A short fairy tale about a prince and princess. A fairy tale about how Prince Arthur was looking for a princess

A fairy tale about a capricious princess

Once upon a time there was a princess. Very pretty, but very capricious. At her disposal was a huge kingdom with a crowd of her loving subjects, large beautiful gardens, a sea of ​​interesting royal activities, and weekly feasts. But, despite all this, the princess did not remain satisfied for long: she was always missing something, and hundreds of nobles were knocked off their feet, fulfilling her numerous and often changing desires.

And the princess was also very dreamy, and, like other princesses, she dreamed of a prince on a white horse. She woke up and fell asleep with these thoughts - and with love stories under her pillow, and all the suitors who came to the threshold of her castle seemed not good enough to our princess.

And then one day there was a holiday on her street - a handsome prince rode into the kingdom on a white horse, the same one from her dreams. But at first he did not pay attention to our princess. She tried very hard to please him: she dressed beautifully, showed her dancing skills, always smiled at him and was friendly. And then at one fine moment a miracle happened: the prince realized that he had fallen in love. Luckily for the princess there was no chapel. She, surprisingly, was happy with everything and together with the prince they enjoyed their new love.

But then the moment came when the generally poor prince decided that it was time to go defeat dragons and replenish the royal treasury. The path was not close, and the princess really did not want the prince to leave her. She had already shed a bucket of tears, and hung on her lover’s neck with a death grip, not wanting to let him go. But the prince was a purposeful and brave man, he was impatient to go into battle.

Time passed, the prince brought gifts, took his beloved to distant strange countries, but still did not offer our princess an offer to become a full-fledged queen in their almost common kingdom. She was annoyed by this and was very tired of sitting by the window and suffering while waiting. And in order to somehow pass the time, she began to go to balls and feasts in the absence of her lover. There were many noble princes there, they paid attention to the beautiful princess, she smiled at them, but she was still waiting for the prince. And yet, more and more often she began to think: there are so many different princes around, and not everyone travels so far for dragons, and meanwhile life goes on... She began to look at foreign princes, thinking, maybe one of them will be better than her beloved, and instead of long expeditions for dragons, he will live next to her. But every time her prince returned, she forgot about her stupid thoughts.

The prince, by that time, had completely matured, accumulated dragon fangs and decided that it was time to make his capricious princess a queen and give birth to an heir.

Imagine his surprise when the princess, accustomed to balls and feasts, told him that it was not time yet, especially with such long absences from the kingdom. The prince was upset, waited for a while, and then in one of the distant countries he met a young beautiful princess. Yes, they did not go through the same fire and water with her as they did with their own capricious princess, who had already become their own. But the new princess was not so capricious and promised to give birth to an heir even tomorrow.

The prince thought and thought, and decided that it was time to change his life. He went to his princess to tell everything.

Meanwhile, the magpie on its tail brought rumors to our princess that the prince had met a new young lady, whom he was ready to make his queen. The princess cried bitter tears, and these tears were all over her eyes, and in addition, her brains and heart were thoroughly washed. And our princess suddenly realized that she had always been dissatisfied with everything, while she always had everything for happiness. And she thought that this prince was the most wonderful, despite the long campaigns, that she loved him immensely and she didn’t need any balls without him, and that she wanted to give birth to her beloved heir, and was even ready to sit by the window (although this was a boring activity) . She dressed up as if for the best ball, had a feast and met her prince.

The prince, seeing our princess, was stunned: she usually met him tired after feasts, beautiful dresses hung in the royal dressing room, and the princess herself was always dissatisfied with something and was capricious about his long absences.

Here he was met not by a princess, but by a real princess! In her best clothes, with a smile on her face, she prepared the royal dinner herself. She told him that she realized how capricious she was and often did not appreciate what she had, promised that she was now ready to enjoy what she had, and if necessary, from now on wait for him as long as she had to.

But although the prince was surprised, his eyes were already covered with a veil by his new love, he told it like it was and galloped off to another kingdom.

The princess became sad, cried for 14 days and nights, complained about her difficult lot, and all her subjects and nobles supported her, reassured her, saying that such a beautiful princess would very quickly find herself a new prince, even better. The princess realized that she had to move on with her life. engage in royal activities, and most importantly, learn to appreciate what you have. She learned to be less capricious, although it was not easy: every now and then, out of old habit, she complained to her nobles about this and that, but they reminded her: now you are no longer a capricious princess, but a wise one, you have no need for these discontents!

Whether long or short, time has put everything in its place. When the tears in the princess's eyes dried up, she discovered that the kingdom had fallen into some kind of desolation, the treasury had become impoverished, and order needed to be restored. She consulted with the sages in her kingdom and noble advisers, read several wise books and wrote a new set of laws for her kingdom. According to him, all subjects and she herself were entitled to:

1) Wake up with gratitude for everything that is available, first of all, for the opportunity to live on Earth and in the Kingdom;

2) Love yourself and accept yourself for who you are. Remember that you are okay and the other people of the Kingdom are okay, everyone is good just the way they are;

3) Do not judge anyone or anything, do not blame anyone or anything, do not gossip about anyone in the Kingdom and remember that everyone is initially driven by positive intentions;

4) See the good in every situation and try to learn a positive lesson, remembering that the Universe (and the Kingdom, of course) cares about us, and in each moment we make the best choice for ourselves;

5) Live consciously here and now, in the present moment;

6) Do only what you love for the benefit of yourself and the entire Kingdom, because everyone has their own purpose and all the resources to get results;

7) If you want to complain about the structure of the Kingdom or your position in it, think about what you want now, and what can be done for this?

8) If it seems that something is not working out, re-read the entire list starting from the first point.

No matter how short the tale is told, how long it takes to do the work, but the whole Kingdom began to live according to new laws, and it flourished more than ever. Waking up, the inhabitants of the Kingdom remembered the law of gratitude, and their day began with a smile: some were glad that they were healthy, some that there was a loved one nearby, some were simply grateful to the sunny morning, and that made everyone happy. full of energy. The more people in the kingdom tried to comply with the law of accepting themselves as they are, learning to love themselves and accept others, the calmer and more friendly they became. And instead of gossip, condemnation and complaints, they began to look for their true purpose. Not everyone succeeded at once, but the inhabitants of the kingdom observed the 4th law - they saw something good in every situation, and over time a miracle happened. Each subject, doing what he loved, discovered incredible talents in himself. Then an art gallery opened in the kingdom with stunning paintings, which people from other kingdoms came to see. Storytellers wrote such tales that quickly spread throughout the world. Tailors sewed incredible styles of clothing that became fashionable in all neighboring kingdoms, cooks prepared the most delicious dishes, and singers composed amazing songs. Many people began to come to the kingdom to see with their own eyes its beauty and harmonious people, where everyone did their own thing, and the fruits of their labors stunned the imagination.

Various princes also came to the kingdom: the news of the beautiful and wise princess quickly spread throughout the world, and many princes dreamed of meeting personally and even marrying such a princess. She accepted their gifts and attentions, devoted her time to everyone, and everyone took away something important and new from their meeting with her; She was friendly with everyone, but she was waiting for the one who would be the best for her, who could become a king in her kingdom.

