Hej :)
Yesterday I found this at my place:
And there's a Brazilian tale in it *u* so I decided to post the same tale. But in English. And my book is in Portuguese, which means I googled the story so I didn't have to translate. So, the book's tale is a bit different from this, like,on the book the princess' name was Maria. But whatever.
Once upon a time there was a little princess who lived in a
magnificent royal palace. All around the palace there was a beautiful
garden full of lovely flowers and rare shrubs and trees. The part of
the garden which the princess liked most of all was a corner of it
which ran down to the sea. She was a very lonely little princess and
she loved to sit and watch the changing beauty of the sea. The name of
the little princess was Dionysia and it often seemed to her that the
sea said, as it rushed against the shore, "Di-o-ny-si-a,
Di-o-ny-si-a."
One day when the little princess was sitting all alone by the sea she
said to herself, "O! I am so lonely. I do so wish that I had somebody
to play with. When I ride out in the royal chariot I see little girls
who have other little boys and girls to play with them. Because I am
the royal princess I never have anybody to play with me. If I have to
be the royal princess and not play with other children I do think I
might have some sort of live thing to play with me."
Then a most remarkable thing happened. The sea said very slowly and
distinctly and over and over again so there couldn't be any mistake
about it, "Di-o-ny-si-a, Di-o-ny-si-a."
The little princess walked up close to the sea, just as close as she
dared to go without danger of getting her royal shoes and stockings
wet. Straight out of the biggest wave of all there came a sea serpent
to meet her. She knew that it was a sea serpent from the pictures in
her royal story books even though she had never seen a sea serpent
before, but somehow this sea serpent looked different than the
pictures. Instead of being a fierce monster it looked kind and gentle
and good. She held out her arms to it right away.
"Come play with me," said Dionysia.
"I am Labismena and I have come to play with you," replied the sea
serpent.
After that the little princess was very much happier. The sea serpent
came out of the sea to play with her every day when she was alone. If
any one else came near Labismena would disappear into the sea so no
one but Dionysia ever saw her.
The years passed rapidly and each year the little princess grew to be
a larger and larger princess. At last she was sixteen years old and a
very grown-up princess indeed. She still enjoyed her old playmate,
Labismena, and they were often together on the seashore.
One day when they were walking up and down together beside the sea the
sea serpent looked at Dionysia with sad eyes and said, "I too have
been growing older all these years, dear Dionysia. Now the time has
come that we can no longer play together. I shall never come out of
the sea to play with you any more, but I shall never forget you and I
shall always be your friend. I hope that you will never have any
trouble, but if you ever should, call my name and I will come to help
you." Then the sea serpent disappeared into the sea.
About this time the wife of a neighbouring king died and as she lay
upon her death bed she gave the king a jewelled ring. "When the time
comes when you wish to wed again," she said, "I ask you to marry a
princess upon whose finger this ring shall be neither too tight nor
too loose."
After a while the king began to look about for a princess to be his
bride. He visited many royal palaces and tried the ring upon the
finger of many royal princesses. Upon some the ring was too tight and
upon others it was too loose. There was no princess whose finger it
fitted perfectly.
At last in his search the king came to the royal palace where the
princess Dionysia lived. The princess had dreams of her own of a young
and charming prince who would some day come to wed her, so she was not
pleased at all. The king was old and no longer handsome, and when he
tried the ring upon Dionysia's finger she hoped with all her heart
that it would not fit. It fitted perfectly.
The princess Dionysia was frightened nearly to death. "Will I really
have to marry him?" she asked her royal father. Her father told her
what a very wealthy king he was with a great kingdom and a wonderful
royal palace ever so much more wonderful and grand than the palace
the princess Dionysia had always had for her home. Her father had no
patience at all with her for not being happy about it. "You ought to
consider yourself the most fortunate princess in all the world," he
said.
Dionysia spent her days and nights weeping. Her father was afraid that
she would grow so thin that the ring would no longer fit her finger,
so he hastened the plans for the wedding.
One day Dionysia walked up and down beside the sea, crying as if her
heart would break. All at once she stopped crying. "How stupid I have
been," she said. "My old playmate Labismena told me that if ever I was
in trouble she would come back and help me. With all my silly crying I
had forgotten about it."
