L23C. Break an object in half. .16.28.31.32.

While trying to free himself, the captured character changes his appearance in succession. The last transformation is a small wooden object (usually a spindle). When this object is broken in half, the character permanently regains his human form.

Germans (East Prussia), Poles, Russians (Tersky Coast, Arkhangelsk, Olonetsk, Vologda, Moscow, Gorky, Perm, Voronezh), Ukrainians (Galicia, Podolia), Western Saami, Lutsi, Setos, Karelians, Vepsians, Finns, Mordvins.

Western Europe. Germans (East Prussia) [a widow began to court the daughter of a rich widower, so that she would persuade her father to marry her; soon after the wedding, she began to tyrannize over her husband and stepdaughter; he went into the forest to hang himself; the old man gave him a rope to tie to a stump of fallen trees - they would cut themselves into firewood; returning, the man remembered that he had forgotten his mitten and sent his daughter for it; she saw three doves in that place, and was friendly with them; one wished that ducats would fall from her lips with every word; the second, that she would become more beautiful every day; the third, that an apple tree with golden apples would grow in front of her window; the next time the man sent his wife's daughter for the mitten; she drove the doves away; one wished that toads would fall from her lips, the second - that she would grow ugly every day, the third - that she would come to a bad end; The king was riding and saw an apple tree, he sent a servant to pick an apple, the branches grew up; the stepmother's daughter - the same; a beautiful girl - she easily picked it; the king took her to the palace and married her; and the tree ran after him and grew up near the castle; a year later the queen gave birth to a son; the stepmother and her daughter came to her; at night they threw the queen into a well, the stepmother replaced her with her daughter; at night the servant hears a voice and answers the questions: What is my son doing? - Screams. - And the ugly stepsister? - Lies in bed and spits out toads. - And the stepmother? - Snores. The queen came, fed the child and said that she could come only twice more; the same the next night; after this the servant told the king; the king lay in wait and seized his wife; she took all sorts of forms, including a snake, but he did not let her go; and when she turned into a straw, the king broke it in half and the wife was reborn; the stepmother and her daughter were burned at the stake; the wedding was celebrated again; I was there, but nothing went down my throat and I remained hungry]: Lemke 1887, No. 33: 160-166.

Central Europe. Poles [an aging king orders his three sons to take wives wherever an arrow will fall; the eldest married a senator's daughter, the middle one - a landowner, the youngest's arrow fell into a forest swamp where a frog was sitting; he orders them to take her to the palace and answer that he married an oriental beauty whom no one should see; the king orders the daughters-in-law to weave a carpet by morning; the frog calls for assistants, 7 heavenly maidens descended on a sunbeam, wove the best carpet; bake bread (ditto); the frog says that her mother is the Queen of Light, who hid her from enemies by turning her into a frog; the king wants to see his daughters-in-law; the frog teaches: if it rains, she bathes in the May dew; if the weather clears up, she gets dressed; thunder - is approaching; at a feast, the king advises his son to go and burn the frog's skin; after this the wife became a duck and flew away; the prince came to a field of poppies, there was a hut on crooked legs; he told her to turn her back to the forest, and the door to him; the old woman Jandza was there; he told her to hide and catch the duck when it flew in; when it became a spindle, to break it; the duck became a dove, a hawk, a snake; the prince let her go and she flew away as a duck; I gave her a ball of yarn, she had to go and get it from her older sister; this time the duck finally turned into a spindle and the prince broke it; then the wife took the form of a girl; they rode in a golden carriage over a crystal bridge to the prince's father]: Glinski 1920: 1-13; Russian(Tersky Bereg): Balashov 1970, No. 50 [a rich man has a daughter, a poor man has a son; the lad ran to the girl, she whipped him: you were a fine fellow, become a stallion; there are 40 such girls who ride stallions, and in the morning they turn into guys again; the stepmother asked to tell how it all happened, gave 6 bricks, a rooster, an awl and three iron frying pans to cover your head; while they are not there, sit on the floor, bricks along the wall, frying pans on your head, a rooster in one hand, an awl in the other; they will fly down, you need to poke the rooster, he will cry, they will jump out of the bathhouse, she will be left alone - hold her by the braid when she starts to wrap herself in mice, rats and other creatures; when she becomes a spindle, you need to break it and say: "At one end there is a beautiful maiden, at the other there is a heap of gold"; to hit a maiden with a whip and say, "There was a maiden, become