Hi,
It's Stefania,
And we've got a lovely fairy tale for you today.
It's called The White Faun.
There was once upon a time a king and queen who were perfectly happy with one exception,
And that was that they had no child.
One day,
When the queen was staying in a watering place some distance from home,
She was sitting by a fountain alone,
Sadly thinking of the daughter she'd longed to have,
When she saw a crab coming in her direction,
Who,
To the queen's surprise,
Addressed her thus,
Great queen,
If you will condescend to be conducted by a humble crab,
I will lead you to a fairy's palace,
And your wish shall be fulfilled.
I would certainly come with you,
Replied the queen,
But I am afraid that I cannot walk backwards.
The crab smiled,
And transforming herself into a beautiful little old woman,
Said,
No,
Madam,
It is not necessary to go backwards.
Come with me,
And I beg of you to look upon me as your friend.
She then escorted the queen to the most magnificent palace that could possibly be imagined.
It was built entirely of diamonds.
In this superb place dwelt six fairies,
Who received the queen with the greatest respect,
And each one presented her with a flower made of precious stones.
A rose,
A tulip,
An anemone,
A columbine,
A violet,
And a carnation.
Madam,
They said,
We have pleasure in telling you that soon you will have a daughter whom you will name Desiree.
Directly she arrives,
Do not fail to call upon us,
For we will bestow all sorts of good gifts upon her.
You have only to hold this bouquet,
And mention each flower,
Thinking of us,
And be assured that we shall at once appear in your chamber.
The queen,
Transported with joy and overcome with gratitude,
Threw herself upon their necks and warmly embraced them.
She then spent several hours admiring the wonders of the palace and its gardens,
And it was not until evening that she returned to her attendants,
Who were in a serious state of anxiety at the prolonged absence of her majesty.
Not very long afterwards,
When the queen was once more at home in her royal palace,
A baby princess was born,
Whom she named Desiree.
Then,
Taking the bouquet into her hand,
The queen,
One by one,
Pronounced the names of the flowers,
Where there immediately appeared,
Flying through the air in elegant chariots drawn by different kinds of birds,
The six fairies who entered the apartment,
Bearing beautiful presents for the little baby,
Marvelously fine linen,
But so strong that it could be worn a hundred years without going into holes,
Lace of the finest,
With the history of the world worked into its pattern,
Toys of all descriptions that a child would love to play with,
And a cradle,
Ornamented with rubies and diamonds,
And supported by four cupids ready to rock it should the baby cry.
But best of all,
The fairies endowed the little princess with beauty and virtue and health and every good thing that could be desired.
The queen was thanking the fairies a thousand times for all their favors when the door opened and a crab appeared.
Ungrateful queen,
Said the crab,
You have not deigned to remember me,
The fairy of the fountain,
And to punish your ingratitude if the princess sees daylight before she is fifteen years old,
She will have cause to repent.
It was well I took the form of a crab for your friendship instead of advancing has gone backwards.
Then,
In spite of all the queen and the fairies could say,
The crab went backwards out of the door,
Leaving them in the saddest consternation,
And it was long before they could decide what best to be done.
Then,
With three waves of a wand,
The fairies caused a high tower to spring up.
It had neither door nor window.
An underground passage was made through which everything necessary could be carried,
And in this tower the little princess was shut up,
And there she lived by candlelight,
Where never a glimpse of the sun could come.
When the princess Desiree was fourteen years old,
The queen had her portrait painted,
And copies of it were carried to all the courts in the world.
All the princes admired it greatly.
But there was one prince named Gurrier who loved it above everything.
He used to stand before the picture and avow his passion,
Just as if it heard what he said,
And at last he told the king his father.
You have resolved that I shall marry the princess Noir,
But this I can never do,
So great is my love for the princess Desiree.
But where have you seen her?
Inquired the king.
The prince hastened to fetch her portrait,
And the king was so greatly struck by Desiree's beauty that he agreed to follow his son's wishes and break off his engagement with the princess Noir,
That he might wed the princess Desiree.
So,
The king dispatched an ambassador,
A rich young lord named Becquefou.
