Many fairy tales, both Russian and European, are characterized by the use of magical objects, the purpose of which is to help the heroes in carrying out their planned accomplishments and great feats. For example, making them invisible, invulnerable to evil, giving strength and endless capabilities to the body. One can confidently include walking boots as such artifacts. In what fairy tale is this device found, an element of clothing that gives the character wearing it enormous speed of movement in space? Or maybe there are several such works? For these and others, no less interesting questions our article answers.
From Ancient Greece
The essence and purpose of the attribute are more than clear. It is clear that such shoes did not exist in those days, and probably do not exist to this day (the exception is specialized developments perhaps for James Bond or the inventions of crazy inventors). But mention of it can be found with fair regularity in various fairy tales of some peoples of the world and in original ones written by specific storytellers. Where did such a miracle come from and in what fairy tale are there running boots, where, so to speak, do legs grow? The first known mention of such shoes is in ancient greek myths. Of course, not boots, but special sandals with porches that Hermes, who was also the divine postman, had. They helped him when he had to spread messages and cover vast distances in a matter of minutes. Of course, this will not be a completely correct answer to the question of which fairy tale has running boots. Because a myth is not exactly a fairy tale (and some scientists even believe that it is not a fairy tale at all). But still the root cause of the appearance of the magic item it becomes clear, as does its essence: to greatly accelerate movement in space.
Which fairy tale has running boots?
Now let's get down to the fairy tales themselves. Russian and European, original and folk, they also contain references to such a useful thing as walking boots. From which fairy tale the name took root among the people is difficult to say. Let's pay attention to several of the most popular ones at once.
"Prophetic dream"
In it, the main character is Ivan, the son of a merchant. The fairy tale is Russian, presented in the processing of the famous collector of oral literature of the people, Afanasyev. It tells the story of a Russian guy who disobeyed his father’s will. For this he was tied naked to a post and thrown in the middle of the road. The prince helps him, but soon Ivan angered him too, for which he was thrown into a stone bag. Then the prince nevertheless releases him in order to use him instead of himself in one important matter. And Ivan goes on a journey, equipping a small squad, dressed in similar caftans, numbering 12 people. In the forest, the young man meets the elders who inherited from his father: an invisibility hat, a flying carpet, and walking boots. And by deception he takes possession of powerful artifacts. Subsequently, with the help of them, he performs good deeds. Thus, to the question of which fairy tale has running boots, one of the answers is “Prophetic Dream.”
Fairy tale "The Enchanted Princess"
In it, a retired soldier - the main character - marries the princess, who temporarily took on the image of a bear. Here, too, by deception, he took possession of the same three magical devices, but for some reason he does not use the walking boots - this item. Which fairy tale mentions an artifact? This question can be answered: “The Enchanted Princess.”
Charles Perrault
In one of the original fairy tales of this famous storyteller (certainly based on folk materials) - “Tom Thumb” - there is a direct reference to seven-league boots. In some translations they are even referred to as walking boots. Main character steals them from the Ogre. In addition, Thumb gets a job as a messenger for the king and, with the help of this magical attribute, earns a lot of money, helping his family in need.
Other works
Another fairy tale has a tablecloth, running boots, an invisible hat and others. You can note from Russian folk tales: “Marya Morevna”, “Invisible hat, magic whip and seven-league boots”. In the latter, the attributes are offered by the devil, which indicates a somewhat negative attitude of the people towards such magic. You can also note such as “Divka”, where the magic boots had to burn, “Night Dances”, “Self-assembled Bag”, where the shoes go to the soldier. And, for example, in Nosov’s author’s fairy tale about Dunno, there is also a mention of miracles.
From foreign countries: in Hauff’s fairy tale about Little Muk, the hero’s magic shoes are moved over long distances, which he successfully uses for his own purposes. Andersen has a fairy tale “Galoshes of Happiness”, where the hero is also moved by magic shoes - only in time. And in Baum’s “The Wizard of Oz,” the magic of the shoes transports the main character home from her wanderings in a foreign land!
Let's sum it up
This is what they are - many-sided and variegated running boots. We have analyzed which fairy tales contain a magical attribute (and more than one!). But no matter how the magic shoes look, their main purpose remains the same in all works: fast movement. By the way, the famous Santa Claus also, undoubtedly, according to some sources, has running boots: somehow he manages to fly around all the children overnight and give them the gifts ordered in letters!
Once upon a time there lived a merchant, he had two sons: Dmitry and Ivan.
One evening their father said to them:
- Well, children, if anyone dreams of anything, tell me in the morning; and whoever conceals his dream, I will order him to be executed.
The next morning the eldest son comes and says to his father:
“I dreamed, father, that brother Ivan was flying high in the sky and twelve eagles; and it’s as if your favorite sheep has disappeared.
- What did you dream, Vanya?
- I will not say! - Ivan answered.
No matter how much his father forced him, he stubbornly resisted all the admonitions and kept repeating one thing: I won’t tell! Yes I won’t tell! The merchant got angry, called his clerks and ordered them to take his disobedient son and tie him to a post on the high road.
The clerks grabbed Ivan and, as they say, tied him tightly to a post. The good fellow had a bad time: the sun baked him, hunger and thirst tormented him.
It happened that a young prince was driving along that road; he saw the merchant’s son, took pity on him and ordered him to be released, dressed him in his clothes, brought him to his palace and began to ask:
-Who tied you to the post?
— Native father got angry.
- What have you done wrong?
“I didn’t want to tell him what I saw in my dream.”
- Oh, how stupid your father is to punish him so cruelly for such a trifle... What did you dream about?
- I won’t tell, prince!
- How can you not tell? I saved you from death, and you want to be rude to me? Speak now, otherwise it will be bad!
“I didn’t tell my father and I won’t tell you!”
The prince ordered him to be put in prison; soldiers immediately came running and took him to a stone bag.
A year passed, the prince decided to get married, got ready and went to a foreign state to woo Elena the Beautiful. That prince had a sister, and soon after his departure she happened to be walking near the dungeon itself.
Ivan, the merchant’s son, saw her through the window and shouted in a loud voice:
- Have mercy, princess, set me free! Maybe I can come in handy too. After all, I know that the prince went to Elena the Beautiful to woo; But he won’t get married without me, and maybe he’ll pay with his head. Tea, I myself heard how cunning Elena the Beautiful is and how many suitors she sent to the next world.
“Are you going to help the prince?”
“I could help, but the falcon’s wings are tied.”
The princess immediately gave the order to release him from prison.
