~Nursery Rhyme~
Truly Rich
They were alike as could be, each as gray and wrinkled as the other, with sparkling eyes of an equally unassuming hue; so long had they been together and so alike had they become with time and shared experience that it was often hard to tell the one from the other, this old man and his ancient dame. It had been the cherished hope of their younger selves, so long ago that even Time itself might have forgotten, to have a cottage filled with the music of young laughter and the fairylike song of many happy children yet this dream had never come to pass and now in their fading years there was no joyous overflowing of love from many grateful hearts to lighten the burden of the ever heavier years. There was still love enough between the aged man and his dear lady to cause bitter envy in the hearts of those with far more money, fame, and power who had not even the merest hint of such fidelity and contentment, who knew nothing of the joys and heartrending sorrows of so many shared years. For though poor in material and temporal considerations, never had there been a couple so rich in the things that truly mattered, the things that would last forever and so were they rich indeed though the dearest prayer of their hearts had not yet been fulfilled, even in this were they content though a grievous sorrow it was.
But this is a fairytale and such love neither goes unnoticed nor unrewarded (though one might argue that it is in itself a fit reward), and neither can such a wish go forever unfulfilled. So it was that a certain man appeared on their doorstep one evening as her ladyship the sun gathered her scarlet cloak about her, took up her candle, and vanished behind the distant hills. He was alone and he came afoot. He was as common a man as one might ever think to find and never could one quite recall his face or clothes though you spent an entire afternoon in his company. So did this unassuming personage ask for a night’s shelter and a portion of their meager supper, which they were happy to provide, eager for company as much as wishing to assist him by any possible means. He might be indifferent to look upon, but the couple was well rewarded for their compassion, for he was no common companion. He could weave a tale like few outside the bardic brotherhood and had had a life so full of experience and adventure that there was material aplenty to draw upon. Well content in their company, none thought to retire to bed until well after her ladyship again graced the distant east, swathed in fluffy layers of subtlest rose.
The old couple then retired to their rest and their enigmatic guest bid them a fond farewell, as he was intent on his journey though no sleep had he found that night. For many days thereafter did they recall that evening with delight and joy, savoring the memory as over-particular lords relish their fine viands. But soon an event occurred that drove all consideration of the past from their minds and brought them fully to bear upon the astonishing present. For on a night of tempestuous rain, there came a knocking upon the door and they thought some poor beggar, lost in the storm, lay upon the doorstep hoping for succor from the bitter night. But this was no beggar, but rather a caterwauling basket that howled in equal vehemence with the storm without. Perplexed, the old dame brought the wailing hamper into the snug confines of the cottage and revealed an irate babe, keening like a dozen sodden cats.
And of course, the poor thing was none other than a princess, so imperiled by some unknown enemy that her raising must be done in the most humble and secret of circumstances. Delighted, the elderly pair eagerly accepted the vehement mite into their keeping and so abounded the love and joy in that place, that a wandering angel might be forgiven to think it had strayed into an earthly bit of heaven. The maid grew and so too did her guardians, save that it was ever more gray and wrinkled in their case. Their years by now far exceeded that common to mortal wont, which utterly perplexed them but happy were they to guard and guide this little princess into maidenhood. At last the day of revelation came, as it always must in such tales, and one bright morning found a herald standing at the door in his splendid livery with trumpets blazing and an impressive equipage standing at the ready. The man demanded the immediate return of the long hidden princess, but the couple just sat in their chairs and stared stonily at this far too blatant individual, not liking the feel of him in the least. Said the old man at last, “she is out tending the geese and who knows the hour of her return?”
The herald accomplished a splendid ‘harrumph’ and stormed at the elderly pair who bore his rantings as stoically as a mountain the tempest’s fury. At last a dark figure emerged from the splendid carriage and the furious servant melted into trembling silence. So draped in black robes and veils was this personage that none could see his face or grasp the shape of his person, but he stood far taller and broader than any common man and he emanated raw power and evil as a stove gives off heat. So ill-feeling was he that a shadow seemed to drape itself about the little cottage and the garden thereabouts and even the sun seemed uneasy in her shining. Said he in grim and stentorian tones, “give me the girl!”