One fine day, a conference of Overseas countries was held in the Kingdom to exchange experiences of a wise and happy life. Kings and queens, princes and princesses from different countries came to this event, talked for a long time, shared experience and knowledge on successfully managing their domains and subjects. Our princess also learned a lot of useful and interesting things from the conference of Overseas Countries. And so, wanting to relax after a fruitful day, she went for a walk through the royal gardens, enjoying their coolness, smiling at the beauty of the world around her and thinking about how much good there was around her.

That's you I'm looking for! - the princess suddenly heard, turning on one of the paths. A handsome and stately prince from a neighboring kingdom stood in front of her, holding a white horse by the bridle. And something inside at that moment told the princess: from this moment a completely different fairy tale begins in her life.

Yulia Glukhova

Evrika [email protected]

Once upon a time there lived a King and a Queen and they had a daughter: smart and beautiful. One day their country was attacked by enemies. The king and his entourage decided to leave the castle and ordered the ship to be prepared for a long journey. It so happened that all those close to him, except the princess, left the castle. The ship sailed away, and the king's daughter was left alone with the inhabitants of the city.

The people of the city loved her and took care of her. The princess loved to walk. One day she went into the forest to pick mushrooms with her favorite bunny. She was playing with her friend so much that she didn’t notice how night had come! At dusk she got lost and began shouting: “Ay!”, “Ay!”, “Ay!”. In response, only the wind rustled the tree branches. Suddenly she saw a small wooden hut in the forest itself. She approached the house and knocked on the door, but no one answered her. Then she pushed the door and was able to enter the house. There were many blue stones attached to the walls of this house. A hole was made in each of them and a nail was inserted into this hole and driven into the wall. The princess went to the second floor and saw ten small beds there. She looked around her and noticed small tables and a human SKULL. She was scared: “what if thieves or robbers live in this house.” But she was very tired and decided to stay in this house for the night and leave in the morning.

When she woke up and opened her eyes slightly, she noticed that a man was standing next to the bed. "Who are you?" - asked the princess. “My name is John, I guard this house,” the boy answered, “cannibal hunters will come here this afternoon. You must leave here, otherwise they will eat you. Only I have a big request to you: take my brother’s skull with you and bury it in the ground under the big green oak tree. And then my brother will come to life again. You must wait for me under this oak tree. If I don’t come, return to this hut. If I’m no longer here, know that the cannibal hunters roasted me.” “Then go to where the roof will be silver. Go into the forest and you will find a clearing on which there is a castle. Go there with my brother and you will be happy, you will get married and it will be good for you.”

The princess left. She was in such a hurry that she forgot the bunny in the hut. The princess obeyed her savior and did everything as he said. Together with her revived brother, she waited for John under a large oak tree. But no one came. Then they came to the hut, but no one opened the door for them and they did not find anyone in the hut: neither a boy, nor a skull, nor a bunny. The princess remembered that the boy had told her about the silver castle. Together with John's brother, they went to look for a clearing. After a long journey, they came to the castle and lived there happily ever after.

All the girls love fairy tales about princesses. In them, good invariably defeats evil, and eternal love comes to those who truly deserve it. The heroes described in such fairy tales are ideal. And even though they cannot exist in the real world, fairy tales about princesses for girls will always remind you of true femininity, gentleness and kindness.

Fairy tales and parables about princesses

READ a fairy tale

Once upon a time there lived a woman. A very sloppy woman. Everything in her house was upside down: a mountain of unwashed dishes in the sink, gray torn curtains on the windows, a thick layer of dust on the furniture, stains on the floor and carpet... But at the same time, she was a kind and compassionate woman. She never passed by a hungry kitten, handed out sweets to neighbor kids, and led old ladies across the road.

One day, returning from work as usual, she took off her shoes in the middle of the room, left her coat in the bath, and for some reason dropped her hat while walking along the corridor. In the kitchen, the woman began to sort out shopping bags, but, lost in her daydreaming, she gave up, went to the cabinet where the books were, took out a volume of poems by some unknown poet and, sitting down on the sofa, began to read.
Suddenly the woman heard a thin squeak. She got up, went to the window and noticed a small sparrow caught on the clothesline. The poor thing flapped his wings, trying his best to get out, but nothing came of it, and the rope only pulled his fragile body even tighter.

Then the woman grabbed the scissors from the windowsill, which so conveniently happened to be at hand, and cut the rope. The rags, which had been drying on a line for a week, flew down, but the sparrow was also free. The woman stood at the window for a little while, watching how the bird was happy, and then went into the kitchen, found some grains lying around and, returning, poured them onto the cornice.

She did not expect the sparrow to return. But he came back. Fearlessly he sat down on the window and began pecking at the treat.

From that day on, the sparrow always began to fly to the woman and peck the grains. One day, he became so bold that he even flew into the room, made several circles under the ceiling and immediately flew away. And the next day this is what happened...

This sparrow was not an ordinary bird at all. In fact, she was a fairy who took on different guises and flew around the world in search of good deeds. It so happened that she got caught in the clotheslines hanging in front of the window of a slovenly woman, but she decided not to resort to the help of magic, but to wait to see how the matter would end. Noticing how kind and compassionate the woman turned out to be, the fairy began to fly to her window every day, wanting to make sure that she was not mistaken. But the more the fairy flew to the woman, the more she understood that her kindness was so great that it illuminated everything around her, even this dirty apartment. And then the fairy decided to help the kind woman.

One day, when the woman went to work, the fairy, along with her friends, flew into her apartment. Using magic, she opened the window, and once inside, she immediately began giving tasks to her friends:
— two fairies began to diligently rub the floors with small wax rags;
- another fairy began to clean the curtains - she splashed some kind of silver liquid on them, and in the place where the liquid fell, the curtains became crystal clear and new;
— two other fairies took care of the kitchen. They carefully washed the broken and chipped dishes, and then, with the help of magic, they made the dishes new, and even patterned and multi-colored;
- the most important fairy, the one who flew in the guise of a sparrow, took upon herself the care of the walls with torn off dirty wallpaper and old, worn-out furniture. Here she conjured for so long that it seemed that all her magical power should have been spent. But, of course, this did not happen. But on the walls, now whiter, bizarre pictures appeared - the sea, mountains, sun, bright grass.

When the work was finished, the fairies took out fresh wildflowers from somewhere (although it was late autumn outside the window) and, filling the elegant vases with water, placed fragrant bouquets in them. The most important fairy allowed herself to do the last thing: the little affectionate puppy was very happy to have found a new, and even such a cozy and clean home.

When the yellow clock with polka dots struck five, the fairies flew away.
And soon the owner of the apartment herself came home. Unlocking the door with her old key, she at first thought that she had the wrong address. I had to go outside and go into the house again. But her apartment was still sparkling clean. Then the woman took off her shoes at the threshold and carefully placed the shoes on a small shelf. Then, she hung her coat and hat on the hanger and took the purchases to the kitchen. Everything happened as if in a dream: the woman could not believe that she was in her apartment. She carefully took apart the packages, put everything in its place, and when she finished, she heard a slight rustling behind her.
Turning around and seeing the little puppy, she picked him up in her arms and began hugging him and spinning around the house with the puppy.