Becquefou was devoted to Prince Gurrier,
And he fitted out a most splendid retinue to visit the princess Desiree's court.
Besides numerous magnificent presents,
Becquefou took with him the prince's portrait,
Which had been painted by such a clever artist that it could speak.
It could not exactly answer questions,
But could make certain remarks.
It was truly a speaking likeness of the young prince.
Desiree's father and mother were delighted when they heard that the prince Gurrier was seeking their daughter's hand in marriage,
For they knew him to be a brave and noble young man.
But,
As it still wanted three months to the princess's fifteenth year,
Warned by the fairy tulip who were taking Desiree under her special care,
They refused to let him see their daughter,
Or to let her yet marry the prince Gurrier.
They showed her the princess's portrait,
With which she was greatly pleased,
And particularly when it said,
Lovely Desiree,
You cannot imagine how ardently I am waiting for you.
Come soon into our court to make it beautiful by your presence.
When Prince Gurrier saw the ambassador return without Desiree,
He was so terribly disappointed that he could neither eat nor sleep,
And before long fell dangerously ill.
Meanwhile,
Desiree had no less pleasure in looking at the princess's portrait than he had admiring hers,
And this was soon discovered by those around her,
Among others,
Giroufle and Long Epine,
Her maids of honor.
Giroufle loved her passionately and faithfully,
But Long Epine was full of envy of the princess,
Who was so good and beautiful,
And besides,
Long Epine,
Desiree had another enemy,
And that was the princess Noir,
To whom Princess Gurrier had been engaged.
This princess Noir now went to the fairy of the fountain,
Who was her best friend,
And begged her to take revenge upon Princess Desiree,
And this the fairy promised to do.
Meanwhile,
Once more Bekefu came to the capital where Desiree's father lived,
And throwing himself at the king's feet,
He sought him in most touching words to let his daughter go with him at once to the prince,
Who would surely die if he could not see her.
When Princess Desiree heard of the princess's illness,
She suggested that she should set out without delay,
But in a dark carriage,
That only at night should be open to give her food.
This plan was approved of,
The ambassador was told,
And he departed full of joy.
So,
In a carriage,
Like a large,
Dark box,
Shut up with her lady-in-waiting and her two maids of honor,
Giroufle and Long Epine,
Princess Desiree departed for Prince Gurrier's court.
Perhaps you remember that Long Epine did not like Princess Desiree,
But she greatly admired Prince Gurrier,
For she had seen his portrait speaking,
And she had told her mother,
The lady-in-waiting,
That she would be unhappy if he married Desiree.
The king and queen had begged the lady-in-waiting to take the greatest care of their dear daughter,
And above all,
To be mindful that she did not see the light of day until her fifteenth birthday,
Saying that the ambassador had promised that until then,
She should be placed where there was no other light than that of candles.
But now,
As they drew near their destination,
While it was broad daylight,
The wicked woman,
Urged by her envious daughter,
Long Epine,
All at once quickly cut a hole in the covering of the carriage.
Then,
For the first time,
The Princess Desiree saw the light of day.
Hardly had she seen it when,
Uttering a deep sigh,
She threw herself from the carriage,
And in the form of a white fawn,
Fleetly fled into a forest nearby.
The fairy of the fountain,
Who was the cause of this disaster,
Seeing that all who were accompanying the princess were about to hasten to the town to tell the Prince Garrier what happened,
Called upon a great thunderstorm and scattered them in every direction.
Only the lady-in-waiting,
Long Epine,
And Garouflae were left.
Garouflae,
Who ran after her mistress,
Making the trees and rocks echo with her mournful calls.
Then Long Epine clothed herself in the rich bridal robes provided for Desiree.
She placed a crown upon her head,
The scepter and orb she carried in her hands,
So that all should take her for the princess.
With her mother bearing the train,
She gravely walked in the direction of the town.
They had not gone far when a brilliant procession came towards them,
Amongst whom was the sick prince in a litter.
And to those in advance,
Long Epine announced that she was the princess Desiree,
With her lady-in-waiting,
But that a jealous fairy had sent a thunderstorm which had destroyed her carriage and scattered her other attendants.
