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Once, there was a rich man with three daughters. He wanted to see how much they loved him.
So he said to the first daughter, ‘How much do you love me, my dear?’
‘I love you as much as I love my life,’ she said.
Satisfied, he asked the second daughter, ‘How much do you love me, my dear?’
‘I love you more than anything in the world,’ she said.
Satisfied, he asked the third daughter, ‘How much do you love me, my dear?’
The third daughter was more creative than the other two. She often got into trouble by saying clever things.
So she said, ‘I love you like fresh meat loves salt.’
Her father frowned. ‘You don’t love me at all!’ he cried. ‘Get out of my house.’
And so he threw her out of the house.
The girl cried and cried, but she had to find a way to live. So she walked until she reached a marsh. There, she took lots of long grass and made it into a cloak. The cloak covered her whole body, and hid her expensive clothes.
Then she walked until she came to a big house. She decided she would not tell them she had been thrown out. She would pretend she was just a young woman looking for work.
‘Do you want a maid, or maybe a cook?’ she said.
‘No, we don’t!’ they said.
‘I don’t have anywhere to go,’ she said. ‘I don’t need wages, just some food and a place to sleep. I’ll do anything, and I promise I won’t get into trouble.’
‘Alright,’ they said. ‘You can make soup and wash the pots.’
So the girl stayed there and worked as a maid. She made soup, washed the pots and did all the work that nobody else wanted to do. Because she had no name, they called her Cloak of Grass.
One day, there was a dance happening, on the other side of the marsh. Everyone could go and dance, and see all the rich people.
The people in the house asked Cloak of Grass if she wanted to go, but she said she was too tired, and stayed at home.
But once they were gone, she took off her cloak of grass, cleaned herself and went to the dance. She had the nicest clothes there, and everyone looked at her.
The dance was being held by a lord, and the lord’s son saw Cloak of Grass and fell in love with her. He danced with her three times that night, and didn’t want to leave her.
But when the dance was finished, Cloak of Grass went home and put the cloak back on. Then she pretended to be asleep.
The next morning, the people of the house said, ‘You missed something very special, Cloak of Grass!’
‘What was that?’ she said.
‘We saw the most beautiful woman in the world. The lord’s son couldn’t take his eyes off her.’
‘Oh, I wish I could have seen her!’ said Cloak of Grass.
‘Don’t worry. There’ll be another dance this evening, and we’re sure she’ll be there.’
That evening, everyone went to the dance again. Cloak of Grass told them she was too tired, but once they were gone, she took off her cloak, cleaned herself and went to the other side of the marsh.
The lord’s son had been hoping to see her, and he was very happy when she came. They danced all night, and he never took his eyes off her.
Before the dance was over, she disappeared and went home. When the maids came back, they found her in her cloak of grass, pretending to be asleep.
The next day, they said, ‘Cloak of Grass, you should have been there. The beautiful woman was there again, and the lord’s son never took his eyes off her.’
‘Oh, I wish I could have seen her!’ said Cloak of Grass.
‘Don’t worry. There’ll be another dance this evening. You really have to come this time. She’ll definitely be there.’
So in the evening, Cloak of Grass told them again that she was too tired, and waited for them to leave. Once they had left, she took off her cloak and went to the other side of the marsh.
When the lord’s son saw her, he was really happy. He danced with her again and again, and asked her lots of questions. But she wouldn’t tell him her name or where she was from.
So he gave her a ring and said that he must see her again, or he would die.
But before the dance was over, Cloak of Grass ran away and went home. The maids once again found her pretending to be asleep.