The Tale of the Snow Queen

Once upon a time. Once upon a time, in a big city far away, there were two little boys. They were friends and loved each other like brothers and sisters. The boy’s name was Kay and the girl’s name was Gerda. They always played together and were never separated. Gerda also had a grandmother. Her grandmother knew a lot of fairy tales and would tell them to her when it was her turn.

One day while Kay and Gerda were playing, Grandma called them over and said, “Children, I have a new story for you today, come and hear it if you like.” The children ran to their grandmother and listened eagerly to the story.

Grandma told the children the story of the Snow Queen, famous for her white blanket that covers everything in winter. The children listened to the grandmother’s story. Then they went to sleep. The next day, everything was white with snow. The children took to the streets and started sledding. Then they saw a huge sled passing by. It was pulled by a dozen white deer.

The children immediately got on the back of this big sled. After sliding for a while, most of the children left the sled and went back. Only Kay did not leave the sled. She didn’t realize that she had traveled far away from the town. At last the sled stopped by itself. Didn’t the Snow Queen come down from the sled in a white cloak? Kay realized that the Snow Queen was the queen he had heard in his grandmother’s fairy tale.

The Snow Queen said to Kay, “You are very cold, come and sit next to me.” Kay sat next to the Snow Queen and wrapped himself in the cloak she gave him. Suddenly she stopped feeling cold. The Snow Queen took the boy who had fallen asleep next to her and took him to her castle. It turned out that the Snow Queen took the children she caught to her castle and covered them with ice. That’s how he made Kay into an ice figurine.

In the city, Gerda, who had not heard from Kay for a long time, went in search of her friend. She walked through the snow-covered forest. While looking for her friend in the forest, she came across a small hut. An old woman opened the door of the hut. This woman was a sorceress known for her good deeds. She said to the girl, “I don’t know what you have come for, my child. You are looking for your friend Kay. Let’s see if the crow in the garden knows where your friend is.” She took Gerda to the backyard.

There was indeed a crow waiting on a branch in the garden. They asked the crow where Kay was. The crow told them that only the little girl who lived in the forest would know where Kay was. So Gerda asked the old woman for permission and went on her way. As she wandered deeper into the forest, she saw a beautiful little hut. The door of the hut opened. From inside came out the little girl the black crow had told her about. She said to Gerda, “Welcome, I have been waiting for you to come.”

He took Gerda inside and sat her by the fire. He gave her some of the food he had brought. Then they slept together. In the morning the little girl took Gerda to the hayloft next to the hut. There were pigeons and deer inside. The pigeons started to sing. The little girl understood the language of the pigeons. She told Gerda what the pigeons meant.

The pigeons said that the Queen of the Snows had kidnapped Kay and imprisoned her in her castle, and that the deer knew how to get there. So they made preparations to set off. They tied the deer to the sleigh. Gerda thanked the little girl for helping her. They waved to each other.

Gerda set off on a sleigh pulled by deer. They traveled for days. They arrived at the northernmost tip of the world, in a land where nothing could be seen but a blanket of white snow. It was constantly snowing in flakes. After traveling for a while, the deer stopped in front of the door of a white castle.

Gerda realized that they had come to the Snow Queen’s castle and went inside. The inside of the castle was as white as the outside. Gerda started to walk inside the castle. She was calling Kay at the same time. There was no sound in the castle except the echo of her own voice. Gerda saw an ice door, opened it and looked inside. She found Kay frozen in the center of the room. It was as if she was an ice figurine.

Gerda thought Kay was dead and started to cry. She cried so hard that the tears started to fall on the floor. At that moment a miracle happened. The tears from Gerda’s eyes began to melt the frozen Kay. As the ice covering her melted, Kay came to her senses and began to speak. “Gerda, I’m so happy to see you.”

Gerda was very glad that Kay was not dead. Kay told her that the Snow Queen had left the castle, but that she would be back any minute. They immediately left the castle and got on a sleigh pulled by deer. They left the north country. They went back to their home. Neither of them could forget this exciting adventure. They decided not to go far from home anymore and to listen only to Grandma’s fairy tales.

Three apples fell from the sky, one for the writer of this tale, one for the reader and one for the listener.