Ivan Tsarevich and the Grey Wolf

Ivan Tsarevich and the Grey Wolf

In a faraway kingdom lived a tsar, and beside his palace grew a marvelous garden. The greatest treasure in the garden was an apple tree that bore golden apples. By day they shone in the sunlight, and by night they seemed to hold a warm light of their own.

But one summer, the tsar noticed that every morning one golden apple was missing.

“Someone is visiting my garden at night,” he said sadly. “We must find out who it is.”

The tsar had three sons. The elder two, Dmitry and Vasily, immediately promised to guard the garden, but during the night weariness overcame them and both fell asleep. When it was finally the youngest son’s turn, Ivan Tsarevich resolved not to close his eyes.

At midnight, the garden suddenly filled with light, as though a tiny dawn had risen above the apple tree. The Firebird settled on a branch. Its feathers blazed with gold and red fire, yet did not scorch the leaves.

Ivan rushed toward it. The bird flew away, but one shining feather remained in the tsarevich’s hand.

In the morning, the tsar gazed at it for a long time.

“So it is the Firebird that takes the apples. Whoever finds it and brings it to the palace will do me the greatest service.”

The three brothers set out. At first their roads ran together, but later they parted. Ivan rode alone until he came to a stone inscribed with warnings about the dangers that awaited travelers on the different roads.

Ivan chose the path that seemed the most honorable, even though it was not the easiest.

He rode for one day, then a second, then a third. One morning, his horse was gone, and a great Grey Wolf appeared on the path.

“Do not be angry with me, Tsarevich,” said the wolf. “Because of me, you have been left without a horse. I wronged you, so now I will help you. Climb onto my back. I know where you are going.”

Ivan was astonished, but he had little choice.

The Grey Wolf carried him so swiftly that the forests blended into green waves and the rivers flashed by like silver ribbons.

At last, they stopped beside a high wall.

“Beyond this wall stands the palace of Tsar Dolmat,” said the wolf. “In the garden hangs a golden cage, and inside it sits the Firebird. Take the bird, but do not touch the cage. If you touch it, every bell in the palace will ring.”

Ivan climbed over the wall. He found the Firebird and was about to leave, but then he looked at the golden cage.

“Surely such a marvelous bird should not be carried without its cage,” he thought.

The moment he touched the golden bars, bells thundered throughout the palace. The guards seized Ivan and brought him before Tsar Dolmat.

Ivan did not invent excuses.

“I came for the Firebird for my father. The wolf told me not to take the cage, but I did not listen.”

Tsar Dolmat looked at him sternly, but because Ivan had told the truth, he decided to give him a chance.

“Bring me the golden-maned horse of Tsar Afron, and I will give you the Firebird together with its cage.”

Ivan returned unhappily to the Grey Wolf.

“I told you not to touch the cage,” the wolf sighed. “But what is done is done. Let us go on.”

Before long, they reached another kingdom.

“In the stable stands the golden-maned horse,” the wolf explained. “Take the horse, but do not touch the golden bridle.”

Ivan quietly entered the stable. The horse was so beautiful that its mane shimmered like a sunbeam. Beside it hung a magnificent bridle.

“How can a horse like this be led away in an ordinary bridle?” Ivan thought.

He reached out his hand, and once again the bells began to ring.

Tsar Afron heard his story and said:

“Bring me Princess Elena, whose beauty and wisdom are spoken of throughout the lands, and then you may have the golden-maned horse.”

Ivan returned to the wolf with his head bowed.

“Twice I failed to listen to you,” he admitted.

“It is good that you understand that,” replied the wolf. “This time, trust me.”

They traveled to a third kingdom. Near the palace, the wolf said:

“Wait for me here.”

Before long, he returned with Princess Elena. She was frightened by the unexpected journey, but Ivan immediately said:

“I do not want you to be anyone’s prize. We will tell you the whole truth, and you will decide for yourself what you wish to do.”

