Versione italiana : https://nathjy.travel.blog/2020/08/31/in-una-notte-di-luna-piena-a-viterbo/

Almost everyone knows that fairies and magicians always fall in love on a full moon night.

On a full moon night, in the narrow streets of the medieval town of Viterbo, the magician Merlino thought he saw the shadow of the fairy at the bottom of a tunnel that would delight his heart forever.

Only for a brief moment, because as soon as it was turned over, it had already disappeared.

Merlino continued his meditation and arrived in the majestic Piazza San Lorenzo. He was once again dazzled by the open-air loggia of the Palazzo dei Papi.

How many times had he let himself be bewitched in this way? He couldn’t say, as the magic of the place exerted a very powerful attraction on him. It must be said that an incredible force emanates from these 13th century buildings.

Merlino had then wandered through the old town, finding himself propelled at least 800 years back in no time.

In Piazza della Morte, he paused to admire the fontana della morte and the reflections of the garlands of light on the front of an old shop.

He turned around to look at the small, lively square where men and women seemed to be enjoying themselves.

In a narrow passageway, as was often the case in cities of that time, he came across a red cat on a red scooter. It is said among magicians that if you come across a red cat on a red scooter on a full moon night, you have every chance of finding your beloved.

Merlino therefore decided to continue these peregrinations in the nascent hope of finding the little fairy dressed in a red and white striped outfit.

Passing under the illuminated windows of a magnificent balcony, he imagined himself for a few moments as a weeping Romeo to seduce his Juliet.

He then remembered that fairies love writings, books and magic cauldrons. He rushed down the street that led to the famous inn where the books were next to the cauldrons on the shelves. To no avail, for the place was desperately empty, as was our magician’s bruised heart.

A little further on, he remembered that some time ago one of his magician friends had inscribed on the walls of a church a whole litany of magic words. So he pushed on, hoping that the fairy had come there to find a forgotten magic formula.

A few steps away, on the left, a very great magician had placed huge pebbles on which the children of the modern world liked to play.

And suddenly, as he remembered the force with which the magician had set up these pebbles, he saw once again the fairy with the red and white striped habit. This time she was accompanied by a fairy with a small blue flower bag. Merlino, seized by emotion, didn’t know what to do. Even if you are a great magician, when love rings the doorbell, you can be a little distraught.

He decided to follow them to the San Pellegrino district. This is how he learned to discover what makes fairies happy. For example, he could go for an hour in ecstasy in front of a well-decorated staircase or enjoy the posters of the hotels that welcome bicycles at the corner of the alleys.

At one point he found himself alone again and thought he had lost forever the one that made his heart beat at a speed unknown until then. Merlino even wondered if his chest was going to explode.

Fortunately, the peaceful view of the medieval dwellings around the Ponte di Paradesso brought the magician back to peace. He came to his senses and decided to return home. No, the stories about the red cat and the full moon night were not to be believed, of course, they no longer made sense in modern times.

It was then that he found our two fairies leaning against the edge of a fountain while enjoying a gelato. Another discovery for Merlino, the fairies love to enjoy gelati with panna of course.

For a while, he admired the water from the fountain to regain a little serenity and then took on an innocent air, as magicians in love come close to declaring their flame.

He pretended to be interested in the structure of the fountain, the interplay of water and light.

He chooses to go and buy himself a gelato because magicians also like Italian ice cream. And that refreshes his ideas. Because what was going to happen when he left the shop?

As he approached the magic fountain, this time he saw the fairy watching the play of water and light with a detached air, as fairies know how to do when they discover with emotion that a magician is watching them with love. Was this a sign for Merlino? The story doesn’t say…

However, a traveller, whom we trust, assures us that he has seen the Chinese shadows, of Merlino the magician and Giulia the fairy, standing out lovingly on Palazzo Farnese for all eternity.

Par Nathalie

Translated with http://www.DeepL.com/Translator (free version)