The Cobbler's Wish: A Short Story

Part 5

"Ah, there you are." Aidan had barely caught his breath at the base of the willow tree when a gentle voice startled him to alertness. The voice chuckled. "There's no need to be wary, Aidan. I am here to help you."

The snap of a twig and crunch of fallen leaves made Aidan spin around. He found himself face to face with a friendly-faced old man. He was dressed in a white tunic with leather trousers and a smart leather vest over top. A pocket watch dangled over his left breast.

"I am Nicholas." He motioned to the shadows and two short, silver haired figures stepped forward. "And these are Erik and Eirwen; elves who enjoy helping humans immensely."

"Pleasure," Aidan said absently. The man before him was Nicholas, a man known for his legendary generosity to those in need. The elves were strange creatures. They barely reached Nicholas's hip, so he could have mistaken them for children. Their hair was silver like moonlight and their pointed ears pressed close to their skulls. Both were dressed in brown and green.

"Now, I hear you are in need of a 'unique and valuable gift' to win Princess Rosalind's hand." Nicholas stroked his beard. "I have the perfect solution! Erik. Eirwen. The slippers, please!"

"Slippers?" Aidan echoed, wondering what they could mean.

"Yes, slippers." Nicholas considered Aidan's clothes for a moment. "I also have something more appropriate for you to wear."

Aidan glanced down. "What's wrong with what I have on?"

"You want to stand out, yes?"

"Yes?"

"Exactly." With a snap of his fingers, Nicholas was holding a bundle of black, white and silver. "Here you go. These should fit. Now..." He began mumbling to himself as Aidan hurried behind the tree to change into the white tunic and black trousers. Silver embroidery decorated the tunic. The outfit was comfortable and fit like a glove.

"We have the slippers!" The elves had reappeared next to the tree and presented an ornate box to Aidan. "Be careful. They are glass."

"Glass?"

"Yes, yes. Now, one last thing before we send you off." Nicholas waved his hand, and a silver rapier appeared, its hilt studded in sapphires. He passed the blade to Aidan, who clipped its sheath to his belt. "You are ready, and not a moment too soon!" He glanced at his pocket watch and winced. "No time to take a coach. I'll have to send you the quick way. This might make you nauseous." He snapped his fingers, pointing at Aidan. "Good luck. Your mother and father would be very proud of you!"

The world began to spin.

To be continued...

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Author's Note:

Hi all!

This is another of the chapters that show the stronger "Cinderella" elements of the story, but I want to add more flesh to this chapter. 

This chapter and the next are the shortest because I was trying not to go too far beyond the gentle word limit of 5k words for the anthology submission that birthed this short story.

Any constructive feedback is, as always, much appreciated. 

Again, thank you for giving "The Cobbler's Wish" a chance! I will see you next week for the last installment!

-K.