a stallion"; he rides her, and they do not understand, he is on her or she is on him; they sent a lame girl from nine lands to bring first a lad, then a girl - unbaptized, unpraying; the lad did not know, the girl said that he was on her; the poor man's son hit the stallion with a whip: there was a stallion, become a maiden; maiden: now ask me for her hand in marriage, made a man out of me; a wedding, the parents of the rich bride did not object], 54 [a peasant has three sons, he built a new house, sends his sons to sleep in it - what kind of dream will they see; the eldest, the middle one see firewood - good; the youngest, how a fox jumped out from under the stove, and a snake from under the bed and bit off his leg; refused to tell; his father sold him to a merchant, he did not tell the merchant either; the merchant sold to the tsar, the tsar put him in prison; he was going to get married; the tsar's sister: the prisoners are released for the wedding; the lad was released; two argue over the invisible godmother, the boots of seven walkers, the tablecloth-bread-salon; the lad suggests running a race, put on the invisible thing, took everything, was transported to the ship on which the tsar was sailing overseas to his bride; the bride sends to string a bow, Ivan Tsarevich {= the tsar} is unable to, the lad invisibly strings it, the bow breaks; the bride: we will sew half a dress, you sew the same, otherwise your head will be off; the lad stole the finished half, had to sew a new one, Ivan has the same as the bride; the same shoes, ring; the lad returned the magical items to the other two, returned to prison; he was released for the wedding, the witch-bride found out, cut off his leg with a sabre; The guy to the king: here is my dream, your fox sister helped, but the snake bride cut off his leg; he went into the forest on one leg to a hut, and there was a blind man, legless and a girl-cook; every day Baba Yaga comes to her to suck her tits; they grabbed Baba Yaga, forced her to give her living and dead water, return her legs and eyes, pushed her into a well, she died, and they were cured; he returned to the king, he was grazing mares, they swapped clothes; the mares all ran to the stall; the king's wife was surprised: if the husband does not kiss each mare under the tail, they will not return, and then all the stalls were broken; the guy came, began to beat her, she wrapped herself in all sorts of creatures, and when he broke her with a spindle, he broke her - there was a heap of gold on one end, and a beautiful maiden on the other; to the king: now you will have a wife, but before you were not a wife,and the snake; from the king he went to his father, and his father had a bull on leashes, no one could even kill him; he killed him with his fist and did not go anywhere else]: 172-174, 186-192;Russian: Russian (Arkhangelskaya, Pinega) [a son tells his mother that she needs a husband, and he needs a father; he finds the first one, offers to split an egg; he divides it in half: for himself and his bride; the guy drives him away; the next one divides it into three; the same; the last one - into four parts, puts the fourth in front of the icon case; the guy accepts him; they went to trade abroad; in the city, the tsar promises half the kingdom now and everything after his death to the one who spends the night with his daughter; he explains to the "accepted" one that the daughter is in a coffin in the church, every night she eats a person; you need to stand behind the icon, play the violin; the next night stand by the coffin, cover it with a board when the dead woman gets up; on the third night climb a pole and whip the dead woman with three tin, three copper, three iron rods; when he broke them, she became a spindle, he broke it, threw the toe under the threshold, the heel to the icons; a beautiful maiden stood at the threshold, a pile of silver near the icons; wedding; the accepted one orders to share the wife; tore it apart, there was a snake in it; in three years the wife would have eaten her; he folded her up, revived her, said goodbye]: Ozarovskaya 1931, no. 22: 195-200; Russians (Arkhangelskaya) [the queen dies, the king marries Yagishna; Yagishna gives birth to a two-eyed and a three-eyed girl; he sends his stepdaughter Marya the princess to pasture the cows; she bows to the cow's right leg, is well-fed and dressed; Yagishna sends Two-eyed to watch, M. puts her to sleep; Three-eyed comes, M. forgets to put the third eye to sleep; Yagishna orders to slaughter the cow; M. asked to give her a gut, a bush grew out of it, berries and birds on it; Ivan Tsarevich promises to marry the one who picks him some berries; they are given only to M.; she gives birth to a son, goes with her husband to visit her father; I. ​​turns her into a goose, gives her his daughter in marriage; an old servant calls the flying geese, M. comes down, takes off the goose skin, feeds the baby, promises to fly far away the day after tomorrow; I. watches, burns the skin, grabs M.; she turns into a jumping geese (?), a lizard, various reptiles, a spindle; I. breaks it , throws the heel back, the toe in front of him, M. appears; I. says