In the distance on a high hill there stood a castle. Here and there a piece of the wall was missing, in some places it was quite battered and no one lived in it. It was more like a castle ruin. Sometimes some tourists went to see it. They’d go through all its corridors, look at all its walls, and then they’d leave. No one knew what secrets the castle held. No one knew what is happening there when it gets dark.
One day, a curious tourist came to see it. His name was Greg. He loved to go on trips, especially to castles. He walked the whole castle. He explored every nook and cranny. He looked out of every broken window. He was there so long that he didn’t notice it was getting dark. Since it was too late, he decided to pitch a tent somewhere nearby and sleep in it. He wouldn’t start his journey home until morning. And so he did. Greg couldn’t sleep. So he went out late in the evening, sat down in front of the tent, wrapped himself in a blanket and watched the stars. Then he looked at the castle in the distance. He looked at it and was sure he could see the light there. It was moving along its walls. Back and forth. Greg just stared at first, wondering what it could be. Then he decided to find out. He pulled his jacket out of his tent, got his flashlight and went to the castle.
Soon he was standing in front of the walls. It was dark everywhere. Only in the castle all the way up there was a light moving. Greg boldly went up. He hid behind the stones and waited for the light to come closer. He was not afraid. His curiosity was greater than any fear. The light was getting closer, but no footsteps could be heard. It was almost upon him. Greg peeked out from behind the rocks, not believing what he saw. A white lady was walking by. She walked as if she wasn’t touching the ground. Her white cloak reached the ground. A tall white cap, shaped into a peak, sat firmly on her head. Her face was white too. She held a light in her hand. Greg turned on the torch and slowly approached her, so as not to startle her. The white lady stopped. She shone the light on Greg. “You’re not afraid of me?” She asked. “No, I’m not. You are the white lady, aren’t you? Why do you have to be here and how long have you been here?” Greg replied. “You have too many questions, young man.” The white lady smiled at him and began to tell him the story. “Since you are not afraid of me and you seem like a nice young man, I will answer you. I have been here for several years. I only come out at night. I sleep during the day. My job is to guard the castle. I used to live here a long time ago. I was queen of this castle. But I wasn’t a good queen. I liked the castle better than the people. So the castle itself put a spell on me. It turned me into the white lady who who has to guard the castle at night.” “I’m sorry.” Greg replied. He could tell that the Queen had changed, that she was a good person now. So they agreed that he would visit her more often.
From then on, whenever he could, he came to the white lady. They walked around the castle and talked. The White Lady was very glad she wasn’t alone. One day, when they were sitting in the castle like that, she said to Greg, “I know now that I must always like people better than things. You taught me that, Greg. Thank you.” When she said that, the wind rose up, the castle began to shake, and the fireflies made a whirlwind around the white lady. At that moment a loud voice could be heard. “You are forgiven Queen, you can live as you wish, you don’t have to be the white lady anymore.” The castle knew that the queen had changed and that she was a kind person. He turned her back to the person she once was. The Queen was happy and hugged Jirka with joy. She then lived as she had always wished.
The castle is still there today. You can still see the light there in the evening. But it’s no longer from the White Lady. It’s from Greg and his best friend, the Queen. They still go there at night together. And together they remind each other how important it is to love people more than things.
