Aurora may be the daughter of a lord, and Clementine of a servant, but both children are blessed with gifts by the fairy Woodland Ladies at their joint christening. Then the vicious oldest Lady, Tarabosse, prophesies that at the age of sixteen, Clementine will betray Aurora to death. Though the curse is lessened to a hundred years' sleep, the girls are sent deep into the woods in an effort to evade it, to be educated in the old magic and protected by the Ladies. They grow up as sisters, but must inevitably return to the castle. Disaster, of course, cannot be averted, and the castle falls into a deep slumber. A century later, Lord Arthur, a young amateur scientist, and his friend, Raphael, arrive on the scene. Entranced by the legends of the enchanted wood, they search for it, and find not only love, but that the science, technology and political progress of the new age are no match for magic that has been untouched for over a hundred years...