that he will take the wife who jumps on the gate; Yagushna jumps up, I. shot her]: Efimenko 1874, No. 3: 227 (= Afanasyev 1958(1), No. 101: 152-154); Russian (Olonetskaya, Yandomozero village) [a merchant went away on business, and his wife gave birth to a girl, her legs up to the knees in gold, her arms up to the elbows in silver, and pearls in her hair; ships stood at sea; a water spirit: give me what you don’t know at home; at home a wife comes to meet him with her daughter Solomanida in her arms; S. has grown up; a voice under the windows: we’ll come for our daughter; the father and mother secretly left; S. asked the goat to help; he orders him to harness him to the sleigh, and take a brush and comb; they ride, S. hid in the sleigh under the straw; suitors come towards them; the goat replies that S. is waiting for them; this happens twice; he orders S. to listen: pursuit; throw down the comb: forest from earth to sky; then the brush: forest and mountain to sky; the water spirits were unable to break through; S. lives in the city with an old woman, embroiders carpets, she sells them; a rich merchant (hereinafter: prince) married her, agreed to take the goat as well; S. began to give birth, the father-in-law went for a midwife, Egibikha came to meet him; she let S. go to the water sprites, replaced her with her daughter; the newborn boy cries, the imaginary wife asks to slaughter the goat; the prince came to slaughter him, the goat asks to be released to the shore; S. swam up as a duck, shed her feathers, began to cry; the prince came to the old woman, she explained everything to him, ordered him to forge an iron rod and take a pot with hot coals; S. will shed her duck feathers, they must be burned, stuffed into the pot; S. will take the form of animals, bears, reptiles, etc., you must hold her with pincers and beat her with a rod; when it becomes a spindle - break it, throw the heel back, there will be a golden mountain, and in front - S.; the daughter of Egibikha was tied to 39 horses; they began to live well and feed the goat]: Onchukov 2008, No. 227: 402-405; Russians (north) [Ivan Tsarevich wounded a swan, brought it into the tent; someone cooks and cleans; the third time I. catches and grabs the girl; she resists, turned into a golden spindle, I. broke it , threw the heel in front of him (be a young woman), and the tip behind his back (be a scarlet flower); they have a son; in the spring the backyard grandmother tells I. to guard his wife; the swans are flying, each one offers to throw off a wing; the wife answers her father, sister, that she has Ivanushka here; tells his mother to throw off her wing, his wife caught it, but I. grabbed her; she began to cry]: Karnaukhova 1948: 173-177; Potanin 1891 [(according to Afanasyev 1863); Dmitry Tsarevich brings his sister to Ivan Tsarevich; the nanny turns her into a duck, dresses her daughter in her dress; D. was put in prison for deception; the duck flies to him, leaves her wings at the entrance to the dungeon, I. burns them, catches the girl; she turns into various reptiles, he does not let her go; turns into a spindle, he breaks it , throws half forward (the girl), the other back (the birch)]: 153-154; Russian (a tale from Afanasyev's notes) [the king orders his three sons to shoot and marry a girl from the house where the arrow hits; the eldest take the daughters of the minister and the general, the youngest Ivan takes a frog (otherwise she will not let him out of the chisel); at night the frog takes off her skin and becomes a beauty; the king asks his daughters-in-law to 1) sew him a shirt each, 2) make carpets embroidered with gold; the frog orders the winds, they bring everything; 3) bake bread; the frog pours flour into cold water, puts it in an unheated oven, takes out the loaves of bread; the other daughters-in-law do the same, nothing works, they hastily light the oven, the bread burns; 4) at the feast the Frog appears as a beauty, pours and puts what was not drunk, not eaten up her sleeves, dancing, splashes out the lake with swans, then it disappears; the other daughters-in-law imitate, pour scraps on everyone; I. burns the frog skin, Vasilisa the Wise orders to look for her in the thirtieth kingdom; Baba Yaga teaches that when VP flies in, you have to grab her by the head; she will turn into a frog, a toad, a snake, an arrow; you have to break the arrow ; I. shoots the arrow, VP flies away; the same with BYA's sister, I. breaks the arrow, returns from VP on a flying carpet]: Afanasyev 1958 (3), No. 570: 356-361; Russians (Vologda) [after the death of his wife, the old man took the Yaga-Baba; He has a daughter, Yaga has three daughters: one-eyed, two-eyed, three-eyed; the stepdaughter is grazing a cow, put one-eyed to sleep, climbed into the cow's ear, ate, drank and got dressed; the master's son came, she talked to him; then again into the cow's ear, went out, woke up one-eyed; the same with two-eyed; when three-eyed went, the stepdaughter forgot to put the third eye to sleep; the stepmother slaughtered the cow, the stepdaughter asked for at least a horn; apple trees grew from the horn; lord: whoever brings me apples, I will