Magicians Archive - Thesilée

The Lily of the Vale II

O I am a lovely princess, I’m as pretty as I can,
And I’m rich, but I’m not happy, for I live without a man.
It is not for lack of courters, or of wits that I’m alone,
But I only want the purest fairest man to call my own.

O mine is the fairest flower, the lily of the vale:
If you’re questing for a husband, come listen to my tale.

So I went to see a sorcerer, and I told him of my need.
We made up a plan together, and a cunning plan indeed,
and I hired a band of hunters that would scare the hounds of hell,
And I went into the valley where the unicorn would dwell.

O mine is the fairest flower, the lily of the vale:
If you’re questing for a husband, come listen to my tale.

I pretended to be sleeping, waiting for the unicorn.
When he found I was a virgin, he came to bless me with his horn.
And he fell asleep beside me, and I knew I’d be his wife,
and I waited silent, patient, for my hunters to arrive.

O mine is the fairest flower, the lily of the vale:
If you’re questing for a husband, come listen to my tale.

O he was so sweet and frightened and the trap he did not know,
And I played my part but perfect, even killed one man for show.
Than we ran away together, with the hunters on our back,
And I led him through the valley, to the sorcerer’s tiny shack.

O mine is the fairest flower, the lily of the vale:
If you’re questing for a husband, come listen to my tale.

»Hurry, Sorcerer!« I was crying, »can’t you see he’s almost dead,
and the riders are approaching!« And the sorcerer scratched his head:
»I know but one thing to help you, but I’ll do the best I can.«
And then, just as he had promised, turned the creature to a man.

O mine is the fairest flower, the lily of the vale:
If you’re questing for a husband, come listen to my tale.

There he stood so fair and handsome with his skin like lily white,
Trembling like a wounded roebuck, and his eyes were dark as night:
He was just what I had wished for, not that macho kind of guy,
And a unicorn no longer, so the riders passed us by.

O mine is the fairest flower, the lily of the vale:
If you’re questing for a husband, come listen to my tale.

»I am sorry«, said the sorcerer, »but you’ll have to live a man:
I could turn you to a human, but can’t turn you back again.«
»There’s just one thing!« I said quickly, looking at this wretched thing:
»If you cannot make him unicorn, then I’ll make him my king.«

O mine is the fairest flower, the lily of the vale:
If you’re questing for a husband, come listen to my tale.

It’s five years now that we’re married, we’re as happy as can be.
He believes that I did save him, doesn’t know the fiend was me.
Listen, ladies, if you’re lonely and you want to be a wife:
Get yourself a golden bridle, catch a unicorn alive!

O mine is the fairest flower, the lily of the vale:
If you’re questing for a husband, come listen to my tale.

There’s two sides to every story
The other side is »The Lily of the Vale«

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The Lily of the Vale

O, as I was all a-walking in my valley so sweet,
The sun, it kissed my hair, and the grass, it kissed my feet.
And the birds were sweetly singing, and my heart was full of glee:
For the unicorn was dancing, and the unicorn was me.

O gone is the fairest flower, the lily of the vale:
Don’t ye weep, but come ye closer and listen to my tale.

Lovely maiden lay a-sleeping, o a princess she was born,
Fairer than the fairest flower, in her lap, I laid my horn,
And I fell asleep beside her to protect her from the night
And was sleeping when the hunters to my valley they did ride.

O gone is the fairest flower, the lily of the vale:
Don’t ye weep, but come ye closer and listen to my tale.

O I knew not much of hatred, and I knew not much of greed,
all I knew I was in danger, so I stumbled to my feet.
But their weapons were cold iron, cold and black as was their heart,
and they’d come for naught but killing: From my horn, they wished me part.

O gone is the fairest flower, the lily of the vale:
Don’t ye weep, but come ye closer and listen to my tale.

I was never made for fighting, and could not defend my life,
But my lady turned a fury, stabbed one hunter with her knife.
Through the vale we then were running with the hunters close behind,
Ran until we met the sorcerer, and his help we hoped to find.