Ivan, the merchant's son, recruited his comrades, and there were twelve of them, including Ivan, and they looked alike like brothers - tall in height, voice in voice, hair in hair. They dressed up in identical caftans, sewn to the same size, mounted good horses and set off on their journey.
We drove for a day, and two, and three; On the fourth, they approached a dense forest, and they heard a terrible scream.
- Stop, brothers! - says Ivan. - Wait a little, I’ll follow that noise.
He jumped off his horse and ran into the forest; looks - three old men are arguing in the clearing.
- Hello, old people! What are you arguing about?
- Do you want me to separate you?
- Do me a favor!
Ivan the merchant's son pulled his tight bow, placed three arrows and sent it in different directions; He tells one old man to run to the right, another to the left, and the third he sends straight ahead:
- Whichever of you brings the arrow first will receive the invisibility cap; whoever comes second will receive the magic carpet; and let the last one take the walking boots.
The old men ran after the arrows, and Ivan, the merchant’s son, took all the wonders and returned to his comrades.
“Brothers,” he says, “let your good horses go free and sit down on my magic carpet.”
Everyone quickly sat down on the magic carpet and flew to the kingdom of Helen the Beautiful.
They flew to her capital city, landed at the outpost and went to look for the prince. They come to his yard.
- What do you need? - asked the prince.
- Take us, good fellows, into your service; We will please you and wish you well from the bottom of our hearts.
The prince accepted them into his service and distributed them: some as cooks, some as grooms, some in different places.
That same day, the prince dressed up for the holidays and went to introduce himself to Elena the Beautiful. She greeted him kindly, treated him to all sorts of dishes and expensive drinks, and then began to ask:
“Tell me, Tsarevich, honestly, why did you come to us?”
- Yes, I want, Elena the Beautiful, to woo you; will you marry me?
- I guess I agree; just complete three tasks in advance. If you do, I will be yours, but if not, prepare your head for a sharp ax.
- Give me a task!
“I’ll have it tomorrow, but I won’t say what; Manage, Tsarevich, and bring your unknown to my mate.
The prince returned to his apartment in great distress and sadness. Ivan, the merchant’s son, asks him:
- Why, Tsarevich, are you unhappy? Ali, what annoyed Elena the Beautiful? Share your grief with me, it will be easier for you.
“So and so,” the prince answers, “Elena the Beautiful asked me such a problem that not a single sage in the world could solve it.”
- Well, this is still a small problem! Get some sleep; The morning is wiser than the evening, tomorrow we will judge the matter.
The Tsarevich went to bed, and Ivan, the merchant’s son, put on an invisibility cap and walking boots - and marched to the palace to see Helen the Beautiful; went straight into the bedroom and listened. Meanwhile, Elena the Beautiful gave the following order to her beloved maid:
- Take this expensive material and take it to the shoemaker; let him make a shoe for my foot, as soon as possible.
The maid ran where she was ordered, and Ivan followed her.
The master immediately set to work, quickly made a shoe and placed it on the window; Ivan the merchant's son took that shoe and quietly hid it in his pocket.
The poor shoemaker began to fuss; his work disappeared from under his nose; He already searched and searched, searched all corners - all in vain! What a miracle! - thinks. - No way, the evil one was joking with me! There was nothing to do, I took up the needle again, the other shoe worked and carried it to Elena the Beautiful.
- What a slowpoke you are! - said Elena the Beautiful. - How long did it take to get one shoe?
She sat down at her work table and began embroidering the shoe with gold, decorating it with large pearls, and setting it with semi-precious stones.
And Ivan immediately found himself, took out his shoe and did the same: which pebble she takes, that’s what he chooses; Where she sticks a pearl, there he also plants it.
Elena the Beautiful finished her work, smiled and said:
- The prince will show up with something tomorrow!
Wait,” thinks Ivan, “it’s still unknown who will outwit whom!”
He returned home and went to bed; at dawn he got up, got dressed and went to wake up the prince; woke him up and gave him a shoe.
“Go,” he says, “to Elena the Beautiful and show her the shoe - this is her first task!”
The prince washed himself, dressed himself up and galloped off to the bride; and her room is full of guests - all boyars and nobles, people of the Duma. As soon as the prince arrived, music immediately started playing, the guests jumped up from their seats, and the soldiers stood guard.
Elena the Beautiful brought out a shoe, studded with large pearls and set with semi-precious stones; and she herself looks at the prince and grins. The prince tells her:
“It’s a good shoe, but without a pair it’s good for nothing!” Apparently, we need to give you another one just like it!
With that word, he took another shoe out of his pocket and put it on the table. Here all the guests clapped their hands and shouted in one voice:
- Oh yes, prince! Worthy to marry our empress, Elena the Beautiful.
- But we’ll see! - answered Elena the Beautiful. - Let him perform another task.
Late in the evening, the prince returned home even more gloomy than before.
- Enough, prince, to be sad! - Ivan, the merchant’s son, told him. - Go to bed, the morning is wiser than the evening.
He put him to bed, and he put on his walking boots and an invisibility hat and ran to the palace to see Helen the Beautiful. At that very time she gave an order to her beloved maid:
- Go quickly to the poultry yard and bring me a duck.
The maid ran to the poultry yard, and Ivan followed her; the maid grabbed the duck, and Ivan grabbed the drake and came back the same way.
Elena the Beautiful sat down at the work table, took a duck, decorated its wings with ribbons and its crest with diamonds; Ivan the merchant's son looks and does the same thing to the drake.
The next day, Elena the Beautiful has guests again, music again; She released her duck and asked the prince:
— Did you guess my problem?
- You guessed it, Elena the Beautiful! Here's a couple for your duck, and the drake immediately lets go...
- Well done, Tsarevich! Worthy to take Elena the Beautiful for yourself!
- Wait, the path will fulfill the third task in advance.
In the evening the prince returned home so gloomy that he didn’t want to talk.
- Don’t worry, prince, better go to bed; morning is wiser than evening,” said Ivan, the merchant’s son.
He quickly put on his invisibility hat and walking boots and ran to Elena the Beautiful. And she got ready to go to the blue sea, got into the carriage and rushed at full speed; only Ivan, the merchant’s son, is not a step behind.
Elena the Beautiful came to the sea and began to call her grandfather. The waves swayed, and an old grandfather rose from the water - his beard was golden, his hair was silver. He went ashore:
- Hello, granddaughter! I haven't seen you for a long time: all your hair is tangled - comb it.
He lay down on her lap and fell into a sweet sleep. Elena the Beautiful is scratching her grandfather, and Ivan, the merchant’s son, is standing behind her.