marry her; apple trees are not given to the daughters of Yaga-baba, the lord married the stepdaughter; while the husband was away, Yaga-baba turned his wife into a lynx; the nanny told the husband that the lynx would run up, throw off the skin, feed the baby he brought; the husband went himself, grabbed and burned the skin; [the wife became a spindle, he broke it, became a woman]: Smirnov 1917, No. 41: 213-215; Russian (Moscow) [once upon a time there was a Stroy, the wife died, the new one tells her stepdaughter to spin flax, but gives her no food; the cow chews flax, the yarn comes out of her mouth; the cow tells her to climb into one ear and climb out of the other - the girl became a beauty and is full; the stepmother spied on her, demands that the cow be slaughtered; the cow tells her stepdaughter to ask for offal and legs, and to bury them; an orchard with golden apples grew; the master proposed to the mistress; the stepmother wanted to palm off her daughter, but the rooster crows that the girl is under the trough; the master took the girl and the orchard followed them; a son was born; when he was six months old, the young lady went to visit her stepmother; she took her to the bathhouse, turned her into a lynx; the nanny carries the child; the cowherds answer that the lynx herd is far away; the sheep herds - that it is close; the Stroyev's daughter ran out of the herd, took off the skin, fed the child; the master spies, burns the skin, grabs his wife; she turns into a snake, a toad, spindle; he broke the spindle , threw the end in front of him, the heel behind, "Let there be a white birch behind me, and the former princess in front of me"; they began to live happily ever after]: Vedernikova, Samodelova 1998, No. 48: 106-107; Russian (Gorkovskaya) [dying, Alyonushka's mother tells her husband to give her a black cow; the stepmother has two daughters of her own; she tells A. to graze the cattle and at the same time spin and weave; the cow tells her to climb into the right ear and climb out of the left; at this time the cows and sheep are weaving, spinning, bleaching, rolling up canvases; the stepmother sent her own daughter to spy, she fell asleep; but the second daughter only pretended to fall asleep; the stepmother tells her husband to slaughter the cow; where A. buried her head, a well formed, where her tail was, a birch tree grew, where her legs were, apple trees; Ivan Tsarevich asked to pick him some apples; the branches rose up from the stepmother and her daughters, and bent down to A.; the same with the well (when the stepmother tries to get water, the water disappears); I. took A., the well, birch tree and apple trees followed; a boy was born; the stepmother turned A. into a lynx; I. learned from the rumor, brings the child, the lynx runs up, throws off its skin, feeds it, but immediately pulls the skin back on; the servant teaches to throw the skin into the fire; it will turn into a spindle , it must be broken and also burned, and A. must hold on; the stepmother was executed]: Borovik, Mirer 1939, No. 93: 232-237; Russian (Perm, Okhansky district, Kryukova village) [In a certain kingdom, in a certain state, there lives a king. He hears that in the Serpent Kingdom there is a polished shield - during the day it warms instead of a stove, at night it shines instead of the sun. He sends out messengers to find out if anyone would agree to take the shield from the Serpent. But even mighty heroes are afraid to go to the Serpent Kingdom. The worker Iskorka comes to the king and asks for 12 young men, 13 sables and 13 falcons. The young men with I. mount the sables, release the falcons, and ride to the Serpent Kingdom. The palace is surrounded by a wall 7 miles high. When it gets dark, the falcons fly over the wall, open the gates, and let I. and the young men in. I. sees a shield on the wall, takes a folding sword, and tells the young men to sleep, while he will stand guard. He hangs up his fly - if it turns red, then he will go to help. At midnight, the Dragon Gorynych flies home, tries to eat I., who cuts off his head. The fly turns red, the young men do not wake up. Three heads grow back, I. chops them off. The fly turns red, the young men sleep. 5 heads grow back, I. chops them off. Nine heads appear, Spark chops them off. The fly burns like fire, the young men sleep. Instead of 9, 12 heads grow back, I. chops them off and thinks that his end has come, but the dragon has died. I. to the young men: now it is their turn to stand guard, and he will sleep. The young men decide that since the Dragon has been killed, they can sleep. Before sunrise, Pekhtimko runs up, takes away the shield. I. orders them to mount the sables, and they go to P. In the forest, Pekhtimko's hut has three corners. I. unlocks the door: Pekhtimka is sitting in one corner, and his feet are propped up in the other corners. A shield is hung on the wall under the ceiling for beauty. I. takes off his hat and greets him. P.'s eyebrows hang down like hay buds, he can't see anything. He says to his wife: "Lift your eyebrows up to me." The wife lifts them with a pitchfork. P. sees the guest, recognizes him. I. asks Pekhtim Ivanovich