect me from the most terrible fate possible, and - what can I tell you, sir? The cruel creatures set their dragon on the prince, and the dragon devoured him before my eyes.
Mad with grief, I myself threw myself into the monster’s mouth, wanting the dragon to swallow me too, as he had just swallowed the one who was dearest to me than anything in the world. The dragon himself was not averse to devouring me, but the fairies, more cruel than the dragon, did not want this. No,” they exclaimed, “she must be preserved for longer torment, a quick death is too mild a punishment for this unworthy person!” They touched me with their wand, and I suddenly turned into a White Cat. They brought me to this castle. They turned all the ladies and gentlemen, my father's subjects, into cats and cats, and made some invisible, with only their hands visible. They left me in the sad state in which you found me, and, having revealed to me who my late father and mother were, they announced that only a prince could return me to human form, just like the husband they had taken from me. It was you, sir, who turned out to be similar to him,” she continued, “the same features, the same manners, the same voice.” They amazed me at our first meeting. I knew everything that was going to happen. Even now I know what awaits me: my torment will end. - How long will mine last, beautiful queen? - the prince exclaimed, throwing himself at her feet. “I have already loved you more than my life, sir,” answered the queen, “but it’s time to go to your father, let’s see how he receives me and whether he agrees to what you want.”
The queen came out, leaning on the prince's arm, and sat down with him in a carriage, much more luxurious than those he had before. And the rest of the decoration of their carriages matched the carriage, and the horses’ shoes were emerald and lined with diamond nails. No one has probably ever seen such a magnificent performance. I won’t retell the pleasant conversations that the queen and the prince had between themselves: no one could compare with her not only in beauty, but also in intelligence, and the young prince was not inferior to her in anything, it’s no wonder that the most exquisite thoughts came to their minds.
When they were near the castle where his two older brothers were to wait for the prince, the queen hid in a small crystal rock; all the edges of the crystal were strewn with gold and rubies, the rock itself was completely curtained so that the queen could not be seen, and the rock was carried by young people, slender and richly dressed. The prince remained in his carriage; he noticed the brothers walking hand in hand with princesses of remarkable beauty. Recognizing their younger brother, the princes immediately approached him and asked if he had brought a bride. He replied that he was unlucky, during his travels he met only ugly women, but he brought another rarity - a small White Cat. The brothers began to make fun of his simplicity. “A cat,” they said, “are you afraid that mice will devastate our palace?” The prince replied that, perhaps, it was indeed unreasonable to bring such a gift to his father. And with that they all headed into the city.
The elder brothers, together with their princesses, sat in carriages made of gold and azure stone, their horses were decorated with plumes and aigrettes. Nothing more brilliant than this cavalcade could be imagined. Our young prince followed his brothers, and behind him was carried a crystal mountain, which was admired by everyone he met.
The courtiers hastened to inform the king of the arrival of the princes.
– Did they bring beautiful ladies? - the king inquired.
- So beautiful that it couldn’t be more beautiful.
This answer annoyed the king. The senior princes hastened to come to their father with their amazing princesses. The king greeted them very cordially and could not decide which one to give preference to.
Then he looked at his youngest son and asked: “Did you show up with nothing this time?” “Your Majesty will see a little White Cat in this rock,” answered the prince. “She purrs so gently and has such soft paws that you’ll love her.” The king smiled and went to the rock himself to open it. But as soon as he approached her, the queen pressed a spring, the rock fell into pieces, and she herself appeared, like the sun, which had been hidden in the clouds for some time. Her golden hair spilled over her shoulders and fell in large curls to the floor. She wore a wreath of flowers on her head, and a dress of light white gauze lined with pink taffeta. She made a deep curtsy to the king, and he could not contain his delight and exclaimed: Here she is, the one with whom no one can compare and who deserves my crown. “Sire,” she answered, “I did not come here to take away from you the kingdom that you rule so worthily.” Six kingdoms belong to me from birth. Let me present one of them to you and one to each of your sons. In return, I ask you only to give me your friendship and give me this young prince as my wife. And he and I will have enough of the remaining three kingdoms. Both the king and all his courtiers exclaimed for a long time with joy and amazement. The wedding of the youngest prince was celebrated right there, as were the weddings of his two brothers, so that the entire court indulged in amusements and pleasures for many months in a row. Then everyone went home to rule their own state. And the beautiful White Cat is still remembered in her kingdom, both because of her kindness and generosity, and because of her beauty and rare virtues.
Witchcraft has lost its power,
And in the Kitty our prince saw perfection -
The beauty that is more desirable to him than anyone else,
Ready to share both work and bliss with him.
When a wonderful look wants to inspire love,
They don’t resist too vehemently,
And gratitude is a charm
Strengthens it a hundred times.
Should I forget this mother, who at her whim
The fate called upon the Kitty was this,
Wanting to taste the fatal fruit?
She donated her child to the fairy.
A mother who owns such a treasure,
Don't try her madness.
Translated from Russian · original on wisdomlib.ru