They talked a great deal as they traveled. Elena saw that Ivan was neither cruel nor boastful, and Ivan understood that her intelligence and courage were worth no less than her beauty. Soon they became true friends, and before they even noticed it, that friendship had grown deeper.

When the time came to hand Elena over to Tsar Afron in exchange for the horse, Ivan could not agree to it.

Then the Grey Wolf gave a wolfish smile.

“Now this is a task for me.”

He struck the ground with his paw and transformed into Princess Elena, looking exactly like her. Ivan brought the “princess” to Afron, received the golden-maned horse, and rode away with the real Elena. As soon as the wolf found a chance to slip beyond the city gates, he became himself again and caught up with his friends.

In the same way, the wolf helped Ivan outwit Tsar Dolmat. He transformed into the golden-maned horse, and Ivan received the Firebird in its golden cage. Once the wolf was outside the city, he returned to his true form and caught up with the travelers.

Now they had everything: the Firebird, the golden-maned horse, and the road home. Most importantly, Ivan had learned to listen to good advice before trouble came, not only afterward.

Near the place where their journey together had begun, the Grey Wolf stopped.

“You can manage on your own from here,” he said. “You have a horse now. And it is time for me to return to the forest.”

Ivan wrapped his arms around the wolf’s neck.

“I will never forget your help.”

They said goodbye.

Only a short distance remained to Ivan’s father’s kingdom. The day was hot, so Ivan and Elena stopped beneath a tree to rest and, before they knew it, fell asleep.

At that very time, Ivan’s older brothers, Dmitry and Vasily, were returning along the same road. They had never found the Firebird. When they saw the golden-maned horse and the cage with the shining bird beside the sleeping Ivan, envy rose in their hearts.

“If we return with nothing while he brings all of this, Father will speak of no one but him,” one brother whispered.

Envy drowned out their consciences. The brothers attacked Ivan, left him motionless beneath the tree, ordered Elena to remain silent, and took the horse and the Firebird. Then they continued home, claiming their younger brother’s achievements as their own.

Elena rode with them, sad and silent. She knew the truth did not disappear simply because someone tried to hide it.

Some time passed. The Grey Wolf sensed that trouble had come to his friend and returned. He found Ivan beneath the tree, no longer breathing.

“Have I come too late?” the wolf said quietly.

A raven was circling in the sky. The Grey Wolf asked it to bring the Water of Death and the Water of Life from a distant land, for the old birds knew of their magic power.

The raven agreed.

Three days later, it returned with two small vessels. First, the wolf sprinkled Ivan with the Water of Death so that all his wounds would heal. Then he sprinkled him with the Water of Life.

Ivan opened his eyes.

“It feels as though I slept for a very long time…”

“And you would have slept much longer if we had not hurried,” replied the wolf. “Your brothers are already home. Today they mean to make everyone believe that they were the ones who won the Firebird and the horse.”

Ivan climbed onto the Grey Wolf’s back, and they raced faster than the wind.

At the palace, preparations for a great celebration were already underway. The elder brothers stood before their father, while Elena waited nearby in sorrow. But the moment Ivan crossed the threshold, she cried out joyfully:

“Here is the one who traveled the whole road! Here is the true friend of the Grey Wolf and the one who won the Firebird!”

And she told the tsar everything exactly as it had happened.

The tsar was silent for a long time. It hurt him deeply to learn the truth about his elder sons.

“Envy and deceit cannot be rewarded,” he said at last. “You have lost my trust. Go and live far from the court, and learn to answer for your own actions.”

Ivan did not ask for a harsher punishment for his brothers.

The Firebird settled in the garden, and from then on, no one stole the golden apples. The golden-maned horse ran across the royal meadows. In time, Ivan and Elena married, but first and foremost, they remained the same good friends they had become on the road.

And sometimes the Grey Wolf appeared at the edge of the forest. Ivan always left him a treat and went out to greet him.

Because true help is remembered not only until the happy ending of a story. It is remembered for a lifetime.

Because true help is remembered not only until the happy ending of a story. It is remembered for a lifetime.