Alydia Rackham's Fairytales

  CONTENTS

  Title Page

  The Farrier and the Ring

  The Key

  The Plough

  Hexe

  Chapter One

  Chapter Two

  Chapter Three

  Chapter Four

  Chapter Five

  The Curse

  The Riddle Book

  Red and the Witch

  Dragon Tongue

  The Knight in the Mirror

  OTHER BOOKS BY ALYDIA RACKHAM

  ALYDIA RACKHAM ON PATREON

  COMING NEXT TO PATREON

  ABOUT THE AUTHOR

  Alydia Rackham’s Fairytales and Allegories

  Volume 1

  anno domini 2017

  Alydia Rackham

  Copyright © 2017 Alydia Rackham

  All rights reserved.

  ISBN: 1542907578

  ISBN-13: 978-1542907576

  For Jaicee

  Ever.

  Hic manebimus optime!

  The Farrier and the Ring

  For Henry

  Once upon a time, there lived a young apprentice blacksmith named Maddox. He was tall, tanned and handsome, with broad shoulders and curly black hair. He worked diligently to learn his trade, spending long hours from dawn to dusk with his father at the forge amongst the clamor of clanging, the gush of the bellows, and the roar of the scalding fire. The blacksmith’s forge stood in the center of a small, unremarkable village—and no danger or excitement ever reached it.

  The only interesting tale the old folks could boast was that of a wide cave nearby that looked like the mouth of a dragon, inside of which it was so dark, even the light of a candle would simply go out.

  Though Maddox worked hard, and diligently, his father often scorned and degraded him. “Not like that, you foolish boy,” the small, bearded man would snarl. “Haven’t you got a brain in your head at all? Haven’t I told you a thousand times to do it this way? Make one more mistake and it’ll be a lash for your hands, and no supper tonight.”

  And though this hurt Maddox deeply, for he had a tender and quiet heart, he would only say, “Yes, Father. I shall try.” And his father would huff, and return to his work. For in truth, his father was jealous, because no one in the kingdom could shoe a horse faster or better than Maddox, and all of the fine gentlemen from the countryside would come and ask just for him.

  When Maddox would trail with his father back to their hovel, Maddox’s thin, sour-faced mother would scold him. “You are so dirty, boy! How do you expect me to clean your wretched clothes? Are you so ungrateful that you ruin what your father and I work so hard to give you?” And this also would hurt Maddox, for he loved his mother, and he would reply,

  “I am sorry to make extra work for you, Mother. I shall try.” Then his mother would feed him and his father a sheep shank and boiled cabbage, Maddox would wash, and go to bed—lying on a pallet on the floor, while his parents slept in a feather bed. Indeed, his parents saved all the best things for themselves, for they were not poor—but to Maddox, they gave what was left over. The only piece of finery he owned was a simple gold ring that hung from his neck by a leather strip, and he had owned it since he was born.

  One day, as Maddox was working the forge alone, a beautiful young woman with ebony hair, wearing a loose shirt and trousers, came striding into town. She led a large white horse by the reins—and the horse limped. Maddox was instantly struck by her beauty. She came up to him, and met his eyes with her large green ones.

  “My horse has thrown his shoe,” she said frankly. “Are you a farrier? Can you make him a new one?”

  “Yes, madam, gladly,” said Maddox, going red in the face. But he worked swiftly and easily, and shod her beautiful horse in a matter of minutes.

  “Thank you,” the lady said as she paid him. “May I ask your name?”

  “Maddox Smith,” he replied.

  “And what is it you wear around your neck?” the lady asked.

  “It is a ring,” Maddox told her. “I have had it since my birth.”

  She watched him carefully a moment, then extended her hand.

  “I am Ellia,” she told him. “And I shall see you soon, Maddox Smith.”

  And this made Maddox very happy, and he looked forward to the next time he would see her.

  Ellia came to the forge almost every day after, when his father would take a meal at the tavern, and visit with Maddox. And it was not long before Maddox fell quite in love with her, and dared to hope that she felt the same.

  But one day, she did not arrive. Maddox was a little sad, but assured himself that she would come tomorrow. But she did not. By the third day, Maddox’s sadness had grown to worry, and he left his post and began to inquire around town. But no one had seen her. No one, that is, except the old man who lived at the edge of the village, the one who went about with a tattered grey cloak, and narrow eyes.

  “I saw her two days ago, in the woods,” the old man said, rubbing the side of his hooked nose. “And I glimpsed her enter the cave that looks like a dragon’s mouth—the one so dark that a candle will not stay lit. I suppose she has perished!”

  Maddox was so frightened, he hurried into the woods right away. He followed the narrow, weedy path to the mouth of the toothy cave, and stood at the mouth of it, filling with fear. It was indeed a great, black hole and it smelled of must.

  Just as his heart began to fail, the ring against his breast began to grow hot—and then, unmistakably, the ring spoke to him.

  “Take me off the leather string, Master, and put me on your hand. I shall guide you.”

  Maddox was much surprised, but the ring warmed his whole heart, and he felt it could not be a wicked

  thing, so he took it off its leather strap and put the ring on his finger.

