Fairer-Than-A-Fairy and The Rainbow Prince — Obscure Fairy Tales

After attempting to have a child for so many years, a king and a queen finally had a little baby girl. She was so beautiful that her parents called her Fairer-Than-A-Fairy.

As you can imagine, this decision enraged the fairies, who, despite being known for their looks, were far from being known for their humility. Thus, the fairies called upon Fairy Lagrée to take care of the girl.

When the princess was only seven years old, Fairy Lagrée lured her into a trap and kidnapped her. When she took Fairer-Than-A-Fairy away, unbeknownst to the fairy at the time, the royal cat and dog followed the princess. Lagrée locked the young girl in a castle which, although was lavishly furnished and decorated, was completely devoid of human life.

Lagrée gave two tasks to Fairer-Than-A-Fairy: first, she was to keep heh fire in the hearth running at all times, and second, she was to protect two glass jars at all times and never let anything sinistre happen to them.

Lagrée was such an old fairy that she only had one eye and one tooth left. Unlike her fairy peers, her face was difficult to look at without wincing. The only way she could even maintain that remaining eye and tooth was to soak it in the magic solution contained in the glass bottles overnight.

The room the princess was imprisoned in could have been much worse, as the bed was comfortable and the fire kept the area cozy always. Still, the young girl longed for a friend that didn’t walk on all fours — although she was delighted to at least have her furry friends accompany her.

Many years passed, and Fairer-Than-A-Fairy was ever so lonely and pitiful. Everyday, she cared for the flames so they never went out, and polished the glass bottles containing the magic solution for Lagrée out of fear of punishment. The days, weeks and months were all the same and time started to lose its meaning pretty quickly for the princess.

Soon enough, the princess turned eightteen years old and had mostly forgotten her past life outside of the castle prison. Other than a few vague memories, her confinement, pets and the fairy Lagrée were all she knew.

One day, as Fairer-Than-A-Fairy took her usual stroll in the garden, she noticed the sunlight glistening beautifully on the fountain. As she neared the structure, she saw a magnificent rainbow appear. She gazed at the wonderful sight in awe for a moment before being knocked down to the ground by an unexpected sound: a whispering voice was addressing her.

The voice seemed to belong to a young man who called himself a prince. During their discussion, the princess learned he was put to sleep by the fairies many years ago and could only travel as a rainbow. He had apparently taken a liking to Fairer-Than-A-Fairy on sunny days she took a stroll in the garden.

The princess, who was quite new to courting, blushed heavily, which was noticed by the rainbow prince. He apologized for being too forward and simply offered his company whenever she felt like chatting with another soul. The two continued their blabber until the sun stopped glistening on the fountain, causing the rainbow — and thus the rainbow prince — to disappear.

Fairer-Than-A-Fairy, her heart as light as a feather, galloped back to her room that evening, happy as puppy love can make one be. She cared for the fire and polished the bottles as she usually did and dreamed of the rainbow prince all night, her cat and dog snuggled comfortably at her feet.

The next morning, Fairer-Than-A-Fairy rose bright and early to go to the fountain. She truly hoped it would be a sunny day so the rainbow prince could appear before her. To her joy, the sun was out again and the rainbow prince was patiently waiting for her arrival in all its colourful glory.

The two youngsters chatted all day long. The prince talked about his life before he was imprisoned in his sleep. The princess recalled the last memories of the castle she grew up in with her family. The events repeated themselves for many days, then weeks, in a row. Everyday, the prince and the princess would make the most out of their captivity by being with each other. Soon enough, puppy love turned into deeper feeling of affection.

One particularly sunny summer day, the light shone on the fountain for so long that the couple talked into the late hours of the evening. Unfortunately, Fairer-Than-A-Fairy had forgotten about the fire burning in the hearth. Thus, as Lagrée had hoped would one day happen, the fire went out. When the princess came back to the room, the old one-toothed and one-eyed fairy was waiting for her, ecstatic.

