One day the Prince and his suite went out for a ride in a wood where his father sometimes held a hunt . Their way led through a stream whose banks were overgrown with thick brushwood . Just as the horsemen were about to ford the river , a hare , startled by the sound of the horses ' hoofs , started up from the grass and ran towards the thicket . The young Prince pursued the little creature , and had almost overtaken it , when the girth of his saddle suddenly broke in two and he fell heavily to the ground . No sooner had his foot touched the earth than he disappeared before the eyes of the horrified courtiers . They sought for him far and near , but all in vain , and they were forced to recognise the power of the evil Fairy , against which the Queen had warned them on her death-bed . The old King was much grieved when they brought him the news of his son 's disappearance , but as he could do nothing to free him from his fate , he gave himself up to an old age of grief and loneliness , cherishing at the same time the hope that some lucky chance might one day deliver the youth out of the hands of his enemy . Hardly had the Prince touched the ground than he felt himself violently seized by an unseen power , and hurried away he knew not whither . A whole new world stretched out before him , quite unlike the one he had left . A splendid castle surrounded by a huge lake was the abode of the Fairy , and the only approach to it was over a bridge of clouds . On the other side of the lake high mountains rose up , and dark woods stretched along the banks ; over all hung a thick mist , and deep silence reigned everywhere . No sooner had the Fairy reached her own domain than she made herself visible , and turning to the Prince she told him that unless he obeyed all her commands down to the minutest detail he would be severely punished . Then she gave him an axe made of glass , and bade him cross the bridge of clouds and go into the wood beyond and cut down all the trees there before sunset . At the same time she cautioned him with many angry words against speaking to a black girl he would most likely meet in the wood . The Prince listened to her words meekly , and when she had finished took up the glass axe and set out for the forest . At every step he seemed to sink into the clouds , but fear gave wings to his feet , and he crossed the lake in safety and set to work at once . But no sooner had he struck the first blow with his axe than it broke into a thousand pieces against the tree . The poor youth was so terrified he did not know what to do , for he was in mortal dread of the punishment the wicked old Fairy would inflict on him . He wandered to and fro in the wood , not knowing where he was going , and at last , worn out by fatigue and misery , he sank on the ground and fell fast asleep . He did not know how long he had slept when a sudden sound awoke him , and opening his eyes he saw a black girl standing beside him .
Mindful of the XXXXX 's warning he did not dare to address her , but she on her part greeted him in the most friendly manner , and asked him at once if he were under the power of the wicked Fairy .
Fairy detail father mist nothing pieces time wings wood youth