Страшные сказки / Scary stories

Then she knelt down, called on the Lord, and prayed. And suddenly an angel came towards her, who made a dam in the water. The moat became dry and she could walk through it.

She went into the garden and the angel went with her. She saw a tree with beautiful pears. Then she went to them, and ate one with her mouth from the tree. The gardener watched it; but as the angel was nearby, he was afraid and thought the maiden was a spirit, and was silent. He dare not to cry out, or to speak to the spirit.

When the girl ate the pear, she was satisfied. She went and concealed herself among the bushes. The King to whom the garden belonged, came down to it next morning, and counted. He saw that one of the pears was missing[12 - was missing – отсутствовала]. The King asked the gardener about the pear. The gardener answered,

“Last night, a spirit came in, who had no hands, and ate off one of the pears with its mouth”.

The King said,

“How did the spirit get over the water? Where did it go after that?”

The gardener answered,

“Someone came in a snow-white garment from heaven who made a dam, and kept back the water. So the spirit walked through the moat. And as it was an angel, I was afraid, and asked no questions, and did not cry out. When the spirit ate the pear, it went back again”.

The King said,

“If it is so as you say, I will watch with you tonight”.

When it grew dark the King came into the garden and brought a priest with him. All three seated themselves beneath the tree and watched. At midnight the maiden came out of the thicket, went to the tree, and again ate one pear off it with her mouth. Beside her stood the angel in white garments. Then the priest went out to them and said,

“Do you come from heaven or from earth? Are you a spirit, or a human being?”

She replied,

“I am no spirit, but an unhappy girl. Everybody left me”.

The King said,

“I won’t forsake you!”

He took her with him into his royal palace, and as she was so beautiful and good, he loved her with all his heart. He made for her silver hands, and took her to wife[13 - took her to wife – взял её в жёны].

After a year the King went to fight, so he commended his young Queen to the care of his mother and said,

“If she has a baby, nurse her well, and tell me of it at once in a letter”.

Then she gave birth to a fine boy. So the old mother wrote and announced the joyful news to the King. But the messenger rested by a brook on the way, and as he was fatigued by the great distance, he fell asleep. Then came the Devil, who wanted to injure the good Queen, and exchanged the letter for another. That new letter says that the Queen gave birth to a monster. When the King read the letter he was shocked and much troubled. But he ordered to take great care of the Queen and nurse her well until his arrival. The messenger went back with the letter, but rested at the same place and again fell asleep. Then came the Devil once more, and put a different letter in his pocket. That new letter says that they must kill the Queen and her child.

The old mother was terribly shocked when she received the letter, and could not believe it. She wrote back again to the King. But received no other answer, because each time the Devil substituted a false letter. And in every letter there was an order: to kill the Queen. Furthermore: to sent to the King the Queen’s tongue and eyes as a token.

But the old mother brought a hind by night and cut out its tongue and eyes, and kept them. Then she said to the Queen,

“I cannot kill you as the King commands, but here you may stay no longer. Go forth into the wide world with your child, and never come here again”.

The poor woman tied her child on her back, and went away with eyes full of tears. She came into a great wild forest, and then she fell on her knees and prayed to God. The angel of the Lord appeared to her and led her to a little house on which was a sign with the words,

“Here all dwell free”.

A snow-white maiden came out of the little house and said,

“Welcome, Lady Queen,” and conducted her inside.

Then they unbound the little boy from her back, and feed him and laid him in a beautiful little bed. Then the poor girl said,

“From whence do you know that I was a queen?”

The white maiden answered,

“I am a God’s angel. I’ll watch over you and your child”.

The Queen stayed seven years in the little house. By God’s grace, because of her piety, her hands grew once more.

At last the King came home again from the war, and his first wish was to see his wife and the child. Then his old mother began to weep and said,

“You wicked man, why did you write to me to kill those two innocent lives?”

She showed him the letters from the Devil, and then continued,

“I did as you ordered,” and she showed the tokens, the tongue and eyes.

Then the King began to weep for his poor wife and his little son bitterly. His aged mother said,

“Be at peace, she still lives. I secretly killed a hind, and took these tokens from it. Then I bound the child to your wife’s back and sent her away into the wide world. She will never come back here again, because you were so angry with her”.

Then the King spoke,

“I will neither eat nor drink until I find again my dear wife and my child, if they are alive!”

Thereupon the King travelled about for seven long years, and sought her in every cleft of the rocks and in every cave. But he did not find her, and thought she was dead. During the whole of this time he neither ate nor drank, but God supported him.

At length he came into a great forest, and found therein the little house whose sign was,

“Here all dwell free”.

Then forth came the white maiden, took him by the hand, led him in, and said,

“Welcome, King,” and asked him from whence he came.

He answered, “I seek my wife and her child, but cannot find them”.

The angel offered him meat and drink, but he did not take anything, and only wished to rest a little. Then he lay down to sleep, and put a handkerchief over his face.

Thereupon the angel went into the chamber where the Queen sat with her son, whom she usually called “Sorrowful,” and said to her,

“Go out with your child, your husband is here”.

So the Queen went to the place where he lay, and the handkerchief fell from his face. Then she said,