The Old Woman in the Wood
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The Old Woman in the Wood is a German fairy tale collected by the Brothers Grimm, tale number 123. It is Aarne-Thompson type 442.
[edit] Synopsis
A poor servant girl travelled with the family she served when robbers attacked them. She hid behind a tree, but no one else survived. She lamented her fate, and a dove came to her, with a golden key. It told her to unlock a tree, and she found food. In the evening, it brought her another key, for a tree with a bed. She lived like this for many days, when the dove asked her to do something for it. She agreed. It told her to go to a house and go in. An old woman would greet her, but she should not answer; she should open an inner door, which will reveal a room full of splendid rings, but she should take a plain one.
The old woman was quite angry, but the girl did not heed her. Then, when she could not see the plain ring, she saw the old woman trying to carry off a bird cage. She took the bird cage away from her; it held a bird, which held the plain ring in its beak. She took it outside and waited against a tree. Two branches turned into arms about her as the tree turned into a handsome man who kissed her and told her that the witch had turned him into a tree, and for two hours a day, a dove, and she had freed him. All his attendants turned back from trees as well, and he being a king's son, they went to his father's kingdom and married.