Dionysia walked up close to the sea and called softly, "Labismena,
Labismena." Out of the sea came the sea serpent just as she used to
come. The princess told the sea serpent all about the dreadful trouble
which was threatening to spoil her life.
"Have no fear," said Labismena, "tell your father that you will marry
the king when the king presents you with a dress the colour of the
fields and all their flowers and that you will not marry him until he
gives it to you." Then the sea serpent disappeared again into the sea.
Dionysia sent word through her father to her royal suitor that she
would wed him only when he procured her a dress the colour of the
fields and all their flowers. The king was very much in love with
Dionysia, so he was secretly filled with joy at this request. He
searched everywhere for a dress the colour of the fields and all their
flowers. It was a very difficult thing to find but at last he procured
one. He sent it to Dionysia at once.
When Dionysia saw that the king had really found the dress for her she
was filled with grief. She thought that there was no escape and that
she would have to marry the king after all. As soon as she could get
away from the palace without being noticed she ran down to the sea and
again called, "Labismena, Labismena."
The sea serpent at once came out of the sea. "Do not fear," she said
to Dionysia. "Go back and say that you will not wed the king until he
gives you a dress the colour of the sea and all its fishes."
When the king heard this new request of Dionysia's he was rather
discouraged. However he searched for the dress and, at last, after
expending a great sum of money, he procured such a gown.
When Dionysia saw that a dress the colour of the sea and all its
fishes had been found for her she again went to seek counsel from her
old playmate. "Do not be afraid," Labismena again said to her. "This
time you must ask the king to get you a dress the colour of the sky
and all its stars. You may also tell him that this is the last present
you will ask him to make you."
When the king heard about the demand for a dress the colour of the sky
and all its stars he was completely disheartened, but when he heard
that Dionysia had promised that this would be the last present she
would ask he decided that it might be a good investment after all. He
set out to procure the dress with all possible speed. At last he found
one.
When Dionysia saw the dress the colour of the sky and all its stars
she thought that this time there was no escape from marrying the king.
She called the sea serpent with an anxious heart for she was afraid
that now even Labismena could do nothing to help her.
Labismena came out of the sea in answer to her call.
"Go home to the palace and get your dress the colour of the field and
all its flowers," said the sea serpent, "and your dress the colour of
the sea and all its fishes, and your dress the colour of the sky and
all its stars. Then hurry back here to the sea for I have been
preparing a surprise for you."
All the time the king had been procuring the wonderful gowns for
Dionysia the sea serpent had been building a ship for her. When
Dionysia returned from the royal palace with her lovely dresses all
carefully packed in a box there was a queer little boat awaiting her.
It was not at all like any other boat she had ever seen and she was
almost afraid to get into it when Labismena asked her to try it. "This
little ship which I have built for you," said Labismena, "will carry
you far away over the sea to the kingdom of a prince who is the most
charming prince in all the world. When you see him you will want to
marry him above all others."
"O, Labismena! How can I ever thank you for all you have done for
me?" cried Dionysia.
"You can do the greatest thing in the world for me," said Labismena;
"though I have never told you and I do not believe that you have ever
suspected it, I am really an enchanted princess. I shall have to
remain in the form of a sea serpent until the happiest maiden in all
the world, at the hour of her greatest happiness, calls my name three
times. You will be the very happiest girl in all the world on the day
of your marriage, and if you will remember to call my name three times
then you will break my enchantment and I shall once more be a lovely
princess instead of a sea serpent."
Dionysia promised her friend that she would remember to do this. The
sea serpent asked her to promise three times to make sure. When
Dionysia had promised three times and again embraced her old playmate
and thanked her for all that she had done she sailed away in the
little ship. The sea serpent disappeared into the sea.
Dionysia sailed and sailed in the little ship and at last it bore her
to a lovely island. She thought that she had reached her destination,
so she stepped out of the boat not forgetting to take her box of
dresses with her. As soon as she was out of the boat it sailed away.
"Now what shall I ever do?" said Dionysia. "The ship has gone away and
left me and how shall I ever earn my living? I have never done
anything useful in all my life."
