Andrew Lang_Fairy Book 01 (31 page)

"'Ah!' said she, 'if you really loved me you would not
care where you were—a cave, a wood, a fox-hole, a
desert, would please you equally well. Do not think
that you can deceive me; you fancy you are going to
escape, but I assure you that you are going to stay here
and the first thing I shall give you to do will be to keep my
sheep—they are very good company and speak quite as
well as you do.

"As she spoke she advanced, and led me to this plain
where we now stand, and showed me her flock, but I paid
little attention to it or to her.

"To tell the truth, I was so lost in admiration of her
beautiful slave that I forgot everything else, and the
cruel Ragotte, perceiving this, turned upon her so furious
and terrible a look that she fell lifeless to the ground.

"At this dreadful sight I drew my sword and rushed at
Ragotte, and should certainly have cut off her head had
she not by her magic arts chained me to the spot on
which I stood; all my efforts to move were useless, and
at last, when I threw myself down on the ground in
despair, she said to me, with a scornful smile:

"'I intend to make you feel my power. It seems that
you are a lion at present, I mean you to be a sheep.'

"So saying, she touched me with her wand, and I
became what you see. I did not lose the power of speech,
or of feeling the misery of my present state.

"'For five years,' she said, 'you shall be a sheep, and
lord of this pleasant land, while I, no longer able to see
your face, which I loved so much, shall be better able to
hate you as you deserve to be hated.'

"She disappeared as she finished speaking, and if I had
not been too unhappy to care about anything I should
have been glad that she was gone.

"The talking sheep received me as their king, and told
me that they, too, were unfortunate princes who had, in
different ways, offended the revengeful fairy, and had
been added to her flock for a certain number of years;
some more, some less. From time to time, indeed, one
regains his own proper form and goes back again to his
place in the upper world; but the other beings whom you
saw are the rivals or the enemies of Ragotte, whom she has
imprisoned for a hundred years or so; though even they
will go back at last. The young slave of whom I told
you about is one of these; I have seen her often, and it
has been a great pleasure to me. She never speaks to
me, and if I were nearer to her I know I should find her
only a shadow, which would be very annoying. However,
I noticed that one of my companions in misfortune
was also very attentive to this little sprite, and I found out
that he had been her lover, whom the cruel Ragotte had
taken away from her long before; since then I have cared
for, and thought of, nothing but how I might regain my
freedom. I have often been in the forest; that is where
I have seen you, lovely Princess, sometimes driving your
chariot, which you did with all the grace and skill in the
world; sometimes riding to the chase on so spirited a
horse that it seemed as if no one but yourself could have
managed it, and sometimes running races on the plain
with the Princesses of your Court—running so lightly
that it was you always who won the prize. Oh! Princess,
I have loved you so long, and yet how dare I tell you of
my love! what hope can there be for an unhappy sheep
like myself?"

Miranda was so surprised and confused by all that she
had heard that she hardly knew what answer to give to
the King of the Sheep, but she managed to make some
kind of little speech, which certainly did not forbid him
to hope, and said that she should not be afraid of the
shadows now she knew that they would some day come
to life again. "Alas!" she continued, "if my poor
Patypata, my dear Grabugeon, and pretty little Tintin, who
all died for my sake, were equally well off, I should have
nothing left to wish for here!"

Prisoner though he was, the King of the Sheep had
still some powers and privileges.

"Go," said he to his Master of the Horse, "go and
seek the shadows of the little black girl, the monkey, and
the dog: they will amuse our Princess."

And an instant afterward Miranda saw them coming
toward her, and their presence gave her the greatest
pleasure, though they did not come near enough for her
to touch them.

The King of the Sheep was so kind and amusing, and
loved Miranda so dearly, that at last she began to love
him too. Such a handsome sheep, who was so polite
and considerate, could hardly fail to please, especially
if one knew that he was really a king, and that his strange
imprisonment would soon come to an end. So the Princess's
days passed very gaily while she waited for the
happy time to come. The King of the Sheep, with the
help of all the flock, got up balls, concerts, and hunting
parties, and even the shadows joined in all the fun, and
came, making believe to be their own real selves.

One evening, when the couriers arrived (for the King
sent most carefully for news—and they always brought
the very best kinds), it was announced that the sister of
the Princess Miranda was going to be married to a great
Prince, and that nothing could be more splendid than all
the preparations for the wedding.

"Ah!" cried the young Princess, "how unlucky I am
to miss the sight of so many pretty things! Here am I
imprisoned under the earth, with no company but sheep
and shadows, while my sister is to be adorned like a
queen and surrounded by all who love and admire her,
and everyone but myself can go to wish her joy!"

"Why do you complain, Princess?" said the King of
the Sheep. "Did I say that you were not to go to the
wedding? Set out as soon as you please; only promise
me that you will come back, for I love you too much to
be able to live without you."

Miranda was very grateful to him, and promised
faithfully that nothing in the world should keep her from
coming back. The King caused an escort suitable to her
rank to be got ready for her, and she dressed herself
splendidly, not forgetting anything that could make her
more beautiful. Her chariot was of mother-of-pearl,
drawn by six dun-colored griffins just brought from the
other side of the world, and she was attended by a
number of guards in splendid uniforms, who were all at least
eight feet high and had come from far and near to ride
in the Princess's train.

Miranda reached her father's palace just as the
wedding ceremony began, and everyone, as soon as she came
in, was struck with surprise at her beauty and the
splendor of her jewels. She heard exclamations of
admiration on all sides; and the King her father looked at
her so attentively that she was afraid he must recognize
her; but he was so sure that she was dead that the idea
never occurred to him.

