The Silent Queen's Secret

Once upon a time, near a big forest, lived a poor woodcutter and his wife. They had one daughter, a little girl who was just three years old. They were so poor that they didn’t have enough food to feed her anymore. One morning, the woodcutter went to work in the forest, feeling very sad. As he was cutting wood, a tall and beautiful woman with a crown of shining stars on her head appeared. She said, "I am the Virgin Mary, the mother of Jesus. You are poor and struggling. Bring me your child, and I will take care of her as my own."

The woodcutter obeyed, brought his daughter to the Virgin Mary, and she took the child up to heaven. In heaven, the little girl had a wonderful life. She ate sweet cakes, drank milk, wore golden clothes, and played with angels. As the girl grew up, she lived happily among the angels.

When the girl turned fourteen, the Virgin Mary called her and said, "Dear child, I must go on a long journey. Here are the keys to the thirteen doors of heaven. You may open twelve of them and see all the beauty inside, but the thirteenth door is forbidden. Do not open it, or you will be unhappy."

The girl promised to obey. After the Virgin Mary left, the girl started to open one door each day. Behind each door, she saw great wonders and beauty, and she felt so happy to explore heaven with the angels. But as she opened the twelve doors, she became curious about the thirteenth door. The angels warned her not to open it, but her desire to see inside grew stronger each day.

One day, when the angels were not around, the girl decided to take a peek. She said to herself, "I won’t open it completely, just a little so I can see inside." She found the key and opened the door just a tiny bit. Inside, she saw the Holy Trinity, shining brightly in fire and light. Amazed, she touched the light with her finger, and it turned golden. Fear filled her heart, and she quickly shut the door, but the golden mark on her finger stayed.

When the Virgin Mary returned, she asked the girl for the keys. As she looked into her eyes, she asked, "Did you open the thirteenth door?" The girl lied and said no. The Virgin Mary asked her two more times, but the girl continued to lie. Finally, the Virgin Mary said, "You have disobeyed me and lied. You are no longer worthy of staying in heaven."

The girl fell into a deep sleep and woke up in a wilderness on earth, surrounded by thorny bushes. She was all alone and couldn’t speak. Her golden finger reminded her of her mistake, and she lived in a hollow tree, eating wild berries and nuts. Over time, her clothes tore apart, and she covered herself with her long hair. She wept bitterly, remembering how happy she had been in heaven.

Years passed, and one day a king came hunting in the forest. He found the girl sitting under a tree, covered in her golden hair. The king asked who she was, but she could not speak. He felt pity for her and took her to his castle, where he gave her beautiful clothes and everything she needed. Although she couldn’t speak, her beauty and kindness made the king fall in love with her, and soon they married.

A year later, the queen gave birth to a baby boy. That night, the Virgin Mary appeared to her and said, "If you admit that you opened the forbidden door, I will give you back your voice and leave your child with you. If you deny it, I will take your baby away." But the queen stubbornly said, "No, I didn’t open the door." The Virgin Mary took the baby, and the next morning, the child was gone. People began to whisper that the queen had eaten her own child, but the king refused to believe it.

The next year, the queen had another baby boy. Again, the Virgin Mary appeared and asked her to confess. The queen denied it once more, and the Virgin Mary took the second baby as well. Rumors spread again, and people accused the queen of being a monster. But the king still loved her and protected her.

A year later, the queen gave birth to a daughter. The Virgin Mary came again, and this time, she took the queen to heaven to see her two sons playing happily. "Do you not want your children back?" she asked. "Confess, and you will have them again." But the queen still said, "No, I didn’t open the door." The Virgin Mary took her daughter and sent the queen back to earth.

The people were furious, and the king could no longer stop them from putting the queen on trial. She was found guilty and sentenced to be burned at the stake. As the fire surrounded her, the queen's heart finally softened. She cried out, "Yes, Mary, I opened the forbidden door!" At that moment, rain poured from the sky and put out the fire. The Virgin Mary appeared with the queen's three children and said, "Those who repent are forgiven." She returned the children to the queen and gave her back her voice, and the queen lived happily with her family for the rest of her life.