Once there was a prince, who was loved by all his subjects, except for a powerful wizard, who wanted the throne for himself. So he took a girl from the nearby village and made her beautiful as the stars, with a heart as dark as the night sky, the cunning of a crow, and a deep loyalty to him alone. He planted her in the royal city and set upon her a figure of enchanted clay. The Prince found her and slew the figure, and was captivated by the beauty of the girl.
Eventually he married her, and on their wedding night, she let the Wizard into the castle where he cast a spell on the Prince, shattering his heart and using the Prince's dark emotions to curse several who had wronged him in the past, scattering the rest of the shards around the kingdom. The Prince was easily manipulated into giving up the throne to the Wizard and his consort, who ruled for many years, stealing from the oblivious people to add to his comfort.
One day a witch, who was living deep in the woods, discovered what was wrong. She searched for a way to break the spell, to find the one who loved the Prince the most. Eventually she happened upon a duck. The Duck, the Witch found, indeed was the one she had been looking for.
She gave the Duck a magic pendant, which turned her into a girl and gave her the power to find the shards and soothe the ones the Wizard had cursed.
"I will come with you," said the Witch, "and protect you from the Wizard."
Soon they had gathered all of the shards, but the Wizard killed the Witch before she could help the Duck give the heart back to the Prince.
Carrying the heart of the Prince, the Duck ran to the castle to give his heart back to the Prince.
There were many dangers, for she no longer had the Witch's protection, but the force of her love drove the Duck on. When she reached the castle, between her and the Prince was a wall of cursed fire that would burn the Duck into a crisp.
The Duck still jumped through the wall, the last vestiges of the Witch's power saving her. But the pendant shattered and the Duck returned to her true form.
"A duck?" Asked the Prince when he saw who had returned his heart to him, "It was a Duck that saved me?"
In fury, the Wizard enchanted the people to run at the Prince in a last effort to kill him. The Duck defended him as best she could, but the Girl held her fast, transforming into a giant crow. The Duck evaded the Crow, trying to save the Prince, but she did not know how to, for the pendant had shattered, and all of the magic with it.
In a last effort, the Duck flew at the Wizard, distracting him enough for the spell to be broken. The Prince killed the Wizard, but was sorrowful, for the Duck was hurt.
The Witch's spirit appeared and tried her best to save the Duck, but the Duck still lay dying. At last, the Witch brought out a pair of berries.
"The berries," said the Witch, "are magical. If a person lays dying, that person, plus another, may eat them, and the healthy person's strength will heal the person. But, the more severe a wound, the more strength is needed. If you do this, I cannot guarantee your life."
"She saved my life, and the lives of all around her. Never have I met so courageous a creature." The Prince took the berries and fed one to the Duck, then took one for himself.
The Duck sat up and looked around. She became human again, and confessed her love to the Prince. The Prince, it was revealed, shared her feelings.
He married her and they lived happily ever after.
Or did they?