Beauty could not help shuddering when she saw the horrible face of the frightful creature, but she made a brave effort to overcome her fear.
Her godmother simply touched her with her wand, and, at the same moment, her clothes were turned into cloth of gold and silver, all decked with jewels.
The young Princess threw herself at the feet of the King her father and conjured him not to constrain her to consent to his unnatural desire.
‘Madam,’ said the good King, ‘since you are a fairy, you know all that I wish. I have only one son, whom I love with all my heart, so that people generally name him Prince Darling. If you wish to do me a kindness, promise me to be a good friend to my boy.’
He was born with a little tuft of hair upon his head, which made them call him Riquet with the Tuft, for Riquet was the family name.
When the girl thought the bread should be ready she looked in the oven and was very much amazed to find a very large loaf of bread. She pretended to look about the oven as if in search of something.
The unfortunate child had to go twice a day to draw water more than a mile and a half from the house, and bring home a pitcherful of it.
The Fairy also taught him a magic song, ‘Come, cattle, come, all you cattle come to me,’ the melody of which was so enchanting that all cattle who heard it followed the singer.
When Robin was grown to six years of age, he was so knavish that all the neighbours did complain of him; for no sooner was his mother’s back turned, but he was in one knavish action or another.
The wizard flew into a rage, and said, ‘Chop her hands off, otherwise I cannot touch her.’ The miller was terrified, and exclaimed, ‘How can I cut off the hands of my own child?’
The Princess had no sooner taken the spindle than it ran into her hand, and she fell down in a swoon.
Then the little old woman gave the three love-oranges to the prince, telling him that when he opened one such a maiden as he was in search of would appear, but he must immediately look for water and sprinkle her, or she would disappear again.