She sang songs she had learned from the birds, but her voice surpassed theirs in beauty. He played the tambourine with the grace of a Bohemian dancer, yet no gypsy had ever handled the instrument so lightly, making the little brass plates jingle. They wandered down country lanes with their music. Who were they? This question would have baffled them. They only remembered that they had never slept in a bed or eaten at a table. People who lived in houses and dined on tablecloths were not their kin; they had no family. When they were tiny, barely able to speak, they met on a road—she emerging from a bush, he from a ditch—abandoned by their mothers. Laughing, they took each other's hands. It drizzled that day, but beyond the parting clouds, the hills gleamed golden, and they walked toward the sun. From then on, their only plan was to follow the good weather. They would have surely perished from thirst and hunger if not for the streams flowing through watercress beds and the kind women in villages who occasionally tossed them scraps too hard for the chickens. It was heartbreaking to see these vagabond children, so scrawny and pale. But one morning, as they woke in the grass at the foot of a tree, they were surprised to find they had slept with their mouths touching. They liked the feel of their lips together and continued the kiss with open eyes. From that moment, they cared no more about their hardships. They were happy, and no poverty could overshadow their love. Clad in ragged garments through which the sun burned and the rain soaked them, they were not envious of those wearing cool clothes in summer and fur coats in winter. Old rags were bearable when beneath them beat hearts full of love. Many a grand lady would trade her finest dress for the skin of a poor but pretty girl. All day long, they traveled from village to village, stopping before the houses of the rich and the inns where cheerful peasants dined. She sang her songs, and he played his tambourine. When they received a few pennies—more than once, as they were delightful to see and hear—they were content. If they got nothing, they simply went to bed hungry. An empty stomach is no hardship when the heart is full. Hungry souls cannot complain when love offers, under the stars at night, the divine feast of kisses.
Once, however, they felt utterly desolate. It was bitterly cold, the north wind blowing, and they had received no alms for three days. Weak and stumbling, each could barely support the other, and they sought refuge in a barn open to all the winds. Despite being entwined in each other’s arms, embracing fervently, they shivered miserably. Even their kisses reminded them of their hunger. Poor things!
Despairing for today, they worried about tomorrow. What would they do if no one helped them? Would they have to die so young, abandoned by all, on a pile of hard stones on the road, harder than human hearts?
“What!” she exclaimed. “Will we never have what others have? Is it too much to ask for a little fire to warm us, a little bread for supper? It’s cruel to think so many people sleep comfortably in warm houses while we shiver like fledglings without feathers or a nest.”
He said nothing, only wept.But suddenly, they might have thought they were dead and in paradise, so magnificent was the light around them, and so radiant, like an angel, was the lady approaching in a vermilion brocade dress, a golden wand in her hand.
“Poor little ones,” she said. “I’m touched by your plight and want to help. After being poorer than the most wretched, you’ll soon have more wealth than the richest. When you open your mouths, gold coins will spill out, as many as you wish.”
Hearing this, they thought they were dreaming.“Oh, my lady! How can this be?”
“I am a fairy; nothing is impossible for me. From now on, every time you open your mouths, gold coins will come out. You can have as much wealth as you desire.”
With that, the fairy vanished. Astonished, they stood with their mouths open, and from their lips fell ducats, sequins, florins, and doubloons, raining gold!
Time passed, and soon the world talked of nothing but a duke and duchess living in a palace as vast as a town and as brilliant as a starry sky. The walls, made of the rarest marbles, were encrusted with amethysts and chrysoprases. The exterior splendor was nothing compared to the interior. I could describe all the precious furniture, golden statues, and jeweled chandeliers, but it would be endless. The marvels blinded the eyes. In this palace, the hosts held unparalleled feasts. Tables long enough to seat an entire population were laden with the finest delicacies and famous wines. Carvers sliced Tartary pheasants on golden platters, and cupbearers poured Canary wine into cups made of single fine stones. Any starving person stumbling into the dining room would be astonished and overjoyed! Guests admired and praised the hosts who treated them so royally. The duke and duchess also lifted spirits by letting gold coins tumble from their mouths when they ate or spoke. Servants collected the coins in baskets and distributed them to all the guests after dessert.
Their fame spread so far that it reached the land of the fairies. The fairy who had appeared in the barn decided to visit her protégés to see their happiness and receive their thanks.
But when she entered the sumptuous bedroom where the duke and duchess had just retired, she was shocked. Instead of joy, she found them at her feet, eyes filled with tears.
“Is it possible?” said the fairy. “Are you not happy with your lot?”
“Alas, my lady, we’re so unhappy we’ll die of heartache if you don’t take pity on us!”
“What! Don’t you find yourselves rich enough?”
“We’re too rich!”
“Does it displease you to see gold coins always falling from your lips? Would you prefer diamonds or sapphires?”
“Ah, no, please!”
“Tell me, then, what troubles you, for I cannot guess.”
“Great Fairy, warmth, a soft bed, and food are wonderful, but nothing compares to kissing the one you love! Now, each time we kiss, out come detestable sequins or ducats, and we end up kissing gold!”
“Ah!” said the fairy. “I hadn’t thought of that. But there is no remedy, and you must accept it.”
“Never! Please, take back your gift!”
“Yes, I can. But you’ll lose all your riches.”
“That doesn’t matter to us!”
“Let it be as you wish,” said the fairy, touching them with her wand. They found themselves once again in the cold wind, in a barn open to all the winds, starving and shivering like fledglings. Yet they did not complain and were happy, lips on lips.