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Story 84: The Prince Who Feared Nothing BrothersGrimm(1812)

The Prince Who Feared Nothing

There was once a prince who was sick of living in his father's house, and as he was afraid of nothing he thought: "I'll go out into the wide world. Then time won't hang heavy on my hands, and I'll see all sorts of strange things. " So he took leave of his parents and started out. On and on he went, from morning to night, not caring at all where his road led hin. One day he came to a giant's house, and as he was tired he sat down outside to rest. Looking around him, this and that he saw the gian's playthings, a set of ninepins as big as a man and several enormous balls. After a while, he had an itch to bowl, so he set the ninepins up and started rolling the balls at them. he was in high spirits and shouted when the ninepins fell. The giant heard the noise, leaned his head out of the window, and saw a human who, though no bigger than the usual, was playing with his ninepins.
'Hey, you worm!" he cried out. "How can you bowl with my balls?
Where did you get the strength?" The prince raised his eyes, looked the pant straight in the face, and said: "You big lug, do you think you're the only one with strong arms? I can do anything I feel like doing." The giant came down, looked on with amazement as the prince bowled, and said. "If that's the kind of human you are, go and get me an apple from the Tree of Life." "What do you want with it" asked the prince. "I don't want it for myself," said the giant,
"But I have a ladylove who keeps asking for one. I've been all over the world and I can't find the tree." "I'll find it," said the prince, and I don't ses what's to stop me from picking the apple." "It's not as easy as you seem to think," said the giant. "The garden where the tree is has an iron fence around it, and outside the fence there's a circle of wild beasts keeping watch, and they won't let anyone in."
"They'll let me in," said the prince. "Maybe so, but even if you get you into the garden and see the apple hanging on the tree, it wont be Yours yet. There's a ring hanging in front of it. To get at the apple you'll have to put your hand through the ring, and no one has succeed in doing that." "I'll succeed," said the prince.

