Fairies
Once upon a time there was a widow who had two daughters. The eldest resembled her so closely in character and face that all the villagers reacted in the same way to the sight of one or the other: after casting astonished glances at their faces at the incredible resemblance, they sought an excuse to avoid them both. They were both, in fact, so obnoxious and conceited that talking to them was impossible. The younger daughter, on the other hand, who had inherited the same sweet and gentle character as her father, was loved by everyone, ever since she was a child, both for the warmth of her smile and for her kindness and the bright beauty of her face.And since we are often, unfortunately, naturally inclined toward those who look like us, it became more and more obvious to everyone that the mother was crazy about the older daughter and at the same time increasingly distancing the younger one from herself, whom she treated with contempt and forced to work around the house relentlessly.
One of the most strenuous tasks that were reserved for the girl consisted in reaching the distant spring every day, dragging along a heavy earthenware jug to be filled with the fresh water needed by the family. However, thanks to the unwavering optimism with which she was endowed, even this heavy task did not displease the maiden, who took advantage of the journey to the spring to pick some flowers or to spend a few minutes in the tranquility of the woods reading a few pages from the book she always carried with her.On a frosty winter morning, however, the girl had made her way in a hurry to be able to warm up and to be able to return home as soon as possible, yet on that very day she had an unexpected encounter. As she was filling her pitcher, she was approached by an elderly woman, an old peasant woman wrapped in worn and tattered clothes, who begged her to give her a drink. “Of course,” the girl answered her, then holding up the jug she offered so that she could drink her fill without tiring. Then, after glancing at the rags the old woman was wearing, the maiden took pity on her and offered to give her her cloak
Momotaro and the ogres
Once upon a time there were two old men who lived in the country. They had always lived alone because they had no children. One day while grandfather was in the mountains for wood, grandmother was doing laundry on the river. While she was doing laundry, she noticed a large peach floating on the river, so she approached it. As soon as she could catch it, she grabbed it and brought it home to show Grandpa. On his return from the mountain, Grandpa, surprised at the immense size of the peach his wife had found, decided to cut it open; to their amazement inside the fruit they found a baby!!! Since they had no children they decided to keep him with them and raise him as their own child, and precisely because he was born of a peach they decided to name him “Momotaro.” Years went by and Momotaro ate and grew more and more and became a strong and sturdy boy as well as very generous. One day Momotaro learned that the orcs of the island were coming from time to time to harm and steal into the homes of the poor peasants so he thought of going to the orcs to teach them a lesson and save the peasants from their perfidy. He went home and told his grandparents that he wanted to leave.
The elf prince
Once upon a time there was a handsome and good prince named Leandro. While walking in a garden, he rescued a viper in distress and took it home with him. The reptile revealed its true nature: it was a fairy named Gentile, who wanted to repay Leandro’s goodness by giving him a gift. She transformed him into an imp capable of becoming invisible at will thanks to a red cap. From that moment, the leprechaun prince began to travel and help those in need.One day he heard about a place where a beautiful princess lived, called the island of the Amazons.
There she had been isolated by her own mother, a fairy, who had been abandoned after marrying a human and had vowed never, ever to trust men. With his red cap on, Leander made himself invisible and reached the palace on the island. When he saw the princess, he instantly fell in love with her. To woo her, he began to sing pretending it was the birds who dedicated sweet melodies to her. When the maiden expressed a desire to know all the fashions of the world, the elf made her find in a room hundreds of dolls dressed as in every known country.
He made a wonderful portrait of her and, next to it, placed a painting of himself. The princess was enchanted by the painting, and a few days later she received an invitation to a rendezvous, in a cave. When she reached her, Leander appeared after removing his magic cap: the maiden fainted from fright! But when she had recovered, she met the young man in the portrait and fell in love with him.
The two decided to marry, but the news reached the ears of the powerful mother of the princess, who immediately arrived at the palace on the island of the Amazons. “This marriage will never happen!” she thundered. By magic the Gentle Fairy appeared, who convinced the angry mother not to separate the two young people. The two were able to marry, and the island of the Amazons was moved to Leander’s kingdom.
The Fairy Veil
A fisherman led a simple life. Every day he got up very early in the morning to reach the river and stand waiting to catch fish with his line; he kept only one for himself, while he sold the others in the market. He was not a rich man, but he was content to spend his days that way.