From that day on, the woman’s life changed. Now she has become the cleanest the world has ever seen. And in the evenings, local children came to her house for tea and sweets. The children played with the puppy and were always amazed at how wonderful and cozy it was in the woman’s house.

That's it friends
Don't judge a book by its cover.
Although old and shabby
The book has a spine.

If there is a vice,
You will help him.
No judgment
Present your lesson with kindness.

Good is like a sail in the blue sea,
Turns white in the midst of boiling waters.
And everyone who responds kindly to kindness
He will definitely find that sail.

Fairy Tale

This story happened in those years when there was a terrible shortage of everything in our country. We had dreams about jelly beans. Chocolate was issued strictly on major holidays. A glass of ice cream was usually shared among four people. It was considered the greatest joy to get out of a can of condensed milk, and there were legends about all sorts of exotic delicacies in our circles. But we have never seen them live.

Our dad was a doctor. And then one day he brought home a whole bunch of bananas. Imagine, real bananas! Yellowish, with small black spots. Mom put bananas on the table and forbade us to touch them until dinner. But she didn’t forbid me to watch. And so, my sister and I sat next to these bananas, as if hypnotized.

And after dinner we were allowed to eat a banana. ABOUT…. It was an extraordinary taste: both sweet and so viscous, like marmalade, ice cream and condensed milk all at once.

After that, there are still three bananas left in the bunch. We spent the whole evening dreaming about how we would wake up in the morning and eat another banana.

When my parents fell asleep, we, without saying a word, realized that we couldn’t stand it anymore. They quietly got out of their beds and went to the kitchen. In the moonlight, the bananas on the table looked even more beautiful. Judging by fairness, we decided to eat one banana for two. But for a long time they did not dare to reach out and tear the banana from the bunch. Then I plucked up my courage and tore off the banana. As soon as the banana was in my hands, I felt that it was somehow soft. And it still moves. I got scared and dropped the banana.
And the sister says:
- You're a bungler!
I started looking for a banana. But it was difficult to do this in the dark. It was as if he had fallen through the floor. Then we quietly closed the door to the kitchen so as not to wake up our parents and turned on the light. I will never forget that day, or rather night.

In the light of the light bulb, my sister and I saw a tiny girl dressed in a yellow banana peel dress. She sat near the radiator and straightened her pigtails. There were at least a dozen of them on her head. But the strangest thing was not even this, but the fact that, having caught our gaze on her, the girl rose into the air, waving her thin wings behind her back.

Just like a butterfly. She flew very close to us and hung in the air:
- Why are you staring at me like that? Have you never seen fairies?
- Nope! – we watched this tiny creature in fascination.
“Then, let me introduce myself - I’m the Tropikanka fairy.” But you can just call me Tropy.
“Yeah...” we still couldn’t come to our senses.
The fairy made a circle around our small kitchen and stopped in front of the sink:
- What is this, water? Please make me a pool. I really want to freshen up.

The sister plugged the sink with a stopper and began to draw water. The fairy closely watched her actions. When there was enough water, the sister turned on the tap. The fairy asked if it was possible to leave the water on. We explained that then the water would overflow and flood the neighbors. Then Tropi sprinkled some golden pollen on the sink, and instead of a sink, an oasis of extraordinary beauty appeared in our kitchen - a miniature waterfall and a crystal clear lake.

The fairy immediately dived into the lake. She frolicked and splashed in it like a little fish for a long time. When she had swam enough and dried her wings, she flew to the table and sat on the edge of the plate, where the two remaining bananas lay. Tropi sprinkled golden pollen on the table, and instead of a plate, a tray immediately appeared on which lay a wide variety of fruits. Now, having become an adult, I know the names of each of them. Some I have only seen in films and pictures in culinary magazines. And then they were all just red, green, striped, pimply, small, big, sweet, sour, honey...

My sister and I ate everything at once, only managing to spit out the bones. The fairy, meanwhile, looked in a small mirror and fingered her tiny braids. Soon our stomachs ached. But that’s okay, because we were so happy that we didn’t pay attention to our bellies and continued to eat.
Having finished fiddling with her braids, Tropy flew up to the window and asked us to open it. It was a snowy, cold winter, and our windows were sealed with white tape and cotton wool for warmth. Only the window was open. But that was enough.

As soon as the fresh frosty air entered the room, multi-colored parrots flew into the kitchen after it. They casually sat down on the refrigerator, cabinets and curtains and began to talk. We have never seen such parrots before. Different colors, different sizes, with large beaks, and with beaks that look like tiny tweezers. The parrots cooed in their melodious voices, and this made the entire kitchen, along with the waterfall, lake and strange fruits, look like a tropical island in the ocean.

But the surprises didn't end there. A little more time passed, and we heard some noise outside the door, from the direction of the corridor. Thinking that it was our parents who had woken up, we were already preparing to tell them about all these incredible things. But when the sister opened the door, it turned out that there was a whole company behind her - a little lion cub, a baby elephant and a zebra child. These three walked importantly into the kitchen and sat down near the table as if they came here every day.

At first we were afraid of the lion cub. And then they got used to it and began to stroke and caress him along with other animals. The parrots also became so bold that they sat on my sister and me’s shoulders, pecked grains from our palms and walked around our heads as if they were grassy lawns.

This continued until the morning. And when dad’s alarm clock rang, we said goodbye to the fairy and returned to our beds to get at least a couple of hours of sleep before school.

When mom woke us up for breakfast, we vied with each other to tell her about what happened at night. She certainly didn't believe us. I just kept wondering when we managed to come up with such a coherent fairy tale.
In the kitchen there was not a trace left of the incredible events that happened at night. We ourselves were already a little doubtful whether all this really happened.

But while clearing the dirty dishes from the table after breakfast, my sister found a tiny mirror in the sink. The same one that Tropicana looked like. That’s how we realized that we didn’t dream about this story.

Bonfire

Vanya and Tanya were playing with matches. Everyone knows the golden rule: “matches are not toys for children!” But the guys were very naughty. They decided to light a fire in the courtyard of a large apartment building. To do this, Vanya and Tanya collected old newspapers, dry sticks and cardboards, made a pyramid out of it and were just about to open the box and get a match when their neighbor’s grandmother appeared:

- What are you brats doing here?! - she screamed.
“Nothing special,” Vanya ran his foot along the ground. - So, let's play.
- Oh, you’re playing! Now I’ll call the police and they’ll identify you in an instant! - Grandma screamed.

The guys rushed like a bullet into the entrance, up the steps to the fifth floor, to their apartment. And only when the door slammed behind them did they exhale. They were not afraid of the police, but of mom and dad. Most of all, they didn’t want to spend the entire holiday at home, punished.

When the first excitement passed, Vanya, who was a full five minutes older than his sister, said:
- Shall we light a fire right here? And no one will see.

Tanya really liked this idea, and she skipped into the room to get some old notebooks.

