Once upon a time, there was a girl named Aysel who had a little brother named Murad. After their parents passed away, the children, who were very sad, lived together. One day, Aysel, going to work, took her brother with her. After walking a long way, they reached the edge of a lake where cows were grazing.
– I'm thirsty, I want to drink water, – Murad called out to his sister.
But his sister told him:
– Be patient for a little while, don't drink water from the puddle. If you do, you'll turn into a kid.
After they walked a little further, they reached another puddle where a herd of kids was grazing.
– Dear sister, I can't bear it anymore, I'm so thirsty, let me drink some water!
– His sister again tried to stop her brother from drinking water. But this time Murad didn't listen to his sister. He drank water from the puddle and turned into a kid.
– Oh... my brother, what have you done, why didn't you listen to me, – Aysel began to cry.
Aysel was sitting in the meadow next to her brother, crying, when a young, brave prince passed by.
– Beautiful girl, why are you crying?
Aysel told the prince her sorrow. The prince liked Aysel so much that he proposed marriage to her. Thus, Aysel, the prince, and her brother, who had turned into a kid, began to live together.
One day, the prince had gone somewhere for his affairs. Taking advantage of this, an old witch came to Aysel and invited her to bathe in the river. Aysel agreed so as not to offend the old woman. As soon as the old woman brought Aysel to the riverbank, she pounced on her, put a stone tied to a rope around her neck, and pushed her into the river. She then took on Aysel's appearance and returned to the palace.
The old witch, who had taken on Aysel's appearance, began to torment the kid and urge the prince to slaughter it. Hearing this, the kid ran to the riverbank and cried bitterly:
– Aysel, sister, sister..! Please come out of the water, the old witch wants to kill me.
Aysel answered him from the bottom of the water:
– Murad, my brother..! The heavy stone around my neck pulls me to the bottom of the river, and the dark earth has exhausted my heart.
At this moment, the prince had also followed the kid's tracks and arrived at the riverbank. He heard the kid crying and calling his sister from the river, and what Aysel said to him. The prince jumped into the river, pulled Aysel out of the water, and untied the heavy stone from her neck. Aysel came back to life and became even more beautiful than before. The witch's spell was broken, and the kid turned back into a boy.
They tied the old witch to a horse's tail and chased her into the wilderness. And they continued to live a happier life than before.