One morning a very strange thing happened: as the fisherman sat quietly on the shore, a heavenly scent tickled his nostrils. He could in no way resist: he absolutely had to discover the origin of that divine aroma, which he had never before smelled. He started walking, abandoning his fishing line, and walked toward the woods sniffing the air. That wonderful scent led him into the trees, where he suddenly caught sight of an impalpable and magnificent veil that was hanging on a branch, shaken by a gentle breeze: it was that very veil that smelled so good! The fisherman climbed the tree and picked up the veil; when it was back on the ground, he caressed it with his fingertips: he had never touched such a soft and shiny fabric!
He decided to take it home with him, and turned to return. But a sweet voice whispered to him, “Please don’t take my veil!”
Behind him a beautiful girl had appeared, with long black hair and a light-colored dress. “That veil belongs to the heavenly nymphs, I need it to return to them!” The fisherman, however, could not part with it, and made to turn away. But when he heard that young nymph crying, he said to her, “I will give you the veil if you will dance for me.” He handed the veil to the fairy maiden, and she performed the most beautiful of dances; she whirled, and spun about, and with her veil took flight. When she disappeared from his sight, the fisherman thought, “What a wonderful sight!” and went back to the river.
The Magic Tinderbox
A poor soldier was returning to town when he met a witch. “Help me, please,” she said. “Go down into this hollow tree, you will find three rooms: in each there is a great dog, but do not be afraid: if you lay my apron on the ground the animal will curl up and you can take the treasure it guards. I ask only one favor: pick up the tinder box I lost in the tree and bring it back to me.” The soldier lowered himself into the trunk, then did exactly as the woman told him: in the first room he found a chest of copper coins, in the second of silver, and in the third of gold. He filled his pockets with that treasure and took the tinder box, but when he returned to the surface he stole the object the witch had asked him for, and fled to the city. There he was able to live in great wealth for a long time, but he was lonely. He learned that the king and queen had a beautiful daughter, whom they kept locked up in the castle because a prediction had said she would marry a simple soldier. The boy was very sad, and in the meantime he had finished all his treasure and found himself poor again. One day he remembered the witch’s tinderbox, and used it: immediately one of the three dogs that lived under the magic log appeared, ready to grant his wishes. “Bring me many gold coins,” ordered the soldier, and immediately he became rich again. But he still felt lonely, so he used the tinder again and asked the second dog to bring him the princess. The magic dog brought the sleeping maiden, and the boy gave her a kiss. The next day the princess told her parents that she had had a strange dream; the suspicious rulers had her followed and found the soldier. The boy was sentenced to death, but he took his tinderbox and called the third magic dog: thanks to its power, he was able to marry the princess and become the new ruler of the kingdom.
Tam Lin
A brave maiden went into the woods for a walk and found a wonderful garden of roses. She decided to pluck a few for her mother, but as soon as she plucked a flower from the ground a young man popped out and harshly reprimanded her, “How dare you pluck one of these roses?”
The girl stepped back, explaining, “I wanted to give it to my mother, I apologize.”
The boy saw that she spoke with heart and sincerity, and softened his threatening look, “My name is Tam Lin, I am the guardian of this rose garden that belongs to the Elves. I, however, am a human just like you: their queen kidnapped me a long time ago and forced me to live in their kingdom at night, while during the day I have to stay here. She does not allow me to return to my world! From your eyes I understand that you have a good soul and full of courage: will you help me escape?”
The maiden immediately agreed.
Tam Lin explained to her how to do it, “Tomorrow is Halloween night, the time when all the Elves come out of their hiding place and walk the earth. I will also go with them, and that will be the perfect time to try to free myself; hide behind that tree, and when you see me go by, grab me and don’t let me go for anything in the world.”
The next night the girl hid and suddenly saw a crowd of elves coming out of the earth and passing by her. When Tam Lin was near, she jumped out of her hiding place and hugged him tightly: the boy turned first into a tiny lizard, then into a terrible snake, and finally into a red-hot iron bar. The girl, however, never left him: the Elf Queen understood that she had to free Tam Lin, and so she did. The boy married his savior and lived with her for many years.
Tom Thumb
A woodcutter had seven children. He was very poor, and he did not know how he could feed them. So he decided to abandon them in the woods; the youngest of his children, Tom Thumb, was very clever: on the way he scattered white pebbles and managed to return home with all his siblings. The next day, the woodsman took them into the woods again, and this time Thumbelina scattered breadcrumbs. The birds ate them all, and the children found themselves lost; Thumbelina climbed a tree and saw a lighted hut in the distance: immediately he led his little brothers to the door and knocked. An ogress came to open the door: “Children run away, my husband the ogre is fond of children.” “But we are so hungry!” said Thumbelina, ”give us something to eat please!” The pitying ogress let them in and fed them, and when she heard her husband coming she hid them in a closet. The ogress, as soon as he entered, immediately smelled a baby and scouted them out. “Eat them tomorrow,” said the ogress, and the husband decided to keep them for lunch the next day.