The children rolled up the rug in the living room (so it wouldn’t catch fire) and began laying out a new pyramid for the fire. For some reason Vanya put his school diary at the base, but then he thought about it and put it away anyway.
When all the preparations were completed, Tanya brought matches. The children looked at each other solemnly. Another second and the girl’s thin fingers had to remove a thin and such a dangerous match from the box... Surely no one would stop the guys?!

match fairy

Tanya opened the box slightly, and suddenly, before the eyes of the astonished children, out came... A match! Only unusual, but alive. With wings on his back.
- Wow! - Tanya and Vanya said in unison and fell to the floor in surprise.
“I’m a match fairy,” answered the match with wings. - Because you did not listen to your parents and violated the most important rule - you began to play and fool around with matches without adults, I am taking you to the land of Matchboxes for re-education! - and without waiting for an answer, the fairy blew, first on Tanya, then on Vanya.

The guys quickly began to shrink in size. Their entire room instantly turned into a giant unfamiliar world. Now they were the same height as the fairy. Not far from the guys, on the floor lay the same matchbox. Only now it was huge, like a real house.

Following the fairy, the guys approached the box and began to climb inside along its smooth walls. But nothing worked out for them. Then the fairy clapped her hands and Tanya and Vanya floated through the air, like fluff from dandelions and flew straight into an open matchbox.

Giant logs lay under their feet. Of course, these were ordinary matches. Only now they were very large compared to the tiny children. There was a wooden door in one of the walls of the matchbox. The fairy pushed her, and the guys stepped into an extraordinary world.

Welcome

Everything here was made from matchboxes: houses, bridges, trees. But much more surprising seemed to be the creatures striding along the paths, driving around in matchbox cars, looking out of the windows of matchbox houses. These were all ordinary matches - thin, with arms and legs; old and young, mother matches and baby matches, dog matches and even sparrow matches.

Tanya and Vanya walked along the paths with their mouths wide open and constantly turning their heads, now in one direction, then in the other. Suddenly Vanya said to his sister:
- Listen, where is the fairy?

The guys stopped. And in fact, the fairy disappeared somewhere. Meanwhile, the matchstick men looked at the guys with strange irritation and even anger. They lined up on both sides of the road and whispered.

Matchstick residents

A gray-haired old man with matches emerged from the crowd of matches:
“You are not welcome here,” he said loudly. You are very naughty and nasty guys. You should have been sent to the quarries. But at the request of our respected fairy, we allow you to earn your forgiveness!
- What did we do? – Tanya asked with a trembling voice.

The old man and everyone else frowned more than ever.
“Is this because,” Vanya began, “we were playing around with matches?”
- Were you playing around?! They were playing around! - some match-mother intervened in the conversation, - Do you know how many innocent matches are dying for nothing because of such stupid and irresponsible guys like you! Every day some boy or girl plays with matches, breaks them, sets fire to anything! And all for what!

“And this is not to mention their own safety,” said the matchstick guy in large round glasses delicately.

“No, no, all this is empty talk,” the old man spoke again. - The matter is clear. The two of you must take the road of His Majesty King Match XI. This is the only way you can understand for yourself what it means to handle matches properly. And this is the only way you can return home, to your world.
- Fair! Fair! – the rest of the matches nodded.
“But...” Tanya tried to object, “what if we get lost?”
“It’s unlikely,” the bespectacled match stammered, “we have only one road in our country.” And that's exactly what you need.

“It turns out we have no other choice,” Vanya noted. He wanted to ask if they would encounter terrible dangers on the way, but there was no one around. All the matches somehow very quickly returned to their business.

The guys had to go along the only road in the country of Matchboxes, the road of His Majesty King Matchbox XI.

Let's hit the road

Just outside the city the forest began. Here the matchbox trees stood so close together that the sun's rays barely penetrated their dark branches. The guys walked holding hands, and they were a little scared. Every now and then some rustling noises were heard from all sides. They were clearly being watched.

Broken matches

Suddenly the trees parted and a little man stepped out onto the road. It was a match without a brown cap on its head.
- Good afternoon! – Vanya turned to the stranger.
“Nothing good,” the little man responded dully. “No one is allowed to walk in this forest without my knowledge.”
- And who are you? – Tanya asked.
- I? Who am I? – the little man was clearly not happy about the question. - Come on, brothers, tell these fools who I am!
Other similar people began to emerge from behind the trees. There were also no brown caps on their heads.

The guys were seriously excited.
- I am the leader of the spoiled matches. We are not allowed to live in the city with others.
“With the normal ones,” a thin voice squeaked from the crowd.
“Look around,” the little man began his story, “here you will find examples of all kinds of cruelty and injustice.” Some of us were born ugly. Sometimes there is a manufacturing defect, and matches are born without a cap from the incendiary mixture. They are doomed to drag out a miserable, worthless existence. But some, born normal matches, fall into the hands of notorious scoundrels. They burn them as a joke. And then they throw him to the ground. At this moment, their life does not end, but they can no longer return back to their own. Then we receive them here - in the Forest of the Forsaken.

- How sad! – Tanya sobbed.
- Sad?! She's sad! Just listen! – the little man seemed to still be angry. – If it weren’t for you people, we would live happily ever after!
- But who would have made you then? – Vanya tried to interject.
- Take them! – the little man squealed, greatly offended by such a comment.

Matchstick men flew at the guys from all sides. And everything, of course, would have ended badly if the fairy had not appeared. Her presence alone had a strangely calming effect on the little men. They parted in different directions.
The fairy turned to the leader of the outcasts:
- Don't get so excited. After all, these are just children. Plus, you can ask them a question, and if they answer it, you let them go.
The leader of the outcasts liked this idea, and he turned to the guys again, softening a little:
- OK. Answer now - what is a match head made of? You will pay for your mistake with your lives.
Tanya and Vanya looked at each other, and the fairy tilted her head to the side.
I had to remember. Vanya even got a headache from thoughts and tension, but in the end, he remembered:
- From sulfur! Exactly - from sulfur.
“Hmm,” the little man winced. – And this is your final answer?
- Well, yes.
The fairy intervened again:
- Keep in mind that the boys are only seven years old.
- OK. The answer is counted. But, of course, this is far from what I would like to hear. The composition of the match includes Bertol salt, manganese dioxide and sulfur. Sulfur is the main flammable substance in a match. Berthol's salt releases oxygen when burning, and the match does not go out as quickly. To prevent the fire temperature from being too high, manganese dioxide is used.
- Wow, so many things in a small match! – the guys said in unison, but remembering who was in front of them, they immediately fell silent.
- What did you think? – the little man grinned.
The fairy disappeared somewhere again, as suddenly as it had appeared, and the guys safely continued on their way.

At the factory

Soon the forest ended. Endless expanses stretched out. After walking a little more, the guys saw a huge building with its top rising into the sky. Some indistinct sounds could be heard from its open windows. After listening, they realized that it was a child's cry.
At that very moment, a matchstick man in a white robe appeared from the door and shouted at the top of his lungs:
— Help is urgently needed! Help! Everyone who has their hands free, respond!

