"Woe to us! This is my father himself; but his power reaches only to the
first church. Give me the cross you wear upon your neck."
The prince took from his neck the golden cross, the gift of his mother,
gave it to the princess, and in a minute she turned into a church, he into
a monk, and the steed into a bell-tower.
Right after King Koshchey came with his suite. "Did you not see any
travelers pass by, my venerable man?" he asked the monk.
"Just now Prince Ivan and Princess Mary passed by; they went into the
church to pray, and asked me to pray for your help, and to remember them to
you if you should come to me."
"Oh, I wish they would break their necks, the wretches!" cried King
Koshchey. Turning his horse like one possessed, he returned home with his
suite. After his arrival he cruelly whipped all his servants.
Ivan with the princess went further, no longer fearing the pursuit. They
were riding very slowly. The sun was setting, and suddenly in the evening
rays they beheld a beautiful city. Ivan was very anxious to go inside.
"Prince Ivan," said the princess, "do not go; not in vain does my heart
ache. A misfortune will happen to us."
"What are you afraid of, dear princess? Let us go in just for a very short
time. Let us see the city and then continue the journey."
"It is not hard to get in, but it will be hard to get out. Do as you
please. Go, and I will remain here, lying as a white stone upon the road.
Look out, my dear, be careful. The king, queen, and their daughter will
come out to meet you with a beautiful child; do not kiss that child. If you
do, you will immediately forget me; then I will live no longer; I will die
from grief, and you will be the cause of my death. Here at the road I will
wait for you for three days. If you do not come--but good-bye now. Go."
Bidding her farewell, the prince went into the city. At the road as a white
stone remained Princess Mary. One day passed, another passed, at last the
third day passed. The prince did not come. Poor Princess Mary! He did not
follow her instructions. In the city he met the king, queen, and their
daughter. With them came a beautiful child, a curly-headed boy, very
lively, his eyes shining like bright stars. He ran straight into Ivan's
arms. The prince was so charmed with his beauty that, losing his mind, he
began to kiss his warm cheeks, and at the same time his memory was
darkened and he forgot about Princess Mary.
She was seized with grief, "You left me, and I do not want to live any
longer." In a moment she turned into a sky-blue flower. "Here by the road I
will remain, perhaps somebody passing by will tread me down into the
earth," said she, and tears like dew-drops glittered upon the blue petals.
An old man passed that place. He saw the blue flower. Delighted with its
delicate beauty, he dug it carefully out with the roots, carried it into
his hut, planted it in a flowerpot, watered it and cared for it tenderly.
What happened? From that time everything was changed in the poor man's hut.
Something wonderful was going on there. When the old man awoke, he found
the hut all cleaned and in perfect order. There was nowhere a grain of dust
to be found. At noon when he came home, the dinner was cooked and the table
neatly set; he had only to sit down and eat. He wondered but could not
explain matters. At last he was frightened and went to an old fairy to ask
for advice.
"I will tell you what to do," answered the fairy, "get up very early at
dawn, before the cocks' sing, and look about the hut. Whatever begins to
move first, cover it with this kerchief. What happens, you will see."
The whole night the old man lay sleepless in his bed. The sun began to
rise, and there was light in the hut. Suddenly he saw that the blue flower
moved, flew off its thin stalk and began to fly about the room. Everything
went right away to its place, everything was dusted and cleaned, and a
bright fire began to burn in the stove. Quickly jumped the old man off his
bed and covered the flower with the fairy's kerchief and before him there
appeared the beautiful Princess Mary.
"What have you done?" said she. "Why did you bring me to life again? My
bridegroom, Prince Ivan, left me and I am forgotten by him."
"Your Prince Ivan is getting married to-day. The wedding-feast is all ready
and all the guests have arrived."
Princess Mary cried bitterly. Then she wiped her tears. Putting on a
"sarafan" (Russian national dress for women) she went into the city as a
country girl. She came into the king's kitchen. The cooks were running here
and there in their white caps and aprons. There was plenty of noise,
bustle, and clatter. She went up to the chief cook, and with an imploring
face and a voice as sweet as a flute said, "Cook dear, allow me to bake the
wedding cake for the prince."
The cook, disturbed in his work, wanted to refuse her, but no angry word
could escape his lips when he looked at her, and he answered very kindly,
"Very well, fair maiden, do what you please; I myself will serve your cake
to Prince Ivan."
At the feast when all the guests were sitting around the table, the chief
cook put before Ivan a large cake upon a beautiful silver plate. All the
guests were surprised at the skill of the baker. But as soon as Ivan cut
off the top of it, a new wonder! A pair of pigeons flew out of it. The gray
male pigeon was walking upon the table, and the white female after him
cooing. "Pigeon, my pigeon, stop, do not run away; you will forget me just
as Prince Ivan has forgotten Princess Mary."
Ivan groaned when he heard this. He jumped up like mad, and ran to the door
behind which Mary was waiting. Before the palace the black steed all
saddled and bridled, was impatiently stamping the ground. They did not
tarry. Ivan and his princess rode away. After a long journey they arrived
in King Longbeard's kingdom, where the old king and queen gave them a
joyful reception. They prepared for the wedding; guests were invited and a
great feast feasted. And I was there and feasted with them, and that is the
end of the whole story.