The ancient pair shook their heads grimly and the man laughed as an avalanche might before it descends ruthlessly upon some innocent and hapless victim. “So be it,” said he with careless dismissal. He turned his back on the couple, motioned for his servants to make ready their departure, and flicked a black draped hand derisively at the obstinate pair. The great carriage rattled off, leaving only a pair of overly large and quite flummoxed geese to exchange an astonished look in its wake.
The goose waddled to a corner of the house and after some minutes of rummaging around awkwardly with the as yet unfamiliar bill, returned to the gander with a long unused basket. He studied the basket for a moment and then set to gabbling eagerly in his honking voice and twitching his tail in excitement. He then wandered out to the shed and after an equal amount of awkward effort returned with a bit of old twine in his bill. His lady bobbed her head in appreciation and together they painstakingly tied the rope to the basket. Once finished, they patiently awaited the return of the princess. They had no fears that the vile sorcerer would find her first, for how could such a story end so unhappily? Even if the fell wizard found her, there was undoubtedly a prince or a knight or some such just waiting his chance to rescue her. So they made their preparations, as puzzling to an observer as might be, but they knew for some inexplicable reason that this is what must be done. And at last the Princess returned with her charges, who were quite put out to see strangers in their demesne, and not only strangers but huge strangers at that. They hissed and threatened, but a little posturing on the part of the great gander sent the lot of them honking and shrieking in defeat and terror back to their pen.
The princess looked upon the overlarge geese with wonder, but recalling that this was undoubtedly a fairytale, thought no more of the matter and set to studying the prepared basket instead. She shook her head in wonder, she knew exactly what she must do and hoped that some sensible fairy had instilled this particular basket with size altering abilities as well as the waterproofing it had exhibited upon her advent upon the doorstep two decades prior. She sat in the basket, as if it were the most natural thing in the world, and was happy to see that her suspicions were correct. The great geese honked their approval as each took up one end of the attached rope in their bills and then took to the air. Happily the basket was also equipped with gravity defying spells for just such an exigency and the Princess was soon borne aloft and well out of the clutches of the evil mage whose carriage was even then returning to the cottage of her girlhood. She laughed for utter joy and journeyed ever deeper into her own fairytale.
They flew onward, ever onward through sunsets and rises, across forest and lake and field, over cities, mountains, and waste. They neither wearied nor required food or water as ever they continued on. At last, after what might have been a year if it were not a day, they came to a great river whose far side they could not see. They settled then upon the bank and held a honking conference in their strange anseriform tongue while the princess waited silently in her extraordinary basket. Suddenly t
he rumble of carriage wheels and the clatter of hooves overwhelmed the nearly silent river’s song. Without another thought, feeling the dire evil encroaching upon them, the pair took again to the air and set out for the far side of the great river. The dark wizard emerged from his carriage and watched them shrink into the distance, his fist raised in silent fury at his vanished quarry, irate that his own curse should be used against him in such a way.
On and on they flew and never did the far shore appear, yet neither did the sun rise or set in this strange world; only stars shimmered overhead in their age old dance but never did the moon raise his face above the boundless waters. At last, exhausted, the pair made to settle upon the water and hoped the magnificent basket had floatation enchantments woven about it as well, but they needn’t have worried, for as soon as they began their descent the waters parted and a broad bar of white sand appeared before them, seeming to glow with the reflected light of the stars above. They settled then, the basket coming to rest as gently as a dove lights upon the ground. The Princess emerged from her basket for what might have been the first time in millennia or perhaps minutes, who could tell in this strange land? Whether the bar grew or the newcomers shrank was anyone’s guess but suddenly there was land all about them, as far as eye could see and in the east the glimmer of sunrise hinted that they again walked the mortal earth. A bright and shining castle, whose stones might have been uncut diamonds, glittered in the rising light of day and from it emerged a King with his Queen upon his arm.
The geese waggled their tails and bobbed their heads in excited greeting while the Princess dropped a very proper curtsy to these who must unquestioningly be her true parents. So as to defy all storybook requirements, the only thing remarkable about this particular King was that he was quite unremarkable. The feathered couple knew him at once as their uncommonly common companion of twenty years previous and honked excitedly in greeting. The aged couple was soon relieved of their goosish guise even as the shackles of age also dropped from their persons. Joining hands altogether, rejoicing as they went, all entered the sparkling castle and of a certainty they lived happily ever after, except for the mage of course, who was never happy, even in his triumph, for he knew nothing of Love.
There was an old woman
Lived under a hill,
And if she’s not gone
She lives there still.