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The Stone Princess

As was his custom, the Prince rose well before dawn and made his way from his room in the castle, across the courtyard, and through the gate. Once outside he crossed a small field and then began to follow a narrow path that led to the top of a large hill. Near the top of the hill the Prince passed through a small gate and entered the Royal Gardens. Many times, even as a small child he had come to the Gardens. It was his favorite place in the whole kingdom, and since his father was in good health, and he was the youngest of three sons, the Prince had little in the way of royal duties. This left him plenty of free time, and much of it he chose to spend in the Gardens.

He walked quickly to the center of the garden. There a small delicately carved bench, placed so that if one were seated there they would be able to see the very first rays of light as the dawn arrived. The Prince loved that spot for a very special reason. It was the Stone Princess, at least that is what he called her. There, seated directly across from the bench, was a beautiful stone carving. The carving was that of a young woman, seated on a stone throne, wearing stone robes, and a stone crown on her head. In one delicate hand, extended so that it was right in front of her face, sat a small bird. The gaze of the Stone Princess and that of the bird met in such a way as to give the observer the impression they shared a secret. The Prince had often marveled at the skill the stone cutter must have had to carve such a small creature. When his father had come to the land to build his castle the Stone Princess was already there. The Prince had been told by his mother that the beauty of the statue was such that the gardens had been built around it.

The Prince took a seat on the bench, turned and watched as the dawn began to arrive. A very slight glow, far beyond the reach of his father’s kingdom, began to lighten the sky. As he strained to see the first rays of the sun, he heard a rustle behind him. He turned and stared in disbelief at what he saw. There, in the hand of the Stone Princess, the little bird rustled his feathers. The bird stretched its wings, gave a small hop, chirped, and flew away. As the Prince sat startled, staring an even more incredible thing began to happen. The fingers of the hand that had held the bird began to quiver. The Prince jumped to his feet. He wanted to run, but he could not take his eyes off what was happening right in front of him. The fingers were now curling, the hand moved, and finally the arm bent. He followed the movement as the hand joined the other in the Stone Princess’ lap. Only the lap was no longer covered by a stone robe, but one of rich purple. The hands were no longer hard and cold, but smooth and soft and warm. Almost afraid to do so, the Prince raised his eyes to the face of the Princess, somehow knowing that it would no longer be lifeless. Indeed the eyes into which he now looked were every bit as alive as his. The cheeks that had only moments before been cold and gray now glowed.

The Prince sank back to the bench, afraid, not that some harm might become, but rather that he might wake from the dream that he must surely be having. Instead of waking, he heard the Princess speak.

"Good morning, my Prince. How fortunate that you should be in the garden on this most special morning, but then I should not be surprised for you are here almost every morning."
The Prince shook his head and after a moment found his voice.

"I do not understand. I know what I see here, but even though I see it I still do not believe. This must be a dream, and yet I know that I am awake."

The Princess smiled. It was such a beautiful smile that the Prince, shaken though he was, could only marvel at her loveliness.

"It is no dream, but rather a story that you will find most strange."

The Princess’ eyes left those of the Prince and she seemed to struggle for a moment, as if searching for something in her past that she could barely recall. She turned again to the Prince and spoke.

"More than two hundred years ago I was but a large stone lying on the side of a mountain. A stone carver, a man with magic in his hands, took me from that place. There, in his home, he worked for many months until at last he had carved that which you see in front of you now. When he had finished he searched far and wide until at last he came to this place. Here on this hill, where the first light of dawn would shine upon me, and where the last rays of the sun would linger, he placed me. Then he cast a spell saying ’once every hundred years, on this very day, my Stone Princess, you will know the joy of life. From the dawn to the dusk of that day you will live as any other mortal.’ With those words he left me in this very spot, and it is here that I have remained. One hundred years later to the day I, for the first time, felt the early morning breeze, the warmth of the sun, and the smells of the living earth. For that entire day I lived, as any other human, save that I could not leave my throne. How sad I felt as the day began to wane and I realized that my time was short. It was then that a special gift was given to me. The small bird that you saw fly away came and perched here on the arm of my throne. When I held out my hand he flew to it and sat waiting. It was as if he knew what was to happen and did not wish me to return to my previous condition alone. I was here in this spot when your father came to this land and I was here when, as a small child, you first visited this garden."