However, the fear of not getting away made her leave
before the marriage was over. She went out hastily,
leaving behind her a little coral casket set with emeralds.
On it was written in diamond letters: "Jewels for the
Bride," and when they opened it, which they did as soon
as it was found, there seemed to be no end to the pretty
things it contained. The King, who had hoped to join
the unknown Princess and find out who she was, was
dreadfully disappointed when she disappeared so
suddenly, and gave orders that if she ever came again the
doors were to be shut that she might not get away so
easily. Short as Miranda's absence had been, it had
seemed like a hundred years to the King of the Sheep.
He was waiting for her by a fountain in the thickest part
of the forest, and the ground was strewn with splendid
presents which he had prepared for her to show his joy
and gratitude at her coming back.

As soon as she was in sight he rushed to meet her,
leaping and bounding like a real sheep. He caressed her
tenderly, throwing himself at her feet and kissing her
hands, and told her how uneasy he had been in her
absence, and how impatient for her return, with an
eloquence which charmed her.

After some time came the news that the King's second
daughter was going to be married. When Miranda heard
it she begged the King of the Sheep to allow her to go and
see the wedding as before. This request made him feel
very sad, as if some misfortune must surely come of it,
but his love for the Princess being stronger than anything
else he did not like to refuse her.

"You wish to leave me, Princess," said he; "it is my
unhappy fate—you are not to blame. I consent to your
going, but, believe me, I can give you no stronger proof
of my love than by so doing."

The Princess assured him that she would only stay a
very short time, as she had done before, and begged him
not to be uneasy, as she would be quite as much grieved
if anything detained her as he could possibly be.

So, with the same escort, she set out, and reached the
palace as the marriage ceremony began. Everybody was
delighted to see her; she was so pretty that they thought
she must be some fairy princess, and the Princes who were
there could not take their eyes off her.

The King was more glad than anyone else that she had
come again, and gave orders that the doors should all be
shut and bolted that very minute. When the wedding
was all but over the Princess got up quickly, hoping to
slip away unnoticed among the crowd, but, to her great
dismay, she found every door fastened.

She felt more at ease when the King came up to her, and
with the greatest respect begged her not to run away so
soon, but at least to honor him by staying for the splendid
feast which was prepared for the Princes and Princesses.
He led her into a magnificent hall, where all the Court was
assembled, and himself taking up the golden bowl full of
water, he offered it to her that she might dip her pretty
fingers into it.

At this the Princess could no longer contain herself;
throwing herself at the King's feet, she cried out:

"My dream has come true after all—you have offered
me water to wash my hands on my sister's wedding day,
and it has not vexed you to do it."

The King recognized her at once—indeed, he had
already thought several times how much like his poor little
Miranda she was.

"Oh! my dear daughter," he cried, kissing her, "can you
ever forget my cruelty? I ordered you to be put to death
because I thought your dream portended the loss of my
crown. And so it did," he added, "for now your sisters
are both married and have kingdoms of their own—and
mine shall be for you." So saying he put his crown on the
Princess's head and cried:

"Long live Queen Miranda!"

All the Court cried: "Long live Queen Miranda!" after him,
and the young Queen's two sisters came running up, and
threw their arms round her neck, and kissed her a thousand
times, and then there was such a laughing and crying,
talking and kissing, all at once, and Miranda thanked her
father, and began to ask after everyone—particularly the
Captain of the Guard, to whom she owed so much; but, to
her great sorrow, she heard that he was dead. Presently
they sat down to the banquet, and the King asked Miranda
to tell them all that had happened to her since the
terrible morning when he had sent the Captain of the
Guard to fetch her. This she did with so much spirit
that all the guests listened with breathless interest.
But while she was thus enjoying herself with the King
and her sisters, the King of the Sheep was waiting
impatiently for the time of her return, and when it
came and went, and no Princess appeared, his anxiety
became so great that he could bear it no longer.

"She is not coming back any more," he cried. "My
miserable sheep's face displeases her, and without
Miranda what is left to me, wretched creature that I am!
Oh! cruel Ragotte; my punishment is complete."

For a long time he bewailed his sad fate like this, and
then, seeing that it was growing dark, and that still there
was no sign of the Princess, he set out as fast as he could
in the direction of the town. When he reached the palace
he asked for Miranda, but by this time everyone had
heard the story of her adventures, and did not want her
to go back again to the King of the Sheep, so they refused
sternly to let him see her. In vain he begged and prayed
them to let him in; though his entreaties might have
melted hearts of stone they did not move the guards of
the palace, and at last, quite broken-hearted, he fell dead
at their feet.

In the meantime the King, who had not the least idea
of the sad thing that was happening outside the gate of his
palace, proposed to Miranda that she should be driven in
her chariot all round the town, which was to be illuminated
with thousands and thousands of torches, placed in
windows and balconies, and in all the grand squares.
But what a sight met her eyes at the very entrance of the
palace! There lay her dear, kind sheep, silent and motionless,
upon the pavement!

She threw herself out of the chariot and ran to him,
crying bitterly, for she realized that her broken promise
had cost him his life, and for a long, long time she was so
unhappy that they thought she would have died too.

So you see that even a princess is not always happy—especially
if she forgets to keep her word; and the greatest
misfortunes often happen to people just as they think they
have obtained their heart's desires!
[16]

There was, once upon a time, a man and his wife
fagot-makers by trade, who had several children, all boys.
The eldest was but ten years old, and the youngest only
seven.

They were very poor, and their seven children incommoded
them greatly, because not one of them was able to
earn his bread. That which gave them yet more uneasiness
was that the youngest was of a very puny constitution,
and scarce ever spoke a word, which made them take
that for stupidity which was a sign of good sense. He
was very little, and when born no bigger than one's
thumb, which made him be called Little Thumb.