why he took the shield. P. laughs: he shouldn't sleep for long, and finally agrees to give it back - he doesn't need it, it was brought to the women for beauty. But in return he must bring him a bride - the daughter of Tsar Yundel, Marfida Yundelevna. I. agrees, goes alone, leaves 12 of his young men with P. On the way he meets and takes with him people who are good at eating bread and all kinds of food, drinking all kinds of drinks, taking a steam bath, shooting a bow and pestle. He does not allow them to kill bees and get honey from a hollow, to destroy a crow's nest, and pushes a pike lying on the shore into the sea. They come to Tsar Yundel. His courtyard is surrounded by a palisade, on each stake there is a human head, on one head is missing. Y. receives the matchmakers well, orders the bathhouse to be heated. It is impossible to even go near it, but a man who knows how to steam makes it so that the fire in the stove goes out, and the water in the tub freezes. Y. is surprised, orders everyone to be fed dinner, given wine to drink. On the table are whole roast bulls and rams, barrels of beer and wine. Yu.: All this must be eaten and drunk, and if they do not respect him, then their heads must be cut off. Those who are good at eating and drinking clear the entire table. Yu. is surprised and asks I. why they came. I.: To woo his daughter Marfida Yundelevna to Pekhtim Ivanovich. Yu.: If he points out which tower she lives in, he will give her to P. He shows 7 identical towers.A crow flies in, lands on one tower and caws. I. guesses. Seven maidens are sleeping in the tower, all identical. The Tsar orders to indicate which one is Marfida. A bee lands on the cheek of one of the beauties. I. guesses. The Tsar orders to collect a dowry. M. collects seven cities, 160 towers, 500 herds, gold, silver, silk, velvet, puts everything in an eggshell, takes it in her hand, hits the damp earth, turns into a gray duck, rises above the clouds, turns into a star. I. asks who can shoot a bow and pestle. He comes forward, kneels down, takes aim, hits the star with the pestle. The star rolls from the sky, falls into the sea. Tsar: how to take it now? I. goes to the sea, the pike carries it out in its teeth golden spindle. Iskra breaks it in half, throws one half behind herself , the other in front of her, says that a white birch tree should grow behind him, and in front of him is Princess MY. MY cries, says goodbye to her parents, goes with I. to P. Tom does not want to give up the shield. He prepares an abyss with fire, over which a pole is thrown: if I. did not offend his bride M. on the road, then he will safely cross along the pole, and if he did, then no. I. invites him to cross himself, to prove that he did not offend his young men. P. agrees. When he gets to the middle, MY kicks the pole, P. falls into the fire. His wives rejoice, all of them are the king's daughters, they leave for their kingdoms. MY is going to marry I. I. with young men and sables goes to her king, carrying a polished shield. The old king died during this time. I. ascended the throne, threw a feast, invited Tsar Yu.]: Serebrennikov 1928: 128-131; Russian (Voronezh) [A dying wife predicts that her husband will soon marry again and forget about his daughter. She leaves her a cow as a dowry, forbids her to eat it, and if she is slaughtered, orders that the bones be collected and buried. The father marries again, the new wife brings her three daughters. They offend the stepdaughter. The stepmother sends her with the eldest daughter, the one-eyed one, to pasture the cows and comb flax, the stepdaughter puts her stepsister's eye to sleep and gives the cow flax, which chews and spits out the yarn. She wakes up her sister, and they return home. The stepmother scolds her own daughter for not spinning anything. The next day she sends the two-eyed one with the stepdaughter, and everything repeats itself. On the third day, the stepdaughter goes with the three-eyed one, puts two of her eyes to sleep, and forgets about the third. The three-eyed one tells her mother what she saw, and she convinces her husband to slaughter a cow. The stepdaughter does not eat the cow's meat, but collects the bones and buries them in a place where an apple tree later grows. The daughter asks her father to bring a golden saucer from the city. The apple on the saucer shows distant cities. The master asks to pick an apple for him, the branches of the tree fall when the stepdaughter approaches, and the sisters do not give in. The master takes the stepdaughter as his wife and takes her away. She comes to visit her father and stepmother with a child. The stepmother turns her into a dove, and sends the two-eyed one and the stepdaughter's child to the master, passing her off as his wife. Dvuglazka lives with a master, regularly goes out into the field with her child, calls his mother (addresses a flock of pigeons, "The lynx is young, the lynx is good, feed your child"). The master watches his wife, sees a pigeon descend, takes off its wings and feeds his child, the husband burns the wings, the bird cannot fly away. She turns into a stake - he chops it, into a spindle - breaks it, into