A Prince lived alone in a castle. He had neither parents, nor brothers and sisters. He did not even have a friend. So, he was very lonely. He walked around in his gardens, rode all over the estate, read books. But he was tired of being alone. He had read about friends in books. He wished he had a friend.
One day, he was walking in his garden when he heard a very faint sound of someone crying. He looked around, but there was no one he could see.
“Who’s there?” he called out. The crying stopped abruptly. Then he called out again and again. Finally, a small voice said, “It’s I, sir.”
“Why can’t I see you? Where are you?” asked the Prince. “Inside the pail of water, under the rose bush,” said the voice. The Prince looked into the pail and pulled out a small wet fairy.
“How did you fall into this?” asked the Prince, pointing to the pail.
“I hit into a butterfly while I was flying! And now I can’t fly!” sobbed the fairy as if her heart would break, “Look at my wings! They’re all wet and torn!”
The Prince took the fairy into the castle and put her on a chair with cushions. He tucked a coat around her. Then they both wondered how to get her new wings.
The Prince brought out some of his silk shirts, coats and stockings. Could one of them be cut up to make wings?
“The silk is too heavy, sir,” said the fairy sadly.
The Prince and the fairy could find no solution. The fairy lived on the chair with cushion and the Prince gave her morning dew, honey and rose petals to eat. He found a thimble for her to drink from. Slowly, the little fairy became quite comfortable.
One day, the Prince had an idea. He said, “There’s a spider in my study. He can weave new wings for you.” The fairy agreed.
As soon as she got a pair of wings, the Fairy was so thrilled that she flew dizzily around and out of the window. But she came every day to meet her friend.
One day, the Prince saw a beautiful girl getting down from a coach. The little fairy introduced the beautiful girl to the Prince. “I’ve brought a friend for you, dear Prince. This is Rosebud, the Princess of Roses. Will you marry her and make her your wife?”
The Prince was delighted. With the fairy and the Princess he would never be lonely!