Fairer-than-a-Fairy (Mailly)

They entrusted this to the oldest fairy, Lagrée, who had only one eye and one tooth left and could preserve those only by soaking them in a magical liquid at night.

She kidnapped the seven-year-old princess, whose cat and dog followed her, and brought her to a castle, where she had a pretty room but was charged to never let a fire go out and to take care of two glass bottles.

Lagrée, delighted, ordered Fairer-than-a-Fairy to get a new fire from Locrinos, a cruel monster that ate whoever it found, especially young girls.

When Fairer-than-a-Fairy slept in the shelter that the stone made, Lagrée caught up, but the dog bit her, making her fall and break her last tooth.

She slept under a myrtle that sprang up from the sprig, and when Lagrée reached her, the cat scratched her eye out, making the fairy helpless against her.

Rachel Harriette Busk noted that the tale contained the episode of the disappearance of the prince and the princess's quest for him.

[6] He also commented on the motif of the gifts of the three old ladies, and compared it to other tales wherein the human maiden is given three nuts that produce magical objects she trades for three nights with her husband.

[7] According to Hans-Jörg Uther, the main feature of tale type ATU 425A, "The Animal (Monster) as Bridegroom" is "bribing the false bride for three nights with the husband".

[8] In fact, when he developed his revision of Aarne-Thompson's system, Uther remarked that an "essential" trait of the tale type ATU 425A was the "wife's quest and gifts" and "nights bought".