Back at his cottage, the man took out all his oats, millet, sweets, and treats, and fed them to the grub, hoping to grow something that would fill his appetite for gold and honey. The grub ate, ate, and ate, and in less than a minute, it was the size of a human baby. Suddenly, it stopped eating for a while, and began to swell. With a heave-ho, it coughed out something shiny – a small pot of gold!
Alas, it was true! The grub had proven its word. The man scrambled to dig through the gold. The coins were thick, hard and shiny with the Queen's crest. It was real! In the gold was another pot – opening it with trembling hands, the man opened the cloth lid – more gold! But in the form of deliciously mellowed honey. The man cried in a yell of joy. What luck, what fortune! He had struck jackpot, God's own golden goblet, enough to bring him the treasures of Troy!
Meanwhile, the grub sniggered and squinted its beady eyes.
For the next 3 days, the man continued to feed the grub, feasting on its honey that tasted like anything he craved. If he wanted sheep, the honey melted like fat from a mutton steak on his tongue. If he wanted chicken, then tender it transformed, like shreds of roast game. If he wanted beef, then beef it tasted, but better, with a caramelized, creamy flavour.
The man had become convinced the grub was his answer to all insatiable desires.
Be it money, food, wealth, fortune, and power.
~❋❋❋~
YOU ARE READING
Tales from the Woodfolk: A collection of short stories
AdventureA shadow passes between two trees as you hear scurrying across the leaves. A wind blows through a curtain of swaying ivy. Flowers fall as a maiden kisses her lover's cheek, only to disappear in the light of dawn. Have we really listened to the tree...
