A very old story

My grandma used to tell us a story when we were kids. My siblings, my cousins, and I would sit in a semicircle and listen to her soft and deep voice as she would narrate a story that was passed on to her and her siblings from her grandmother. A story as old as Nature herself, she would claim. We didn’t know how old that was, but we imagined it was something like grandma’s age multiplied by one hundred —or something like that. What did we know? It didn’t matter. We liked listening to her telling it.

“Once upon a time,” she’d start. Her voice waltzing in the air, traveling to the deepest corners of our minds, instantly igniting our imaginations. We were enraptured. “There was a sweet and hardworking girl,” she continued. Our eyes, big as plates, were all on her, eagerly expecting the next words. “She worked, day and night, because she had been the captive of a big, mean troll, who had taken her one day when she was strolling around through the forests. Since that day, she had been forced to work for this troll, without ever getting as much as a thank you.” At that point, we would voice indignant comments and empathize with the poor girl who was forced to work against her will.

“Grandma, what about her family? Didn’t they look for her?” Someone would always ask.

“But, of course, dear child. She was the daughter of a mighty and benevolent king and queen. They had searched everywhere for the princess, but trolls are cunning, you see? They know how to hide.” She said with a warm smile.

“Ooooooh! Ahhhh!” We replied. “What happened next, grandma?” We asked in unison.

“Well, the years passed, and even though trolls are suspicious by nature, our little friend was eventually allowed to travel further on her errands for the troll. She had to go get water, fruits, and other things that her captor felt like having. It was on one such day that the child came across what looked like a lake she had not encountered before. She followed a path by the side, and not long after, she had reached a beautiful spring. The water there was pristine. She thought the troll would be pleased when she tasted the water and found, to her amazement, that it was the most delicious water she had ever had. It was refreshing and cooled her instantly on that hot summer day. She was about to fill the pitchers of water she carried, when she noticed a clear on the other side of where she was standing. In the middle stood a robust, tall, pear tree. It reminded her of the ones that had been in the castle gardens. Those memories were fading away, but seeing this tree, standing tall and proud in the middle of that clearing brought all the memories back. The child could not help but cry. She missed her parents dearly and she believed she would never see them again.”

“Grandma, is it like the tree in your garden?” Someone interrupted. She smiled kindly and nodded. After making sure no one else had other interjections or comments, she continued.

“She proceeded to swim across to get to the tree to take one of the hanging pears. It looked delicious and she was hungry. She put all her things down and grabbed a big, sweet pear. As soon as she put it to her mouth, she felt like life was good and was overwhelmed by a sudden spark of hope. After having a few pears, she felt drowsy and decided to sit down for a few minutes by the tree trunk, protected from the rays of the sun by the shade the leaves and branches cast over her.

‘Child. What are you doing here?’ The girl thought she was dreaming, but she suddenly awoke to discover a swan coming out of the water, slowly approaching. At first, she thought she was dreaming, only to realize that the swan had spoken to her. Surprisingly, she was not scared.

‘I… I’m sorry, is this your tree?’ She said, afraid that the swan would get angry and attack her.

‘This is the swan tree, it belongs to us all. It’s magic, you see.’ The girl got scared, thinking that she had eaten from that tree and that it was probably forbidden to do so.

‘Oh, I am so sorry. I had a few of your pears. I was just so hungry… I am so, so sorry!’ She was about to cry when the swan spoke.

‘It’s alright. The fruits are there to be eaten, especially for those who manage to find this place. You see, this whole spring and its surroundings are magic. Those who have bad intentions or have a wicked heart will never find it. And, if by chance, they do when they are not completely wicked, and eat from the fruit, it becomes poison to them as soon as greedy thoughts grow on their minds. However, you seemed to have fallen into a well-deserved slumber, which only tells me you are pure of heart.’ At this, the girl blushed. She realized she must have been there for too long, and the troll would probably start to wonder where she was. He had minions that could find her anywhere she went.