a good fellow - dips it in water . The stepdaughter acquires her true appearance]: Baryshnikova 2007, No. 16: 94-96; Ukrainians (Galicia) [the king orders his three sons to shoot arrows and take wives wherever the arrow hits; the eldest took a noblewoman, the middle one a peasant woman, the youngest a frog; the king will give the throne to the one whose wife weaves the best carpet; in the evening the frog jumped onto the windowsill and sang; silk, brocade, pearls, and gems were brought into the room of 12 gentlemen and 12 ladies, and in the morning the carpet is ready; whoever cooks the best food (ditto; they brought milk, honey, butter, etc.); bring the wives themselves; in the morning there is a beauty in the bedroom; the king is ready to pass the throne to his youngest son; he orders them to hurry home and throw the frog skin into the fire; after this the princess said that her husband would never see her again, and flew out the window as a cuckoo; the king sends his son to look for her; in the forest he came to a witch; she said that a cuckoo comes to her in the evenings; [he tells him to hide under the bed, and then to jump out and grab the cuckoo when it sits on her, the witch's, shoulder; the captured cuckoo will turn into a fish, a snake, a spindle; it must be broken , and the wife will be disenchanted; but the fish slipped out of the prince's hands; the witch sent him to her older sister; there too, this time a snake slipped out; he was sent to the oldest sister; he broke the spindle, the wife was reborn; the prince lived with his wife and ruled long and happily]: Kaindl 1889b, No. 3: 185-188; Ukrainians (Podolia) [a stepmother sends her stepdaughter to pasture a cow and tells her to spin tow and weave linen; the cow put the tow in her ear, take out the linen in the evening; the stepmother sent her own daughter to spy; orders the slaughter of a cow; the cow to the stepdaughter: bury my heart and liver at the gate; an apple tree grew overnight, on it are apples and a barrel of wine, they are given only to the stepdaughter; the tsar sees, sends a Cossack, he cannot get the apples and wine; the stepdaughter gives them, the tsar marries her; they have a child; the young queen went swimming with her stepmother's daughter, she drowned her; the child cries; the Cossack brought it to the water, calls a duck to feed her child; one day the tsar followed and seized his wife; she turned into a stick, he broke it , became a woman; the stepmother and her daughter were tied to horses and released into the steppe]: Levchenko 1928, No. 563: 492-494;

Baltoscandia. Western Sami [Njávešeadnidattera met a prince, he fell in love with her; the ugly Háhcešeadnidattera tried in vain to seduce the prince; before the wedding the king: the one who picks berries faster will get a son; H. filled a basket with stones, put berries on top; but the king exposed the deception and chose N.; N. and her brother sailed on a ship; H. ducked from the shore onto the ship, sat between N. and her brother; the brother tells his sister to dress well; N. does not hear, asks again; H.: your brother tells you to dress and jump into the water like a duck; H. chopped off her legs, then she was able to put on N.'s shoes; the crow: why is there blood flowing? H. was brought into a dark room, but it did not give light; H. complains that the bed is hard; the prince ordered to bring the softest linen; H.: we need sticks, etc.; then she said soft; but the prince could not lie on it, and the bride smelled bad; the brother said that H. was not his sister; the healer ordered to play the violin on the shore for three evenings; the mermaid lifted H. above the water; she asks to be closer - water in her ears, the sound of the sea in her ears; the brother grabbed the girl; she turned into different objects and creatures; when she became a spindle, the brother broke it , threw half into the sea, and the other became H.; H.: I will not return to the castle until H. is burned; H. almost extinguished the fire with her urine, but they still burned her, and there was no trace left; H. was brought into the room, it lit up]: Pollan 2005, no. 15: 76-79; Lutsey (zap. 1893) [a young man as a coachman for a gentleman; painted a portrait of his beautiful sister; the master asks to bring it; at the lake, the brother suggests going along the shore, and the sister - as in winter, across the lake; at the lake, the devil makes her give up all her clothes, turns her into a duck; the brother did not notice the substitution, and the master sees that the bride is far from the image in the portrait, puts his brother behind 12 locks; every night the duck flies to the woman, becomes a girl, asks how the master and his wife are living; the woman: like a cat and a dog; the girl: so be it, since my brother is under locks; after each visit one lock flies off; the woman goes to a healer; she orders on the last night (after the 12th visit, the sister would remain a duck forever) to throw feathers into the fire and grab the girl; she will turn into a snake, a lizard, a larva, a bear, a wolf, a dog, a cow; when she becomes a spindle, break it , put it in bed; and so it happened, in