She saw that the old man had fallen asleep, and plucked three silver hairs from him; and Ivan, the merchant’s son, snatched out a whole bunch of hair. Grandfather woke up and shouted:
- What you! It hurts!
- Sorry, grandpa! I haven’t scratched you for a long time, all my hair is tangled.
Grandfather calmed down and a little later fell asleep again. Helen the Beautiful tore out three golden hairs from him; and Ivan the merchant’s son grabbed him by the beard and almost tore it all off.
The grandfather screamed terribly, jumped to his feet and rushed into the sea.
Now the prince has been caught! - thinks Elena the Beautiful. “He can’t get that kind of hair.”
The next day guests gathered to visit her; The prince also arrived. Elena the Beautiful shows him three silver and three golden hairs and asks:
- Have you ever seen such a miracle?
- I found something to brag about! Do you want me to give you a whole bunch?
He took out and gave her a tuft of golden hair and a tuft of silver.
Elena the Beautiful got angry, ran to her bedroom and began to look into the magic book: was the prince guessing himself or who was helping him? And he sees from the book that it is not he who is cunning, but his servant, Ivan, the merchant’s son, who is cunning.
She returned to the guests and pestered the prince:
- Send your favorite servant to me.
- I have twelve of them.
- They came the one called Ivan.
- Yes, they are all called Ivans!
“Okay,” he says, “let everyone come!” “And in my mind I keep it in my mind: I’ll find the culprit even without you!”
The prince gave the order - and soon twelve good fellows, his faithful servants, appeared at the palace; everyone looks the same, height to height, voice to voice, hair to hair.
-Which one of you is the big one? - asked Elena the Beautiful.
They all shouted at once:
- I'm big! I'm big!
Well, she thinks, you simply won’t find out anything here! - and ordered eleven simple glasses to be brought, and the twelfth was golden, from which she always drank; I filled those glasses with expensive wine and began to treat the good fellows.
None of them takes a simple glass, everyone reaches for the golden one and lets snatch it from each other; They just made some noise and spilled the wine!
Elena the Beautiful sees that her joke was not a success; She ordered these fellows to be fed and watered and put to sleep in the palace.
This is how everyone fell asleep at night sound sleep, she came to them with her magic book, looked at that book and immediately recognized the culprit; She took the scissors and cut off his temple.
By this sign I will recognize him tomorrow and order his execution.
In the morning, Ivan, the merchant’s son, woke up, took his head with his hand, and his temple had been shorn; He jumped out of bed and let’s wake up his comrades:
- Get some sleep, trouble is coming! Take the scissors and cut your temples.
An hour later, Elena the Beautiful called them to her and began to look for the culprit... What kind of miracle? No matter who you look at, everyone's temples have been cut off. Out of frustration, she grabbed her magic book and threw it into the oven.
After that, she couldn’t make excuses; she had to marry the prince. The wedding was fun; For three days the people were having fun, for three days the taverns and taverns were open - whoever wants to come, drink and eat at the public expense!
As soon as the feasts were over, the prince got ready to go with his young wife to his state, and sent twelve good fellows ahead.
They went outside the city, spread out a flying carpet, sat down and rose above the walking cloud; They flew and flew and landed right next to that dense forest where they had abandoned their good horses.
As soon as they had time to get off the carpet, they saw an old man running towards them with an arrow. Ivan the merchant's son gave him the invisibility cap. After that, another old man came running and received a flying carpet, and then a third one - this one got walking boots.
Ivan says to his comrades:
- Saddle up your horses, brothers, it’s time to hit the road.
They immediately caught the horses, saddled them and rode off to their homeland.
They arrived and went straight to the princess; she was very happy with them and asked about her brother; How did he get married and will he be home soon?
“What should I reward you with,” he asks, “for such service?”
Ivan, the merchant’s son, answers:
- Put me in prison, in the old place.
No matter how the princess tried to persuade him, he still insisted on his own; The soldiers took him and took him to prison.
A month later the prince arrived with his young wife; the meeting was solemn: music played, cannons were fired, bells were rung, so many people gathered that you could even walk on their heads!
The boyars and all sorts of ranks came to introduce themselves to the prince; he looked around and began to ask:
- Where is Ivan, my faithful servant?
“He,” they say, “is sitting in prison.”
- Like in a dungeon? Who dared to imprison?
The princess tells him:
“You yourself, brother, took a shine to him and ordered him to be kept in tight captivity.” Do you remember how you asked him about some dream, but he didn’t want to tell?
- Is it really him?
- He is; I let him go to you for a while.
The prince ordered Ivan, the merchant's son, to be brought, threw himself on his neck and asked him not to remember the old evil.
“You know, prince,” Ivan tells him, “everything that happened to you was known to me in advance, I saw all this in a dream; That’s why I didn’t tell you about the dream.
The prince awarded him the rank of general, endowed him with rich estates and left him to live in the palace.
Ivan, the merchant's son, sent his father and older brother to live with him, and they all began to live and get along together, making good money.
Once upon a time there lived a miller who had three sons and one daughter. He loved her, but was always dissatisfied with his sons: they could not please their father. This made the brothers very sad; they lived poorly in their father’s house, and often they all sat together, sighing and groaning, and did not know what to do.
One day, when they were sitting like that again, one of the brothers remarked sadly:
- Oh, if only we had an invisibility cap, we would achieve everything!
- What should we do with her? - asked the other brother.
“The dwarfs who live in these mountains covered with forest,” explained the first, “have hats called invisible, and when you put on such a hat, you become invisible.” This is a wonderful thing, dear brothers! You can disappear in front of people who do not want to pay any attention to you, and from whom you never hear a friendly word; you can go wherever you want and take whatever you want; and not a single soul sees a person covered with such a hat.
- Yes, but how to get this treasure? – asked the youngest of the brothers.
“Dwarves are funny little people who love to have fun,” said the elder brother. “They sometimes take great pleasure in throwing their hats in the air.” Hops! - everyone sees a dwarf, - hops! - the dwarf catches his hat, puts it on and becomes invisible again. And here we need to arrange it so that as soon as the dwarf throws his hat, you quickly grab him and instantly catch the hat yourself. Then the dwarf becomes visible, and the one who catches the hat becomes the ruler of the entire dwarf world. Well, here you can either keep the hat for yourself to make yourself invisible, or demand so much treasure from the dwarfs that you could provide yourself with it for the rest of your life; after all, dwarfs possess all the metals hidden in the bowels of the earth, and know how to use miraculous powers nature.
