Die Hexenprinzessin (2020)

Amalindis and her twin sister Zottel are the very different princesses of the kingdom of Eichdal. Amalindis, the firstborn, tries to live up to the expectations of her parents, Goderic and Lioba. She enjoys good company and likes handicrafts, reading, and making music. Naturally, she is going to marry Prince Tanka, even though she has never met him. Their parents arranged the engagement long ago to secure peace between their kingdoms and to have a strong ally in case of war. Her sister (who has forbidden everyone to say her first name—and who is sometimes called Zottelhaube because of her wild appearance) has fallen out with King Goderic because she would rather have adventures than be a well-behaved daughter for him. She lives in the forest and is friends with a wolf. Shortly before the wedding, three sinister witches attack the castle: the old witch, the beautiful witch, and the crow witch. They abduct Princess Amalindis, because 18 years earlier they made a bargain with Queen Lioba. Lioba was unable to have children, and the witches had enabled her to become pregnant—in exchange for her firstborn. In her desperation, Lioba had agreed. The first child was given magical powers by the witches, because the eldest of the three can survive only in the young body of the princess. She intends to take possession of it at the next solar eclipse. Zottel sets off with the wolf to rescue her sister. Her best clue is the crow feathers shed by the crow witch. Prince Tanka accompanies her, much to her initial annoyance; she thinks he is boring. Along the way, they meet Bero the witch hunter. He has a tame rat that he calls Great-Aunt Astrid, and he claims that a witch put a spell on her. He uses this as proof to persuade people to buy his protective charms. He might be a charlatan, although strange things do happen around him. Meanwhile, at Eichdal Castle, King Goderic confesses to his queen that Amalindis is actually the secondborn. Goderic had placed Amalindis at the queen’s breast first because he wanted a beautiful princess for his kingdom. The midwife had to swear on her life never to say a word about it. The crow witch also begins to doubt that Amalindis is the firstborn, because she senses no magical powers in her. She suspects that it is actually Zottel, since during their encounter at the castle she sensed a great, untamed power within her. After Zottel saves the prince’s life from a lightning strike, the two young people grow closer. Zottel learns to control and use the magical powers within her. Time is running out: the witches must get her under their control before the solar eclipse, or all three of them will crumble to dust. Zottel manages to free her sister Amalindis in time. The old witch tries to slip into Zottel’s body, but Tanka, Bero, and Amalindis manage to stop her together. The solar eclipse ends, leaving behind a heap of dust and rubble. The four companions return to Eichdal Castle, where Zottel reconciles with her father. Amalindis, now officially the secondborn, gives up her marriage to Tanka. Zottel wants to travel to Tanka’s homeland after the wedding to see the sea. With a mischievous grin, she whispers her real name in her future husband’s ear.