He took leave of the giant and journeyed over hill and dale, tough forests and across plains, until at last he came to the miracle, bus arden. The beasts were lying all around it, but their heads were lows and they were aslecp. They didn't wake at his approach, so he stepprd over them, climbed the fence, and went into the garden. In the middle of it stood the Tree of Life, and its branches were full of glistening red apples. He climbed up the trunk, and as he was reaching for an apple he saw a ring hanging in front of it, but he had no trouble putting his hand through it, and he picked the apple. The ring closed right around his arm, and all at once he felt enormous pover fowing through his veins. After coming down with the apple, he didn't feel like climbing the fence. Instead, he took hold of the big gate, shook it just once, and it opened with a crash. When he went out, the lion who was lying there woke up and bounded after him, but the lion wasn't fierce and he wasn't angry. Not at all. He accepted the prince as his master and followed him meekly.
The prince brought the giant the promised apple and said: "You see, I had no trouble getting it." The giant was delighted to have the apple so quickly and ran to give it to his ladylove. She was not only beautiful, but wise as well. When she saw no ring on the giant's arm, she said: "I won't believe it was you who brought back the apple until I see the ring on your arm." "I'lI just go home and get it," said the giant, who thought it would be easy to take it from the weak human by force if he wouldn't part with it of his own free will. So he asked the prince for the ring, but the prince refused. "The ring goes with the apple," said the giant. "If you won't give it to me of your own free will, I'm going to fight you for it."
For a long time they wrestled, but the giant couldn't get the better of the prince, for the magic ring had given him extra strength. Then the giant thought up a trick and said: "Fighting has made me hot, and you too. Let's take a bath in the river before we start in again." The prince, who knew nothing of trickery, went down to the river with the giant. In undressing, he stripped the ring off his arm. When he Jumped in the water, the giant picked up the ring and ran away, but the lion, who had seen him steal it, followed him, tore the ring out of his hand and brought it back to his master. Then the giant hid behind an oak tree, and whale the prince was busy puting his clothes on. as ant metedhes cod there, bined nin the way, a neinda came back. top of a high cliff, where he left him, thinking:
code tie brine hand as f to hon him the sny and led ham tog
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cop olnd heil al to his death. The mare. and keke the ing" more antil ion hadrie forsaken tis maste: Whe kept a hold on . tie and lite by lide led him back down, When the giant camou cos an dead, he saw that his trick had failed, and said to himself in; lob it here must be some way of destroying this puny humans Thereupon he rook the prince by his arm and led him back to the dir by a diferent path. But the lion, who saw what the wicked giant was planning; was on hand to help his master. When the giant had lea the blind man close to the edge, he let go his hand, meaning to leave him there alone. At that moment the lion pushed the giant, who fell off the cliff and was dashed to pieces.
Again the faichful animal drew his master away from the precipice and led him to a tree beside a clear flowing brook. The prince sat down and with his paw the lion sprinkled water on his face. No sooner had a few drops fallen on his eye sockets than he was able to see a little. After a while he noticed a little bird, that flew past him and bumped into a tree trunk. Then it fluttered down to the brook and bathed in it. A moment later it took flight and darted off between the trees without bumping into any of them. It was clear to the prince that the bird had recovered its eyesight, and realizing that God had given him a sign, he bent down over the water and bathed his face in it. When he stood up, he had his eyes back again, as bright and clear as they had ever been.
After thanking God for his great mercy, the prince resumed his travels with the lion. One day he came to an enchanted castle. In the gateway stood a maiden who was beautiful in face and form, but pitch-black, She stopped him and said: "Ah, if you could only set me free from the evil spell that has been cast on me!" "What should I do?" asked the prince. The maiden replied: "You must spend three nights in the great hall of the enchanted castle, and no trace of fear must enter your heart. They will do all they can to torment you, but if you bear it without so much as a murmur, I shall be free. They won't be allowed to take your life." "I'm not afraid" said the prince. with Gods isle down in the great had endily into the castde, and ahghtal he set done, in he areat hal and waited. Al was and anal midnight, bus then he heard a terrible noise, and little deic loade cravling from every nook and cranny. They took no noticevils com, ar down in the middle of the hall, made a fire, and began of hirow dice. When one of them lost, he said: "Something's wrong. there's someone here who isn't one of us. It's his fault that I'm losing." " Hey, you behind the stove!" cried another. "Just wait, I'm coming." The screams grew louder and louder, anyone would have con afraid. The prince kept perfectly calm, and no fear touched his beat, but then finally the devils jumped up from the floor and fell upon him. There were so many that he couldn't defend himself.
They dragged him around, pinched him, pricked him, beat him, and tormented him in every way, but not a murmur escaped him. Toward morning they vanished, and he was so worn out he could hardly move. At daybreak the black maiden came in. In her hand she held a small bottle containing the Water of Life, and she sprinkled him with it. Instantly all his pain was gone and he felt new strength Aowing through his veins. "You've handled the first night very well," she said, "but you've got two more ahead of you." Then she left the hall and as she was walking away from him he noticed that her feet had turned white. The next night the devils came back. Again they threw dice, and again they fell upon the prince. This time they beat him much harder than the night before and his whole body was covered with wounds. But since he bore it in silence, they had to stop after a while, and at dawn the maiden came and healed him with the Water of Life. As she was leaving the room, he was overjoyed to see that she was all white down to her fingertips. After that he had only one more night to endure, but that night was the worst of all. The devils came back again. "You still here?" they cried. "You're going to be tortured till you can't see straight!" They pricked him and beat him, they flung him this way and that way, they tugged at his arms and legs as though to tear him apart. But he stuck it out and not so much as a murmur escaped him. Finally the devils vanished, but he lay there helpless, unable to move or even to open his eyes when the maiden came in with the Water of Life. But the moment she sprinkled him with it, his pain was gone, and he felt as fresh and rested as after a good night's sleep. When he opened his eyes, he saw the maiden standing beside him, and she was as white as snow and as beautiful as the day. "Stand up," she said. "Swing your sword three times over the staircase, then the whole castle will be set free." When he had done that, the whole castle was delivered from the spell, and the maiden turned out to be a rich princess. Servants came and announced that the table had been laid in the great hall and that dinner was ready. So they sat down and ate and drank together, and that night the wedding was celebrated amid great rejoicing.