For you see, fairies were forbidden from hurting humans directly without a reason, so theu always needed external causes to put their enemies in dangerous situations. This time, Fairy Lagrée punished Fairer-Than-A-Fairy for letting the fire go out by sending her to the monster Locrinos to ask for fire again.

The princess gasped, for she has heard of Locrinos from the rianbow prince. Locrinos was a cruel monster known to devour the humans who dared cross his path. Fairy Lagrée ordered her lovely prisoner to leave at dawn.

The sweet Fairer-Than-A-Fairy, after shedding a few tears, accepted the punishment.

In the morning before the sunrise, Fairer-Than-A-Fairy got ready for her trip to go ask Locrinos for fire. She stared at her pets, wondering if she’d ever have the chance to run her fingers through their soft fur again. She kissed them both on the head and promised she’d be back for them.

As she walked by the fountain on her way out of th castle, Fairer-Than-A-Fairy thought of her prince companion. She looked up at the sky, hoping the sun would start shining brightly already, so she could at least say goodbye to her love. But it was too early. The princess mentally wished him well and went on her way.

She had to cross dense woods fill of scary sounds and creatures before she arrived at Locrinos’ house. On the way, a bird flew on her shoulder and suggested she pick up a shiny rock with a pretty unique colour. And so she did.

At the house, Fairer-Than-A-Fairy took a deep breath in, dreading knocking on the door.

Knock-knock.

A woman opened the door. Fairer-Than-A-Fairy inquired about Locrinos’ fire. The woman told her her husband was out for a few days, but still invited her to come in. The princess was wary, but had no choice but to accept the offer to fulfill the fairy’s ill request.

Inside the home, Locrinos’ wife brewed Fairer-Than-A-Fairy some tea and asked her for the reason of her impromptu visit and who had sent her, as most humans usually avoided their house due to Locrinos’ exaggerated reputation.

The princess explained she was here to ask for a bit of Locrinos’ special power for Lagrée hearth fire. She showed the female monster the shiny rock the bird had given her. Locrinos’ wife eyes brightened at the sight, recognizing a special rare material her husband has been looking for. She agreed to exchange it for the fire.

In addition, the host gave the princess a small pebble, saying it would come in handy in the future, without revealing more details. She then bid farewell to the princess and sent her back to Lagrée’s captivity castle.

When Fairer-Than-A-Fairy came back to Fairy Lagrée holding the fire at the tip of a long torch, the fairy secretly screamed in frustration at the sight. She thought she had tricked her into losing her life in agony to that cruel monster Locrinos!

“I will have to try again,” thought the old fairy.

Fairer-Than-A-Fairy set the hearth on fire again and her daily routine continued as before.

Every night, she slept with her pets, and everyday she’d spend with her love by the fountain. There never seemed to be enough daylight hours for them to spend together. Therefore, the princess came up with an idea. She made a wooden basin out of the logs she was given for the hearth fire and filled it up with water form the fountain. Then, she placed the basin by her window so it could catch the sunlight.

The next morning at dawn, the light glistened on the water surface, as it did at the fountain. A minuscule rainbow appeared. It had worked! The princess could spend every minute of her day with the prince without fearing to forget taking care of the fire in the hearth. They thus spent every following day together that way for weeks. The rainbow even got to be introduced to her loving cat and dog!

However, after a while, the old fairy Lagrée picked up on what was going on and planned to keep the lovers apart. One morning, as Fairer-Than-A-Fairy was waiting by her window, no rainbow would appear. It seemed the sky was too cloudy. When the first rayslit the water, it was already close to noon.

“Fairer-Than-A-Fairy, my love,” started the prince. “I must leave you soon, for tomorrow I will be banished from this place.”

The princess’ eyes filled with tears. As she got up to protest, she accidentally pushed the water basin on the windowsill to the floor, spilling it all over. The young woman cried in panic, fearing the rays of sunlight woudl disappear soon and she would never have another chance to talk to her lover ever again.