Dionysia surely had to do something to earn her living immediately, so
she at once set out to see what she could find to do. She went from
house to house asking for food and work. At last she came to the royal
palace. Here at the royal palace they told her that they had great
need of a maid to take care of the hens. Dionysia thought that this
was something which she could do, so she accepted the position at
once. It was, of course, very different work from being a princess in
a royal palace but it provided her with food and shelter, and when
Dionysia thought of having to marry the old king she was never sorry
that she had left home.
Time passed and at last there was a great feast day celebrated in the
city. Everybody in the palace went except the little maid who minded
the hens. After everybody had gone away Dionysia decided that she
would go to the _festa_ too. She combed her hair and put on her gown
which was the colour of the fields and all their flowers. In this
wonderful gown she was sure nobody would ever guess that she was the
little maid who had been left at home to mind the hens. She did want
to go to the _festa_! She hurried there as fast as she could and
arrived just in time for the dances.
Everybody at the _festa_ noticed the beautiful maiden in her gown the
colour of the fields and all their flowers. The prince fell madly in
love with her. Nobody had ever seen her before and nobody could find
out who the beautiful stranger was or where she came from. Before the
_festa_ was over Dionysia slipped away, and, when the rest of the
royal household returned home there was the little maid minding the
hens just as they had left her.
The second day of the _festa_ everybody went early except the little
maid who looked after the hens. When the others had gone she put on
her dress the colour of the sea and all its fishes and went to the
_festa_. She attracted even more attention than she had the day
before.
When the _festa_ was over and the royal household had returned to the
royal palace, the prince remarked to his mother, "Don't you think that
the beautiful stranger at the _festa_ looks like the little maid who
minds our hens?"
"What nonsense," replied his mother. "How could the little maid who
minds our hens ever get such wonderful gowns to wear?" Just to make
sure, however, the prince told the royal councillor to find out if
the little maid who minds the royal hens had been to the _festa_. All
the servants told about leaving her at home with the hens and coming
back and finding her just as they had left her.
"Whoever the beautiful stranger at the _festa_ may be," said the
prince, "she is the one above all others whom I want for my wife. I
shall find her some way."
The third day of the _festa_ Dionysia went attired in her gown the
colour of the sky and all its stars. The prince fell more madly in
love with her than ever. He could not get her to tell him who she was
or where she lived but he gave her a beautiful jewel.
When the prince returned home he would not eat any food. He grew thin
and pale. Every one around the palace tried his best to invent some
dish which would tempt the prince's appetite.
Finally the little maid who took care of the hens said that she
thought she could prepare a dish which the prince would eat.
Accordingly she made a dish of broth for the prince and in the bottom
of the dish she dropped the jewel which the prince had given her.
When the broth was set before the prince he was about to send it away
untouched, just as he did everything else, but the sparkling jewel
attracted his attention.
"Who made this dish of broth?" he asked as soon as he could speak.
"It was made by the little maid who minds the hens," replied his
mother.
"Send for the little maid to come to me at once," cried the prince. "I
knew that the beautiful stranger at the _festa_ looked like our little
maid who minds the hens."
The prince married Dionysia the very next day and Dionysia was the
very happiest girl in all the world, for from the first moment that
she had seen the prince, she had known that he was the one above all
others whom she wished to marry.
Alas! In Dionysia's excitement she forgot all about calling the name
of her old playmate, Labismena, at the hour of her marriage as she had
promised to do. She thought of nothing but the prince.
There was no escape for Labismena. She had to remain in the form of a
sea serpent because of Dionysia's neglect. She had lost her chance to
come out of the sea and become a lovely princess herself and find a
charming prince of her own. For this reason her sad moan is heard in
the sea until this very day. Perhaps you have noticed it.
You will often hear the call come from the sea as it breaks against
the shore, "Dionysia, Di-o-ny-si-a." No wonder that the sea moans. It
is enough to make a sea serpent sad to be forgotten by the very person
one has done most to help.
Source: http://fairytalesandfolklore.com/tale.php?tale=539
Have anyone read the whole story? I hope so u.ú
See you
Hej då
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