fables


Ionna the Gifted is one of the seven fairies who became godmothers to the infant Briar Rose, who each provided their own blessing for the baby. She first appears in flashbacks from the Homelands in Fairest #2 — "Run! Chapter Two of Wide Awake."

History

Background

Ionna the Gifted and the other six fairy godmothers hail from the Twilight Lands. Ionna was one of the daughters of the Deep Night Hollow, where every nightmare is caged and tamed.[1]

Briar Rose

All seven fairies were invited to the grand celebration of the birth of Briar Rose, the newborn princess of Seppantyre, and to officially become her godmothers. All seven blessed the infant Briar Rose at midnight, with their own special gift. Ionna bestowed the fourth blessing, the boon of eternal wealth,[2] which meant that Briar Rose would always become rich even if she lost everything or gave it all away.[3] However, the blessings bestowed upon Briar Rose were abruptly halted by Hadeon the Destroyer, who felt snubbed for not being invited to the christening, barged into the celebration.[2]

Showdown

When Hadeon is battling the Snow Queen, Ionna is summoned alongside her fellow godmothers to help her defeat the evil fairy,[4] but they are unable to help due to the Treaty of Morencaire, a mutual non-aggressive pact. However, once Hadeon is defeated, they use one of Hadeon's own spells and bind her into the shape of a car into servitude to Briar Rose.[5]

Appearances

Fables

Fairest

Original source

Ionna the Gifted is based on one of the seven fairy godmothers from the Charles Perrault version of the "Sleeping Beauty" fairy tale. In the Perrault version of the fairy tale, the titular character has seven fairy godmothers,[6] like in the comic; in the Brothers Grimm's version, they are thirteen "wise women."[7] Ionna is[2] based on the fourth fairy godmother, who ordained that Sleeping Beauty would dance to perfection.[6] This contrasts with the comic, in which Ionna bestowed upon Briar Rose the blessing of everlasting wealth.[2]

Etymology

The name "Ionna" is of Ukrainian origin and means "God's gift,"[8] making Ionna's moniker of Ionna the Gifted[1] a fitting one.

References

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 1.5 Fairest #2 — "Run! Chapter Two of Wide Awake"
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 Fairest #3 — "Party Crasher: Chapter Three of Wide Awake"
  3. ↑ Fables #13 — "Dirty Business: Part Two of a Two-Part Caper"
  4. ↑ Fairest #5 — "A Waltz in Frost and Shadow: Chapter Five of Wide Awake"
  5. ↑ Fairest #6 — "A Field Spotter's Guide to True Love: Chapter Six of Wide Awake"
  6. ↑ 6.0 6.1 "The Sleeping Beauty in the Woods," The Project Gutenberg EBook of Old-Time Stories, by Charles Perrault, Project Gutenberg. "A grand christening was held, and all the fairies that could be found in the realm (they numbered seven in all) were invited to be godmothers to the little princess." (…) Presently the fairies began to bestow their gifts upon the princess. The youngest ordained that she should be the most beautiful person in the world; the next, that she should have the temper of an angel; the third, that she should do everything with wonderful grace; the fourth, that she should dance to perfection; the fifth, that she should sing like a nightingale; and the sixth, that she should play every kind of music with the utmost skill."
  7. ↑ Little Brier-Rose, Jacob and Wilhelm Grimm, translated by D. L. Ashliman, February 16, 2015, University of Pittsburgh. "He invited not only his relatives, friends, and acquaintances, but also the wise women so that they would be kindly disposed toward the child. There were thirteen of them in his kingdom, but because he had only twelve golden plates from which they were to eat, one of them had to remain at home."
  8. ↑ Ionna, She Knows. "In Ukrainian Baby Names the meaning of the name Ionna is: God's gift."

Notes

  1. ↑ As explained in Fables #22 — "Cinderella Libertine," and other issues, Briar Rose was awakened from the sleeping curse by Prince Charming and married him; indicating that she and her godmothers are from the same world as him.