  A light blazed to life before him, like a star floating in the air. And it led the way into the cave. Maddox followed it.

  Down, down a steep flight of winding stone steps, into the depths of the cave. He could feel the darkness pressing on him, almost smothering him. It wrapped around him like a cloak, like cobwebs, like seaweed.

  Finally, he reached the bottom, and the light from the ring led him onward through many interlacing corridors—and Maddox knew in his bones that if the light were to go out, he would be lost forever.

  At last, he came to a great stone door, marked with many mysterious runes.

  “Place your hand on the door, Master,” said the ring. “And I shall open it for you.” So Maddox reached out and pressed his palm to the door. With a great groan, the door heaved aside…

  And there sat Ellia, bound to a chair, with a kerchief round her mouth. Giving a cry of both joy and distress, Maddox ran to her and untied her.

  “What are you doing here?” Maddox asked her, holding her to his chest.

  “I was lured here by the wicked old man,” Ellia told him angrily. “I should have known! I should have seen through his disguise!”

  “What are you talking about?” Maddox demanded.

  “He is my greatest enemy, the enemy of the whole kingdom,” Ellia told him. “He is the brother of the king, and he has long conspired to destroy his family and take the throne. And many years ago, he nearly did! He kidnapped the king’s firstborn son and meant to drop him down a well, but the child was stolen from him by a kindly peasant woman who then could not keep him, and gave him to a blacksmith and his wife.”

  Maddox stared at her.

  “You cannot mean me!” he cried.

  “Indeed,” Ellia nodded. “The sorcerer’s deed was discovered and he was driven from the castle, but no one thought that the prince could be alive until this year, when word of your skills with horses reached the queen, and she wa
s told your name, and what you looked like. She was certain it was you, and sent me to find you, as I am one of the maiden warriors she always keeps about her. And when you told me of your ring, and as I see its power now, I know it is you, for your father the king gave you that ring as protection the day you were born!”

  Maddox was stunned, but his heart was glad, and he helped Ellia up and carried her out of the cave, with the light from the ring guiding them. Soon, they emerged into the fading light, all the while Ellia telling him of his parents the king and queen…

  And then, at the edge of the wood, Maddox caught sight of the wicked old man spying on them—his murderous uncle.

  “Seize him, Master!” cried the ring. “Do not let him escape again!”

  Filling with fury, Maddox set Ellia down and chased after the old man. Startled, the old man leaped out and threw a curse at Maddox. Maddox held up his hand, and somehow the curse flew off into the trees. He then seized the old sorcerer’s arm—looked into his eyes, and saw fear and hatred there—

  And his wicked uncle burst into flame, and shattered into ashes.

  Astonished, Maddox could only stand there for a moment. But then Ellia came to him, embraced him and kissed him, and all of Maddox’s distress vanished.

  And he left his cruel mother and scornful father—who were not really his mother and father at all—and returned with Ellia to the royal castle, where he was reunited with his great, dark haired father and his beautiful, kindly mother. They welcomed him home with a feast unlike any the kingdom had ever seen. Not long after that, Prince Maddox and Ellia were married, and they all lived happily ever after.

  The End

  The Key

  Happy first birthday, darling.

  You’re growing so fast, and we love you, little Tinker.

  -Mamma and Daddy

  Once upon a time, in a little village in a valley, there lived a girl who was just on the verge of becoming a woman. She was sweet and pretty, with light brown hair, blushing cheeks, bright eyes, and a sunny disposition. She worked at the mill with her mother and father—they had no other children. The mill was old, and falling to ruin, but her parents did not have the money to attend to it. In fact, they often spoke in worried tones about what they would do if the mill failed, for since the harvest had been so poor this year, they were forced to consider it—even though the three of them had to work every day from dawn till dusk.

  In spite of this hardship and misfortune, every day as the girl walked through the town, carrying a basket or a ledger or the shopping from the market, she would greet all the other villagers happily in turn, and equally. Her name was Ella, and everyone knew it.

  One day, as she minded the shop, surrounded by piles of flour sacks—though not nearly as many as there ought to have been—an old woman in rags wandered in. Ella set her pen down, and smiled at her, though she realized that, strangely, she had never seen this woman before.

  “Can I help you, grandmother?” Ella asked.

  “I need a small sack of flour,” the old woman, her teeth and eyes yellow with age, grated out.

  “Very well,” said Ella, and pulled down a five pound sack and set it before her, and she named the price. The old woman sighed, and rubbed her gnarled hands together.

  “I am afraid I do not have that much to spare,” said the old woman. “Never mind. What is a day more of hunger for an old woman?” And she turned to leave. But Ella’s heart was stung by the old woman’s plight.

  “No, please take it,” Ella insisted, lifting the sack of flour. “It will hardly be missed—you must not go hungry!”

  And the old woman smiled at her.

  “You are a kind child,” she said. “And I shall repay you beyond what you can imagine.” And she reached beneath the folds of her robe and pulled out a simple gold key dangling from a strand of leather. Carefully, Ella took it.

