In ancient times, a king lived with his wife. They were very happy. But they had one sorrow: they had no children. They had already lost hope when a baby girl was born to them. This joyful news spread throughout the palace. Guests flocked to the palace. Everyone wanted to see the little princess and congratulate the happy parents. Seven little fairies were invited to the palace to care for the princess.
But they had forgotten an old fairy. This old and angry fairy never left her house, so everyone thought she had long been dead. The old and angry fairy was very upset because she hadn't been invited. She heard that everyone was going to the palace to give gifts to the little princess. She also came to the palace, but with bad intentions. She waited for everyone to give their gifts to the little princess. Finally, it was her turn. The old and angry fairy approached the child's bed and shouted:
— When this princess turns fifteen, she will prick her hand with a needle and die!
Everyone froze in horror. But a young fairy among the guests had not yet given her gift to the child. She approached the princess and quietly said:
— The little princess will not die, but she will sleep for a hundred years. A young prince will awaken her from this sleep.
The king and his wife were very sad. They ordered all the guards to protect the little princess from everything. They removed all needles from the palace.
Days passed like this. The little princess grew up and turned fifteen. One day, she went for a walk with her maids in the meadow next to the palace. While collecting flowers in the meadow, the princess strayed from her maids. Wandering around, she came upon an old hut. Inside the hut, she saw an old woman living there. The old woman was knitting socks and heard nothing. She didn't even see the princess arrive.
— What is that in your hand? — the princess asked, approaching the old woman. As soon as she touched the needle in the old woman's hand, the needle pricked her finger. The princess fell to the ground and fell asleep.
Hearing this news, the king became very sad and ordered the sleeping girl to be brought to the palace. The young fairy saw that the princess's mother was suffering greatly. Therefore, she waved her magic wand in the air, and everyone in the palace fell asleep for a hundred years.
The young fairy said:
— I am doing this so that the princess does not feel lonely when she wakes up.
The people living in the palace, the horses in the palace courtyard, the birds in the garden, even the fire burning in the palace, all fell into a deep sleep. All the trees and bushes intertwined their branches and covered the palace gate to protect it from prying eyes.
A hundred years passed. One summer morning, a handsome prince approached this ancient palace. He had seen the palace from afar and definitely wanted to enter. As the prince approached, the trees and bushes parted, making way for him. The old gates opened, and the prince entered.
The prince froze in his tracks. Everything seemed to have fallen into an eternal sleep: people, animals, even the burning fire were asleep. It was as if the wind itself had fallen into a death-like sleep here.
The young prince walked through all the rooms of the palace, looked at all the beds, and finally entered the room where the king's daughter was sleeping.
The princess was so beautiful that the young man could not resist her beauty. He knelt and kissed her. At that very moment, the princess opened her eyes, and everyone in the palace woke up. Dogs barked, horses neighed, fires blazed anew. The palace inhabitants resumed their work, and pigeons on the roof began to coo joyfully.
The princess and the prince, however, saw nothing and heard nothing. They looked at each other, captivated.