‘Thank you for your kindness, but I need to get going now.’ She hurried past him, frightened of what punishment the troll might find for her tardiness.

‘There’s no rush. Time here goes much slower than anywhere else. Please, tell me how you got here, and why you are dressed in such a way and why don’t you have any shoes.’ The swan regarded her with kindness, something she was not used to. The girl related her story to the bird and, once she was done, he lay in deep thought without uttering a word.

‘Take a basket full of pears and bring them to the troll and his minions. Once they eat them, it will poison them and you can flee and go back to your family. Don’t worry about the weight, because they are magic, they won’t weigh anything.’

‘But I don’t want to kill anyone,’ she said fearfully, not wanting to offend her new friend.

‘Don’t worry, child, it won’t kill them. This poison works differently. The trolls and their minions won’t die, they will become good. It will soften their hearts and not want to do any bad deeds for a very long time. To them, that’s the worst poison there is.’

The girl did as she was told. She thanked the swan and promised to come back to see him before looking for her family.

When she arrived at the troll’s home, he barely even noticed she’d been gone longer than usual. She told him about how she’d come across a great pear tree and she had grabbed the fruits for them all. He was suspicious at first (he always made her eat everything she brought in case she had any ideas of poisoning him). She happily did so, and then said she’d make a delicious pear pie for dessert for them all.

After dinner and dessert, the trolls and his minions fell asleep, and the girl went to her corner, watching, unable to sleep. She couldn’t help but wonder if the pears had worked their magic on the hearts of her captor and his helpers.

The next morning, after she had finally managed to turn off her mind and sleep somewhat, she woke up to the troll making breakfast, something which was her task.

‘Oh, you are up! Are you hungry?’ The troll said. The girl thought she was dreaming. ‘After breakfast, I thought it would be time for you to go back to your family. Would you like that?’ The girl couldn’t believe her ears. She was so thrilled tears flew from her eyes.

As she promised, she went back to the clearing, only to find a gnome sleeping under the tree. As she approached, he woke up and regarded the girl.

‘Oh, hi! I’m sorry… I was hoping to find my friend the swan…” She trailed off, confused. She had never seen a gnome before, but she knew that they were around and helped people when they could.

‘Yes, I’ve been expecting you. It is I. This is my true form. I change to it when I have a pear, and back to a swan when I have another one.’ The girl was baffled.

‘I wanted to thank you. The pears worked. He let me go, but… how long does the poison last? Is he going to be gentle for the rest of his days?’

‘No, it’ll last a few centuries, which for trolls is nothing, but perhaps it’ll teach him better manners.’ He laughed at this, his belly moving up and down as he did.

‘Well, I should get going. I can’t wait to see my parents again.’

‘Hold on, I will take you. I’ll transform back to a swan and I can fly you there.’ So he did and the girl arrived at the castle safe and sound. She had no problem sneaking in without the guards noticing, as the gnome helped her get through. Once in the garden, she noticed a little boy of about four playing with his mom. Her eyes shone, she cried and ran towards her.

Her mom recognized her immediately, and held her long-lost daughter in her arms for an eternity. She introduced her to her brother and the girl cried with joy. She not only got her parents back, but she now also had a little brother. When her dad arrived, they walked together around the castle gardens. There was a big, beautiful pond where many swans swam. She looked at them and smiled. Her new friend was there, winking at her. Near them stood the pear trees that she had thought of when she had seen the one in the clearing.”

She finished with the tale. There were tears, gaping mouths, and, above all, satisfaction.

“Grandma,” I ventured, “aren’t there always swans down by the sea here? Do you give them some of your pears?” I didn’t know what swans ate, but it all seemed very coincidental to me. She only smiled, winked, and invited us to have some pear pie.

_______________________________

Thank you for reading! I truly appreciate you spending a few minutes of your day reading my stories and entries. If you like what you read and want to support my writing habit, feel free to leave a tip and/or subscribe so you don't miss out on any of my stories. Thank you!