CONTENTS Little Mermaid Once upon a time in the heart of the deep blue sea, there was a beautiful kingdom of the sea king, who lived with his six daughters and his old mother The king loved all of his.
CONTEN TS Short Stories LIST Page Little Mermaid 01 The Lost Fairy 11 Medusa and The Love Contract 20 The Weightless Princess 30 Little Mouse and Princess 40 Little Mermaid Once upon a time in the heart of the deep blue sea, there was a beautiful kingdom of the sea king, who lived with his six daughters and his old mother The king loved all of his daughters But he was more attached to the youngest one, the Little Mermaid, Eva! One day, there was the birthday of his fifth daughter Everyone was gathered in the king's court to celebrate their birthday The sea king: Happy birthday my sweet child I feel proud to announce that my fifth daughter, Karina turned 18 today I am sending her to the surface to enjoy the sunlight and fresh breeze Cheers to all! Karina: Thank you very much daddy! The sea king: Just remember! There are certain rules of the sea world and we must obey them! The human world is not like the sea world We belong to the sea and will remain in the sea Be careful and don't go near the humans Eva: Ummm daddy, can I go with Karina? The sea king: It's not your turn darling! Eva: But I want to see the humans! The sea king: Oh Eva, when you turn eighteen, I promise that I will let you go there Eva: OhMermaid no! Little The little mermaid, Eva was very beautiful She was very kind to all the sea creatures Everyone was fond of her Eva: Grandma! Do humans look like us? The grandma: No… they have legs… but we don't Eva: Oh! So humans are superior to us? The grandma: No… they have not learned how to protect the environment They have made our sea polluted Eva: I heard they live longer than us The grandma: Not really! A human’s age is limited to just a hundred years or less Eva: And how long we live? The grandma: With God's grace we could live up to 300 years But when mermaids died, they turn into sea foam and cease to exist But the most important thing, if we good deeds throughout our lives, we become immortal and the Air God ferries take us to heaven to live with them Eva: Oh really grandma? The grandma: Now go to sleep it's too late Good night! Eva: Good night, Grandma! Little Mermaid With the wish of seeing humans, Eva was counting each day As the days passed, The Little Mermaid became more and more eager to see the humans The night before her eighteenth birthday, she couldn't sleep all night As soon as she reached the King’s Court, her sisters rush towards her and wished her Happy Birthday! The sea king: I feel very proud that my youngest daughter has turned 18 today Eva: Is the right time to keep your promise, Majesty? The sea king: Yes, little Princess Let's go I will show you the world Eva: Ohh Noo Daddy You allowed everyone to go alone The sea king: I want to see the world with you my darling! Eva: No! When you will turn 80, I promise I will take you with me The sea king: You mischievous child! Go and take care of yourself! Be careful and don't go near humans You can get in trouble! A shrimp: Don’t worry King I will take care of her The sea king: Good but come back before sunset or I will make a meal out of you The shrimp: We will get back by evening majesty! Eva: Thank you, father! Bye bye! Little Mermaid The Little Mermaid was very excited to see the outside world She was swimming faster than shrimp Soon the Little Mermaid reached the surface of the sea Everything was so new to her The blue sky, the bright sun, and the pretty birds Eva: Oh my God! This is sooooo awesome! Better than my dreams! Hey, what's that sound? The shrimp: That's a ship Eva: And that man? Oh my god! He looks just like my doll The shrimp: I think he’s a prince Seems like he’s celebrating his birthday She was so mesmerized by the charm of the prince that she started singing Suddenly the black clouds gathered into the sky The whole sea started roaring with its high tide The shrimp: Look! A Storm! Eva: Oh! I can feel the strong waves Oh! The Ship! Be careful princes! Be careful! But nobody heard her screaming The wind was so strong that it rocked the ship and the ship finally sank Eva: Ohhhh No! The Prince! We must save him! Little Mermaid The Little Mermaid saved the prince, and swam with the handsome prince to the beach She was waiting for the prince to become conscious again The shrimp: Eva! Rush! Someone is coming! Eva: Oh! I have to go Prince! Take care The people: Oh, someone has died in the sea He is still alive! Let's take him to the temple Just then the Prince woke up