Fairer-Than-A-Fairy walked towards the table where the two glass bottles she polished every night stood. She broke them over the basin, filling the latter with their content. Suddenly, a faint rainbow appeared. The captive princess and the rainbow prince only had a few minutes to exchange tender words before the light subsided and they were parted for good.

Once the clouds filled the horizon, Fairer-Than-A-Fairy finally realized what she had sacrificed for that short reunion coudl cost her her life. Determined to risk it all for love, she took the decision to escape the castle that had kept her captive for all these years and find the prince. With her, she took her two beloved pets, the pebble Locrinos’ wife had given her, and a sprig of myrtle. Then, she ran for her life into the woods.

It wasn’t long before the dark night fell and the princess could no longer place one foot bfore the other without stumbling down. She stopped suddenly, exhausted, and accidentally dropped the pebble on the ground. To her great surprise, the small stone turned into a wide cave with a burning fireplace, which became her and her pets’ refuge for the darkest hours of the night.

After a well deserved rest, the princess, her cat and her dog left the cave and resumed their path towards what Fairer-Than-A-Fairy hoped would be an exit to the dark and gloomy fairy woods.

At the castle, as Lagrée visited her captive, the fairy realized she had escaped her slimy grip and was on the run. The old creature called upon the native fairies to wreak havoc on the forest and heavy rain started pouring down on the area.

In the woods, Fairer-Than-A-Fairy and her companions were quickly soaked by the downpour. The young woman threw the sprig of myrtle on the ground and it grew into a giant bush. The princess, the cat and the dog took refuge under its branches. When the ground couldn’t soak up the rain as fast as it was falling down, Fairer-Than-A-Fairy picked up her dear pets and held them close to her chest to warm them up as best as she could.

During that time, Fairy Lagrée was making her way to where the princess and her pets were stranded. Soon enough, she reached them.

As soon as she saw the fairy, Fairer-Than-A-Fairy let out a frightful scream. Her cat jumped out of her arms and tore out Lagrée’s only eye, rendering her fully blind. She tried to strike the princess in return, but the pet dog jumped on the fairy, making her fall on a rock on the ground and breaking off her only tooth.

The princess took her beloved pets in her arms again and ran as far as her legs could carry her. Eventually, before her legs gave way from exhaustion, she saw a dim light in the distance. Hope gave her one last boost to reach the source of the light far ahead. As she got closer, she saw the light was a lantern attached outside a small green and white house. She knocked on the door.

A tall woman in a long green and white dress opened the door. Looking at the princess’ exhausted state, the lady invited Fairer-Than-A-Fairy in for the night. She fed her soup, gave bowls of kitchen scraps to her cat and dog and got a small bed ready for the three of them.

In the morning, the princess thanked the tall woman profusely for her hospitality before getting ready to leave. Before the princess’ departure, the lady placed a small object on her hand, telling her to only open it once she needed it. Fairer-Than-A-Fairy looked down at her hand to see a small nut the lady had placed there. The young woman thanked the tall woman and continued her journey.

Fairer-Than-A-Fairy walked all day through the woods, her and her pets at the mercy of the elements. As the sun was retiring for the night, the princess wished to do the same. She stopped at a cottage house for the night, similar in colour and build to the previous one she had been welcomed in the night before. there lived a short woman wearing a green and white dress who happily fed the princess and her animal friends, before preparing a resting place for them in a guest room.

In the morning, in a scene similar to that of the day before, the short woman placed an object in the princess’ hand before her departure. Fairer-Than-A-Fairy found she was given a golden pomegrenate. She expressed her deepest thanks to the short woman and continued on her journey.

The third night, the princess arrived at a familiar-looking house again. She soon leaned there resided three sisters, all of which were as good-hearted as Lagrée had been evil. They invited Fairer-Than-A-Fairy, her dog and her cat over for dinner and prepared a bed for them to rest in.

