Swan Lake

Fatal holiday

The swan lakes were dark, it was dangerous to walk next to them, but the day spent in the swamps was even more difficult. Fritz and Ben wanted to find Etienne, but found only trouble. Rich clothes were torn, feet were wet, and mosquitoes bit them. Both were afraid of ghosts. In the palace, they could bravely oppose ghosts, but in haunted places. willingly, they would never have come in. It was getting dark. They stood knee-deep in green water that was simply icy. Clarice, the queen's cat, who found them, sat solemnly on the shore and looked at the two fools with mischievous eyes, but they were not at all happy.

“If you hadn’t let our horses go, we would have been in the palace for a long time,” Fritz swore indignantly.

Suddenly, a branch snapped, as if someone had stepped on it.

“I'm scared,” Ben lamented. “It's about midnight. Either demons or robbers, no matter who, will blow our heads off.”

“Why did we learn to fence,” said the braver one.

"You can't play with ghosts," Ben moaned.

Fritz took another step, but he could not get out of the quagmire, and next to them, do not understand where, two swans flew out. Ben nearly fell face down in the water, and Clarissa freaked out and meowed.

“Catch, catch,” said its look, and it almost gripped the swan's throat with its teeth, but Fritz clumsily fell to the ground, and the bird flew away.

“Well, now we will sit here until some kind traveler gets lost and helps us get out of here,” he thought aloud.

“But that kind traveler could be Rothbert,” Ben added.

“Rothbert is not here, he is probably in his castle with his beautiful daughter, in whose honor they recently gave a ball, and does not wander around here looking for us.”

He looked around in complete despair, but saw nothing but the frightened swans.

“Do you remember how good it was in the castle,” he said, “what kind of tea there, and other stronger drinks, what beds, what beautiful girls, and here there are only swamps and also ghosts.”

Fritz sat down on a stone by the swamp, ready to cry in frustration.

At the same time, not far from them, at the same edge of the lake, a swan with a golden crown on its head sat down on the water. It was lit up with a silvery radiance, in which slowly its outline from swans began to turn into human ones. The wings became arms, white and long, golden hair fell to the waist, the plumage became a white dress of fluff and silk, and on Odette's head, as always, a golden crown shone.

She came out of the water, but the marsh of the lake did not touch the hem of her dress.

“Odette,” came a dull voice in the silence, and she saw Rothbert in front of her.

“It’s been so long since you bewitched me,” she shouted. “Don't you dare chase me!”

She darted away.

Fritz accidentally turned around, but when he saw the princess, instead of admiring her beauty, he was scared to death.

“Look, ghost!” he shook his friend by the shoulder, “it's time to run!”

He staggered back from Odette who had run past and did not even notice Rothbert, like a shadow hanging over them.

“I'd like tea, like in a castle,” Ben said.

“Do you happen to have something stronger than tea, buddy?” he asked Rothbert. The desire to get acquainted immediately disappeared, as soon as he noticed whom he was addressing.

“Let's run,” he shouted, grabbing Clarissa in his arms and clinging to his friend.

“And don’t dare to go to the swan lake any more,” Rothbert shook him by the collar with his clawed hand, but there was nothing to take from them.

After wandering through the woods, Fritz and Ben still found their way to the castle, but the gates were tightly closed.

“Who goes?” the guard shouted from the high wall.

“Robbed by Rothbert,” Fritz said quickly.

“Get out, beggars,” the guard shouted to them, “otherwise, we will launch dogs on you.”

“Oh, this king's guard,” Ben groaned, “he had a grudge against us from the beginning.”

“What are we going to do,” Fritz asked.

“I don’t know,” Ben said sadly.

“It’s your fault, you pushed me into the swamp from the very beginning, then you missed our horses, and now we are under the castle gates. Nobody will let us in, if they don't shoot us yet, like swans on the lake.”

Such a thought could not please any of them. Two aristocrats found themselves under the gates of their own castle, and their own guards promised to release dogs on them. Not only did the people hired by them themselves called them goodbyes. All day they wandered through the swamps, and this is what a warm welcome awaited them at home. Fritz sat down sadly on a stone against the wall.

“And that ghost was beautiful, really,” he remarked.

“It strongly reminded me of one girl,” Ben said pensively.

“Which one?” the prince's friend asked.

“Princess Odette.”

“If our prince loves her, then I understand him. What you won't do for the sake of such a beauty.”

“Maybe it was her, not a ghost.”

“What are you,” Fritz laughed, “the princess will climb the swamps, like us. She is smarter than us, she did not run after the prince from the very beginning, like us, two fools.”

“Yes, we turned out to be fools.”