and he saw one of the girls The prince: Thank you for saving my life! The prince didn't even realize that it was the little mermaid who saved him The shrimp: Oh no… You saved him and she's getting all the credit The prince: Let it be I'm just happy to see that he is alive The Sun was setting down so they went back to the kingdom The Little Mermaid was sad as she knew she will never be able to see the prince again Eva: I love you my prince I just want to be with you There is a pain inside me! Is love that bad? The shrimp: Love is the most beautiful thing in the universe Eva: I guess… I want to live with my love! Little Mermaid The shrimp: It's against the sea law Eva: I don't care I can't live without him The shrimp: Now I have one idea but it's risky to help you King will make a meal out of me Eva: Tell me Don't worry about my father! The shrimp: Okay, there is one person who might help you! But it's too dangerous to deal with her Eva: I am willing to risk anything for my prince Tell me Who is that? The shrimp: The Sea witch of Black Mountains It's too risky to go there Without a second thought, The Little Mermaid and the shrimp left the palace and went to the witch's den The witch saw in the magic ball that the princess was coming towards the den The sea switch: Poor girl! The magic ball: It's over now The princess the most loved and helpful creature of the sea And because of her good deed she will become an air fairy in the afterlife And that will be the end of all your sins As soon as she will become a fairy, you will lose your life The sea switch: Noooooo! I will never let this happen! Little Mermaid The sea switch: Oh my my! Why has the King's daughter come to the Witch's Den? Eva: I have a wish to be a human I fell in love with the prince The sea switch: It will bring you sorrow, pretty princess! Eva: I don't care I just want to be with him! The sea switch: Are you sure? Will you be able to win his heart? Eva: Yes, I will! The sea switch: Well! I can turn you into a human but for this you have to pay a price Eva: I will pay whatever I can The sea switch: Alright then, I will take your beautiful voice in return And remember, if the Prince falls truly in love with you then you will become a human and your voice will be back But if you fail to win his love, you will die with a broken heart and dissolve into sea foam Eva: I can sacrifice anything for him The sea switch: Okkk… Then take this magic potion Drink it when you reach the sea shore The Little Mermaid took the potion and went to the beach She reached the surface and drank the potion Suddenly a strong pain made her unconscious and her tail changed into legs Little Mermaid When she woke up, she saw the prince beside her The price: Open your eyes beautiful lady! You are safe But where did you come from? I found you on the beach and brought you here Please rest for a while The next day, the little mermaid started walking The prince saw her and he looked very happy Then, he saw the King came back from his journeys The prince came to the King and introduced the girl who had saved him the day before, whom he had first seen while awake on the beach during the shipwreck The price: Welcome back father, I want you to meet the love of my life She saved my life! I love her father I want to marry her The Little Mermaid was heartbroken, that girl is not her! Eva: I loved him forever! And now, the first ray of dawn will bring me death and I will disappear into the ocean The shrimp reached the palace and told everything to the sea King and his daughters The king prayed to the sea Goddess and took his Trident and swam towards the surface with the shrimp At the same time, all the sisters started swimming towards the witch's den Little Mermaid Eva’s sister: My sister is really in trouble now We all request you to take back your magic spell We will never forget your kindness! The sea switch: How shameful! The princess of the great sea begging to a witch! Well! I have a counter spell but for that she needs to murder the prince If the little mermaid will kill the prince with this magical dagger only then she can come back to her mermaid life The sisters swam towards the surface and told the father about the counter spell They found Eva sitting under a tree on the beach looking at the toy The sea king: Evaaa! Don't cry my child If you want to undo the witch's magic You have to as I say You will have to kill the Prince and then you will turn into a mermaid again 10 So, the prince and the princess met at the lake every night and swam together The princess was unable to love but the prince loved her so much, that he