palace. The princess was in high good humour, feeling that all eyes
were upon her, and bowed and smiled right and left. Taking the
prince's hand, she sailed proudly down the room, where the guests were
already assembled, to her place at the head of the table by the side
of the bridegroom. As she did so, three strange ladies in shining
dresses of blue, green, and red, glided in and seated themselves on a
vacant bench immediately behind the young couple. The red lady was
Geirlaug, who had brought with her the forester's daughters, and in
one hand she held a wand of birch bark, and in the other a closed
basket.

Silently they sat as the feast proceeded; hardly anyone noticed their
presence, or, if they did, supposed them to be attendants of their
future queen. Suddenly, when the merriment was at its height, Geirlaug
opened the basket, and out flew a cock and hen. To the astonishment of
everyone, the birds circled about in front of the royal pair, the cock
plucking the feathers out of the tail of the hen, who tried in vain to
escape from him.

'Will you treat me as badly as Grethari treated Geirlaug?' cried the
hen at last. And Grethari heard, and started up wildly. In an instant
all the past rushed back to him; the princess by his side was
forgotten, and he only saw the face of the child with whom he had
played long years ago.

'Where is Geirlaug?' he exclaimed, looking round the hall; and his
eyes fell upon the strange lady. With a smile she held out a ring
which he had given her on her twelfth birthday, when they were still
children, without a thought of the future. 'You and none other shall
be my wife,' he said, taking her hand, and leading her into the middle
of the company.

It is not easy to describe the scene that followed. Of course, nobody
understood what had occurred, and the king and queen imagined that
their son had suddenly gone mad. As for the princess her rage and fury
were beyond belief. The guests left the hall as quickly as they could,
so that the royal family might arrange their own affairs, and in the
end it was settled that half the kingdom must be given to the despised
princess, instead of a husband. She sailed back at once to her
country, where she was soon betrothed to a young noble, whom, in
reality, she liked much better than Grethari. That evening Grethari
was married to Geirlaug, and they lived happily till they died, and
made all their people happy also.

(From _Neuislaendischen Volksmae