“Still, a ball is being prepared in the castle. There are booze, beauties, treats, and we are sitting here, and we are not allowed on the threshold, and all because of Etienne.”

Suddenly they saw a horseman rushing towards the castle. They could not believe their happiness when they examined his face, it was Etienne.

“Look, Fritz,” Ben shouted, “this is Etienne, hurray, the savior has returned, they will definitely let us into the castle with him.”

“Etienne, you are our savior,” Fritz rejoiced, helping the prince to get off the horse, but Etienne only looked them over with an incomprehensible look, and who could understand why the noblest people of the kingdom are sitting under the castle gates in torn clothes.

“What are you going to the pilgrims?” he asked.

“No,” Ben consoled him.

“Then what about you?”

“Minor accident,” Fritz assured him.

“What exactly.”

“We were robbed,” the prince's best friend was found, “while we were looking for you in the swamps, Rothbert robbed us. We were not scared, we fought to the last, but he stole our horses, and there was also the ghost of Odette.”

“You were on the lakes,” Etienne blurted out.

“Yes, it’s very dangerous there, and you’re finally back,” Fritz said, “knock on the gate. Maybe they'll let us in.”

“Why weren't you allowed in?” Etienne asked as a precaution.

“We don't know ourselves,” Ben lied, “but I think the queen wants to see you.”

“All right,” the prince agreed.

Etienne was not particularly happy about returning to the castle. But Fritz and Ben were happy that they were finally allowed in. They immediately ran to supper and change, swearing by all the saints that they would never go to the swan lakes again.

Etienne did not leave the thought of his brother. Where is Christian now, could he win the heart of the one he loved. Undoubtedly, Christian comes out victorious from any battle, but now he entered into a battle with witchcraft. Will a person be able to defeat the dark force of King Rothbert. Etienne was even afraid for Christian, but his heart told him that great danger awaited not his brother, but himself. The danger that lurked very close. Everything was unsurpassed, except one, Odette remained a swan and could not become a human, but she would come to the ball. Etienne was sure of this, and he would swear to the whole world in love for her.

Etienne entered his mother's chamber.

“I am back,” said the prince. “The enemy no longer threatens us.”

“I’m glad to hear that,” said the queen, “glad you’re back, but your brother ...” She lowered her eyes sadly.

“What happened to Christian?” she asked.

“I don’t know,” Etienne lied.

“You should know he has been missing since the day you set out on the hike.”

“He’s your brother,” she said, “and my son, I need to know what happened to him, did something terrible happen to him?”

“No,” said Etienne.

"Is he in danger?"

“I don't know,” Etienne involuntarily turned away.

“So it's true, he is in love,” the queen shook her head, “I was always afraid when he went to the kingdom of darkness, and he sneaked there so often. He loved the daughter of our enemy, but is it true?”

“True,” said Etienne sadly, “he went to the land of darkness because of her and because of me.”

“But if they recognize him?”

“He disguised himself as a commoner.”

“A commoner,” the queen exclaimed, she was about to faint, “he forgot that he was a prince.”

“He should have,” Etienne stood up for him.

“My God,” the queen whispered, “he was always a dreamer and a duelist, but a commoner…”This was the final blow, and the queen sat down and put her hand to her forehead.

“What a lucky King Rothbert,” she said, “his daughter is a real princess, and I have one son a commoner, and the other a dreamer. You are all the same crippled, even though you have defeated hordes of enemies. How did you manage it, by the way?” the queen asked.

“Everything was simple. And at the same time ...” Etienne hesitated.

“Now it's time for us to do one more thing.”

“What?”

“Rosalyn has disappeared, maybe even died. You need another bride, and we will find her.”

“Yes,” said Etienne, “I have found a bride for myself.”

“If your brother has become a commoner, then perhaps you chose some beggar as your bride.”

“No,” said the prince, “she is a princess and the most beautiful girl in the whole world.”

The queen looked at him incredulously.

"Are you sure nothing will happen to your brother?" she asked.

“It's hard to say,” Etienne thought aloud.

“Just let's agree,” she said, “do not tell anyone that he became a commoner, otherwise we will not avoid shame.”

“He’s in danger, but I’m sure he will win,” Etienne said, and he believed in his brother, handsome black-haired Christian.

Of course Christian was in danger, but he had to win. He always defended the good, and now he should have been lucky in love. He was worthy to become the king of a great country.

“The ball will take place tomorrow,” said the queen. “All the most beautiful girls in the kingdom and many princesses from other countries will be there. On it you will have to choose a bride for yourself, and now without deception.”

Etienne silently nodded his head, he knew that Odette would come to the ball. He hoped to break the spell of witchcraft that protected her, he believed that their love was stronger than magic and death.