When the prince was told of this,
He could not refrain from saying to the messengers,
No.
Acknowledge.
Is she not truly a miracle of beauty,
A princess beyond compare?
No one replied at first.
And then one of the bravest said,
Sir,
You will see.
Apparently,
The fatigue of the journey has somewhat changed her.
The prince was surprised,
But when he saw Long Epine,
Words failed to express what he felt.
She was so tall that it was alarming,
And the garments of the princess hardly came to her knees.
She was frightfully thin,
And her nose,
Which was more hooked than a parrot's beak,
Shone like a dangerous signal.
Then her teeth were black and uneven.
At first,
The prince could not speak a word.
He simply gazed at her in amazement.
Then he said,
Turning to his father,
We have been deceived.
That portrait was painted to mislead us.
It will be the death of me.
What do I hear they have deceived you?
Fiercely exclaimed Long Epine.
It is not to be wondered at,
Remarked the king,
That your father kept such a treasure.
Shut up for fifteen years.
Then he and the prince turned towards the town,
And the false princess and lady-in-waiting,
Without any ceremony,
Were mounted each behind a soldier and taken away.
Soon after his terrible disappointment,
Prince Garnier,
Unable to bear any longer the life at court,
Secretly departed from the palace with his faithful friend,
Becquefus,
Leaving a letter to his father saying he would return to him as soon as his mind was in a happier state,
And begged him,
Meanwhile,
To keep the ugly princess away.
But don't worry.
Everything is going to work out.
You'll see.
Anyway,
After three or four days' journey,
The wanderers found themselves in a thick forest.
Quite wearied out,
The prince threw himself on the ground,
While Becquefus went on further in search of fruit wherewith to refresh his royal master.
It is a long time since we left the White Fawn,
That is to say,
The charming princess.
Ah,
She wept when in a stream she saw her figure reflected,
And when the night came,
She was in great fear,
For she heard wild beasts about her,
And sometimes forgetting she was a fawn,
She would try to climb a tree.
But with morning dawn,
She felt a little safer,
And the sun appeared a marvelous sight to her from which she could hardly turn her eyes.
But now,
The fairy tulip,
Who had always loved the princess,
Guided her maid,
Garufly's feet in her direction,
And when the White Fawn saw her faithful maid of honor,
Her delight was boundless.
It did not take Garufly long to discover that this was her dearly beloved mistress,
And she promised the White Fawn never to forsake her,
For she found that she could hear all that was said,
Although she could not speak.
Towards night,
The fear of having no shelter made the two friends so dreadfully dismayed that the fairy tulip suddenly appeared before them.
I am not going to scold you,
She said,
Although it is through not following my advice that you are in this misfortune,
For it goes to my heart to see you thus.
I cannot release you altogether from this enchantment.
I have the power to shorten the time,
And also to say that during the night you may regain your rightful form,
But by day again must you run through the forest as a fawn.
The fairy also told them where they could find a little hut in which to pass the nights.
Then she disappeared.
Garufly and the fawn walked in the direction the fairy had pointed out and arrived at a neat little cottage where an old woman showed them a room which they could occupy.
As soon as it was night,
Desiree came to her rightful form.
But when day appeared,
She was once more a fawn,
And escaping into the thicket,
Commenced to run about in the ordinary way.
You have heard how Prince Garrier rested in the forest while Bekafu searched for food.
Quite late in the evening,
Bekafu arrived at the cottage of the good woman who had given shelter to Garufly and the white fawn.
He addressed her politely and asked for the things he required for his master.
She hastened to fill a basket and gave it to him,
Saying,
I fear if you pass a night without shelter,
Some harm may come to you.
I can offer you a poor one,
But at any rate it is secure from the lions.
Bekafu went back to the prince,
And together they returned to the cottage where they were led into the room next to that occupied by the princess.
Next morning,
The prince rose early and went out.
He had not been long in the forest when he saw a beautiful little fawn.
All day long,
Hither and thither he chased but did not succeed in capturing her.
And as the evening fell,
The fawn slipped away and gained the little hut where Garufly anxiously awaited her.
And on hearing her adventure,
The maid of honor told her she must never again go out.
