Once upon a time, in a beautiful land filled with woods and rivers, there lived a king and a queen who reigned with great wisdom and kindness.
The king was just and brave, protecting his people from harm and guiding them with wisdom.
The queen was a natural beauty, because she was kind at heart and ate very healthily. She advised her husband in matters of the heart and family quarrels which he had to settle, and he was always glad for her council.
One winter’s morning, the queen was sitting beside her window and sewed a gift for her husband. Then she noticed that it had started to snow and looked outside to watch the feathery flakes glide down from the heavens above. Not paying attention to her sewing, her needle slipped and she pricked her finger. Three drops of blood fell into the snow, which had gathered upon the wooden windowsill and as the queen looked upon them, the image of a beautiful child arose before her mind’s eye.
“I wish I had a child,” she whispered and looked up to the clouds, “with skin as white as snow, lips as red as blood, and hair as black as the ebony wood of my window frame.”
She sent her wish to heaven and returned to her sewing, now paying better attention to her fingers so that she wouldn’t hurt herself again.
Her wish travelled with the wind, finding its way up into the clouds, where there was a palace made of snow, ice and clouds itself. It was the Cloud Castle of the Good Fairy, who was responsible for making wishes come true. She had been granting wishes for the kingdom for centuries already and had now grown old and tired.
That’s why she took in an apprentice, an eager young fairy by the name of Arabella, who was willing to learn that old and powerful magic. She had studied hard for a couple of years and was “getting the hang of it” as she called it herself.
The old Good Fairy trusted her enough to leave her alone from time to time, and so far nothing exciting had ever happened when the Good Fairy had left the Cloud Castle.
All the more surprised was the young fairy apprentice when she suddenly heard the voice of the queen upon the wind, while the Good Fairy was still gone.
“I wish I had a child,” s