‘So you agree to choose a bride for tomorrow's ball?” the queen insisted.

“Yes,” said Etienne, “I will choose my bride.”

“And then,” his mother said, “you will have to become king yourself, the throne has been waiting for you for a long time.”

“But I cannot become one without my bride.”

“It goes without saying,” came the answer, and Etienne believed the deceptive promise of fate, he believed that at the ball everything would go as planned,

Etienne left the royal chambers and went to his apartment. Everything was quiet and calm in them. He returned alive from the battlefield and was again ready to fight for his love.

Etienne lay down on the huge soft bed and fell asleep. His sleep was disturbing and restless. In a dream, monsters chased him, and a black swan attacked him. The prince was awakened by someone's steps.

“Who is there?” he asked.

Silence. Then there were rustles again. Etienne raised his head. To the left of his bed stood a girl of marvelous beauty, with night-black hair, in a lace dress and with green eyes that shone like emeralds, or like the pupils of a predatory cat chasing its prey.

“Odette,” said Etienne.

“Your brother is in danger,” she said. “He couldn't go to the realm of death, he couldn't chase a dream.”

“I have to help him,” Etienne said, trying to get up, but her calm voice stopped him.

“You cannot help anything, he is in love, and his love is death.”

“I do not understand.”

“In the land of darkness, everything is connected with danger,” she said, and turned away.

“Odette ...” Etienne tried to say.

“Today is a holiday in the castle,” she said.

“Yes,” smiled Etienne, he remembered that the next evening would be the hour of their release.

“Do you remember what is going to happen this evening?” she asked.

“Of course,” Etienne replied.

“Are you sure.”

“Yes,” he replied without hesitation, and a cold smile ran across her face. Etienne noticed that her face was calm and cold, like a winter night, but decided that everything only seemed to him, and nothing more.

“Don't you think that something special can happen at the holiday?” Odile asked. Etienne did not know the subtle difference between the two maternal sisters, he did not know that the story of Queen Diana and the king of evil was true. He did not suspect that Odile had come to him to forever take away from her sister the oath given to her lovers.

Odile paced the room, the lace of her exquisite dress trembling in the light breeze of the night. She was an insidious creature, the creation of dark forces, but no one could compare with her in beauty.

“This holiday should be a day of liberation,” she said. “But is it so easy to rescue the white swan from the spell of witchcraft, as you think?”

To this Etienne had no answer. The beauty looked at him, and the magic of another world burned in her gaze.

“Will you come with me?” She asked.

“Where to?” burst out from Etienne.

“If you go, you’ll find out,” she replied playfully, but Etienne felt a chill on his skin from her chilling gaze.

She smiled coquettishly and held out her white hand to him. Etienne wanted to recoil from her, her green feline eyes were too cunning, like a witch or a vampire, but she was just a temptress who came to seduce the young prince.

“Come with me now to the holiday of my kingdom,” she said, “you must go to it, your right to refuse, but then ...” she was silent for a moment, “but then, you will never know the truth about me and never see your brother dead or alive.”

“Come with me!” sounded in the silence. The beauty invited him to follow her into a world full of secrets and dangers. Her hand was outstretched to him. Prince Etienne did not know what was wrong with him, but he was ready to follow her anywhere. He was captivated by her green eyes, and he could not take his mesmerized gaze from them. This girl seemed to him a sorceress, a sorceress who came from the world of shadows to seduce him and take him back to the dark magical world, where he would die for sure.

Odile's white hand glowed in the dark. The enchantress won. Etienne gave her his hand, and as soon as he touched it, his palm seemed to burn with fire.

“Come with me, prince,” she whispered slyly. “Come with me, and I will take you to our holiday.”

Etienne obeyed. He could not turn back, because he was at the mercy of the night sorceress.

They left the prince's room and found themselves in a wonderful night garden, shrouded in the haze of semi-darkness. Night lights illuminated the low trees of the orchard. It was planted at the whim of his mother, the queen, who every day admired it from her window, like a forest full of berries and flowers. Now that Odile appeared in it, everything here looked somehow different.

Lush crowns of trees reached each other with their long branches. The apples glittered as if they were made of gold and rubies, but their bright blush faded in comparison with the beauty of the dark angel leading Etienne through the garden.

Lush cherry trees stood tightly clinging to each other, the cherries were scarlet as blood, but as soon as you looked closely, you could see snakes and scorpions wriggling among the apples and cherries, and vipers crawling along the raspberry bushes, among juicy and tender berries, and prickly clumps of hedgehogs protrude from the green leaves.

