Now, there are those who believe that Donkey Skin had been aware of the prince in her heart at the moment he had looked through the keyhole in her door, and then, looking out of her little window, she had seen how young, handsome and well built he was. The memory of him had remained with her and she often thought about him and sighed over him. However, whether or not she had seen him, or had heard him spoken of in glowing terms, Donkey Skin was overjoyed to think that she might become known to him. She shut herself in her little room, threw off the ugly skin, washed her face and hands, did her hair, put on a beautiful bodice of bright silver and an equally beautiful skirt, and then set about making the much desired cake. She took the finest flour, the freshest eggs and the best butter, and while she was stirring them, whether intentionally or not, a ring that she had on her finger fell into the batter and was mixed into it. When the cake was ready she muffled herself in her horrible skin and gave it to the queen’s messenger, asking him for news of the prince. The man did not bother to reply, but took the cake and ran back with it to the palace.

When the cake was delivered to the prince he took it greedily from the hands of the messenger, and ate it so quickly that the doctors who were present said that such haste was not a good sign. Indeed, the prince almost choked on the ring, which he had come close to swallowing in one of the pieces of cake. However, he carefully extracted it from his mouth, and his desire for the cake was forgotten as he examined the fine emeralds set in a gold ring, a ring so small that he knew it could only be worn on the prettiest little finger in the world.

The prince kissed the ring a thousand times, put it under his pillow and drew it out to look at it whenever he thought no one was watching. He began to torment himself, planning how he could see the owner of the ring, not daring to believe that if he asked for Donkey Skin she would be allowed to come, and not daring to say what he had seen through the keyhole for fear of being laughed at for being a dreamer. The fever came back and the doctors, not knowing what else to do, told the queen that the prince’s illness was love, whereupon the queen and the unhappy king ran to their son.

“My son, my dear son,” cried the king, “tell us the name of the girl you desire and we swear that we will give her to you, even if she is the lowest of slaves.”

The queen, embracing the prince, agreed with everything that the king had said, and the son, moved by their tears and embraces, said, “My father and mother, I have no desire to make a marriage that doesn’t please you.” Drawing the emerald from under his pillow, he added, “To prove the truth of this, I wish to marry whoever owns this ring. It is unlikely that anyone who has such a pretty finger is a country girl or a peasant.”

The king and queen took the ring, examined it very curiously and agreed with the prince that it could belong only to the daughter of a good house. Then the king embraced his son, urged him to get well and went out. He ordered the drums and horns and trumpets to be sounded throughout the town, and the heralds to announce that the girl whose finger a certain ring would fit would marry the heir to the throne.

First the princesses arrived, then the duchesses, the countesses and the baronesses, but although they did all they could to make their fingers small, none of them could put on the ring. So the country girls had to be tried, but pretty as they were, they all had fingers that were too fat. The prince, who was feeling better, carried out the fittings himself. At last it was the turn of the chambermaids, but they fared no better. Then, when everyone else had tried, the prince asked for the kitchen maids, scullery maids and shepherdesses. They were all brought to the palace, but their coarse, red, short fingers would hardly go through the tiny golden hoop as far as the nail.

“You have not brought that Donkey Skin, who made me the cake,” said the prince. Everyone laughed, because she was so dirty and unpleasant and couldn’t possibly expect to be included in the ring fitting.

“Let someone fetch her at once,” said the king. “It will not be said that I left out the lowliest.” And, laughing and mocking, the servants ran to fetch the goose girl.

The princess, who had heard the drums and the cries of the heralds, had no doubt that the ring was the cause of all the uproar. She loved the prince, but since true love is timid and has no vanity, she was constantly afraid that some other lady would be found to have a finger as small as hers. So she was overjoyed when the messengers came and knocked on her door. Since she knew that they were seeking the owner of the right finger on which to place her ring, some impulse had caused her to do her hair very carefully and to put on her beautiful silver bodice and her skirt with the flounces and the silver lace trimming studded with emeralds. At the first knock she quickly covered her finery with the donkey skin and opened the door. The visitors, jeering, told her that the king had sent for her so that he could marry her to the prince. Then, laughing loudly, they led her to the prince, who was astonished at the way she was dressed, and found it hard to believe that this was the majestic and beautiful lady he had seen. Sad and confused, he asked, “Is it you who lives at the end of that dark passage in the third yard at the farm?”

“Yes, your highness,” she replied.

“Show me your hand,” said the prince, trembling and heaving a big sigh.

Imagine how astonished everyone was! The king and the queen, the chamberlains and all the courtiers were struck dumb when, from beneath that black and dirty skin, came a delicate little pink and white hand, and the ring slipped easily onto the prettiest little finger in the world. Then the princess shrugged her shoulders and the skin fell from them. She looked so enchanting that the prince, weak though he was, fell to his knees, and held her so closely to him that she blushed. But that was barely noticed, because the king and queen came to embrace her and ask her if she would marry their son.

The princess, confused by all the attention and by the love of the handsome young prince, was about to thank them when, suddenly, the ceiling opened, and the Lilac Fairy was lowered into the room in a chariot made of lilac branches and flowers.