lived to hear her laugh and to see her swim happily beside him He could lift thus for the rest of his life But destiny had other plans! The witch found out about the princess's love for the lake, and so she cast a spell on the lake to make it dry Slowly, little by little the lake began to die and with it so did the princess! The King: What is going to become of our daughter? The general: It appears as though the princess's life is tied to that of the lake If we don't revive the lake, we shall not be able to revive her too! One day, when the lake had almost dried up but for a few deep pools, two youth found a golden plate below a rock, that read thus: If the lake is to live for the sake of men, it must be allowed to take the life of one man But that man must be willing to offer his life willingly He must sit on the dry bed of the lake till the water rises up, far above his head Princess The Weightless When the King heard of this, he sent a message to every nook and corner of the kingdom But no one came forward to give their lives to the lake When the prince, somehow heard of the King's plea deep in the forest he proceeded at once to the palace 39 The prince: Your Highness, I shall offer my life to the lake! But on one condition The King: What is it? The prince: I want the princess to be present while I die and to keep me alive till the water rises above my head I want her to look at me and feed me biscuits, so that I not die of starvation before the water rises up The King: Your condition will be fulfilled Perhaps, seeing her beloved lake fill up again might make my daughter well too! So, the Prince sat on the bed of the lake The princess was brought in a boat She saw the prince, but she did not acknowledge him for she had neither love nor kindness in her heart As the Prince sat, the water slowly began to rise Soon, it was up to his knees and when the boat bobbed a little, the princess was delighted The prince: My boat is floating! The water is rising! My lake is not dying! We can swim here again! Prince let us swim together, just as weThe used to! Weightless Princess The prince: There is nothing I want more than to swim again with you But I cannot, for I must die so that the lake might live So that you might live 40 For the first time in her life, something tugged at the princess's heart She did not want the prince to die As she saw the water slowly rising first up to the prince’s waist, then his chest, then his chin, then his nose as he began gasping, she could bear it no longer She dived into the water and forcibly pulled the prints out By the time she brought him ashore he had stopped breathing The princess panicked and she cried! She cried as loud as no one had cried before The doctors came and attended to the prince, the princess demanded that he be put in her chambers The princess having been unwell herself was taken to the palace as well, and it was one long, terrible night in the Royal Home! The next morning, the princess awoke The prince lay still She saw him and shed a few tears more The princess: Oh! Brave Prince! Wake up! Wake up please! Please not die! The Weightless Princess As this the prince opened his eyes and smiled Overjoyed, the princess got out of bed, stamped her foot hard in delight, expecting to fly for joy but she fell instead 41 There was such rejoicing in the palace that the world had never seen before The lake was full to the brim, the prince was alive and well and the Princess had got her gravity She did have to learn to walk but before long all was well with her The Prince and the Princess were in love They were married, swimming, walking and ruling their land together! And they lived happily ever after! Little Mouse and Princess Once, there was an old farmer He lived in a village with his three sons All three of them were young and handsome The farmer was 42 proud of his sons One day, he thought it was time for them to get married The farmer: Look sons, you're old enough to get married I want you to find a sweetheart for yourself I want you all to have a good life with your partner The eldest son: But father, how can we find our brides? The second son: Yes, Father! It will be difficult to find a bride by ourselves Youngest son Veikko: I shall obey you Father, but please guide us first The farmer: Of course I will We have a family tradition to find a bride and you all must follow it Take an ax, and cut a tree on our farm See where the tree falls, and search for your bride in that direction But before cutting a tree, you should plant one on the farm, and promise me to take good care of it Veikko: Yes, Father! Father, why