Snow hammered the roof while she counted the empty bowls; she tightened her scarf and decided to answer the knock that had come with the dusk. The village wind bit at bare hands, and a curdled silence waited behind the door.
In a far northern village, nestled among snow-covered mountains and dark pine forests, there lived a poor man with many children. Among them was a young girl, the youngest and the most beautiful of all. Despite their poverty, the family found warmth in shared tasks and small comforts.
One bitterly cold evening, as the wind howled and snow fell in drifts, there came a knock at their door. The man opened it, only to be met by a large, snow-white bear standing on two legs like a man. The bear's eyes gleamed with intelligence and kindness, and though he was a fearsome sight, he spoke with a voice so soft it calmed the man’s fears.
“Good evening,” said the bear. “I have come to ask for your daughter in marriage. In return, I will make you as rich as you are now poor.”
The man was taken aback, for he loved his daughter dearly. “I cannot give my daughter to a bear,” he stammered.
“I promise no harm will come to her,” said the bear. “She will live in comfort and wealth beyond your imagination.”
The man hesitated, but knowing how much the wealth would help his family, he asked his daughter if she would go with the bear. Though frightened at first, the girl was moved by her father’s desperation and agreed. “If you promise to keep me safe,” she said to the bear, “I will go with you.”
And so, the next day, the girl climbed onto the bear’s broad back, and they traveled far away from her home. The snow and trees seemed to blur together as they moved through forests and over mountains. As night fell, they arrived at a magnificent castle made of shining ice and marble, glittering like diamonds under the moonlight.
Inside, the girl found warmth and comfort beyond her wildest dreams. Servants waited on her hand and foot, and she slept in a bed of the softest silks and furs. But though she lived in luxury, the girl felt a strange loneliness.
Each night, after the lamps were blown out, a man came to her bed and slept beside her. She could never see his face, for he always left before the dawn, but his presence was kind and gentle. She grew to love this mysterious stranger, though she longed to see him in the light of day.
One day, the girl became so homesick that she begged the bear to let her visit her family. The bear agreed, on one condition: she must not listen to her mother’s advice, or else great misfortune would befall them both. The girl promised, and the bear carried her back to her family.
Her family was overjoyed to see her, and she told them of the wonders of the castle and the kindness of the bear. But her mother, cautious and concerned, insisted there was something more to the bear's enchantment. “You must light a candle in the night to see the man who lies beside you,” her mother said. “Only then will you know the truth.”
The girl remembered the bear’s warning but couldn’t help but feel curious. When she returned to the castle, she decided to follow her mother’s advice. That night, when the man lay beside her, she lit a candle. In the flickering light, she saw the most handsome prince she had ever laid eyes on. But as she gazed at him, a drop of candle wax fell onto his chest, waking him.
The prince awoke with a start and saw the candle in her hand. “What have you done?” he cried. “You have broken the spell! I am now bound to return to my stepmother, the troll queen, who holds me prisoner in her castle east of the sun and west of the moon.”
With that, the prince disappeared, and the magnificent castle turned to ice. The girl was left alone, standing in the cold ruins of the palace. Desperate to find the prince and make things right, she set out on a perilous path to find the castle that lay east of the sun and west of the moon.
The girl wandered for days and nights through dark forests and across frozen rivers, seeking anyone who might know the way to the prince. She first came upon an old woman spinning flax on a golden spindle. “Good day,” said the girl. “Do you know the way to the castle that lies east of the sun and west of the moon?”
The old woman shook her head. “No, I do not,” she said, “but I will lend you my horse, which will carry you to my neighbor. Perhaps she knows the way.”
The girl thanked the old woman, mounted the horse, and rode until she reached another old woman, sitting by a well.
“Good day,” the girl said. “Do you know the way to the castle that lies east of the sun and west of the moon?”
The second old woman shook her head. “No, I do not, but I will lend you my horse. It will carry you to my neighbor, who may know the way.”
The girl rode on, following the path until she reached a third old woman, sitting by a stream. “Good day,” she said once again. “Do you know the way to the castle that lies east of the sun and west of the moon?”
The third old woman shook her head. “No, I do not,” she replied, “but I will lend you my horse. He will carry you to the east wind. He may know the way.”
The girl continued her travels, this time riding on the wind, until she reached the palace of the east wind. The east wind welcomed her kindly and listened to her tale. “I do not know the way,” said the east wind, “but my brother, the west wind, may know. I will carry you to him.”
