The Sea King looked after his children alone, and his mother kept house for him. She was a wise woman and a very caring grandmother to the six little sea-princesses. They were all lovely, but the youngest was the prettiest of them all. Her skin was soft and delicate, and her eyes were as blue as the sea. But, just like all the others, she had no feet, and her body ended in a fish’s tail.

She made her grandmother tell her all she knew of the world above the ocean and nothing made her happier than to hear these stories. “When you turn fifteen,” said her grandmother, “you will be allowed to swim up out of the sea, sit on the rocks in the moonlight and to watch the ships sailing by; and then you will see all I am telling you about. You’re all a year apart in age, so you will have to wait five years for your turn to come.” Sadly she was the one who longed the most for her turn to come, and yet she had the longest to wait.

A year later the second sister was allowed to rise to the surface of the water, and to swim about where she wished. She rose just at sunset, and this, she said, was the most beautiful sight of all. The whole sky looked like gold with violet and rose-colored clouds spread on it, and it all reflected in the water.

The fourth sister was more fearful. She didn’t approach the shore but stayed in the sea. The sky above looked like it was made of glass, she said, and this was the most beautiful thing.

At last the youngest princess reached her fifteenth year and she rose to the surface of the water. The sun had just set as she raised her head above the waves. The sea was calm, and the air mild and fresh, but there were clouds glowing with purple and gold. Through the glimmering twilight the evening star shimmered in all its beauty. A large ship was anchored nearby.

When the Prince appeared on deck the sailors lit a hundred rockets into the air, making the night as bright as day. They scared the little mermaid so much that she dived underwater. But she soon resurfaced, and then it seemed as if all the stars in the sky were falling around her. She had never seen fireworks before.

It was pitch black and she couldn’t see anything, but then lightning struck and she was able to scan the deck. She couldn’t see the prince anywhere, so she swam to find him, forgetting that the beams and the planks could hurt her too. She dived a few times before she found him. His eyes were closed and his breathing was very weak. If it wasn’t for the little mermaid, the prince would have died. She held his head above the water and let the waves drift them to the shore.

His breathing was steady and she longed for him to open his eyes and fall in love with her instantly. When the bells began to ring in the great white building nearby, a number of girls came out into the garden. The little mermaid hid herself behind tall rocks in the water and waited to see whether they would find the prince.

Her sisters met her joyfully and asked her what had taken her so long but she didn’t answer. She had always been quiet, and now she was even more so. She would often swim up to the place where she had left the prince, but she never once saw him. Her only comfort was the beautiful statue, which looked like him. At last she couldn’t keep the secret any longer and she told one of her sisters all about it. When you tell someone a secret, it doesn’t stay secret for very long and soon all the other sisters knew. In an attempt to help her youngest sister, one of the mermaids asked her closest friends who the prince was, and she soon found out who he was and where he came from.

The little mermaid grew more and more fond of human beings. One day she asked her grandmother, “Do humans live forever?” “They die just like we do, but their life is shorter than ours. We canlive to be three hundred years old, and then weturn into sea foam, while humans’ souls live forever.” “I wish I were a human and had an immortal soul if only for a day,” the little mermaid exclaimed.

That same evening there was a ball at the Sea King’s palace. All the mermaids and mermen were dancing and singing happily but the little princess was dreaming of the world above. “I will go to the sea witch for advice while my sisters are at the ball. She will help me, although I’m so afraid of her,” she thought.

“I will prepare a drought for you, which you must drink before the sun rises tomorrow. Swim to the land, drink it, then you will see how your tail turns into legs. Of course, you will be in great pain from that moment on and every time you walk or dance you will feel as if hundreds of sharp knives were cutting them. You will still have the gracefulness of a mermaid. Can you endure such pain?” “Yes, I can,” said the little princess, but her voice was trembling. “There is more. You should know that once your fish’s tail turns into legs, you will no longer be able to get it back, nor can you return to your father’s castle. You must win the prince’s love and you should get married, so that you can get an immortal soul. If he marries someone else, your heart will break and you will turn into foam. Are you sure you want this destiny?” the witch asked again. “Yes, I do,” answered the little mermaid, pale as the grave. “That’s not all. You must pay me for this and the price is high. I want your voice as it is the sweetest voice in the sea kingdom. The prince will not hear your beautiful songs, because I will have to cut your tongue,” the evil woman continued. “But what is left for me?” said the little mermaid. “You have your beautiful body, graceful walk, lovely hair and face. These are enough to enchant a man’s heart. Now stick out your tongue, so that I can start preparing the draught, which will turn your fish tail into legs.”

She arrived at the shore when it was still dark and drank the magic draught. Instantly, she felt a cutting pain, so strong that she fainted on the rocks.

The prince asked her who she was and where she came from, but she only looked at him with her big, beautiful eyes, unable to answer. He then offered her his hand and helped her stand up. The pain in her feet was of a thousand needles but still she stepped next to him as light as a feather and the prince thought he had never seen such a graceful girl. He brought her to the palace, where servants dressed her in a beautiful golden robe.

The days passed and the prince loved her more and more each day, but he loved her as a child. “You remind me of the girl, who once saved my life when I was drowning. I haven’t found her yet, but I remember she found me on the shore and saved my life. You remind me so much of her and you are devoted to me just like her. I am so thankful for you and we will never separate, my dearest foundling.”

Very soon it was announced that the prince was to marry and that the daughter of a neighboring king would be his wife. This news saddened her very much but the prince calmed her when he told her, “I will go and see the princess as my parents wish, but I will not bring her home. I can only marry the girl who saved me that you look so much like. If I were forced to choose a bride, I would rather choose you, my speechless foundling.”

Time passed and it was time for their wedding day. “Oh, I am so happy that my dreams have come true and you can be here on my happy day, my foundling,” he said to the little mermaid, as they were walking down the church aisle. The little mermaid, dressed in silk and gold, held up the bride’s veil. She smiled at him but she didn’t hear the festive music, and her eyes saw nothing of the holy ceremony. She thought her own death, which was going to happen very soon.

The little mermaid took the knife and entered the bridal tent. She bent down over the prince and kissed his forehead. Then she looked at the sky which grew brighter and brighter. She then heard the prince whisper the name of his bride and the knife trembled in her hand. She threw it far away from her into the waves and the water turned red where it fell. She took one last glance at the prince, and then she threw herself into the sea, thinking her body was dissolving into foam.

“And we may even get it sooner,” added another, “because we can enter the houses of men, where there are children, and every day we find a good child, our time is shortened. The child does not know that when we fly through the room, we smile at his good behaviour and it takes out one year of our three hundred years. But when we see a naughty child, we shed tears of sorrow, and for every tear a day is added to our time of trial!”