- That's the thing! – exclaimed one of the brothers. - So go and get us invisible hats, or at least get yourself such a hat and help us, so that we too can live better in the future.
“I will do it,” said the elder brother, and soon set off for the forest-covered mountains. The path there was quite long, and only in the evening our fellow arrived at the mountains where the dwarfs lived. Arriving at one clearing, he noticed traces of somersaulting and dancing of dwarfs in the trampled grass, lay down right there and began to wait. Soon funny little ones began to appear; they jumped over each other, threw their caps and had fun in the most ridiculous way.
Suddenly one of the hats fell right next to him, he rushed to it, but the dwarf to whom it belonged turned out to be much more agile than him, he grabbed the hat himself and shouted:
- Diebio! Diebio!
At this cry, the whole company gathered and rushed at our fellow, like a bunch of ants at a beetle. He couldn't even defend himself, he was grabbed and taken deep underground where the dwarves lived.
Both brothers who remained at home were very sad and sad when they saw that their elder brother was not returning. And my sister felt terrible: she was kind, gentle, her heart often ached that her father was so rude and unfriendly to her brothers and only paid attention to her. The old miller kept grumbling:
- What sadness is it to me if one of the worthless boys went to hell - one less freeloader in the house! He’ll come back again, he’s used to eating freely - it’s a bad thing, you won’t live long enough!
However, day after day passed, and the young man did not return, and the father became more and more strict and grumpy. Both brothers grieved about their fate, and the middle brother said:
- Do you know, brother? Now I’ll go to the mountains, maybe I’ll get an invisibility hat. I imagine the matter like this: apparently, my brother got a hat and went for a walk in it around the world, he wants, first, to seek his own happiness, but he forgot to think about us. I'll be back as soon as I'm lucky. But if I don’t come back, it means I was unlucky, then goodbye, don’t remember it badly!..
They parted sadly, and now the middle brother went to the mountains covered with green forest. There, exactly the same thing happened to him as with his older brother. He saw the dwarfs and rushed for the hat, but one clever dwarf grabbed it and shouted:
- Diebio! Diebio! - And the whole gang of underground creatures rushed at him; he was tied so tightly that he could not move, and he was dragged into the underworld.
With increasing impatience I waited at home, at the mill, younger brother the return of the middle brother, but in vain. Then he became terribly sad, because he realized: the second brother was missing; the sister was also sad, only the father remained indifferent and only repeated:
- He's gone, he's gone! I don’t like living at home, so good riddance, the light is great, and in my house the carpenter also didn’t forget to cut holes for the doors. The donkey had a good life, no, he went on the ice to dance, slipped and broke his leg. Let the know-it-all wander wherever he wants! Why are you sad about the poor sinner? I'm so glad I got rid of it.
However, until now the younger brother found consolation by sharing his grief with other brothers, but now, when they all did not return, his situation became unbearable, and he said to his sister:
“Dear sister, I will also leave and will hardly return if the same thing happens to me as to my brothers.” My father doesn’t love me, even though I’m not to blame for anything. The abusive words that he used to bestow upon the three of us are now raining down on me alone, and I am unable to bear it. Farewell, stay happy!
The sister did not want to let go of her younger brother, whom she loved more than others, but he left secretly from her.
All the way he was only thinking about how to get the invisibility cap. As soon as he arrived at green mountains, he immediately recognized by the crumpled grass the area where the dwarfs gathered for their nightly dances, games and martial arts; At dawn he lay down there and waited until the dwarfs came and began to dance and throw their hats.
One of the little ones came almost close to him and threw his hat, but the smart guy didn’t move. He thought: “There is still time, let little man will be tamed and become bolder.” The dwarf, indeed, seeing that nothing could be done about it, took the cap, which was lying very close to the boy, and walked away. A little time later, another hat flew and fell near the boy. “Wow,” he thought, “now a whole rain of hats will fall,” but he waited until the third hat fell right on his hand. Scratch-scratch! – he grabbed her and quickly jumped to his feet.
- Diebio! Diebio! Diebio! - the dwarf to whom the hat belonged shouted loudly in his thin, crackling, piercing voice - and the whole dwarf world began to screech and swarm around him.
But the boy put on his hat, became invisible, and they could not do anything with him. Then they all began to cry and cry pitifully and began to ask the invisible thief to return the hat to them at all costs.
- Through thick and thin? – the smart guy asked the dwarfs. “This is a good deal for me, we can make a deal.” First I just need to figure out what exactly this “what” is. First of all, I ask: where are my brothers?
- They are below, in the depths of the green mountains! - answered the dwarf who owned the invisibility hat.
-What are they doing there?
- They serve us.
- So, they serve you, and you serve me. Alive! Submit them here! Their service is over, yours begins!
And so the underground people had to submit to the earthly man, since with the possession of the invisibility cap he achieved power over them.
Alarmed and saddened, the dwarfs now went with their lord to the door that covered the hole that led inside the green mountain; the door opened with a creak, and everyone quickly disappeared behind it. The dungeon consisted of many huge chambers, long galleries and small rooms and closets, adapted for the various needs of dwarfs. Before he had time to take a good look around, the boy’s first order was to bring his brothers to him. They appeared dressed as servants and shouted when they saw their brother:
- Oh, here you are, our dear, kind brother, our baby!
Here we are, all three of us together, but now we are all under the power of these underground spirits and will never see the light, the forests of the earth, or the flowering fields!
“Dear brothers,” objected the younger brother, “I think that there will be a holiday on our street too.” Bring here luxurious lordly clothes for my brothers and me! – he ordered the dwarfs, holding the precious invisibility cap tightly in his hands.
In one minute his order was carried out, the brothers changed clothes, and the conqueror of the dwarfs ordered a dinner to be served, consisting of the most exquisite dishes and the best wines. Then singing, music, theater and dancing began - in all these arts the dwarfs were great masters. Then they brought luxurious beds for rest. After resting in the entire underground kingdom, magnificent illumination was lit, a crystal carriage drawn by wonderful horses was brought, and the brothers went for a ride through the green mountains to examine everything that was remarkable about them. They drove through gorges strewn with precious stones, saw grandiose waterfalls, admired how metals bloomed like flowers - there were silver lilies, golden sunflowers, and copper roses - everything shone with brilliance, luxury and splendor.