the morning a girl is in bed; brother comes out of prison, shows his real sister to the master; the master asked the she-devil what kind of beer she wanted; made from horse manure; offered to try it, pushed it into a boiling cauldron and closed the lid; brother, sister, her husband began to live, still live]: Annom et al. 2018: 188-191; Lutsey [a mother sent her three daughters to pick berries; only the youngest picked them diligently and her mother praised her; the third time the envious sisters killed her, saying that a wolf had eaten her; the brother went into the forest to make a kantele; a birch tree asks him to cut it down for this; the knowledgeable (tark) explains that the birch tree is his sister; he tells him to play with it himself first, then give it to his father, mother, eldest and middle sisters; then grab the kantele and don’t let go; it will turn into a snake, a lizard, a wolf, a bear and everything else; when it turns into a spindle, break it , put half under your pillow, the other half at your feet and go to bed; each time the kantele sings that the envious sisters killed her; in the morning the living sister sits on the bed; older sisters tied to horse's tail]: Kallas 1900: 357-359 in Haavio 1952: 154-155; Setu [brother taken into the army, king noticed him in church, took him to his place; brother praises his sister's beauty; king tells him to bring her; he takes her across the sea, asks her something; she asks the same question from the stern; witch says for him: become a dove and jump into the sea; takes her place; king sees ugly girl, throws brother in dungeon; turtledove flies to brewer, sheds feathers, asks how her brother is; brewer: they feed him bones and crusts; she made a shirt for the king, flew away; fake wife says she made the shirt; next night same thing (pair of shoes); third night - pair of mittens; brewer tells king; he seizes girl; she turns into different animals; then into a spindle ; as the brewer taught, the king broke it , threw one half away, brought the other to bed, the wife was reborn; the witch was pushed into a beer barrel and covered with hot stones; the king gave half the kingdom to the wife's brother]: Säärits 2022: 309-311; Veps [dying, the old man tells his son to marry the one who comes out to meet him first; the first one was a bird, the guy took her into the house; the neighboring grandmother tells him to give her some linen and tell her to sew a shirt and pants; she sewed them; the grandmother tells her to take some twigs and watch outside the door; the guy saw the girl, began to whip her with twigs; she turned into a snake, into a wolf; when she became a spindle , the guy broke it , put it under a stump, said "There is a golden mountain behind, a young wife ahead"; Baba Yaga's maids found out about the girl, persuade the king, he orders Vanya to bring a child's bag; the wife teaches him to go where they plow on a gray horse, pluck three hairs; where the earth shakes, throw hairs to the earth, the earth gives a chest of bags; the king orders to prepare a royal dinner; the wife cooked; the king: do you know how to make live geese; the wife gives her husband a letter, orders him to take two old women with him; they come to the old woman, she replies that her sons make geese; the old woman's sons ask that a light be shined on them; the first old woman went, dozed off, she was killed; the same with the second; the guy went, began to doze off; he replies that he was not dozing, but was thinking - more damp or dry earth, more damp; they went to measure, it turned out that there really was more damp; the next time the guy replies that he was not dozing, but took a handkerchief from his pocket; they read it - it was their son-in-law! they said that the wife was stolen, everyone is waiting for a feast; one: I'll take her in an hour; the second - in half an hour; the third - in a moment; seeing her husband, the young wife told the geese to play; they began to play, turned over the tables, killed many people, the king asks them to stop the geese; the guy: first appoint me king; the king appointed him]: Onegina, Zaitseva 1996, no. 14: 81-85; Karelians : Konkka 1959 (Kalevala district, 1937), no. 2 [dying, the old man and the old woman tell their son and daughter not to marry and not to be given in marriage; the brother promises the prince to persuade his sister to marry him; she sets a condition: I will not marry while the oven is standing; the millstone is intact; the threshold is not worn out; brother breaks the oven, millstone, cuts down the threshold; takes his sister to the prince; from the shore Syuvatar asks to take her; the sister does not allow, but the brother takes her for the third time; S. makes it so that the sister does not hear the words of her brother; conveys that he orders to jump into the water, to become a black duck; seeing that the woman is ugly, the prince ordered to lock her brother in the stable; at night the duck calls the dog, orders to pass the towel; then the tablecloth; the prince transfers his brother to the bulls; to the sheep; the widow teaches the prince to grab the duck when it comes for the last time, to break