Princess Cloriana was the only child of King Grimaldo of Grand Cairo. Whenever her father would hunt, she would join them as she was a skilled markswoman. Each time, she would help with the hunt, and King Grimaldo’s men knew to trust her.
One day, Princess Cloriana was distracted by a lovely flower hanging from a branch of a tree. It shifted colours before her, and before she knew it, she was left behind. She knew the way back by heart, but lions came out of the woods. Princess Cloriana took down the beasts with ease, but she tired after the battle, and rested beneath the trees. Unfortunately, Turkish soldiers passed by and captured her while she lay asleep. They took her to the palace of their emperor. When Emperor Mahomento saw the fair princess, he immediately fell in love with her. But she spurned him, so the emperor slapped her and ordered the guards to throw her into the dungeon. While captive, Princess Cloriana prayed to the Virgin Mary.
Emperor Mahomento visited Cloriana. He offered her two choices: to be his queen or suffer more hardships. Cloriana bravely replied that she would not have him as a husband. Her reply angered the emperor, so much that he ordered the guards to put Cloriana in a large box, lock it and throw it into the sea. Cloriana prayed to the Virgin Mary as they tossed her to the ocean.
A miracle happened: her box was not tossed violently by the waves, nor did she hunger for seventeen months. The box washed up on the shores of the Asturias. The wild animals brought her each a welcoming gift: each had a flower in their mouths. She hesitated to accept the one offered by the snake, which made the snake sad. Seeing this, she took the gift. Inside its flower was an enchanted amulet. The animals guided her to Mount Floresta, where the Princess reigned as queen of all the animals.
On the mountain, the rosal plant had three flowers which changed on certain days. It was red on Mondays, black on Tuesdays, and white on Wednesday. On Fridays the plant would die and come to life again the day after.
Back in Grand Cairo, King Grimaldo had all of his kingdom searching for Cloriana. The king offered her hand in marriage to the man who found her and brought her home. Prince Igmidio of Aragon heard about the news, and later that night had a dream of the princess holding three flowers. He fell in love with her in the dream, and her spirit self told him where she was. Cloriana had the same dream, though she only thought of it as a dream; he took it as a call to adventure.
The Prince rode off to Mount Floresta. He met an old man who told him to bless all the wild animals he encountered. He gave the Prince a magic string which could make the wild animals obey his command. Each of Cloriana’s subjects grew defensive of the prince, but with the string, he calmed their anxiety of his arrival.
He found the Princess in a flower bed. He loved her so but wanted to see if she could love him regardless of who he was. He pretended to be a shepherd’s boy from her kingdom. Having not spoken to humans in a while, Princess Cloriana asked him about her family, her home and how he came here. He answered that they were all well, her home was still prosperous and her father had asked all men to search for her. He said that he heard the call, and despite who he was, wanted to help her. Cloriana was touched by this and gave him an embrace, “I will marry any man who was clever and brave enough to find me.”
Smiling behind his disguise, the Prince took her back to her father’s kingdom. Her father was overjoyed, but turned the Prince away, not knowing who he truly was. Each night, the Prince would climb up the walls, to one tall tree and climb his way down the other side to see her. She would greet him with an embrace and kiss, professing her love to him. She wanted to escape back to her Mountain where she was Queen, and she could do anything without her father’s approval. One day the King found them together and threw the Prince into the dungeon.
Cloriana visited him in his cell and devised a plan to escape. They could go back to her domain on Mount Floresta, and he could be her King there. He objected to this, wanting to preserve her honour and not have this story end in scandal. Unsure, Cloriana remembered the amulet the snake had given her and placed it into the Prince’s hands. He broke the bars of the cell with the amulet, and promised to return soon.
Right after the Prince escaped, Grand Cairo was attacked by warriors and the princess was taken prisoner. The head, General Celem, expressed his great love for the princess, but she refused im. They then took her onto a stage to behead her. Prince Igmidio swooped in, in his full grandeur and robes of a prince and with his army, and saved her from her captors. Together they were married, and lived happily ever after.