Mixed Fairytales and Stories

Rumpelstiltskin

There once lived a miller and his daughter.  The miller was very proud of his daughter, and she was a fine young woman indeed.  But the miller could not stop talking about it.  Do you know people like that?

This miller said to the King, “My daughter is so clever she can spin straw into gold!”

“Straw into gold?” said the King.  “That is amazing! She must come at once to my palace and do it for me.”

“Well, she might not really…” said the Miller.  He wished he had not told the King his daughter could spin straw into gold!  But it was too late.

The King sent for the miller’s daughter right away.  He took the girl to a room that was filled with straw.  He told her, “By morning I want all this straw to be spun into gold!  Do you hear me?  If not, you and your father will go to jail!”

He shut the door.  The girl was all alone.  “What will I do?” she called out.  “I cannot do this impossible thing!”

“My daughter is so clever she can spin straw into gold!”

Just then, an odd little man stood before her.  “Where did you come from?” said the girl, amazed. “Who are you?”

“Never mind that,” said the imp.  “What matters is that I can save your life.  For a price, of course.”

“Hmm…what price?” said the girl.  She did not know if she should trust this stranger.

“What you give me must be important to you,” said the imp.  “I will take your necklace.”

“True, my necklace has always been dear to me,” thought the girl. “But not as much as my freedom.”  

“What matters is that I can save your life.  For a price.”

So the girl said, “Very well. If by morning you can turn this room full of straw into gold, my necklace is yours.”

The little man got to work.  Very busy was he, all night long.  By morning the work was done.  No more straw left in the room – just piles of pure spun gold!

“You did it,” said the girl to him.

“Of course I did!” snapped the imp.  “Now hand it over!”

“A deal is a deal,” said the girl.  So she took off the necklace and handed it to him.  And he was gone.

When the King stepped into the room, he was very glad indeed.  “Look at that!” he said.  “It’s all pure gold!”

“Yes,” said the girl.  “Now if you please, I’d like to go home.”

“Not so fast!” said the King.  “I will have my servants bring new straw to fill up a room larger than this one.  You will stay there tonight.  Beware – by morning all the straw must be spun into gold.  Or you and your father will go to jail!”

“Look at all that gold!” he said.

“But I already–!” said the girl.

“No ‘buts’ about it!” said the King.  And he left, shutting the door behind him.

“Oh!” the girl called out.  “I was lucky last night.  It will not happen again.”

“Who says?” said a voice.  The girl spun around.  There before her was that odd little man again!

“I will do this job for you,” said the imp, “IF you give me that ring on your finger.  I know the ring is dear to you.”

“I always loved this ring,” thought the girl, “but after all, it is just a ring.”  And to the imp, she said, “Very well.  It’s a deal.”