everything that it turns into, to throw it behind him ( it turns into a viper, a worm, a rolling pin, the prince did not let go ); S. was pushed into a pit of burning resin]: 13-18; Schreck 1887, No. 9 (Russian Karelia) [a husband and wife went to look for a lost sheep; a witch turned the woman into a black sheep, took her form, the husband did not notice the substitution; the witch-wife asks to slaughter the sheep; the daughter knows that it is the mother; the sheep tells her not to eat it, to collect the bones and bury them; a birch tree grew in this place; the witch-wife also gave birth to a daughter, began to tyrannize her stepdaughter; the king invites everyone to a feast; the stepmother tells the stepdaughter to separate the barley from the ashes; the mother's voice from under the birch tree tells her to take a birch branch, it does the job; the girl becomes a beauty, she is wearing a luxurious dress, there is a horse nearby; the prince sat the girl next to him, and the witch's daughter gnawed bones under the table; The prince smeared the door with resin, the girl's ring stuck; at home she leaves her dress and horse by the birch tree; the next time the task is to separate hemp seeds; the same, the girl's golden hair hoop sticks to the door; the third time the witch pours milk into the ashes; a golden slipper sticks to the door; the prince gathers everyone to try it on; the witch squeezes her own daughter's finger, head and foot into the ring, hoop and slipper; the prince must marry the ugly woman; he takes both girls from the witch's house; crossing the river, he throws the ugly woman as a bridge, crosses it, marries the beauty, but everyone thinks that she is the witch's daughter; the ugly woman remains lying as a bridge, hemlock grows out of her; the witch wants to cut her down, hears her daughter's voice, makes her human again; comes to the young princess, turns her into a deer, leaves her own daughter in her place; the princess's baby cries; a certain widow teaches a prince to give her a baby to take to the forest; a deer princess comes up to feed him; says that this will be for three days, and then she will leave forever with the deer; the third time the widow offers to clean the princess's head; she takes off the deer skin; the king, hiding, throws the skin into the fire; the princess turns into a spinning wheel, a beater for washing clothes, a spindle , but her husband destroys these guises, the princess remains a woman; the prince orders to prepare a tar pit, light it, cover it from above, calls the witch and her daughter, they fall through, burn; the witch manages to stick her finger out, says that (from her) worms will appear in the earth, mosquitoes in the air, to cause suffering to people]: 63-74; Latvians [a brother and sister run away from their stepmother; the sister does not allow to drink from a cow, horse, sheep's track; brother drinks from sheep's milk, turns into a lamb; master marries a girl, leaves; she gives birth to a son, stepmother throws a lynx skin on her, replaces her with her daughter; lamb asks servant to tie baby to his horns, brings to forest; sister throws off lynx skin, feeds baby; after third time woman will become lynx forever; servant calls master, he grabs wife, she turns into scary beasts, he does not let go; turns into a branch, master breaks it , throws, sees his wife; when the witch and her daughter were killed, the lamb became a boy again]: Arijs 1971: 216-218 (=Skrīvele 2018: 113-114).

Volga - Perm. Mordvins (Erzya) [the wife died; the boy and the girl persuaded the father to take the stepmother; she orders to kill the children; he locked them in the stable; they give water and moldy bread; the girl goes to Baba Yaga's pantry at night, but she has no bird's milk; the brother tagged along, Baba Yaga grabbed them, began to fatten them, but does not give bird's milk; he feels a finger, the girl holds out a kochedyk; but the boy sticks his finger in; Baba Yaga is going to put the children in the oven; the girl pretends that she does not know how to sit on a shovel; Baba Yaga shows, the girl stuffs her in the oven; they took silver and copper jugs, but forgot to take the ring on the window; the boy returned; the girl told him not to lick Baba Yaga's fat that flowed out of the oven, but he licked it and became a lamb; they returned home; The stepmother pushed the girl into the well, tells her husband to slaughter a lamb; he goes to the well: they sharpen an axe and knives, they go to slaughter; the sister: I can’t get out, the stone pulls, the snake sucks my heart; on the fourth day he pulled her out of the well; the stepmother slaughtered him; the bones became a dove, it sings: the father slaughtered, the stepmother boiled; the peddler, hearing the song, gave a spoon; another - a handful of needles; the third - hooks; the dove gave the sister a spoonful of honey, the stepmother - needles in her mouth, the father - hooks; they died; the fortune teller to the sister: smear the windowsill with glue, grab the dove; it will become a snake, a frog, and when it becomes a spindle, break it ; she did so, and the boy came back to life]: Maskaev 1967, No. 11: 98-102.