Finally, the ruler of the dwarfs began to bargain with them over the cap of invisibility and offered them the following conditions. First, he demanded a drink of wonderful healing herbs, the power of which was so well known to the dwarfs; With this drink he wanted to heal his father’s sick heart and arouse in him love for all three sons. Secondly, he demanded such a treasure as should be given only to a royal bride - he ordered it to be given to his beloved sister. Thirdly, he demanded a whole cart of precious stones and artistic utensils, which only the dwarfs knew how to make, and another whole cart of gold coins - after all, they say: money seduces everyone, and the brothers so desperately wanted to live like rich people. Then he wished to have a carriage for each of his brothers. convenient device, with crystal glass, and so that each carriage had everything necessary: coachmen, horses, luxurious harness.
Listening to these orders, the dwarfs only shifted from foot to foot, bent over backwards, and had such a pitiful appearance that the stone would have been touched; but their groans and groans led to nothing.
“Well, if you don’t want to,” said the formidable ruler, “fine, then we’ll stay with you; It’s not bad to live here, and I’ll also take away your invisibility hats. Then you will see what will happen to you - they will kill everyone as soon as they see you. This is still not enough! I’ll climb up to the ground, pick up toads, and let them into each of you’s bed at night.
As soon as the ruler said the word “toad,” all the dwarfs threw themselves on their knees in despair and screamed:
- Have mercy! Have mercy! For the love of everything, not this! Just not this punishment! – After all, toads are horror and certain death for dwarfs. Sighing, they agreed to everything and immediately set off to get everything they needed and exactly fulfill the orders of their strict ruler.
Meanwhile, things were not going well at the gloomy miller's mill. When the youngest son also left, the old man grumbled:
- Well, he disappeared, as if he had fallen through the ground - that’s how it always is: raising children, and they turn your back. It’s good that the girl is with me, my treasure, my favorite!
The beloved sat quietly and cried.
- You're crying again! - the old man grumbled. “Do you think I believed that you were crying for your brothers?” You are dying for that unfortunate man who is going to marry you. He doesn’t have a penny, I don’t have a penny—all three of us together, that means, not a penny. Can you hear the mill knocking? Don't you hear? I can't hear either. The mill is standing still, I can’t work, and you can’t go to get married, or do you want to celebrate a beggarly wedding? What do you say to this?
My daughter listened to this kind of speech every day and was tormented by her secret grief.
And then one fine morning three carriages drove up to the mill; little coachmen drove the horses, little footmen opened the doors of the carriages; three handsome young men, dressed like princes, emerged from them.
A lot of servants began to fuss around the other carriages: they removed, unloaded, untied boxes, bales, heavy chests - and dragged all this to the mill. The miller and his daughter stood dumb with surprise.
– Good morning, father! Good morning, sister! Here we are! - All three brothers cried out at once. However, neither father nor daughter still moved and looked at them with bulging eyes.
- Let's clink glasses for our return, dear father! - exclaimed the eldest son, taking from the hands of one of the footmen a bottle of a noble drink, which he poured to the brim into a golden glass of the most skillful workmanship and handed it to his father. He drank, passed it on, and everyone drank. A wonderful warmth spread through all the old man’s veins and warmed his cold heart; this warmth became fire, the burning fire of love. The father began to cry, rushed to hug his sons, kissed and blessed them. Then the daughter’s fiancé appeared and he also tasted the wonderful drink.
From all this joy, the mill wheels, which had stood motionless for so long, quickly began to spin - clip and clap, - again and again, - clip and clap, - they are still spinning.
Anechka loved to play hide and seek with grandfather Vanya. But their game was special, not the same as when Anya played hide and seek with the other guys.
Grandfather Vanya’s room was small; there was really nowhere to hide in it.
There was a large bed, a wardrobe, a table, two chairs and a sofa with an amazing name - ataman.
It was on this chieftain that Anechka was hiding. She covered her eyes with her palms, lay face down and lay there - quietly and quietly!
And grandfather Vanya counted to five and began to look.
He touched Anya’s dress and said:
What is this? My Akulina probably left her things here...
Then he walked around the room for a long time, as if checking where Anya could be hiding?
And so grandfather Vanya made it interesting! He told out loud in detail that he didn’t find Anechka in the closet, and didn’t find him under the table... And Anya tried her best not to laugh prematurely. And she even breathed quietly...
Then grandfather Vanya said:
Here Anechka, all beaming with happiness, jumped up on the chieftain:
Here I am!
... Anya really felt invisible - and it was very fun and magical! It was as if she had the ability to disappear from the ordinary world visible to all people and become transparent as air - and then appear again.
... Once, when Anya grew up a little, after such a game of hide and seek, she said:
It would be great to be able to actually do this: disappear and appear whenever you want!
Why do you need to be able to do that, Anechka? - Grandfather Vanya asked her.
... And they began to discuss: why could it be useful for a person to be invisible?
Well, it’s not just to play hide and seek with the guys and always win! Always winning - it will even be boring!
And it turned out that a person doesn’t really need to be able to be invisible in the modern world.
Anya was even upset...
And then grandfather Vanya asked:
Do you want me to tell you a fairy tale about the invisibility hat?
Really want to! - Anya exclaimed in delight and made herself comfortable on the ataman.
Well, then - listen! - Grandfather Vanya said, smiling into his gray mustache.
... And he began to tell:
Once upon a time there was an invisible hat. She lived for a long, long time, she helped many heroes win battles with dragons, free princesses from captivity from evil sorcerers, and accomplish all sorts of other feats.
Yes, only times have changed.
The heroes and heroes have disappeared...
The invisible cap turned out to be in a museum of ancient life, lying on a display case under glass - and everyone calls it an “exhibit”, they are surprised: what a beautiful embroidery with gold thread, what intricate patterns! And no one knows that it’s magical anymore!
It's boring for the invisible hat to live like this! This is not life at all: lying on your side doing nothing!
She lies and thinks: how can she change her such monotonous life?
But it must be said that since the hat was not ordinary, but magical, she knew how to think like a person. Yes Yes! She lived for so many years on different wise heads - that she learned to be smart!
And then it happened that thieves came to the museum. They stole all sorts of old gold things, and at the same time they grabbed a hat: maybe they could sell it for a lot of money, after all, it’s an antique, the patterns are embroidered with gold thread!
And one thief, take it and put a hat on your head, because there was so much stolen goods that you couldn’t hold it in your hands.
He looked at himself in the mirror - but he wasn’t there...
He realized then how lucky he was: how convenient it is to steal when no one sees you!
He began to commit clever robberies one after another.
But it was just disgusting for the hat!
“I used to help heroes and warriors... And now - what have I come to: I found myself in the service of a thief! It would be better to lie in a display case like in a glass coffin than such a shame!” - she thought.