The pear trees were also full of snakes, but when they hid, they were trees and fruits of fabulous beauty. Nearby there were strawberries, and currant bushes full of black berries, and trees with peaches, so similar to Odile's skin tone. She stopped in doubt and picked one juicy fruit. Suddenly the peach fell out of her hand, and, falling on the cold ground, became as if glassy. A golden bone slipped out of its juicy shell, from which streams of blood flowed.

Etienne could not take his eyes off the blood, but a gentle voice called:

“Go ahead, my fair prince!”

And he involuntarily walked after her, although every step caused pain and doubt in him. Now he wondered if he would survive after this night's trek to who knows where, but he did not regret that he went after the ghost. He boldly walked on and on through the night garden, but then the garden ended as suddenly as it began, and they found themselves in a dark tunnel, barely lit by tar torches. Their hot incandescent light filled the entire space. On one side of them flowed a fiery river, on the other there was a long road. On the other side of the river, God knows from where, white ghosts appeared and disappeared. Burnt faces, hands stained with blood, beckoned him to follow him, but he followed Odile, not stopping a step, because the fact that he uttered at least one word could be his death.

Odile walked forward slowly, lifting the hem of her lace dress, but her footsteps were not heard. It seemed that she did not step on the ground, but hovered over her, not stopping for a moment.

Odile gripped Etienne's hand tightly and guided him through all these nightmares calmly and quickly.

Etienne looked around uneasily. The fiery river boiled under their feet. There was no salvation for those who come even a little closer to her. The fiery water blazed and hissed, as if it wanted to destroy the whole world. It seemed that it was about to flood the earth under their feet, but this could not happen. Evil and good kept everything in their hands and divided the world between themselves into two different parts. The dark tunnel ended, and they found themselves in a room filled with pleasant semi-darkness. In the middle was a small table with a round mirror. Around it in vases were luxurious flowers, they bloomed only at night and were afraid of the day, the light ruined their beauty, because they belonged to the world of darkness.

Odile looked slyly at the mirror and turned her gaze to Etienne.

“I have to be worthy of my prince,” she said quietly and walked over to the gold-framed mirror.

Odile opened the chest and took a necklace of gold adorned with two pearl strands. She put it on, it went extraordinarily well with her lace dress. Then she inserted two pearl earrings into her ears, so skillfully made that such jewelry could not be found in the human world. Then, looking in the mirror, she put on a gold tiara on her head that only a queen or princess could wear. Etienne stared at her in fascination. There was no such beauty in the human world. She was a princess of an enchanted kingdom, gentle and sweet, concealing the thorns of a rose and the beauty of a violet.

“Let's go,” Odile said and led him to the huge door. It swung open before her, and they entered a huge hall, sparkling with gold and decorated with flowers. It was as bright as day and warm as in summer. Huge chandeliers illuminated the entire space, candles in gilded candelabra gave light and beauty.

But what was in the hall? Etienne seemed to open his eyes: not beautiful girls, but witches with ugly faces were dressed in magnificent dresses and danced at the ball.

Tall skeletons danced with witches in the costumes of gentlemen, embroidered with gold and flowers. The bones of their arms peeked out from under their lace cuffs, and bright green pupils glowed in their empty sockets. Various creatures paced the hall with the arrogance of dignitaries.

“This is our holiday,” Odile said, leading Etienne into the middle of the hall, but he was already uneasy. He did not know whether to scream in horror or consider it all a dream.

Odile walked with Etienne to the table, on which stood goblets of wine that resembled some kind of fiery drink. The wine sizzled and poured. It caused Etienne to doubt, and he abandoned it. Then Odile put the goblet back, and Etienne could not believe himself: the severed hand floating in the air, from which blood was dripping, took this goblet and carried it away, but the holiday was not over yet.

“Our friends came here to congratulate us,” Odile said, and clapped her hands. Another door opened, and the terrible monster that entered the hall bowed before the princess and kissed Odile's hand in reverence.

“I greet you, king of the seas and oceans,” the princess nodded politely to him, and he, moving away, stood on the other side of the hall.

Another monster entered the open door next and also kissed Odile's hand.

“King of the forest, I greet you,” the princess smiled.

The next to enter the room was a skeleton in a black cloak. Thorns and nettles covered the bones on his arms.

“I knew you were coming, king of the cemeteries,” Odile said as the deathly lips of a skeleton pressed against her snow-white hand.

He was the king, he ruled over all the cemeteries of the earth and the souls of all the dead. The king of the seas made storms and dragged the drowned to his bottom. The lord of the forest killed people on a dark night and demonstrated his boundless power at the sabbath of forest witches. They all obeyed another king, whom Etienne was afraid to see, but he was not the next to enter.