Catherine and James slowly climbed up the stone steps until finally they had reached the room. The two burst through the door and ran quickly to the old book, opening its pages, and once again a familiar voice greeted them.

"Hello, my children," said a voice coming from the old book, which also happened to be the voice of  the former queen of France, Queen Bourbon. "Have you come back to learn more of the truth unknown?"

"This truth you speak of, your majesty, neither James nor I understand," said Catherine, ever so courteous.

"Maybe you just need to open your eyes," said the voice.

And once again, the children found themselves in an unknown land, far from the burdens of the castle. 

The Queen closed her eyes as she lay in the cool grass. All the while, she was dreaming of one day bearing a child of her own. The King and Queen so desperately wanted a child, but for years were unable to have one. Just then, three passing fairies noticed the queen knew or her desire, so they decided to grant her a child. The first fairy said the Queen's son would be handsome, amiable and loved. The second fairy said he would succeed at everything he did. But the third fairy muttered something under her breath and began laughing hysterically. The queen woke up from her deep slumber wondering if what she had dreamed had actually happened.

Months passed and it became apparent that the queen was indeed pregnant. Finally the day came for the little prince to be born, but the King and Queen's joy quickly turned to sadness when a perfect child was not born but a little wild boar. The King ordered the little monster to be drowned in the river but the Queen took pity on the beast and told the King she would raise him as any other human child, and she decided to name the new prince Marcassin. The Queen dressed him in the most expensive clothes and the finest jewelry, and like other children, the little royal pig even began to speak and was also taught to walk on his hind legs.

One day, an old woman and her three daughters came before the king, begging for his help. The Queen, whose heart was so tender, took pity on the family and welcomed the widow and her daughters to live in the castle. The old woman's daughters were the most beautiful in all the land and Prince Marcassin quickly took notice, especially of the eldest daughter, Ismene. He asked his mother, the Queen, to persuade the old woman to grant him her  eldest daughter's hand in marriage. The Queen thought this was fair since she had done so much for them and knew this might be the only chance for Marcassin to marry. So of course, the old woman had no choice but to oblige.

Ismene was devastated at having to marry such a hideous creature. Prince Marcassin's hair was coarse, his tusks were quite dangerous, and no matter how much perfume he wore, he carried a foul stench. However, Prince Marcassin could not be happier with his new bride, because for the first time he had truly fallen in love. But Ismene could never love the beast. At the first opportunity, she grabbed a dagger and plunged it into her heart so she would never have to love Marcassin.

Prince Marcassin was overcome with grief by her death, that is until he noticed her sister, Zelonide. Marcassin's heart began to long for Zelonide, and once again the old woman was convinced to give her daughter to Prince Marcassin. Zelonide reluctantly agreed, but she could not bear to live with the pig. So, when the prince was sleeping, she grabbed a dagger and raised her arm to slice the pig's throat when all of a sudden, Marcassin awoke and pierced the girl with his tusks, killing her instantly. The prince was heart broken at the death of his second bride and was beginning to think he would never find love. That night, he decided to run away and live with the wild boars in the forest.

Meanwhile, the old woman and her youngest daughter Marthesie found it too painful to remain in the palace. The two retreated to live in the forest. While Marthesie was retrieving water, she was frightened by a wild boar, but he did not charge. Instead he told her he was her old friend Marcassin. Marthesie, who always pitied the poor pig, befriended the now wild boar. Soon, Marcassin began to fell in love with Marthesie. She was the most beautiful of her sisters and was the only one to show him kindness. He decided that he would ask her to be his bride. Marthesie was unsure of this proposal, since nothing good ever came from marrying Marcassin. However, Marthesie cared so much for the poor pig, she said yes to his proposal.

One day, while Marcassin was asleep, Marthesie found what appeared to be the skin of a pig. As she looked up, she saw the most handsome man and a fairy just over his head. The fairy told her she had broken the curse that was placed on Marcassin just before birth and now he would no longer wear the skin of a filthy beast. Marthesie, overwhelmed with joy, awoke sleeping Marcassin to tell him the news. At that, Marcassin and his new bride returned to the palace to share the news with the king and queen.  

And Prince Marcassin lived on to eventually to rule his father's kingdom with his beautiful, faithful bride by his side.

"You see children, one must not always believe what one sees," said the voice from the book. "Go now, attend to your chores and come back tomorrow for more will be revealed."

With that, Catherine and James were once again alone in the cold, dark room of the tower. They placed the old book back in its hiding place and quietly crept back downstairs.