Since Tanya and Vanya had their hands free at that very moment, they hurried to the match in a white robe. He looked at them doubtfully, and then, waving his hand, hastily invited them to follow him:
- Just keep in mind, this is a very delicate matter!
- What's the matter? – Tanya asked with interest.
“We have a maternity hospital here, young lady,” the match in a white robe frowned, “of course we’re talking about the birth of a new life!”
The guys looked at each other in surprise.

There were long rows of cradles in the wards. Each of them contained a tiny match. Only they didn’t have to stay in this infantile state for long. After just ten to fifteen seconds, the little matches quickly jumped to their feet and went to their parents. Adoptive parents, because, as you know, matches are produced on special machines. Every day, one match machine can produce more than ten million matches. That's why Match in a white robe - Doctor Match - was in such a hurry.

Tanya and Vanya were placed in a row, behind the other matchstick men. Their task was simple: to convey newborn matches by conveyor from the maternity ward to the wards. Although this activity was interesting at first, the children soon got tired of it. Their hands hurt. They wanted to ask the Chief for time off, but they were forbidden to move. The matches came in a continuous conveyor belt.

Tanya began to whine, and Vanya became flushed from work and puffed like a locomotive. Suddenly the match fairy appeared.
“Guys,” she said, “come on, quickly remember what matches are made of.”
- Made of oak! – Vanya blurted out.
“The answer is wrong,” said the fairy.
“From a birch tree,” Tanya shouted, handing over another matchstick baby.
- Past again.
— From aspen? – Vanya suggested.
- Absolutely right. Aspen is the best material for making matches. It holds the flammable mixture perfectly, does not split when cut and does not produce soot when burning.

At that same second, someone loudly shouted “BREAK!”, and the conveyor immediately stopped. The fairy disappeared again, and the guys left the maternity hospital and continued on their way along the road of His Majesty King Match XI.

Palace of His Majesty King Match XI

Some more time passed, and a long brown fence blocked their way. It stretched left and right as far as the eye could see. There was a door in the fence, locked with a large padlock. On both sides of the door stood matches in iron armor with spears. They looked sternly at the guys who approached.
“Hello,” Tanya spoke. - Let us pass. Please, we really need it.
“You will be able to pass if you answer the question correctly,” said one of the guards.

The guys nodded.
- Why does the match burn? – asked the guard.
- Well, it's easy! - Tanya waved her hand, - sulfur at its end is a flammable substance. We were already told about this today!
“The answer is wrong,” the guard muttered.
- How unfaithful?! – Vanya was indignant. - Very faithful! We strike a match on the box and lo and behold, the match is lit.
But the guards did not answer anything to this. And they didn’t let the guys through.

The children sat down by the road and rested their heads on their hands. Will they never be able to complete their journey because of such a stupid and easy question?
They were no longer surprised when the match fairy appeared a few minutes later.

On this difficult journey, she was their faithful assistant. And without her, they would hardly have been able to get further than the Forest of the Forsaken.
“Guys,” the fairy addressed them, “when you rub a match against a box, it is not the match itself that lights up, but the mixture that is applied to the wall of the box.” It consists of red phosphorus and glue. The combustion reaction moves from the box to the match and it seems to you that you set fire to it. Although in reality they caused a fire on the surface of a matchbox.
- Wow! – Tanya and Vanya were very surprised by this. And the guards stepped aside and allowed the guys to pass through the fence. Only now did they notice that it consisted entirely of the brown walls of matchboxes, impregnated with phosphorus and glue.

Behind the fence was a large palace, built of course from matchboxes, like everything else in this country.
The guys walked along long, curved corridors and found themselves in a huge hall. In front of them, King Matchstick XI sat on the throne.

As was expected in such cases, the children bowed. The king answered them with a slight nod of his head.
“Dear king,” Vanya began, “we walked along your path and overcame all difficulties.” Won't you let us go home?
“Well,” the king spoke benevolently, “if that’s the case, then I see no obstacles.”

Not so simple

At this time, a short match ran into the hall with some piece of paper in her hands. Having reached the king, bowing low, the match handed him the piece of paper. The king began to read it carefully. His face became very serious.

When he finished, he addressed the guys in a completely different voice:
— New, additional circumstances have opened up. I'm afraid I won't be able to let you go home. You will go to the quarries and spend the rest of your life in labor for the benefit of our glorious state.

The guys roared loudly. Through tears, Tanya began to wail:
- What did we do? We did everything, we did it!
- How many innocent matches have you ruined?! – the king shouted angrily. They just reported to me that you burned your names on the fence and spent two whole boxes of matches on it!
- We, but...
“Were you the one who lit matches and threw them out of the window at passers-by?!”
- We, but...
— Did you sculpt plasticine figures and insert matches into the plasticine?
- We…
“Then the punishment I chose for you is still quite mild.” You should be executed. Guards! Get these two out!
Out of nowhere, matches appeared - guards. They reached out to the guys with their thin arms, dressed in armor. Tanya and Vanya began to kick and...

...Woke up. They were lying on the living room floor, curled up. In front of them was a pile of old notebooks that they were going to burn.
- Was this a dream? – Tanya asked her brother.

He was still rubbing his eyes with his hands in bewilderment. An open matchbox lay nearby. Something small, similar to an ordinary match, darted inside. Or did it just seem like it?

READ a fairy tale about a princess

It was a wonderful summer day. Serene fluffy clouds floated across the sky. Loud white-winged gulls frolicked along the shore. Princess Anne descended the wide palace stairs and headed into the garden. There, where from a high ledge an extraordinary view of the sea opened up.

But after walking just a few steps along the path, the princess stopped. Right at her feet lay a pitiful, unfledged chick. The baby seemed to have injured his paw and now couldn’t even get up.
- Poor him! – Anna sank to the ground in front of the chick, not even caring about not staining the lace on her dress. - Where is your mommy, baby?
The chick squeaked pitifully.

At that very moment, the fat palace cat Lucius came out from behind a tree. He sat down on his hind legs, as if preparing to jump, and licked his lips greedily. If it weren't for Anna, Lucius would probably have eaten the chick. At the last minute, the princess managed to get to her feet, carefully picking up the unfortunate bird from the ground. The cat growled in displeasure.
- Ugh! How disgusting you are, Lucius! – Anna shook her finger at him. “You’re just waiting for the moment to offend the weak.”
The princess looked up. At the top of a spreading tree, directly above her head, there was a cozy nest.

Without thinking twice, Anna built a cradle from her scarf, into which she placed the chick, tightly grabbed the ends of this cradle with her teeth, and began to climb up the tree trunk.

You probably think that it’s not appropriate for princesses to climb trees in lace dresses? But Anna had a different opinion. She hated injustice, and therefore would never leave the tiny bird to its fate.

Having almost reached the top, Anna heard familiar voices below. Soon Prince Hans and his retinue appeared under the tree. This was the princess's brother, who was very, no, VERY different from his sister. It was as if they were raised in different families. He was an evil, calculating and cruel prince. If he had noticed Anna climbing trees, he would certainly have reported this to his parents. And then she would have suffered greatly. But the princess sat high, and the spreading branches reliably hid her from prying eyes.

