The Frog Princess

Once upon a time there lived a wise king who had three sons. They were all extremely valiant, but the most valiant of the three was the youngest, whose name was Ivan. The three princes grew up and when they had all come of age, their father called them and told them:

“My dear sons, I have grown too old to rule. It is your turn now. Since you are all excellent archers, each of you will take up your bow and shoot one arrow. Where your arrow falls, there you shall find your wife. And then one of you will become the new ruler of our land.”

So his three sons did as he had said. Both the older brothers’ arrows fell nearby, and they soon brought home their brides. Only the youngest brother, Ivan, shot his arrow so far that he had to go on a long journey to find it. He crossed mountains and fields until he finally spotted his arrow at the edge of a small pond. When he went to pull it out of the ground, a little frog jumped into his hand and said, in a human voice: “Ivan, take me to be your wife.”

The prince really did not want to marry a frog. But since his father had decided that his arrow would find the right bride for him, he knew he must trust the arrow above all else. And so he carefully placed the frog into his saddlebag and set off for home.

When he arrived, his older brothers were already waiting for him with their beautiful brides. When they saw what Ivan had brought back with him for a wife, they all burst out laughing. But Ivan paid no notice to their ridicule. He took…