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.
‘Beauty, did you come here willingly to die in place of your father?’ ‘Willingly,’ she answered.
‘This small key belongs to one small room on the ground‑floor, and this you must not open, or you will repent it sore.’
The new wife brought two daughters home with her, and they were beautiful and fair in appearance, but at heart were black and ugly.
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 Frost knew all about the weakness of human beings; he knew very well that few of them are really good and kind.
Koschei the Deathless seized Marya Morevna and carried her off, and Prince Ivan sat down on a stone and wept. He wept and wept and started off in search of Marya Morevna.
‘You must take great pains to make my bed well, and shake it up thoroughly, so that the feathers fly about, and then in the world it snows, for I am Mother Hulda.’
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.
The bear came every evening at the same time, laid himself down by the hearth, and let the children amuse themselves with him as much as they liked.
It started when Peter began to listen to the other farmers boast of the money each was making and the triumphs they were winning over one another.
Cinder-Maid shook the tree and the first nut that fell she took up and opened, and what do you think she saw?—a beautiful silk dress blue as the heavens, all embroidered with stars.
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.
Wherever he came from, Bright Finist the Falcon of Flowery Feathers wheeled before her, sprang in through the window, struck the floor, and became a young man.
‘I know what you want,’ said the sea witch. ‘It is stupid of you, for it will get you in trouble, my little princess. You want to get rid of your fishtail.’
The little doll's eyes would begin to shine like glow-worms, and it would become alive. It would eat a little food, and sip a little drink, and then it would comfort Wassilissa and tell her how to act.