Suddenly Lucius appeared out of nowhere. He began to rub against his owner's legs and meow loudly. Lucius knew where Anna was. Nasty cat! He seemed to be trying with all his might to make Hans look up.
- This is a good place for lunchtime tea! – out of nowhere the prince said. “Tell me to serve the tea right here.”
Princess Anne almost squealed in frustration. Now her way down was cut off for a good two hours. The prince was very slow.
Fortunately, she was already almost at the level of the bird's nest. So, it was not difficult for her to reach out and bring the chick home. Mom, of course, was not there.

Then Anna settled comfortably on a branch, leaned her head against the wide tree trunk and closed her eyes.

Soon a light breeze that touched her eyelashes forced the princess to open her eyes.

There was a bird hanging in the air right in front of her face. She moved her wings so quickly that she seemed motionless.
- Thank you, good princess! - the bird squeaked.
- You can speak? – Anna was surprised.
- All animals and birds can speak, they just don’t always want to. Because you saved my son, I will give you a magic bean. Plant it in the ground and see what happens.

The princess held out her palm, and the bird carefully placed a small seed on it.

Prince Hans and his retinue have already left. So Anna slept long enough. She climbed down from the tree and headed back to the palace.
After dinner, she once again decided to go out into the garden. Usually the princess was not supposed to walk alone, and even so late. But Anna always climbed out through her bedroom window.

Having taken a few steps deeper into the garden, she suddenly remembered the gift the bird had given her. The princess took out the bean and immediately buried it in the ground, after making a wish. After all, this is how all these things in fairy tales usually work. It’s a pity that she completely forgot about other fairy tales - in which a giant stem grows from a seed, its top reaching to the sky. But that's exactly what happened now. As the astonished princess watched, a giant beanstalk grew from the ground.

Without thinking twice, Anna began to climb it, without even thinking about the dangers that the unknown might conceal. Soon she rose so high that even the clouds remained far below.

Finally the ground appeared. More precisely, not the earth, of course. But, something hard and smooth. This is where the stem ended. In front of the princess stretched a wide valley, covered with tall, soft grass with bright splashes of flowers.
When Anna approached one flower to smell it, it turned out that these were not flowers at all, but huge multi-colored candies on long legs. Butterflies circled over the sweets. So colorful and airy that the princess involuntarily admired their movements. But what is it - looking closer, she realized that these were not butterflies, but real girls with wings. Thin and fragile, like dolls.

Beyond the candy field rose yellow mountains. The princess had never seen such yellow mountains before. Bright yellow trees grew on their slopes. They huddled together so tightly that when the wind blew and their crowns moved, it seemed as if yellow waves were moving across the mountains.

Walking through this extraordinary landscape, the princess soon became tired and hungry. As if guessing her thoughts, a richly decorated table with chairs appeared around the bend in the road. What kind of dishes were there!
Having sat down on one of the chairs, the princess noticed that all the other places around the table were immediately occupied - a big-eyed snake in a cap, a platypus husband and a platypus wife (both with glasses), a baby elephant with a very naive face and a living globe. The whole company began to discuss the latest news, of which everyone considered the most important the tricks of the Evil Malicious. Who this Evil Maleficent is, the princess could not understand. Only when everyone had finished eating, a terrible noise was heard in the distance. Looking around, the princess realized that she was left alone. But having become accustomed to fearlessly facing dangers, she did not hide behind the nearest trees, but remained sitting at the table. Royally.

First, a horseman appeared on the horizon. He ran very fast, the princess could not make out his face. Only when he drove up close enough did a sigh escape from her chest - either in amazement or in fear. On the horse sat the cat Lucius, dressed in knightly armor and a black cloak fluttering in the wind. There was a nasty and even impudent grin on the cat’s face.

When the cat approached the table, the princess stood up and said:
- So you are the Evil Malicious?! I didn't expect anything else from you!
The cat dismounted. Now he was a head taller than the princess. Dressed in shiny armor, with a saber at the ready, he looked intimidating.
-You made a big mistake, princess! No one is allowed to enter these properties without my knowledge. Now you will have to pay for this with your life. The cat dashingly pulled out a saber and raised it over the princess's head.

At that moment, something buzzed in the air, and at the same second, the cat meowed terribly. His paw was pierced by a silver-tipped arrow.
- Bow down, wicked one! Before you is Princess Anna herself!
Anna looked in the direction where the voice came from and saw a stately dog ​​on a white horse. From his appearance it was difficult to determine what breed he was. But the armor on him shone no less brightly than on the cat, and at the moment, he seemed to have saved Anna’s life.

The princess curtsied in gratitude for the rescue. The cat growled furiously and jumped onto his horse, holding his bruised paw and galloped away.
The dog approached the princess and bowed his head low:
“Always ready to serve Your Majesty, Milady.”
- What is your name? – the princess asked him.
— Knight Errant Doggy, Your Majesty.
“I thank you, Knight Doggy.” It seems you saved my life.
- This is my duty, Your Majesty. But, you need to leave! This scoundrel will soon return here with an army of his dishonest minions! I'll take you back to the beanstalk.

The princess did not refuse, and having made another required curtsy, she set off on the way back.
At the stem, Knight Doggy said goodbye to her:
“I will never forget your kindness,” the princess told him goodbye.
“And I will never forget our meeting,” Doggy admitted frankly.
When the princess returned to the palace, it had already begun to get light. It's strange, it's just been night down here. But where she came from, the bright sun shone all the time. The princess reached her bed and fell unconscious. She was so exhausted by the past events.

Dream or not

She was awakened by the loud neighing of horses. It was Prince Hans who was too lazy to return home from the garden on foot and ordered the carriage to be brought right here. Anna was still sitting on the tree, leaning her back against the trunk.
She rubbed her eyes. Was it really just a dream? Beans, fairyland, a nasty cat and a brave dog...

When the prince and his henchmen left the garden, Anna climbed down from the tree. Now she was a little sad. She was already heading back to the palace, when suddenly a cute homeless dog appeared from behind the trees. He stood a little away from the princess, as if not daring to come closer.
- Doggy! Doggy! To me! – for some reason Anna called, and the dog rushed headlong towards her. It seems that she has found a faithful and devoted friend. Or maybe they already knew each other?...

Whether this story was just an afternoon dream or whether there is still some truth in it - decide for yourself. My job is to tell you how it all happened. Go around half the world,
One hundred thousand corners!

And everything could have been very
Wonderful and wonderful
And even perfect
But there is one NUANCE.

One hidden point
Like a seed in a raisin,
A blot on paper
There is a shadow in the clear sky.

But if you want
Get closer to the princess
Bring your acquaintance -
You will understand everything at once.

This is our fairy tale
About the one who is more beautiful than everyone else,
About the one who is cutest of all
And about her NUANCE.

On one ordinary evening,
Such a pleasant evening
Which ones are so common
In the everyday life of kings,

King and queen
We chatted and decided
What time is it for their princess
Let's find a husband.

That good news
Messengers all over the area
Throughout all surrounding lands
Trumpet, trumpet, trumpet:

"We are looking for the prince,
Most worthy prince,
Most wonderful prince
We are a prince anywhere!

Something to make it more beautiful
You wouldn't even find
Go around half the world,
One hundred thousand corners!”