The thoughts of that thief, whose head she now had to visit every night, made her feel sick! And once, when he was stealing in a large store, the invisible cap tried: it caught on a shelf and fell to the floor.
But the thief did not notice this - and continues his sinful work, as if he were invisible. But now his actions have become visible to everyone!
Then the thief was caught!
And the invisibility hat was arrested along with him. But they just didn’t know about its magical properties...
... The invisibility cap lies on the table in the detective’s office - like material evidence...
And here it is autumn. It's cold in the office. And it blows from the window...
The detective put his hat on his head and at that very moment disappeared.
This detective was not stupid. He quickly realized how useful invisibility would be in his work.
He now began to catch criminals very cleverly.
At first, the invisibility hat was happy about the change in its fate: “Still, I’m helping to do a good deed! Although my new owner is not a hero, he does a useful job!”
... But then she got so tired of spying on crooks that she decided to somehow change her job.
One day she found herself in the hospital when a detective came there to interview a witness. At the hospital they gave him a white robe, and told him to leave his hat and other outerwear in the wardrobe.
This is where the invisible hat managed to fall off the hanger! It fell so well that it ended up in one of the bags that were given to sick children from their parents. And now even their parents were not allowed to visit these children: there was a quarantine.
So she ended up in one boy’s room between gifts.
And he - because of his illness - does not want to eat. And he doesn’t even look into the package.
The boy is lying and thinking, how can he hide? Because now the doctor will come and give him a painful injection.
And the invisibility hat easily understood any thoughts. After all, thoughts exist in a world invisible to ordinary eyes! And the invisibility hat understood that invisible world very well!
So she easily understands what the sick boy is thinking about. She just wants to jump out of the bag: “Here I am!” Put it on me quickly!”
And then the boy noticed something completely unusual between the oranges and apples in the bag. He pulled out the invisibility cap, was surprised - and put it on.
The doctor came into the room, but the sick boy was nowhere to be found... Panic began, nurses and orderlies began running throughout the hospital, looking for...
But at first the boy was happy, got up and walked along the hospital corridors: he really wanted to return home, he missed his mom and dad!
But then the boy became ill from his illness, and he fell exhausted. The invisibility cap was already trying to fall off the boy’s head so that he could be found as quickly as possible.
And she herself thinks: “What a mess I’ve caused! And how can I continue to be useful? I don’t know yet!”...
And the boy no longer puts on his hat, but speaks affectionately to her, as to a friend: he talks about his sorrows, about his grievances about his life, such an unhappy hospital stay, about his fears. And the hat is silent and listens. And he thinks: “How can I help in this trouble?”
One day a boy asked:
Hat, you are magical! Can you make the disease stop seeing me forever?
...The invisibility cap began to think about it...
She began to observe how the shadow was dark in the invisible with the eyes ordinary person world approaches the boy's body - and attacks him, gets into his body! That's when he starts to feel bad...
She just doesn’t know how to drive that shadow out...
And the boy began to put his hat under his pillow so that he would not be so lonely and scared at night.
And the hat decided: “To console my new friend, I will give him fabulous magical dreams show!"
In these dreams, the boy was strong, brave, healthy, and there were various interesting adventures with him. And in every such dream, he fought with evil - and won, and made the right, kind decisions, and always fulfilled them. He never became a coward, never cried, but was like those heroes whom the invisibility cap helped in former times.
And after each such dream the boy woke up stronger and fuller of strength!
And he wanted to become as quickly as he saw himself in his dreams! And he began to try his best! Now he even endured painful injections without fear - in order to recover faster!
Gradually, the dark energies completely disappeared from his body.
And when the evil shadow came again to intensify the illness again, it did not see the boy at all.
The invisibility cap managed to overcome the boy’s disease, which everyone called incurable!
The surprise of the doctors knew no bounds! And the boy was soon discharged from the hospital.
And before he was discharged, he gave the invisibility cap to the sick girl who was lying in the next ward. And he told her how this magical hat helped him get better.
I also began to come up with a hat for the girl fairy tales- so that the girl in them feels healthy, strong, beautiful, kind and affectionate.
And the girl’s illness also subsided, and then went away completely. Because the girl herself changed and tried very hard to recover.
So from that time on, magical healings began in that hospital.
Doctors are surprised! And the children pass the hat to each other!
There was only one thing that upset the invisibility hat now: that she was accomplishing very little! After all, there are so many sick children in the hospital!…
...And then it happened that one a little boy, whose hat at that time lived under his pillow and showed him magical dreams, told the doctor about it.
The doctor is a serious person, he doesn’t believe in the invisible and magical world. But healing is a fact!
They began to examine and study the hat with various instruments. Fabric on different tests they cut it off, pulled out the golden threads...
And this doctor never even put it on himself! And if he had put it on, then maybe the hat would have been able to whisper to him that it was his long life I learned that not only the body needs to be treated, but the soul needs to be helped to overcome the disease! They could do better together!…
Oh, how the Invisible Hat didn’t like all this! And she was no longer young, but here they tore off the lining and soaked her in all sorts of substances!...
She almost became disillusioned with medicine, although she understood that without medications and all sorts of procedures, she alone would not have been able to cope with the illnesses of her children.
But here - lucky again! That doctor gave it to the writer who was treated in that hospital.
The doctor told the writer about the stories of healing that happened to children and said:
Here's a plot for a fairy tale, enjoy it at your leisure!
... Well, the hat became good friends with the writer!
She will tell him a fairy tale - and he will write it down and read it to all the children the next morning!
And so they began to live!
... But only some children are healed in the hospital, and new ones are brought to the hospital to replace them...
... So, one day a clown - a young volunteer - came to that hospital to please the children. He showed them a funny performance, tried to make them laugh...
The invisibility cap is here and says to the writer:
Please give me to the clown!
How am I going to write fairy tales?
You can already compose healing fairy tales without me! You understood the most important thing: that diseases do not live where light and love shine in the souls! Such souls very quickly become invisible and invulnerable to disease!
And I will do real magic with this young man! We also need to help healthy children so that they don’t get sick - neither in body nor in soul! And - so that they grow not into thieves-villains, but into real heroes! We need to do this so that the magic, not fabulous, but genuine, returns to people’s lives! This would be the real deal for me!
And this young man is a very suitable person! After all, even the most magical, most magical hat cannot do anything sensible without Homo sapiens! Only such a person can transform his own life and help others do the same!
The writer went out into the corridor and saw a young clown standing: smoking and almost crying! On the face there is a smile from ear to ear with makeup, and the eyes are sad, very sad!
The writer tells him:
What, you want to help the kids, but you don’t know how?