The orc accompanied them to the room where her seven little orcas slept, all of whom wore little crowns in their hair. Thumbelina had a bad feeling, so he decided to exchange the caps he and his brothers wore for the little crowns, then they went to bed.
Thorn Rose
A king and queen desired more than any other to have a child, and after much hoping they had a baby girl whom they named Rosaspina. The king, happy as can be, held a great feast in honor of the birth of the little princess and invited all his subjects, as well as seven good fairies. On the day of the reception, the fairies came to the cradle to give the little girl wonderful gifts-the best virtues a person can have. But when the last of the fairies was about to give her happiness, the mountain witch suddenly appeared, full of anger because she had not been invited. To the dismay of all present, she approached the princess and cursed her, “When she turns eighteen, she will prick her finger with a spindle and die!”
Immediately the king and queen threw themselves at the feet of the wicked fairy, begging her to forgive them for the offense and spare their daughter, but the wicked witch left. The last of the fairies, who had not yet bestowed anything on Rosaspina, approached the rulers, “I cannot undo such a powerful curse, but my gift is this: when the princess pricks herself with the spindle, she will not die but will fall asleep with the whole court for a hundred long years. Only the kiss of true love will be able to wake her up, and save her from her fate.”
Eighteen years passed; Rosaspina had become a wonderful, beautiful and kind maiden whom her parents adored. In that time they had protected her in every way, hoping that the terrible curse cast at her birth would not come true, and they had forbidden spindles to be used for spinning throughout the kingdom.
The Nymph of the Lake
In the depths of a mountain lake lived a beautiful nymph, who remained hidden most of the time. Only rarely would she rise to the surface, and she would begin to sing with a magnificent voice: anyone who heard her would be enchanted. The wayfarers who traveled the paths on the nearby mountains were delighted by that melody that accompanied them on their strenuous journeys. One day, a fearsome sorcerer was reached by that celestial song and followed it until he was in front of the lake; hidden behind a tree, he observed the nymph and fell hopelessly in love with her.
From that moment he stood waiting to see her again, and when he managed to catch a glimpse of her as she came out of the water he approached her to speak to her, but she immediately dived back to the bottom of the lake. Days passed, and the magician grew increasingly desperate: how to declare his love for the nymph if he could not even exchange a word with her? So he decided to seek advice from a very wise witch, who suggested that he move in as a salesman and lay over the lake a long rope made of precious gems. The wizard did as the witch had said: he tied wonderful gemstones to the mountains around the lake, which formed a shining rainbow. Intrigued by those colorful lights, the nymph came to the surface to admire them; the magician walked along the shore, but he had made a mistake: he had not disguised himself! As soon as the nymph saw him, she recognized him and, frightened, fled once again to the bottom of the lake. From that day on, the beautiful nymph was no longer seen by anyone, nor her song heard by anyone. The magician, disappointed and enraged by her unrequited love, destroyed the rainbow he had created and threw all the gems into the lake. Since then, anyone who admires its waters can see them shining with many shining colors.
Pan’s Flute
In the woods lived an ancient deity, protector of flocks and shepherds: his name was Pan. From birth, Pan possessed hooves instead of feet, a face that resembled that of a goat, and on his head he even sported a pair of large horns. Because of this, anyone who came across him would scoff at him and bleat like a goat to mock him, infuriating him. He was so angry that he promised himself that he would never, ever fall in love in his life. But, one day, Pan met a nymph: at first sight he fell in love with her. The nymph, when she saw him approaching her declaring his feelings, frightened fled; immediately Pan ran after her to continue talking to her. The two of them moved swiftly through trees and lakes, across meadows and hills: the nymph was used to walking for days, and she had never met anyone who could keep up with her without ever getting tired, just as she did. Exhausted by fatigue, the nymph headed for a stream and asked for her father’s protection: she was, in fact, the daughter of the river god. The god heard her prayer, and when she came to place her feet in the water, the nymph was transformed into a reed. Pan had witnessed the transformation, and full of rage he set about tearing the reeds out of the muddy soil of the riverbank. But a breath of wind caressed the torn reeds and passed through them, producing a sound that sounded like the nymph’s sweet voice; Pan then took some of them in his hands and broke them. Then, with the help of hot wax and threads, he tied those reeds together until he had a flute: he began to blow into it and was able to play with great sweetness. From that moment he never parted with his instrument, and he began to delight everyone he met with his wonderful melodies.