From all over to the capital
They rushed to get married,
We came to get married
Oh miracle - grooms!

King and queen,
As usual, in the law,
We organized a show
For these grooms.

Three difficult competitions -
See you first date
Will prove himself steadfastly
There is only one contender.

First sword fights -
Here is dexterity and courage,
And the swords beat loudly
Like roses made of glass.

Then riding a pony
Everyone is jumping in an open field,
A little uncomfortable
Not like on a horse!

For the third test -
Common confession:
Who can say more beautifully
A compliment to the princess.

All princes are sweet singers:
One tells her: “Heart
Mine rejoiced
O wondrous beauty!

Another sings: “Beautiful!
I know that I am subject
To your magical charms
Both mountains and seas!

And the third echoes: “Woe,
Now I have to live in captivity,
Captivated by deep, clear
Piercing eyes..."

Yes... it's very difficult to choose
Almost impossible
But you still have to
And only one will win.

What to do - life is cruel.
And the road awaits the princes,
All princes - candidates,
All but one.

Happy winner
Princess conqueror,
He survived, he managed -
He is the only hero.

King and queen
The prince is entrusted with
Serious hopes -
He will soon become their kin!

It's time for honor
Find out in your bride
Open in your bride
That little NUANCE.

One hidden point
That seed in the raisin,
A blot on paper
There is a shadow in the clear sky.

King and queen,
Blushing and numb
About daughter revealed
Finally the whole truth:

Our princesses are more beautiful
You won't even find
Go around half the world,
One hundred thousand corners!

But if you offer her
A plate of semolina porridge,
Or stew for dinner,
Or soup for lunch.

Our princess will say,
And he waves his finger:
“I won’t! I do not want!
I don’t know how to eat!”

And then the prince will take it,
Like an honest royal
Like the most royal
Worthy contender

For a spoonful of semolina porridge,
Or maybe even with soup,
And he will become a princess
It's polite to feed.

All this is because
In distant, distant childhood
They failed to capture the princess
Learn to eat with a spoon.

And they couldn’t use a fork,
But they only looked at his mouth,
And mother-nannies together
They hastened to say:

Grow, grow big,
Princess dear!
But eating is not science,
You will have time to study.

Dearest creations,
Beautiful princesses
Learn to eat yourself
So as not to blush afterwards!

Lyubochka was getting ready to go to bed.
- Mom, mom, tell me a bedtime story.
- Okay, now I’ll take a book and read a short fairy tale.
“No, I want you to come up with it yourself,” Lyuba demanded.
“But I’m very tired at work, my head hurts a little, I won’t be able to compose anything,” my mother answered.
“But I want,” the girl continued, “you’re my mother and you should tell me fairy tales before bed.”
“Okay, listen,” Mom answered tiredly.
Once upon a time there lived a capricious princess in a fairy-tale kingdom.
All the girl’s wishes were fulfilled instantly, because if she was unhappy, she began to stomp her feet and loudly shout “I want it!” I want! I want!".
One day, her friend was supposed to come to the princess from a neighboring kingdom. Caprisula called all her servants and announced:
“I want to throw a ball tomorrow, and not just a simple one, but the very best one, so that my girlfriend will envy me.” The very best ball in the world!
- So, I want the pastry chefs to bake 1000 cakes, and for them all to be different.
“But we won’t have time to come up with recipes and bake so many cakes in one night,” the confectioners tried to object.

“This is your job,” answered the princess, “I want 1000 delicious cakes!”

“I also want a new dress, let the tailors make me a dress better than the ones I had by tomorrow morning.” Violets should be embroidered along the hem, and forget-me-nots on the sleeves, and decorate with beads and the best lace with gold thread.

“We won’t be able to handle it by morning,” the tailors moaned.

“This is your job,” answered the princess, “I’m waiting for the most beautiful dress by tomorrow morning!”

— And the gardeners must plant 1000 rose bushes in front of the palace and all the roses must be of different colors.

“But this is not possible,” answered the gardeners, “you cannot find so many flowers in the whole kingdom!”

“I want 1000 rose bushes,” the capricious princess got angry.

The servants were very upset and went to do the task. They stayed up all night, trying to get the job done by morning, but, of course, they were faced with an impossible task. The gardeners, cooks and tailors were very worried that they would not please the capricious princess, and they were so worried that by morning they all fell ill and fell into a sound sleep.

The capricious princess woke up in the morning and, not seeing her new dress, began to scream and cry loudly, but, to her surprise, no one came running to calm her down. The princess got out of bed and looked out the window. The gardeners slept right on the lawn. The princess screamed and called, but could not wake them up.

She ran to the kitchen. There she saw the cooks, who were also sleeping soundly. The tailors fell asleep with needles in their hands.

The princess was frightened - she had never been alone before. She felt ashamed of her behavior, for the fact that she did not feel sorry for her servants at all.

Suddenly the capricious princess heard the sound of an approaching carriage - it was her friend who had come to visit. The princess came out to meet her in a nightgown.

“Oh, why is it so quiet and not a soul around,” the princess friend was surprised, “and why are you dressed so strangely?”

“My servants have a day off today, they need to rest,” answered the princess, “and we will do everything ourselves: make tea and bake a pie.”

- Wow! Great! I've never done anything myself before!

The girls baked a cake as best they could, drank tea, then played hide and seek and watered the flowers that the gardeners had managed to plant.

When evening came and it was time to leave, the friend said: “I really liked how we spent the day today. I will also give my servants a day off, I think they are very tired. Yes, every week I will give them a day off and do everything myself. And you come and visit me!”

“This is how the fairy tale turned out,” my mother smiled.

“Thank you, mommy, do you want me to make us some tea?” Lyuba asked, “you go and rest, and tomorrow I’ll tell you a fairy tale myself...

Once upon a time there lived a princess in a small but beautiful kingdom, on the shore of a large lake, near high mountain peaks. There was plenty of everything in the kingdom: flowers, trees with delicious fruits, animals, and birds. This kingdom was also famous for the best grooms among neighboring kingdoms. The guys were all good, from the shepherd to the son of a nobleman - handsome in face, strong in body, smart, charming, cheerful. Every year a grooms' ball was held in the largest castle in the kingdom. Guys and girls came there to show themselves and see others. And after the ball there were several months of celebration and fun - because the weddings were celebrated by happy lovers.

But the most important and main person at the ball was the princess. She was the most beautiful girl in the kingdom and, of course, deserved, as she believed, the most handsome prince. But the trouble was that all the men were handsome, she liked them all, and it was very difficult to make a choice. Of course, the heart will always tell you, but for some reason it was stubbornly silent and did not give any signals. The princess was already thinking that maybe she was completely heartless? In fact, she was wrong, there was a lot of kindness, affection and tenderness in her. The princess's position was indeed difficult. She constantly basked in the attention and care of the opposite sex, she was given fresh flowers and delicious sweets. The princess smiled, thanked and looked for HIM with her eyes. But everyone, although they were beautiful in face, were like each other like two peas in a pod. The princess has already left the ball several times without her prince...

