Andrew Lang_Fairy Book 03 Read Online Free PDF Page A

water to drink, so that he was nearly dead with thirst;
and the worst thing of all was that he was in danger of losing
his kingdom, for he had been absent so long that all his subjects
believed him to be dead. So considering all these things the
Enchanter agreed with the Fairy Mazilla that she should restore
the King to his natural form, and should take Turritella to stay
in his palace for several months, and if, after the time was over
he still could not make up his mind to marry her, he should once
more be changed into a Blue Bird.
    Then the Fairy dressed Turritella in a magnificent gold and
silver robe, and they mounted together upon a flying Dragon, and
very soon reached King Charming's palace, where he, too, had just
been brought by his faithful friend the Enchanter.
    Three strokes of the Fairy's wand restored his natural form, and
he was as handsome and delightful as ever, but he considered that
he paid dearly for his restoration when he caught sight of
Turritella, and the mere idea of marrying her made him shudder.
    Meanwhile, Queen Fiordelisa, disguised as a poor peasant girl,
wearing a great straw hat that concealed her face, and carrying
an old sack over her shoulder, had set out upon her weary
journey, and had travelled far, sometimes by sea and sometimes by
land; sometimes on foot, and sometimes on horseback, but not
knowing which way to go. She feared all the time that every step
she took was leading her farther from her lover. One day as she
sat, quite tired and sad, on the bank of a little brook, cooling
her white feet in the clear running water, and combing her long
hair that glittered like gold in the sunshine, a little bent old
woman passed by, leaning on a stick. She stopped, and said to
Fiordelisa:
    'What, my pretty child, are you all alone?'
    'Indeed, good mother, I am too sad to care for company,' she
answered; and the tears ran down her cheeks.
    'Don't cry,' said the old woman, 'but tell me truly what is the
matter. Perhaps I can help you.'
    The Queen told her willingly all that had happened, and how she
was seeking the Blue Bird. Thereupon the little old woman
suddenly stood up straight, and grew tall, and young, and
beautiful, and said with a smile to the astonished Fiordelisa:
    'Lovely Queen, the King whom you seek is no longer a bird. My
sister Mazilla has given his own form back to him, and he is in
his own kingdom. Do not be afraid, you will reach him, and will
prosper. Take these four eggs; if you break one when you are in
any great difficulty, you will find aid.'
    So saying, she disappeared, and Fiordelisa, feeling much
encouraged, put the eggs into her bag and turned her steps
towards Charming's kingdom. After walking on and on for eight
days and eight nights, she came at last to a tremendously high
hill of polished ivory, so steep that it was impossible to get a
foothold upon it. Fiordelisa tried a thousand times, and
scrambled and slipped, but always in the end found herself
exactly where she started from. At last she sat down at the foot
of it in despair, and then suddenly bethought herself of the
eggs. Breaking one quickly, she found in it some little gold
hooks, and with these fastened to her feet and hands, she mounted
the ivory hill without further trouble, for the little hooks
saved her from slipping. As soon as she reached the top a new
difficulty presented itself, for all the other side, and indeed
the whole valley, was one polished mirror, in which thousands and
thousands of people were admiring their reflections. For this was
a magic mirror, in which people saw themselves just as they
wished to appear, and pilgrims came to it from the four corners
of the world. But nobody had ever been able to reach the top of
the hill, and when they saw Fiordelisa standing there, they
raised a terrible outcry, declaring that if she set foot upon
their glass she would break it to pieces. The Queen, not knowing
what to do, for she saw it would be dangerous to try to go down,
broke the second egg, and