O gone is the fairest flower, the lily of the vale:
Don’t ye weep, but come ye closer and listen to my tale.

»Hurry, Sorcerer!« cried the maiden, »can’t you see he’s almost dead,
and the riders are approaching!« And the sorcerer scratched his head:
»I know but one thing to help you, but I’ll do the best I can.«
And he wove his powers round me, and he turned me to a man.

O gone is the fairest flower, the lily of the vale:
Don’t ye weep, but come ye closer and listen to my tale.

O my hooves were no more cloven, and my horn had disappeared.
so the hunters couldn’t tell me, they rode on, but I felt weird:
I could feel my life drain from me, all my powers I did lack,
and I waited, shivering, aching, for the spell to turn me back.

O gone is the fairest flower, the lily of the vale:
Don’t ye weep, but come ye closer and listen to my tale.

»I am sorry«, said the sorcerer, »but you’ll have to live a man:
I could turn you to a human, but can’t turn you back again.«
»There’s just one thing!« said the lady, and her voice to sweet did ring:
»If you cannot make him unicorn, then I’ll make him my king.«

O gone is the fairest flower, the lily of the vale:
Don’t ye weep, but come ye closer and listen to my tale.

I am father of the three children, and my wife, she loves me well.
All the world thinks that I’m happy, but my heart I cannot tell.
And the willows they are weeping as the brook rolls on and on,
and my vale is bound to wither since the unicorn is gone.

O gone is the fairest flower, the lily of the vale:
Don’t ye weep, but come ye closer and listen to my tale.

Inspired by a scene from Peter S. Beagle’s »The Last Unicorn«.
The other side of this story is told in the song »The Lily of the Vale II«

This song can be found on the album »Garden of the Lost«

This song with chords as a PDF
The song in Chordpro format

Schattenreiter

Mein Liebster, er hat mich verlassen
und ist an meiner Seite doch stets als mein Mann.
Der er nun ist, den kann ich nicht hassen,
Weil man das, was nicht lebt, hassen, lieben nicht kann.
Schwarzer Bann hält die Seele gefangen,
hält die Seele gefangen in schimmerndem Stein.
Ach, wär ich doch nur mit ihm gegangen!
Als er ging, doch ich ging nicht, nun bin ich allein.

Und er reitet all Nacht mit den Schatten
und dann singt er sein Lied mit dem Wind, wenn er singt
von den Träumen, die wir damals hatten –
ganz allein mit der Nacht, von Schatten umringt.

Ich gehe den Zauber zu brechen
mit dem Stein in der Hand, der mein Liebster einst war.
Ich will mit dem Zauberer sprechen
der den Mann mir verwandelt vor Tag und vor Jahr.
Ach, ich weiß, er hat selbst so entschieden:
Aus der Angst vor dem Tod, aus der Angst vor der Zeit –
zwar hat er so das Sterben vermieden.
doch er kannt nicht den Preis, und er kennt nicht mein Leid.

Und er reitet all Nacht mit den Schatten
und dann singt er sein Lied mit dem Wind, wenn er singt
von den Träumen, die wir damals hatten –
ganz allein mit der Nacht, von Schatten umringt.

»Gute Frau, was du sagst, rührt mein Herz an,
was dich treibt, ist die Liebe, das fühl ich genau,
keine Macht ist’s, die das kann, was Schmerz kann,
und wer soll mich bekehrn, als die liebende Frau?
Gerne würde ich dich mit ihm vereinen
doch mich bindet mein Schwur, denn ich gab ihm mein Wort.
Ach, da nützt auch kein Klagen, kein Weinen –
denn ich kann dir nicht helfen, nur scher dich hinfort.«

Und er reitet all Nacht mit den Schatten
und dann singt er sein Lied mit dem Wind, wenn er singt
von den Träumen, die wir damals hatten –
ganz allein mit der Nacht, von Schatten umringt.