  “When the time is right—and you shall know,” said the old woman. “Travel north into Raven Woods. Go by the main path, and pursue it on to its end, and you shall find a great and handsome reward.” The old woman held up a finger. “But be warned: do not stray to the right nor to the left, nor ever step off the path, no matter what you see, lest you lose yourself, and never attain your reward.”

  And with that, the old woman took her flour, and departed, leaving Ella holding the mysterious key.

  However, the day then grew very busy with work, and Ella put the key in her apron pocket and did not think of it again until night fell, she wearily lay down in bed, and it jabbed her.

  “What a strange thing,” she murmured as she held it up to the moonlight that came through her window. “I do wonder what it unlocks.”

  And in that moment, she saw something in the loop at the top of the key—as if it were a tiny window itself. It appeared to be the topmost tower of a shining white castle, all bathed in the same moonlight as came through her window. And the window of the tower was alight.

  With a jolt like lightning, Ella realized that the time had come. At the same moment, she was filled with fear, certain that her parents would say she had gone mad.

  But curiosity burned inside her, and the light in that magical tower seemed to call to her. So, she steeled herself, crept up out of bed, put on her shoes and packed a meager meal of bread and cheese, donned her coat, and slipped out of the house.

  In a few minutes she had left the village behind, and stood before the entrance to Raven Wood. She had never dared to enter this forest in all her life, for many were the tales of danger and death that seeped from between its tangled branches. No one who entered ever came out again.

  Shivering, almost losing her nerve, Ella lifted the key, and gazed through the loop. There glimmered the castle window again. And so she entered the wood.

  For a long while, she traveled the moonlit road, the dead branches overhead creating a weaving pattern of dark and light on the dirt before her. But then, up ahead and to the right, flickered the light of a fire.

  As she approached, she finally could make out the shape of a vine-draped cottage, and a hag with wild hair sitting before it, her eyes blazing in the light of her fire. And at the hag’s right hand stood a table, upon which glimmered a crystal ball that swam with eerie colors.

  “Hello, dearie!” called the hag. “Come near! Come near, and rest your feet, and share my fire.”

  “I’m afraid I cannot,” Ella said. “I am sorry, but I was told not to leave the path.”

  “Ah, but why not?” asked the hag. “Come sit, and I shall look into my crystal ball, and tell you all the great and wonderful things that lie in your future! If I tell you these secrets, you will learn how to save your parents from ruin!”

  Ella stopped and stared at her, gripping the key. Oh, how she would like to see into her future, and discover how she might spare her parents all their wearisome toil!

  But the old woman’s voice echoed in her mind. And she looked down through the key loop, and saw the light from the window shining at her.

  And she shook her head.

  “Thank you,” she said. “But I must be on my way.”

  And she left the hag and the crystal ball behind.

  She traveled a long way in the moonlight and silence. But then, off to her left, she saw the gleam of several more fires, and heard the swell of music and dancing. There, in the woods, stood a camp of gypsies, and all of the gypsies whirled and twirled around the fire to the music of fiddles and drums. Such beautiful people, with midnight hair, flashing eyes, adorned with silks and jingling gold. And there at the edge, near a wagon, stood a lovely gypsy woman, bedecked in jewels—but her face and figure were as stunning as a goddess.

  “Hello, princess!” the gypsy called to Ella.

  “Me?” said Ella. “Oh, no—I’m only the daughter of a miller.”

  “Nonsense,” said the gypsy. “You’re pretty enough, but you could be so much more! Come here and join us—I can make you as beautiful as my sisters and I! You could be as wild and lovely as all of us—y
ou could make men’s hearts stop in their chests. Why, you could have anyone for your husband, for every man you meet will fall in love with you.”

  Ella gazed at the women dancing around the fire—their fierce, captivating beauty—a longing deep in her heart. How often she had wished to be so lovely, to capture the hearts of the handsome lords that came riding through the village on a hunt, to be courted and romanced like the ladies in stories…

  But the old woman’s voice echoed in her mind. And she looked down through the key loop, and saw the light from the window shining at her.

  And she shook her head.

  “Thank you,” she said. “But I must be on my way.”

  And she left the gypsy camp behind her.

  Next, far deeper in the wood, she came upon another fire. Three men sat around it, and they wore rough riding clothes, but also snatches of finery and jewels. And when they saw her, they called out:

  “Come lass, what are you doing out in the woods so late?”

  “I am on an errand,” she said.

  “Too dangerous for a lady like you,” the first man said. “Come, what is it you carry with you in your hand?”

  “Nothing but a key,” she answered.

  “I should like to buy it from you,” said the second man. “I have a sack of gold here—more than enough to buy you an estate, and all the fine clothes you want. Come, take it, and give me the key.”

  She stood still, and considered it. How often Ella had wished to live in ease, not trudging through cold and snow, or burning heat, to work at the mill day after day.

  But the old woman’s voice echoed in her mind. And she looked down through the key loop, and saw the light from the window shining at her.

  And she shook her head.

  “Thank you,” she said. “But I must be on my way.”

  And she left the men behind.

  Finally, as dawn broke, she came through to the edge of the wood, and found herself upon a broad hill—and at the top of this hill shone a magnificent white castle. And there, at the top, stood the tower she had seen through the key.