The Princess paused and smiled at the Prince, "I know that all this is much too hard for you to understand, perhaps even to believe. Look at me, listen to my voice, and see that I am indeed here, and no longer a stone figure, but a living breathing person just like yourself.”

The Prince rose to his feet and began pacing back and forth. "I admit that strange as the story is, I cannot deny that which I see before me. I know that for all the years of my youth I came to this very spot and can testify that you, at least the stone likeness of you, has always been here. I believe you, but I must wonder if I am going mad. But I do know that there are many things in this world that we do not understand."

The Prince stopped his pacing, and then suddenly as if accepting what had happened, approached the Princess. He stopped but a step away and knelt on one knee.

"Tell me, Princess; for one day is such a short time, what I can do for you. Do you hunger or thirst?"

"No, I need neither food nor drink, but there is something that you can give me."

"Anything within my power to give is yours. My father has great riches. You need only ask."

"That which I would desire cannot be purchased with gold or silver. I wish for you to tell me of all
the things you have both seen and done. I want to know about the world beyond this garden."

The Prince was eager to grant her wish, and so began to tell her everything he knew about the world beyond the garden. He told her of sailing the great oceans, of trips across the barren desert, of grand balls and parties, and of his family. He talked for many hours and only when he saw the Princess glance toward the western sky did he realize that the day was near drawing to an end.

"Princess," the Prince moved closer to her, "Please tell me; as there are things I wish to know about you. Before.....before today did you feel, could you hear? You said that you had seen me come to the garden from the time I was a small child, so I know you can see. Do you grow tired of waiting for the time to pass? There are so many things I do not understand."

The Princess glanced at the waning sun again, and then spoke with a hint of anxiousness. "I can see those things that are right in front of me, and I can hear voices and other sounds, but seldom can understand what they mean. Time has no real meaning to me, for I am not even sure what it is. I see things happen before me, and I saw you grow from a little child. As for myself, I grow older but one day every hundred years. Look, the day is almost gone! Please leave me now, for my time is very short."

"Leave you! Never! Why, I could not leave you now! I know this sounds strange to you but I cannot leave, for I love you. I myself cannot explain how I feel. Until this morning I knew you only as the Stone Princess, but I have loved you long before the sun rose this day. Leave you, never! Why, I will take you from this place, and together we will travel the world. You will be able to see all the things I have told you about this day."

"No, that can never be. I love you also, my Prince. I have grown to love you over all these years, though I cannot understand how such a love could be. I can never leave this place. If I were to be taken away the spell would be broken. Never again would I live. Even though it is only one day every hundred years it is precious to me."

"Then I will stay here with you. I will wipe the dust from your robe, when the snow falls I will brush it from your brow. I will build a shelter and stay here. The servants will bring me food. Leave you, never!"

The Princess shivered, "I begin to grow cold. Please leave I beg of you. You honor me with your love, but you must understand. I could not bear to watch you grow old serving one that could not return such love. When I came again to life you would be dust. No I could not bear it! You must go, but quickly before you do, there is one last thing I ask of you."

"Anything," The Prince whispered as tears formed in his eyes.

"Gather for me a small bouquet of flowers. Like the small bird they will become stone as I will. Time will effect them no more than it does me, so that when my time has come again they will be as fresh as they are now. I will be able to gaze upon them while I wait. Please do this for me and then leave this place never to return, but hurry for the time is upon me."

The Prince quickly stood and began to search for the most beautiful flowers that grew in the garden. As he picked the last one he looked at the Princess. Already she had begun to look pale and her eyes pleaded for him to hurry. He rushed to her and dropped to one knee, holding out the flowers. She reached for them, but at the last moment the Prince dropped them to the ground and took the Princess’ hand.

"I will never leave you." Their eyes met, the sun was gone, and together they would always remain.