Und er blickt mir nochmals in die Augen
und spricht: »Sag, deine Liebe, kennst du ihren Preis?«
Ich fühl ihn mir das Leben aussaugen
doch ich nicke nur, weil ich die Antwort schon weiß.
Dann bin ich auf der anderen Seite
Es ist schwarz, tief im Stein, wo die Sonne nie scheint
Und ich fühle sein Herz in der Weite
und ich bin, wo ich bin, mit dem Liebsten vereint.

Und wir reiten all Nacht mit den Schatten
und wir singen das Lied mit dem Wind, wenn er singt
von den Träumen, die wir damals hatten –
nur wir zwei, mit der Nacht, von Schatten umringt.

A story about love and immortality: A sorcerer’s spell has banned a woman’s husband into a stone, granting him the desired immortality. There’s only one way to unite the lovers – following him into the stone, where they’ll ride all night with the shadows …

The song with chords as a PDF
The song in Chordpro format

Geistergarten

Was ihr heut Garten nennt ist unser Friedhof.
Da hüpft und spielt dein Kind auf meinem Grab.
Dort wo die Büsche sind, da stehn die Steine, so alt und grau,
die Schrift verwittert, doch ich kenne sie genau.

Da stand ein Haus aus schwarzem Stein, darin wohnten wir.
Wir lebten gut, denn wir hatten Macht.
Wir herrschten über jeden Mensch, über jedes Tier
Bis dann das Feuer kam in der Nacht.
Das ist so viele Jahre her, doch nie vorbei …

Das Feuer kam, jedoch durch wen, das erfuhrn wir nicht,
denn es hat keiner den Tag erlebt.
Es fraß uns auf mit seinem gierigen roten Licht
Und unser Zauber war ausgewebt.
Das ist so viele Jahre her, doch nie vorbei …

Weil wir zur Lebzeit so böse warn, wie man sagt,
bracht uns der Tod auch nur Tod, nicht Ruh:
Man hat uns direkt aus dem Himmel wieder verjagt,
wir drehn der Hölle den Rücken zu.
Das ist so viele Jahre her, doch nie vorbei …

Doch liegt im Winter euer Garten tod, öd und kahl,
es wächst kein Blatt, und das Gras ist braun
und ihr schlaft alle tief und fest, dann, mit einem Male
leckt ein Flämmchen am Eisenzaun.
Ihr denkt, das Feuer sei unser Feind? Wir sind sein Herr …

Was ihr jetzt Friedhof nennt, ist unser Garten.
Da hüpft und spielt mein Kind auf deinem Grab.
Wo jetzt noch Steine sind, blüht bald Holunder im Mondenlicht –
Wir sind vergessen, doch vergangen sind wir nicht.

The English version of this song is »Garden of the Ghosts«

The song with chords as a PDF
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Garden of the Ghosts

You call it garden fair, but it’s our cemetary.
Your child will skip and dance upon my grave.
And where the bushes grow, you’ll find our stones, they’re so old and grey –
Their words are weathered, but I know what they do say:

The was a castle with black walls and it was our home.
We were magicians of wealth and fame.
We were the lords of every man, every beat to roam
until the night that the fires came.
It was so many years ago, yet it’s not past…

The fire came yet who did light it, we’d never learn
for no one lived till the break of day.
With greedy flames all of our skin, our bones did burn
and all our magic was cast away.
It was so many years ago, yet it’s not past…

But as we lived to be as evil as one can be
no peace nor rest did we find in death:
The realms of Heaven we were never allowed to see.
Send us to hell? Better save your breath!
It was so many years ago, yet it’s not past…

Yet if it’s winter and your garden lies dead and bare,
the leaves are gone and the grass won’t grow
and you are sleeping save and sound, o so unaware
that there’s a spark that begins to glow…
You thought the fire to be our foe? We are its lord…

You call it cemetary, but it’s our garden fair.
My child will skip and dance upon your grave.
And where your stones do lie, you’ll find an elderflower bush in bloom –
you did forget us, but you won’t forget your doom.

The German version of this song is »Geistergarten«

The song with chords as a PDF
The song in Chordpro format