Wonder
Do you remember the story about the strange little man that tried to take the mill's daughter who became Queen. But have you wondered what happened to the strange little man? Or the miller's daughter? Well sit back relax, and prepare to hear the rest of the story.
The now queen felt so immensely proud of herself for outsmarting the little man. 17 years went by without a word from him. Her daughter grew into a beautiful young woman.
Full of grace and beauty.
Her blonde hair was as shiny as gold bars. Long and flowing down to the floor. Her skin was as creamy and white as fresh milk. Her lips were as red and plump as freshly picked apples. Her beauty was known throughout the kingdom. All the people adored her.
She had never learned of her mother's past nor about the strange little man that had tried to trick her mother into giving her up. She grew up with the impression she was a princess of a very wealthy kingdom.
As she walked, she heard all the villagers shouting, "Good morning," and "How is the golden princess today?"
She would stop every morning to smell the roses in the courtyard. She loved the beauty of the roses; how red and soft the petals were. It reminded her of her velvet drapes in the ballroom at the castle. Every day growing up she would pick a rose from the courtyard and bring it home. To keep it throughout the day and try and preserve it she walks down to the river and collects water.
One day she met a strange little man. He wore torn faded clothes and had a large straw hat upon his head. He was washing freshly picked apples from the forest. When she approached, he looked up and was taken back by her beauty. He fell in love with her instantly. Hopeful, he offered her one of his apples. "Thank you, kind sir." She gently said.
She was very fond of apples. Her voice gave him goosebumps all down his arms. Her voice was as sweet as a summer's breeze, and an intense feeling of relief fell upon him. She was the one. The one to break his tortured lonely life. The one to stop the endless darkness that he faced every day.
The princess had never met anyone quite like the little man before and she was quite curious. They talked about their lives until it started to get dark. "I really must head home; mother will be worried." She spoke.
Reluctantly he bid her goodbye. "Will you come and visit me again?" He asked hopefully. She nodded yes and headed home.
Every day for the next year she would meet the strange little man down by the river. They would talk, laugh, and just enjoy each other's company. Over the year a love grew between the two of them. First a bud, new and small. The blossoming into something more. The strange little man confessed his love to the princess. She was overjoyed. She had dreamt several nights that they would be together.
She took him back to the castle to meet her mother. Can you imagine the ironic astonishment when her mother saw the strange little man? The same man that had helped her to become the Queen. The same man who had bargained for her first-born child.
The princess announced that they were to be married and that they were in love. As she kissed the little man on the cheek.
Not wanting to ruin her daughter's happiness, they were married that very spring. It goes to show your deals cannot be broken by trickery. The Queen fulfilled her promise without knowing. It did not matter that she had tricked the strange little man by learning his name. In the end, he received what he asked for. Her first-born child.