But the princess replied,
It is no use talking thus when I am in a fawn.
This room is stifling to me and I must depart from it.
The next day,
The young prince looked in vain for the white fawn and finally tired out,
Threw himself upon the grass and fell asleep.
While he lay there,
The little fawn came near,
And looking at him quietly,
To her surprise,
She recognized his features as those of Prince Garrier.
Coming nearer and nearer,
She presently touched him,
And he awoke.
His surprise was great at seeing close by the shy little fawn,
Who stayed not an instant longer but fled away,
The prince following.
Dear little fawn,
Stay,
He cried.
I would not hurt you for the world.
But the wind carried the words before they reached her ear.
Long he chased the poor creature till at last worn out.
The fawn sank down on the ground,
And the prince came up to her.
Beautiful fawn,
He said,
Do not fear me.
I shall lead you with me everywhere.
Then he covered her with roses and fed her with the best leaves and grasses.
But as evening drew near,
The fawn longed to escape,
For what would happen should she suddenly change into a princess there in the forest?
Presently,
The prince went to fetch some water for her,
And while he was gone,
She ran homeward.
The next day,
For a long time,
She hid from the prince,
But at last he found her,
And she injured her leg,
Dashing away.
The prince saw the wound,
And took herbs and laid them upon the wound,
And at last he went to fetch Becquevue to help him carry her to the house.
He tied her to a tree while he went away.
Alas,
Who would have thought that the most beautiful princess in the world should be treated like this?
While she was straining at the ribbons,
Trying to break away,
Girafle arrived and was leading her away when the prince met them and claimed the fawn as his.
"'Sire,
' politely replied Girafle,
The fawn was mine before it was yours.
' And she spoke to the fawn,
And the fawn obeyed her in such a way that the prince could not doubt that what she said was true.
Girafle then went on,
And to the surprise of the prince and Becquevue,
Entered the old woman's house where they themselves were staying.
Then Becquevue told the prince that unless he was much mistaken,
The owner of the fawn had lived with the princess Désirée when he went there as an ambassador.
"'I mean to see her again,
' said Becquevue.
There is only a partition between her room and ours.
' Soon the chance came for him to see the princess.
And he saw the charming princess dressed in a robe of brocaded silver,
With flowers embroidered in gold and emeralds,
Her hair falling in heavy masses on the most beautiful neck in the world.
Girafle was on her knees before her,
Bandaging up the one arm which had been injured,
And they both seemed greatly concerned about the wound.
"'To be a fawn,
' the princess was saying,
All the day,
And to hear him speaking,
And not to be able to tell him of my sad fate,
Is sad.
One can guess the astonishment of Becquevue and of the prince.
Garrier would almost have died of pleasure had he not thought that it must be some enchantment,
For did he not know that Désirée and her lady-in-waiting were in the castle?
' He went softly and knocked at the chamber door,
Which Girafle opened,
Thinking it was the old woman,
For she required help for the wound.
The prince entered,
Threw himself at Désirée's feet,
And found she was indeed his princess.
Great was their joy-meeting at last,
While they were talking to each other the night passed,
And the day dawned,
And daylight came,
And the morning sun shone brightly before Désirée had time to notice she had not again taken the shape of a fawn,
But was her own beautiful self.
Then it was found that it was the fairy tulip in disguise of the old woman who had provided that sheltering cottage in the forest.
The fairy tulip was there all the time,
Helping and guiding them.
The joy of the king upon once more seeing his son can well be imagined,
And the marriage of the prince and Désirée,
And Becafu and Girafle,
Took place on the same day,
The fairies giving their diamond palace as their wedding present to the princess Désirée,
And the fairy tulip presenting four gold mines in the Indies to Girafle.
And in accordance with the wish of Prince Désirée,
Long-Yvonne and her mother,
The false lady-in-waiting,
Were set free,
And all was well.
They lived happily together for all of their days.
That's the end.
And that's the end of our story.
It all worked out.
Everybody was well.
Even the naughty Long-Yvonne and her mother.
They were okay as well in the end.
And that's it for now.
Sleep well.
Bye-bye for now.
