Once, a king made the unfortunate mistake of joking about the large nose of a forest enchantress. Instantly, she appeared before him. Fixing him with an angry stare, she declared, "You shall have a son born with an enormous nose. It will remain until the moment he realizes how ridiculous it truly is."
The king was unconcerned, reasoning his son would notice such a nose early on.
Soon, Queen had a son, Prince Andre. He had beautiful blue eyes and a sweet mouth, but alas, his nose was so huge it covered half his face. The Queen was distraught, but her ladies assured her it was a noble "Roman nose," common among heroes. Devoted to her child, the Queen was comforted.
Andre was raised with great care. From the moment he could speak, he was told dreadful tales about people with short noses. Only those with similarly large noses were allowed near him. Courtiers, seeking favor, pulled their own noses daily, but none could match the Prince's. His history lessons emphasized that all great figures had long noses, and his room was adorned with portraits of large-nosed individuals. Thus, Prince Andre grew up convinced a long nose was the pinnacle of beauty.
After his twentieth birthday, the Queen decided it was time for him to marry. Portraits of princesses were brought before him. Among them was Princess Rosebud, the daughter of a great king. Andre was instantly captivated by her beauty, though she possessed a charmingly small nose. This caused great embarrassment among the courtiers, who were accustomed to mocking small noses. Two were banished for disrespectfully mentioning Rosebud's nose. Learning their lesson, the others held their tongues. One even flattered the Prince by saying that while long noses were essential for men, a small nose could be attractive on a woman.
Delighted, Prince Andre sent ambassadors to ask for Princess Rosebud's hand in marriage, which was granted. Eager to meet his bride, he traveled a great distance. However, just as he was about to kiss her hand at their meeting, the enchantress appeared like lightning, snatched Rosebud, and vanished!
The Prince vowed not to return until he found her. He rode off alone. As he journeyed through towns, people everywhere remarked on the size of his nose. He thought them all mad and jealous of their own small noses. Years passed.
The enchantress had imprisoned Rosebud in a crystal palace hidden deep in the woods. By chance, the Prince eventually found it. Seeing his bride's reflection in the crystal walls filled him with joy. He tried with all his might to break the prison but failed utterly. In despair, he tried to at least speak to her. Rosebud stretched her hand through a crack so he could kiss it. But no matter how he turned, his enormous nose always got in the way. For the first time, he realized its true length and exclaimed, "Well, it must be admitted that my nose really is quite big!"
Instantly, the crystal prison shattered.
"Foolish prince!" cried the enchantress. "It took you all these years to see the truth! You were so desperate to believe yourself perfect that you ignored everyone. Only when your nose blocked your own desire did you acknowledge it!" Laughing, she vanished.
The Prince's nose returned to a normal size. He and Princess Rosebud were married in a grand ceremony. In the years that followed, King Andre listened with one ear to flattery and with the other for honest counsel. He became known as a wise and thoughtful king, ruling happily with his beloved Queen Rosebud.