🕊️ The Twelve Brothers and the Twelve Sisters

Once upon a time, there was a king and a queen who had twelve sons and twelve daughters. Their palace was filled with joy and music, until one dark day when jealousy crept into the queen’s heart.

A wicked spirit whispered lies to her: “Your sons will one day rise against their sisters.” Blinded by fear, the queen banished her twelve sons to the wilderness, never to return.

The girls grew up in sorrow, never forgetting their lost brothers. One day, the youngest daughter, brave and pure of heart, decided to seek them out. She walked across mountains, rivers, and forests, guided only by dreams and the stars.

At last, she found a hidden palace deep in the forest. But inside, there were no men—only twelve great birds, with eyes full of sorrow. When she wept, the birds spoke:“Sister, we are your brothers. A curse turned us into birds. To free us, you must remain silent for twelve years and sew twelve shirts of nettles. If you speak a single word, the spell will remain forever.”

Without hesitation, the girl agreed. She gathered nettles from the fields, though they stung her hands until they bled. She spun, wove, and sewed in silence. Years passed.

One day, a passing king saw her working and, struck by her beauty and determination, brought her to his castle. She became his queen, though she never spoke a word. The courtiers whispered against her, calling her proud, even cursed, but still she sewed.

At last, on the final day of the twelfth year, the queen stood before the people, holding the last shirt. Just as the flames of accusation were about to rise against her, twelve birds flew through the window. She cast the nettle shirts upon them, and before everyone’s eyes, the brothers were transformed back into men.

Her silence was broken, but the curse was gone. The family was reunited, and the queen’s courage became a tale told for generations.

And so, the Twelve Brothers and the Twelve Sisters lived not only in memory, but in every story told by firelight across the villages of Greece.