The Golden Apple-Tree and the Nine Peahens

The Golden Apple-Tree and the Nine Peahens

Once upon a time there lived a king who had three sons. In front of his palace grew a wonderful apple tree.

By day, it looked like an ordinary apple tree, though a very old one. But on one special night each year, golden flowers opened on its branches, golden apples grew from them, and by morning every fruit had vanished without a trace.

“I want to finally find out who is taking them,” said the king.

The eldest son kept watch first. He lay down beneath the apple tree, but fell asleep shortly before midnight. At dawn, the branches were bare.

The next night the middle brother tried. And he also fell asleep.

On the third night it was the turn of the youngest.

He rested beforehand and set a mug of cold water beside him. Whenever his eyelids grew heavy, he splashed water on his face.

At midnight the apple tree shone. One by one, round fruits ripened on the branches, like little suns.

Then came the rustle of wings overhead.

Nine beautiful peahens flew into the garden. Eight perched on the branches and began pecking at the golden apples. The ninth landed on the grass beside the prince and suddenly turned into a young woman in a dress that shimmered blue and green like feathers.

“You’re awake,” she said with a smile.

“Not tonight.”

They talked together until it was time for her to leave. Before flying away, the young woman gave him two golden apples.

“One for you, one for your father.”

Then she became a peahen again and flew after her sisters.

The king was very happy with the two apples. This was repeated for several nights: the youngest son met the charming girl, and in the morning he brought his father a golden fruit.

The older brothers grew jealous. They wanted to discover his secret, so they asked a sly old servant woman to spy on him.

One night, she hid nearby. When the peahen turned into a young woman, the servant carelessly caught a golden lock of her hair with a pair of scissors.

The girl was frightened, instantly became a peahen and flew away. All eight sisters disappeared after her.

The prince was very upset.

“I will find her,” he said. “No matter how far I have to go.”

He did not seek revenge on the servant woman. The king simply dismissed her from the palace, and the older brothers had to admit that their jealousy had caused the trouble.

The prince set off on a journey with one servant.

After many days they came to a large lake. On its shore stood the palace of the old queen.

“Nine peahens?” she repeated. “Yes, I know them. They come to bathe in the lake every day at noon. But why search for one of them? You would do better to stay here.”

The prince thanked her, but declined.

The next day, he went to the lake. But the old queen did not want him to leave, so she persuaded his servant to use a tiny pair of magic bellows. A gentle puff behind someone’s back would send them straight to sleep.

And that’s exactly what happened.

The nine peahens flew down, and the youngest settled beside the prince.

“Wake up,” she begged. “I’ve been waiting for so long.”

And he was asleep.

The next day the same thing happened again.

On the third day the girl said to the servant:

“Tell him this: if he truly wants to find me, he must go through the white gate and then keep to the right. That will lead him to the City of the Nine Peahens.”

When the prince woke up and heard the truth, he realized that the servant had deceived him.

He did not punish him harshly, but said:

“You will return home. I will go on alone.”

The prince traveled for a long time before meeting a hermit in the mountains, who showed him the way to the white gate.

Beyond it stood a wondrous city, as bright as morning mist, with a palace at its very center.

When the prince approached the gate, the same girl ran out to meet him. She was the queen of this magical land.

“You found me after all!”

They were both happy. Some time passed, and they decided to get married.

The palace had many rooms and twelve old storerooms beneath the ground. One day, the queen gave her husband the keys.

“You may enter any room except the twelfth storeroom. An ancient, dangerous enchantment is locked inside.”

The prince promised.

But curiosity got the better of him. While the queen was out walking, he opened one storeroom, then another, then a third… until at last he stood before the twelfth.

“I’ll just take one little peek,” he thought.

Inside stood a large barrel held together by three iron hoops.

A faint voice came from it:

“Water… give me some water.”

Feeling sorry for whoever was inside, the prince poured in a mug of water.

The first hoop fell away with a clang.

“A little more, please.”

After a second mug, the next hoop sprang open. After a third, the barrel fell apart, and a great dragon burst out.

On his way out, the dragon met the queen returning to the palace. He snatched her up and sped away to his distant kingdom.

The prince was in despair.

“I let this danger loose myself. Now I must help put things right.”

He set out to find her.

One day, beside a lake, he found a little fish stranded in a puddle left by the falling water.

"Help me get back to the lake," she asked. "Someday I will help you too."

The prince carefully carried her into the water. The fish left him one shiny scale.

“Rub it if you need me.”

Then he found a fox that was entangled in a rope trap. He freed it, and the fox gave him one hair from its tail.

In the mountains, he helped a wolf escape from a trap too. The wolf also gave him a hair.

Finally the prince found the dragon's kingdom. The queen was there, but they could not escape: the dragon had a horse that was faster than the wind.

"Find out where he got such a horse from," the prince asked.

The queen carefully questioned the dragon.

Far away in the mountains lived an old sorceress with twelve horses. The best looked the least impressive, but could outrun a bird. To earn a horse, the prince would have to watch over a magical mare and her foal for three nights.

The prince went to the sorceress.

“Bring my mare and her foal back to the stable on each of three nights, and you may choose any horse you wish,” she said. “If you fail, you will simply leave empty-handed.”

The first night the prince sat on the mare and decided not to dismount. But about midnight he dozed off. When he woke up, he was sitting on the fence, and the mare and the foal were not there.

He remembered the fish’s scale and rubbed it.

The little fish appeared at the surface.

“The mare has turned into a big fish, and the foal into a small one. Touch the water with your bridle and call them.”

The prince did so. The mare and the foal became horses again and returned with him to the stable.

On the second night, the same thing happened, except that the mare became a fox and the foal a fox cub. This time, the fox he had freed helped him find them.

On the third night, the mare became a she-wolf and the foal a wolf cub. The wolf came to his aid.

In the morning the sorceress admitted:

“You have done what I asked. Choose your horse.”

Eleven handsome horses stood in the stable with gleaming coats. In the farthest corner, a thin, shaggy horse dozed.

“I will take this one,” said the prince.

“Really?” the sorceress was surprised.

“Really.”

Once they had left the house, the prince brushed the horse. Beneath the shabby coat, golden hair began to gleam.

The horse raised its head.

“Hold on tight.”

Then he sped away so fast that the trees became green streaks.

In a moment they were near the dragon’s palace.

The queen sat behind the prince, and they galloped home.

The dragon gave chase on his own horse. The distance between them grew smaller, but the golden horse remained calm.

“Do not be afraid,” he said. “The dragon’s horse is my brother.”

When the pursuer approached, the golden horse called out:

“Brother! Why help someone who keeps others captive? Join us!”

The dragon's horse slowed down.

The dragon angrily ordered him to run faster, but he stopped completely. The dragon jumped to the ground and began to threaten, but both horses moved away from him.

Without the magic horse, he could no longer catch up with the fugitives.

The prince and queen returned to the City of the Nine Peahens. The second magical horse was set free to live with his brother in the wide meadows.

From then on, the twelfth storeroom held no more secrets. The prince and queen told everyone what had happened and turned the underground chamber into an ordinary store for apples.

“Some rules need an explanation,” said the queen.

“And some doors should stay closed, even when you are very curious,” the prince added.

Every spring a new golden apple tree blossomed near the palace. And once a year nine peahens flew into the garden.

Now no one kept watch or hid. A few golden apples were simply left on the branches for them.

And the children of the kingdom loved hearing how three small acts of kindness—helping a fish, a fox, and a wolf—had proved stronger than even the dragon’s swiftest horse.

May this story leave a little light in your heart ✨