are we doing this? Planting a tree before cutting one? Little Mouse and Princess The farmer: Because trees are very important for us We shouldn't just cut them You should plant and grow more and more trees 43 Sons obeyed their father Each one of them planted a tree first, and then cut one The eldest son cut a tree, that fell into the North direction The second son cut a tree, which fell to the South The youngest Son’s tree fell in the direction of the jungle Both his elder brothers laughed at him The eldest son: Look at this Are you going to follow this direction? Whom will you marry from the jungle? A wolf or a deer? Hahahahaha Veikko: I'll follow the direction, where the trees fell I'm sure I'll find my bride in this direction All the three brothers started their journeys The elder son went to the girl in the North, and proposed to the girl he always loved She accepted his proposal at once The second son went to the south and proposed to his girlfriend for marriage She readily said “Yes” to him Veikko went to the jungle, and walked a long way, but he couldn't find any humans He was disappointed and tired too So he looked for shelter and found a small hut in the jungle Veikko was surprised to see it He entered that hut to find it empty There was nobody present but a mouse Little Mouse and Princess Veikko: Oh! Nobody is here 44 The mouse: How can you say that? I’m here Veikko: You’re just a mouse Not a human being The mouse: What are you doing in this jungle? Veikko: I'm searching for my sweetheart The mouse: In this jungle? Do you think this is a place to find your sweetheart? Veikko: No But if I’ll try my best, I might just find her But I'm worried as there are no humans here It'll be shameful if I return home without a bride The mouse: This is no girl in this jungle Why don’t you take me as your sweetheart? Veikko: You're a mouse How can I take you as my sweetheart? The mouse: Trust me Veikko Though I'm a mouse, I’ll love you and be true to you Veikko: Yes, but… The mouse started convincing Veikko She danced for him She sang a beautiful song for him The tired Veikko was well entertained by the mouse As the dance and song were over, the mouse waited for Veikko's decision She was looking at him lovingly Veikko: I like you take you as my sweetheart Little Mouse and I'll Princess 45 The mouse was very happy to know this She promised Veikko that she will wait for him until he returns All the three brothers had returned home The farmer: Tell me sons, have you found your brides? The eldest son: I found a beautiful girl as my bride She has got rosy lips The second son: My bride, too, is very beautiful She has got long, golden hair The eldest son: What happened Veikko? Your bride must have sharp teeth and long, pointed ears Hahahaha! Veikko: Please! Don't laugh brother! My sweetheart is a gentle, dainty little thing, gowned in velvet The second son: She must be a Princess then Veikko: Yes! And when she sings for me, I feel perfectly happy The two brothers were not so happy for Veikko A few days passed and their Father decided to put the brides to a test He called his sons and said! The farmer: I want you to know if your sweethearts are good in the kitchen or not Request them to bake a loaf for me Both the elder brothers agreed to it But Veikko was silent He was worried for he knew that a mouse cannot bake a loaf Little Mouse and Princess 46 He went to the jungle The mouse was very pleased to see him The mouse: I knew you will return soon What happened? You seem to be worried! Veikko: My father wants each of our sweethearts to bake a loaf of bread But you cannot! My brothers will laugh at me The mouse: What if I say, I can? Your brothers won't laugh at you Veikko: I've never heard of a mouse baking bread The mouse: But I can! The mouse rang a small silver bell thrice Listening to the sound, hundreds of mice came out from nowhere They all gathered around the mouse The mouse sat in front of them straight and dignified The mouse: Each of you fetches me a grain of finest wheat And to Veikko’s surprise, all the mice vanished, and when they returned, they had a grain of fine wheat with them Collecting those grains, the mouse baked a beautiful loaf of wheat bread All the three brothers took their loaf to their father The eldest son presented the rye bread The second son brought the bread made up of barley And Veikko presented his white bread The farmer: What! White bread! Veikko, your sweetheart must be very wealthy Little Mouse and Princess 47 The eldest son: Of course! Didn't he tell us that she is a Princess? So Veikko, how does a Princess get fine wheat? Veikko: