East of the Sun and West of the Moon
Once there was a very poor man who had many children. One winter evening there was a heavy knock on the door. Outside stood a huge white bear. "If I may have your youngest daughter come with me," said the bear, "you shall have it better than you ever dreamed." The father asked the girl. At first she didn't dare. But when the bear came back, and she saw how hungry her siblings were, she said yes.
The bear let her climb onto his broad back and carried her far away over mountains and forests to a castle inside a mountain. There were bright rooms, set tables, and a bed as soft as clouds. The bear was kind and said: "You shall have everything you need. But at night you must not light any light." When it grew dark, someone came and lay quietly by her side. She never saw him, but she felt it was a human, warm and good.
After a time the girl asked to visit her family. The bear agreed, but warned her: "Don't let yourself be tricked into lighting a light at night." At home the mother began questioning her. When the mother heard about the secret guest at night, she gave her daughter a candle stub and said: "You must see who you share a bed with." The girl promised nothing, but still tucked the candle in her pocket.
When she returned to the castle, she kept her promise for a long time. But curiosity burned in her. One night, when the stranger breathed deeply in sleep, she lit the candle. Then she saw it wasn't any bear, but the most beautiful prince she could ever have imagined. She was so amazed that her hand shook. A hot drop of tallow fell down on his shirt. The prince woke, looked at her, and sighed heavily: "If you had only waited one more year without lighting a light! Then I would have been free from a curse. Now I must go to a castle east of the sun and west of the moon and marry a troll princess." In the same moment a storm of screams and laughter broke out. The castle spun and disappeared, and the prince was gone.
The girl stood alone on a barren mountain plateau. Then she said to herself: "I'll find you, even if I must go to the end of the world." She wandered long, until she came to a very old woman who sat spinning. The old woman lent her a gleaming golden apple and said: "This may help you. Go to the East Wind and ask him for the way." But the East Wind didn't know where the place was. He blew her onward to the West Wind, who blew her to the South Wind. None of them knew, but they all felt sorry for her.
At last she came to the North Wind, the eldest and strongest of them all. "Yes, I have almost been there once," he rumbled. "It is far, far away over sea and ice. If you're not afraid, I'll take you there." "Afraid I am," said the girl, "but I'll follow anyway." Then the North Wind lifted her up, and off they went. They flew over dark waters, over sharp mountains and jerky storms. Sometimes the North Wind had to rest on a cliff or drink from the sea, but he didn't give up. At last, when he could barely manage more, he set her down by a black, tall castle that clung to the edge of the world. "In there is the prince," he whispered, and rushed away.
The castle swarmed with trolls and strange servants. The girl hid at first, but then took out the golden apple. Soon the troll princess caught sight of it. "What do you wish for that?" she hissed. "One night with the prince," answered the girl. The troll princess wanted the apple so badly that she agreed. But before evening the trolls gave the prince a strong drink, and when the girl came in he lay heavy as stone. She whispered and cried, but he didn't hear her.
The next day the girl met another old crone in the castle's shadow and received from her a golden carding comb. The troll princess caught sight of the comb and wanted it too. The girl traded the comb for another night with the prince. But it went the same way: a drink, a deep sleep, no answer.
The third day the girl got hold of a spinning wheel of gold. The troll princess sparkled with greed. "I want that!" she roared. "Then I want a third night," said the girl. The troll princess hesitated, but desire won. Now the girl asked a kind maidservant: "Make sure no one gives the prince a drink tonight." The maidservant nodded, and that evening the prince kept his mind clear. When the girl came in, his eyes were open. They recognized each other at once, and all sorrow turned to hope. "Tomorrow," whispered the prince, "we shall test the trolls. They have my wedding shirt with tallow stains. The one who can wash the spots clean shall be my true bride."
In the morning the prince called: "Bring the shirt! Now we shall see who is worthy." The troll princess took the shirt to herself and rubbed and scrubbed, but the spots only grew and became blacker. The troll women came and tried too, but it didn't help. Then the girl stepped forward. She dipped the shirt in water, rubbed a little, and it became white as snow. The trolls screamed with fury. "She is the true one!" said the prince calmly and took the girl by the hand.
The trolls stamped and howled so the castle shook. But rage doesn't help against truth. At last they became so angry that they burst, every one, and where they fell only dust remained. The curse broke. The castle lit up, and the people the trolls had held captive became free.
The prince and the girl celebrated their wedding with joy that was heard all the way to the North Wind. Then they sent word for the girl's family, and when all had come they lived well and justly for many years. And if they haven't died, they live still, east of the sun and west of the moon.