And then one day, after one such ball, she had a dream... The princess saw herself in a sunlit forest clearing, the murmur of a transparent stream reached her ears; in the grass grew many amazing, unusually beautiful flowers, the likes of which she had never seen in her life. In the center of the clearing grew a huge old oak tree with a spreading green crown. The princess found herself under him. Next to her, she saw a woman with unusually kind eyes and in a light dress, smoothly fluttering in the breeze.

Who are you? - asked the girl.
“Fairy,” answered the fairy. - I'm here because you're in trouble.
“Yes,” the girl answered with sadness in her voice. She already understood what trouble the fairy was talking about.
- I want to tell you that you will soon be very happy. Soon you will see your prince. You will find it yourself.
- Herself? - the girl was surprised. - Do princesses themselves look for princes? He must come to my palace, on a white horse and with gifts!
- My darling! Your prince is bewitched by an evil wizard and cannot find you on his own, although he really wants to. Now he is indifferent to all girls, he cannot find his one and only. The spell will only subside if you confess your feelings to him.
- How?! Princesses don't confess their love! On the contrary, they should hear confessions from noble knights!
- If you want to find him, remember that you are not only a princess, but also a girl in love.

Then the princess was awakened by the morning trills of birds at the window. They were somehow especially loud in the room. At first the princess could not understand why her heart was beating so hard, but after a couple of seconds she remembered her dream.

She doubted: “Is this true or not?” Deep in thought, she glanced at the window - there, in the rays of the sun, lay a flower from a magical meadow. "Is it true!" - The princess was at a loss. “What now? Go? But princesses don’t look for princes themselves! However...” - her heart was suddenly filled with longing for happiness... She stomped her foot imperiously, “Am I a princess or not?! Everything is in my power!” And she, without saying a word to anyone, changed her chic dress for an ordinary one, threw a light cloak over her shoulders, grabbed food and drink, and ran out of the palace onto the road.

She felt simply great, she wanted to sing and dance, laugh loudly with joy - after all, she was following her happiness! Everything inside her glowed pink. And she walked straight along the road, without turning anywhere.

She walked past the field, past the forest, past swamps and lakes and reached the village. A young girl was sitting in one of the courtyards; she was weaving a wreath of herbs and flowers, and humming some song to herself. The princess was thirsty and she turned to the girl: “Dear girl! Do you have any water to quench my thirst?” The girl smiled in response, nodded, and a minute later brought out a glass of water.

Where are you going? Travelers rarely pass through our village.
“I am following my happiness,” answered the princess.
- Then good luck to you! Which road will you take next? - the girl asked and pointed towards the forest.

There the road forked: one led straight into the forest, and the other along the outskirts. The princess was confused... she didn’t know where to go, how to choose the right path. Apparently, bewilderment was written on her face, and the girl said:

You ask your heart. It knows everything.

The princess looked at the road along the forest - and inside she felt like a gray dense fog enveloping everything around her; She looked at the forest road - and a pink light glowed inside.

I'm walking along a forest road!
- That's great! - exclaimed the delighted girl. - Further along this road there is a meadow where a shepherd grazes his flock. This shepherd is my favorite, but we see each other so rarely that he almost never hears kind words from me. If you see him, tell him that I love him and am really looking forward to him coming, without his cheerful eyes and ringing voice I am very sad...
- Marvelous! - said the princess. - Why tell him this, because he probably already knows all this. But you helped me, I will tell him everything.

Thank you. I want him to know about my love and his heart will become warmer...

The princess said goodbye to the girl and moved on. She walked through the forest for a day and finally saw the meadow where the shepherd was grazing his flock.

She greeted him and conveyed all the words of the girl from the village. The shepherd's face lit up:

So she remembers me, she still loves me. Oh, kind girl, thank you, I'm so happy! I really missed these words!

The princess liked these words of the shepherd. She moved further along the road, through the forest, and out into the field. There was a lonely wooden hut on the edge. The princess was already quite hungry and knocked on the door. Her grandmother opened it for her. Her face was deeply wrinkled, her gray hair was covered with an embroidered colorful scarf, and her blue eyes looked welcomingly at the girl. She said hello and asked for food, and the grandmother motioned for her to come in, seated the table and brought food. Then suddenly she asked:

Are you lost? What are you doing here?
“I’m looking for my prince,” the girl answered.
- What is he like?

The girl thought:

“He’s handsome, smart and funny,” she answered.
-Are there not many such princes? How do you recognize yours? How will you find him?

The princess was at a loss and did not know what to answer. It suddenly seemed to her that she had come such a long way in vain and that she would not succeed; it was all in vain. She almost cried out of grief. Grandmother noticed this and consoled her:

If you're brave enough, I'll give it to you. You will eat a piece of this pie, and in a dream you will see your prince, and you will understand how to recognize him. This dream will be prophetic. But if you are not ready to see the truth, whatever it may be, go back.

The princess did not want to return; Is this why she walked for so long to retreat now? She ate a piece of pie and decided to move on. Grandmother said goodbye to her warmly.

Soon it began to get dark. The girl walked and thought; she was a little scared, she even had a thought - what if he was ugly... But be that as it may, there will be happiness ahead, no matter in what guise. And everything else doesn't matter.

When the first star lit up, sleep began to overwhelm the princess, she lay down on the soft grass and closed her eyes.

It was the same clearing with unusual flowers and a hundred-year-old oak tree. The princess looked around, searching with her eyes for her prince. But under the oak tree stood the same old woman who had given her the magic pie; only now she looked younger and looked like a wise sorceress. She smiled at the embarrassed and surprised girl. Approaching her, she began to say:

Are you surprised? Now I will tell you about him. Appearances can often be deceiving. So listen to me: this man is not a prince by blood, not of noble birth, but a worthy, valiant man. He has blue eyes and beautiful hands, he has a velvety voice. He has a cheerful disposition; when he is sad, he tells the funniest stories to cheer himself up; when he gets angry, he makes the funniest faces; he never convinces that he is right; he speaks tongue twisters the fastest and comes up with the most original compliments, he can walk on his hands...

The grandmother still told a lot, and the longer she talked, the more the girl felt as if she was falling somewhere down, into infinity, deeper and deeper... Suddenly she woke up and immediately realized how she recognized her prince. She liked a lot of what she heard...

With even greater joy in her heart, she walked forward. That wonderful feeling for a person still unknown to her was already spreading inside, which she wanted to express, to say everything that was in her heart; I wanted to become happy myself and make him happy.

The road went through the forest and suddenly she saw the very clearing that she had dreamed of.

Three young men were sitting on the grass and talking about something. The girl approached them and spoke, and they were amazed by her beauty and charm and invited her to have lunch with them. Everyone was beautiful, charming and sweet, smiling at her, having an intelligent conversation, interspersing it with funny jokes. She liked them all, but her feelings told her that there was one special one among them. She needed to check and make sure. She asked the guys to show her their dexterity. One of them took a stone from the ground and accurately hit the top of a tree, the other made a wheel on the ground, and the third, with radiant eyes, deftly walked in front of her in his arms... What the princess felt is difficult to express in words... She she approached him and said: “I was looking for you, I love you. You are my destiny.” The young man sighed, and the dark spell came out of him and dissolved into thin air. He hugged the girl and kissed her.