She rings the silver bell thrice, and her servants get anything for her The farmer: I'm happy with all the three brides They've baked a very good loaf But before you get them home I want each of them to leave something for me The eldest son: My sweetheart is a good weaver The second son: Mine too! Veikko didn't utter a word, as he was sure the mouse can't weave He went to the hut in the jungle The mouse felt that he was worried She asked the reason Veikko: I'm afraid you can't it I've never heard of a mouse weaving Can you? The mouse: Of course! Veikko’s sweetheart can anything for him Again, the mouse rang the silver bell thrice, and hundreds of mice came in, and sat in front of her, waiting for her order The mouse: Each of you will get me the finest fiber of flax Little Mouse and Princess 48 Obeying her order, all the mice vanished, and when they returned, they have the finest fiber of flax with them The mouse weaved a beautiful piece of fine linen It was so sheer that she kept it in an empty nutshell The mouse: Take this, Veikko Hope your father will like it Veikko took the nutshell with him and came home His two brothers presented the piece woven by their sweethearts The farmer: A coarse cotton Not very fine, but good Then the second son gave his father what his sweetheart had woven The farmer: A mix of cotton and linen A little better What about you, Veikko? Veikko put forward the nutshell His brothers laughed at him The eldest son: Father asked to weave a piece of cloth, not a nutshell Their laughter faded away as their father opened the nutshell He brought out the finest fabric of linen The farmer: Wow! How did she manage this? Veikko: She rang the silver bell and ordered her servants to get her the finest fiber Then she wove the fabric for you 49 Little Mouse and Princess The farmer: Veikko, your sweetheart seems to be a Princess Now, you three may bring your sweethearts home I want to meet them all Bring them tomorrow The mouse was overjoyed to know this She dressed well, rang the silver bell and ordered for a coach and five coachmen Soon there arrived a coach of a nutshell and five mice drawing it Veikko was surprised to see this The mouse sat on the coach, with a coachman in front and a footman at the back of the coach They started their journey to Veikko’s home Veikko was walking beside the coach Veikko: Don't worry I'll take good care of you And don't worry about my father too He is a gentle person Walking through the jungle, they came near a town There was a river flowing in between They had to cross the bridge over the river As they were crossing it, a man came from nowhere, in the opposite direction He saw a bunch of mice coming on this way He laughed and stooped them all into the river Veikko: What have you done? Why did you this? You've drowned my sweetheart into the river The man: Your sweetheart? Those mice? 50 He laughed loudly and went away Veikko was very sad for the mouse, he looked into the river, but he found them nowhere Little Mouse anddown Princess Veikko: Oh my poor little sweetheart! How sorry I am that you've drowned Saying this, Veikko turned, and saw a beautiful coach standing at the other bank of the river It was being carried by five glassy horses The most beautiful girl was seated in the coach Veikko was pleased to see the beauty of the coach He started walking to his home As he came near the coach The girl: Veikko, won't you sit beside me? Veikko: Me? The girl: You took me for your sweetheart when I was a mouse I'm sure you won't desert me when I'm a Princess again Veikko: Were you the mouse? The girl: Yes I was a Princess under an evil curse It could never have been broken if you wouldn't have accepted me as your sweetheart, and if that man hadn't drowned The curse is over now We can meet your father, get married and go to my kingdom 51 And they traveled to Veikko’s home Veikko’s father and both his elder brothers were mesmerized to see a Princess as Veikko’s sweetheart Little Mouse and Princess Veikko: Father, this is my sweetheart The farmer: Your sweetheart is really a Princess! Where did you find her? Veikko: Out there in the forest, where the tree pointed me to go The farmer: Where your three pointed! I have always heard that's the best way to find a bride The eldest son: If our trees would have pointed us to the forest, we would have found the Princess too But they were wrong Veikko got the Princess because he was kind even to a little mouse Veikko’s father blessed them, and they got married And they were happy because they were kind and true to each other They loved each other dearly! THE END! 52 53