The Bee and the Orange Tree

Title: The Bee and the Orange Tree

Sources:
D'Aulnoy, Marie Catherine Baronne. The Fairy Tales of Madame D'Aulnoy. Miss Annie Macdonell and Miss Lee, translators. Clinton Peters, illustrator. London: Lawrence and Bullen, 1892.

Summary: There once was a king and queen who wanted children very badly. They had given up hope of ever having any, when the queen gave birth to a beautiful little girl. She was named Aimée. One day, they went on a trip on a boat but there was a horrible storm and the baby in her cradle drifted off to an island inhabited by two ogres. The ogre wife was part fairy and even though her husband would have wanted to eat the baby she protected the child with her magic. She thought the little girl would be a good wife for her son when she grew up. 
Fifteen years later, her parents eventually gave up hope of ever finding Aimée again. The king asked his brother to send him one of his sons to be an heir. He sent his intelligent, and beautiful second son who the people called Prince Aimé. 
Aimée knew nothing of the world, but she was born with manners and poise. She was also very beautiful. But she hated living with the ogres and wished for a way to leave them. She was walking along the shore one day, as she often did, when she discovered a man.Even though they couldn't understand each other's language, they were both in awe of the other's beauty. Of course, the man was Aimé, her cousin. She was eventually able to tell him to stay in a cave, but they had fallen in love and didn't want to be apart. The next day, Aimée tries to make him leave the island. She gives him the necklace that her parents gave her when she was born. Aimé read her name on it and knew that she was his cousin. He refuses to leave and for four days, she brings him food and keeps him company. 
On that day, the young ogre decided that he would marry her in three days. She runs to the prince and tells him the bad news. When she returns to the ogre's cave, she steps on a thorn and isn't able to walk to see Aimé the next day. Worried about her, he comes to look for her and is captured. When Aimée hears his cries, she tells the ogre whom she is meant to marry that they should save him and fatten him up to eat on their wedding night. 
The ogres wear crowns while they sleep. And sometimes they get hungry during the night. So Aimée decided to put one of the ogre's crowns on the prince in case the ogres tried to eat him at night, which they did try. Instead, the baby ogre was eaten. She does this again the following night, and another ogre is eaten. Aimée remembers that the ogre wife has a magic wand and she uses it to allow her to speak the prince's language. Now able to communicate, the two decide to steal the ogre's camel and enchant a bean in a cake to talk so they can get away. When the ogres realize the humans have escaped, they chase after them with their seven league boots. When the ogre catches up with them, Aimée uses the wand to turn the camel into a pond, the prince into a boat, and herself into an old boat woman. The disguise works, but the ogres aren't fooled for long. When he catches up again, Aimée transforms herself into a dwarf, the prince into a portrait, and the camel into a pillar. This disguise works as well, as Aimée tells a very confusing story. The ogress comes after them, and Aimée uses the wand to turn the prince into an orange tree, herself into a bee, and the camel into a box. She chases the ogress off by stinging her, but some travelers come by and take the wand. Aimée cannot change them back. 
Princess Linda loved to walk in the woods where the prince in the form of an orange tree was growing. Linda tried to have the tree moved to her gardens, but Aimée stung her out of jealousy. Linda was so upset she took a sword to cut down a branch from the tree to defend herself against the bee who kept stinging her, but then the tree began to bleed. Aimée was able to find a balm to heal him. Linda, upset by what she had seen, sent for the fairies to try to help her sort out what had happened. The fairies change them back to their human form and they return to their home where they are married. 

Cultural Origins: France, 1697. Published by Madame d'Aulnoy. 

Audience: There are so many parts to this story, I think it would take a very patient audience to sit through it in its original form. I think it's adaptable to a younger audience, but it would take a lot of editing. I would say this would be a good story for an older audience interested in transformation. 

Adaptation Ideas: Depending on the audience, I may just tell the first part of the story. I would end it where the two found each other and I would make their escape much shorter. I think the ogres are interesting, but I would try to be more descriptive about what they looked like. I think it would be fun to use a made up language for Aimée when the prince can't understand her.