In a cozy kingdom, nestled between rolling green hills, lived a King and a Queen who already had a whole team of sons – twelve, to be exact! They were all strong, playful boys.

One day, the King told the Queen, "If our next baby, the thirteenth one, is a little girl, then all our twelve sons will have to go away. I want her to have the whole kingdom and all its treasures just for herself." He even had twelve little coffins made, just in case. Oh dear!

The Queen was very sad. She loved her boys so much! When the time for the new baby was near, she secretly told her youngest son, Benjamin, "My dear, if I raise a red flag from the castle tower, it means a baby sister is here, and you and your brothers must run far away into the forest. If I raise a white flag, it means another baby brother, and you can all come home for a big party!"

Benjamin and his brothers watched the tower every day. One day, up went a flag… and it was red! The twelve brothers were heartbroken. They knew they had to leave. They ran deep into the forest, so deep that no one could find them. They were angry and sad, and they promised that they wouldn't be kind to any girl they met, because a girl had made them lose their home.

They found a little, empty cottage hidden among the trees. "Let's live here," they said. So, the eleven older brothers went out to hunt for food, and Benjamin, the youngest, stayed home to cook and keep the cottage tidy. They lived like this for ten long years.

Back at the castle, the little baby girl grew up to be a kind and beautiful Princess. She had a special star-shaped birthmark on her forehead. One day, she saw her mother washing twelve little boy-shirts. "Mother," she asked, "whose shirts are these? They are too small for Papa."

With a sigh, the Queen told her the story of her twelve brothers. The Princess felt a great sadness. "Oh, my poor brothers!" she cried. "Where are they? I must go and find them!"

So, the Princess took the twelve little shirts and set off into the big, dark forest. She walked and walked until, at last, she found the hidden cottage. Benjamin was inside. He was very surprised to see a pretty girl.
"Why are you here?" he asked.
"I am looking for my twelve brothers," she said, and she showed him one of the little shirts.
Benjamin recognized it! "I am Benjamin, your youngest brother!" he exclaimed. They were both so happy!

But then Benjamin remembered their promise. "Oh dear," he said. "My brothers have vowed to be unkind to any girl they meet. You must hide!" He quickly hid her under a big tub.

Soon, the eleven brothers came home. "Supper ready, Benjamin?" they called.
As they ate, they asked, "What's new?"
"Don't you know anything?" said Benjamin. "Not even about the Princess who is looking for you?"
"A Princess?" they said, interested. "We hope she's not too pretty, or we might break our promise!"
"She is very beautiful," said Benjamin. Then he lifted the tub.

Out stepped the Princess! The brothers were stunned. She was so lovely, and she looked so kind. When she showed them the twelve shirts and they saw the star on her forehead, they knew she was their sister. All their anger melted away, and they hugged her with joy.

They all lived happily together in the cottage. The Princess helped Benjamin with the cooking and cleaning. One day, in the little garden behind the cottage, the Princess saw twelve beautiful white lily flowers. Thinking they would look lovely on the table, she picked them.

Oh no! The moment she picked the lilies, her twelve brothers turned into twelve black ravens and flew away over the forest! The cottage and garden vanished too, leaving her all alone.

Just then, an old woman appeared. "My child," she said, "those lilies were your brothers. To turn them back into princes, you must do something very hard. For seven years, you must not speak a single word, and you must not laugh. If you make even one sound, your brothers will be lost forever."
The Princess nodded. She would do anything for her brothers.

She found a tall tree and decided to live there, spinning thread and never speaking. One day, a King from a nearby land was hunting in the forest. He saw the beautiful girl in the tree. He was amazed by her beauty and her silence. He gently helped her down and, even though she couldn't speak, he fell in love with her. He took her to his castle and married her.

The King's mother, however, was a wicked old woman. She did not like the silent Queen. She started telling lies about her, saying she was doing bad things. Because the Queen could not speak to defend herself, the King sadly began to believe his mother. He finally ordered that the Queen should be punished by being tied to a stake for a big bonfire.

As the Queen stood there, with tears in her eyes but still silent, she looked up at the sky. It was the very last day of the seven years! Suddenly, with a great rushing of wings, twelve black ravens swooped down from the sky. They landed, and in an instant, they turned back into her twelve handsome brothers!

The seven years were over! The Queen could speak!
"My dearest husband!" she cried. "I am innocent! These are my brothers, and I was silent all these years to save them!"
She told him the whole story. The King was overjoyed to know the truth. He hugged his brave Queen and welcomed her brothers.

The wicked old mother-in-law was sent away where she couldn't cause any more trouble. And the King, the Queen, and her twelve brothers lived together in great joy and happiness for many, many years.

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