Yes, I would like to: I feel sorry for them - to the point of tears!…
Do you know how to help them?
I know something! Just stop smoking cigarettes, friend! There will be less nasty stuff that children breathe in! Some people get sick because other people smoke next to them!
The young clown put out the cigarette and threw it into the trash...
That's it - I quit!
Forever?
Forever! Tell me, how can you help children?
Here's a gift for you! This is an invisible hat!
The young man took off his hat with a pom-pom, put on his invisibility hat - and then disappeared!
Only the writer’s body was reflected in the mirror...
Hello! - said the invisible hat to a new friend.
The writer confirmed:
Yes, she knows how to talk to people! And he can read your thoughts! And he will give you smart advice! And most importantly, she wants to learn with you how to better help people!
She taught me how to write fairy tales. And she promised to teach you a lot! I think that you will need it to show magical performances, to discover magical skills in people!
Grandfather Vanya looked carefully at his little listener and finished:
Well, Anechka, this is the end of the fairy tale. And what happened next - I don’t know.
... This time Anechka was so listened to that she never even interrupted Grandfather Vanya with her questions. Only now she asked:
Grandfather, what about the invisibility hat - is this a true story or a fable?
A little bit is true, a little bit is a fable. That same storyteller told me this story. We met him in that hospital. He also promised that he would write a book with fairy tales from the Invisibility Cap.
And storytellers - they are more inventors than me! So, you decide for yourself where in this fairy tale is fiction and where is the truth!
After all, real magic is not about being invisible with the help of an invisibility hat or flying through the air on a magic carpet, but about doing wonderful things that bring joy and benefit to other people!
Anechka loved to play hide and seek with grandfather Vanya. But their game was special, not the same as when Anya played hide and seek with the other guys.
Grandfather Vanya’s room was small; there was really nowhere to hide in it.
There was a large bed, a wardrobe, a table, two chairs and a sofa with an amazing name - ataman.
It was on this chieftain that Anechka was hiding. She covered her eyes with her palms, lay face down and lay there - quietly and quietly!
And grandfather Vanya counted to five and began to look.
He touched Anya’s dress and said:
What is this? My Akulina probably left her things here...
Then he walked around the room for a long time, as if checking where Anya could be hiding?
And so grandfather Vanya made it interesting! He told out loud in detail that he didn’t find Anechka in the closet, and didn’t find him under the table... And Anya tried her best not to laugh prematurely. And she even breathed quietly...
Then grandfather Vanya said:
Here Anechka, all beaming with happiness, jumped up on the chieftain:
Here I am!
... Anya really felt invisible - and it was very fun and magical! It was as if she had the ability to disappear from the ordinary world visible to all people and become transparent as air - and then appear again.
... Once, when Anya grew up a little, after such a game of hide and seek, she said:
It would be great to be able to actually do this: disappear and appear whenever you want!
Why do you need to be able to do that, Anechka? - Grandfather Vanya asked her.
... And they began to discuss: why could it be useful for a person to be invisible?
Well, it’s not just to play hide and seek with the guys and always win! Always winning - it will even be boring!
And it turned out that a person doesn’t really need to be able to be invisible in the modern world.
Anya was even upset...
And then grandfather Vanya asked:
Do you want me to tell you a fairy tale about the invisibility hat?
Really want to! - Anya exclaimed in delight and made herself comfortable on the ataman.
Well, then - listen! - Grandfather Vanya said, smiling into his gray mustache.
... And he began to tell:
Once upon a time there was an invisible hat. She lived for a long, long time, she helped many heroes win battles with dragons, free princesses from captivity from evil sorcerers, and accomplish all sorts of other feats.
Yes, only times have changed.
The heroes and heroes have disappeared...
The invisible cap turned out to be in a museum of ancient life, lying on a display case under glass - and everyone calls it an “exhibit”, they are surprised: what a beautiful embroidery with gold thread, what intricate patterns! And no one knows that it’s magical anymore!
It's boring for the invisible hat to live like this! This is not life at all: lying on your side doing nothing!
She lies and thinks: how can she change her such monotonous life?
But it must be said that since the hat was not ordinary, but magical, she knew how to think like a person. Yes Yes! She lived for so many years on different wise heads - that she learned to be smart!
And then it happened that thieves came to the museum. They stole all sorts of old gold things, and at the same time they grabbed a hat: maybe they could sell it for a lot of money, after all, it’s an antique, the patterns are embroidered with gold thread!
And one thief, take it and put a hat on your head, because there was so much stolen goods that you couldn’t hold it in your hands.
He looked at himself in the mirror - but he wasn’t there...
He realized then how lucky he was: how convenient it is to steal when no one sees you!
He began to commit clever robberies one after another.
But it was just disgusting for the hat!
“I used to help heroes and warriors... And now - what have I come to: I found myself in the service of a thief! It would be better to lie in a display case like in a glass coffin than such a shame!” - she thought.
The thoughts of that thief, whose head she now had to visit every night, made her feel sick! And once, when he was stealing in a large store, the invisible cap tried: it caught on a shelf and fell to the floor.
But the thief did not notice this - and continues his sinful work, as if he were invisible. But now his actions have become visible to everyone!
Then the thief was caught!
And the invisibility hat was arrested along with him. But they just didn’t know about its magical properties...
... The invisibility cap lies on the table in the detective’s office - like material evidence...
And here it is autumn. It's cold in the office. And it blows from the window...
The detective put his hat on his head and at that very moment disappeared.
This detective was not stupid. He quickly realized how useful invisibility would be in his work.
He now began to catch criminals very cleverly.
At first, the invisibility hat was happy about the change in its fate: “Still, I’m helping to do a good deed! Although my new owner is not a hero, he does a useful job!”
... But then she got so tired of spying on crooks that she decided to somehow change her job.
One day she found herself in the hospital when a detective came there to interview a witness. At the hospital they gave him a white robe, and told him to leave his hat and other outerwear in the wardrobe.
This is where the invisible hat managed to fall off the hanger! It fell so well that it ended up in one of the bags that were given to sick children from their parents. And now even their parents were not allowed to visit these children: there was a quarantine.
So she ended up in one boy’s room between gifts.
And he - because of his illness - does not want to eat. And he doesn’t even look into the package.
The boy is lying and thinking, how can he hide? Because now the doctor will come and give him a painful injection.
And the invisibility hat easily understood any thoughts. After all, thoughts exist in a world invisible to ordinary eyes! And the invisibility hat understood that invisible world very well!
So she easily understands what the sick boy is thinking about. She just wants to jump out of the bag: “Here I am!” Put it on me quickly!”
