Maria would have refused this if she dared, but her father was very willing to allow it. For three days the magician disappeared, but at the end of that time he came again, and now it was a dress of woven moonbeams that he brought with him. If the other dress was beautiful this was ten times more so. The eyes could hardly bear to look at it, it was so bright.
Maria tried to pretend she was delighted, but as soon as she could she stole away to see her fairy godmother once more, and to tell her how the second trial had come out.
The fairy listened and shook her head. “My poor child, I fear this marriage must be. Still there is one more task you may set him, and this time tell him to bring you a dress woven entirely of sunbeams. This will be far more difficult for him to procure than either of the others, but if he should succeed in doing it there is no help for it, you will be obliged to marry him.”
As soon as Maria heard this she burst into tears, but her godmother comforted her. “Listen,” said she, “even though I cannot preserve you from this marriage, I may be able to save you in the end. As soon as the wedding is over the magician will take you away in a coach to carry you to his own country. Upon his head he will wear a velvet cap, and in this cap a long feather. Look well at the feather, for slipped over it is the magic ring. It is he who stole it from the casket, for he knew it would not fit him, and he feared to stand the test. After you are married to him, however, he will no longer be afraid to let you see he has it. You must manage in some way to get this ring from him, for if you succeed in escaping finally you will have need of it. And now listen further to what you must do.” The fairy then told Maria that she would make a hollow wooden figure of an old woman for her. This she would hide in a certain spot in the forest near to which the magician’s coach must pass. Just before they reached this place, Maria must make some excuse to leave the coach, and must hide herself in the wooden figure. She might then safely walk wherever she wished to go, for even if the magician met her he would certainly never guess that the figure of that ugly old woman contained his bride.
Maria thanked the fairy with tears of gratitude, and hastened home, and this time, too, nobody guessed that she had been away.
Soon the magician came to ask her what she would set him as a third task.
“I wish you to bring me another dress,” said Maria, “and this time it is to be made entirely of sunbeams.”
When the magician heard this the blood rushed to his face, and his eyes became like hot coals.
“You are not the one who thought of this,” he cried. “You shall have it, but if I did but know who was back of this wish of yours he should suffer for it, whoever he is.”
Maria was left trembling with fear, and for three days the magician was not seen by anyone. At the end of that time he reappeared, and this time it was the dress of sunbeams that he had brought back with him. If the others had been beautiful this was far beyond them, and it was so bright that the pages who carried it could hardly bear the light of it in their eyes.