In the morning, Fairer-Than-A-Fairy thanked the sisters profusely as her and her furbabies were about to go on their merry way again. However, before she left, the youngest sister gave her a crystal smelling-bottle, and told her to use it only in times of need.

With the nut, the golden pomegrenate and the crystal smelling-bottle, the princess continued her journey through the woods, followed by her beloved pets. After many hours of walking in the thick forest, Fairer-Than-A-Fairy noticed a clearing in the trees ahead. As she approached, she saw a castle suspended by strong silver chains above the ground. She couldn’t explain it, but she had the sudden urge to climb onto the castle and enter it.

Trusting her intuition, the princess used all her might to make it to the front gates of the castle, all the while holding her dog under her arm, while her cat held onto her neck. She tried pushing the gates open, but the doors wouldn’t budge. Her dog barked towards her pocket, wagging its tail.

The princess suddenly thought about the gifts she had been given. She took the nut out of her pocket and remembered the instructions of the tall lady. Fairer-Than-A-Fairy cracked open the nut and found the smallest key she had ever seen.

Fairer-Than-A-Fairy took the tiny key in her hand, admiring the craftsmanship behind it. Then, she inserted the key in the keyhole on the gates and the doors slowly opened.

She walked straight ahead, feeling weirdly attracted to the opposite end of the hall. When she got close enough to distinguish what it was, she gasped. There laid a young man, seemingly unconscious, who looked exactly what the princess had imagined the rainbow prince would look like. She got closer and spoke. No reaction.

She started telling the young man about the events that took place since she had escaped captivity. But no matter how loudly she shared her story, the young man wouldn’t budge. Finally, Fairer-Than-A-Fairy sat down on the side of the bed and cried.

Her dog started barking and pulling on the side of her dress, as if trying to get into her pocket. The princess took the golden pomegrenate out of her pocket, and with an encouraging bark from her dog, opened the fruit’s outer shell.

Inside the pomegrenate, instead of seeds, were tiny violins that flew towards the prince’s ear and played a soothing melody. The young man moved his eyelids slightly, as if the music was slowly bringing him back to the waking world. With apprehension, Fairer-Than-A-Fairy watched the young man’s soft movements, holding her breath.

During that time, the cat had started rubbing her head on her mistress, seemingly interested in what was in her other pocket. Fairer-Than-A-Fairy remembered the crystal smelling-bottle. Perhaps its scent could help the young man wake up?

Unfortunately, as she took the bottle out of her pocket, she dropped it on the marble floor. It shattered into tiny pieces before a small syren that was trapped in the bottle rose up and looked around. She silenced the minuscule violins and floated towards the unconscious man. As she got closer to his ear, she started singing a sorrowful melody about a captive princess falling in love with a rainbow prince. The small creature continued her retelling of Fairer-Than-A-Fairy’s adventures, emphasizing how much she missed her prince.

The young man opened his eyes and uttered the princess’ name. Recognizing his voice as the rainbow prince’s, Fairer-Than-A-Fairy took his hands in hers, ecstatic to have found him and delivered him from his curse. As they exchanged a passionate kiss, the walls around them shattered, revealing a much bigger and more lavishly decorated courtroom than the hall they had just been in.

An older woman approached them, introducing herself as the rianbow prince’s mother. She thanked Fairer-Than-A-Fairy for releasing her son, as well as her court from the fairies’ cursed grip. The woman told her son his father, who had angered the fairies many moons ago, had died already. The fairies would thus be appeased and leave them alone from now on.

In the following weeks, the princess and the rainbow prince got engaged and invited Fairer-Than-A-Fairy’s birth parents, who had thought their daughter long dead, to their grand wedding. The sun shone brightly in the kingdom on that day, and every fountain around reflected a gorgeous rainbow in celebration of the happy event.

The serie Obscure Fairy Tales encompasses an array of tales, myths and legends from around the world. To read more, visit this page dedicated to fiction writing.