And then the boy noticed something completely unusual between the oranges and apples in the bag. He pulled out the invisibility cap, was surprised - and put it on.
The doctor came into the room, but the sick boy was nowhere to be found... Panic began, nurses and orderlies began running throughout the hospital, looking for...
But at first the boy was happy, got up and walked along the hospital corridors: he really wanted to return home, he missed his mom and dad!
But then the boy became ill from his illness, and he fell exhausted. The invisibility cap was already trying to fall off the boy’s head so that he could be found as quickly as possible.
And she herself thinks: “What a mess I’ve caused! And how can I continue to be useful? I don’t know yet!”...
And the boy no longer puts on his hat, but speaks affectionately to her, as to a friend: he talks about his sorrows, about his grievances about his life, such an unhappy hospital stay, about his fears. And the hat is silent and listens. And he thinks: “How can I help in this trouble?”
One day a boy asked:
Hat, you are magical! Can you make the disease stop seeing me forever?
...The invisibility cap began to think about it...
She began to observe how a dark shadow, in a world invisible to the eyes of an ordinary person, approached the boy’s body - and attacked him, crawling into his body! That's when he starts to feel bad...
She just doesn’t know how to drive that shadow out...
And the boy began to put his hat under his pillow so that he would not be so lonely and scared at night.
And the hat decided: “To console my new friend, I will show him fabulous magical dreams!”
In these dreams, the boy was strong, brave, healthy, and there were various interesting adventures with him. And in every such dream, he fought with evil - and won, and made the right, kind decisions, and always fulfilled them. He never became a coward, never cried, but was like those heroes whom the invisibility cap helped in former times.
And after each such dream the boy woke up stronger and fuller of strength!
And he wanted to become as quickly as he saw himself in his dreams! And he began to try his best! Now he even endured painful injections without fear - in order to recover faster!
Gradually, the dark energies completely disappeared from his body.
And when the evil shadow came again to intensify the illness again, it did not see the boy at all.
The invisibility cap managed to overcome the boy’s disease, which everyone called incurable!
The surprise of the doctors knew no bounds! And the boy was soon discharged from the hospital.
And before he was discharged, he gave the invisibility cap to the sick girl who was lying in the next ward. And he told her how this magical hat helped him get better.
The hat also began to invent fairy tales for the girl - so that the girl would feel healthy, strong, beautiful, kind and affectionate in them.
And the girl’s illness also subsided, and then went away completely. Because the girl herself changed and tried very hard to recover.
So from that time on, magical healings began in that hospital.
Doctors are surprised! And the children pass the hat to each other!
There was only one thing that upset the invisibility hat now: that she was accomplishing very little! After all, there are so many sick children in the hospital!…
... And then it happened that one little boy, whose hat at that time lived under his pillow and showed him magical dreams, told the doctor about it.
The doctor is a serious person, he doesn’t believe in the invisible and magical world. But healing is a fact!
They began to examine and study the hat with various instruments. The fabric was cut for various tests, the gold threads were pulled out...
And this doctor never even put it on himself! And if he had put it on, then maybe the hat would have been able to whisper to him about what she had learned over her long life: that not only the body needs to be treated, but the soul needs to help overcome the disease! They could do better together!…
Oh, how the Invisible Hat didn’t like all this! And she was no longer young, but here they tore off the lining and soaked her in all sorts of substances!...
She almost became disillusioned with medicine, although she understood that without medications and all sorts of procedures, she alone would not have been able to cope with the illnesses of her children.
But here - lucky again! That doctor gave it to the writer who was treated in that hospital.
The doctor told the writer about the stories of healing that happened to children and said:
Here's a plot for a fairy tale, enjoy it at your leisure!
... Well, the hat became good friends with the writer!
She will tell him a fairy tale - and he will write it down and read it to all the children the next morning!
And so they began to live!
... But only some children are healed in the hospital, and new ones are brought to the hospital to replace them...
... So, one day a clown - a young volunteer - came to that hospital to please the children. He showed them a funny performance, tried to make them laugh...
The invisibility cap is here and says to the writer:
Please give me to the clown!
How am I going to write fairy tales?
You can already compose healing fairy tales without me! You understood the most important thing: that diseases do not live where light and love shine in the souls! Such souls very quickly become invisible and invulnerable to disease!
And I will do real magic with this young man! We also need to help healthy children so that they don’t get sick - neither in body nor in soul! And - so that they grow not into thieves-villains, but into real heroes! We need to do this so that the magic, not fabulous, but genuine, returns to people’s lives! This would be the real deal for me!
And this young man is a very suitable person! After all, even the most magical, most magical hat cannot do anything sensible without Homo sapiens! Only such a person can transform his own life and help others do the same!
The writer went out into the corridor and saw a young clown standing: smoking and almost crying! On the face there is a smile from ear to ear with makeup, and the eyes are sad, very sad!
The writer tells him:
What, you want to help the kids, but you don’t know how?
Yes, I would like to: I feel sorry for them - to the point of tears!…
Do you know how to help them?
I know something! Just stop smoking cigarettes, friend! There will be less nasty stuff that children breathe in! Some people get sick because other people smoke next to them!
The young clown put out the cigarette and threw it into the trash...
That's it - I quit!
Forever?
Forever! Tell me, how can you help children?
Here's a gift for you! This is an invisible hat!
The young man took off his hat with a pom-pom, put on his invisibility hat - and then disappeared!
Only the writer’s body was reflected in the mirror...
Hello! - said the invisible hat to a new friend.
The writer confirmed:
Yes, she knows how to talk to people! And he can read your thoughts! And he will give you smart advice! And most importantly, she wants to learn with you how to better help people!
She taught me how to write fairy tales. And she promised to teach you a lot! I think that you will need it to show magical performances, to discover magical skills in people!
Grandfather Vanya looked carefully at his little listener and finished:
Well, Anechka, this is the end of the fairy tale. And what happened next - I don’t know.
... This time Anechka was so listened to that she never even interrupted Grandfather Vanya with her questions. Only now she asked:
Grandfather, what about the invisibility hat - is this a true story or a fable?
A little bit is true, a little bit is a fable. That same storyteller told me this story. We met him in that hospital. He also promised that he would write a book with fairy tales from the Invisibility Cap.
And storytellers - they are more inventors than me! So, you decide for yourself where in this fairy tale is fiction and where is the truth!
After all, real magic is not about being invisible with the help of an invisibility hat or flying through the air on a magic carpet, but about doing wonderful things that bring joy and benefit to other people!