Rumpelstiltskin

Once upon a time in a far off land, there lived a husband and wife who were both very respected in their community. They were beginning to develop in years and their only wish was to have a child to love and care for. They tried and tried but to no avail. One day while going to chop down a tree for firewood, the husband came across an old beggar woman resting on a rotted stump. She was a very unfortunate looking woman but being a kind man, he advanced towards her and asked if she needed any help getting out of the forest. She gratefully accepted and he scooped her up in his arms and carried her back towards the town. He asked where she lived and she directed him towards a small camp that lay just beyond the edge of the woods. The husband eventually found the spot and set her down near her campfire. He tipped his hat and bid her good-day when she suddenly grabbed his shoulder. He turned and saw the old woman staring at him. "You have shown such generosity towards a woman as ugly as I, and for that I will grant you your deepest desire." The husband figured that the woman must be senile, but he realized that she was just trying to repay him. "Well," he pondered. "My wife and I are getting older in our years but we have never been blessed with a child to love." The old woman smiled beneath her wrinkles and said, "Do you have any preference towards the look of a child?" "No," he responded still playing along with her game. "My wife and I wouldn't care if it was beautiful or ugly, short or tall, or even gray." The old woman removed her hand from his shoulder and cackled, "Then your wish is granted." She turned away from the husband to tend to her fire. The man parted away back into the woods to finish the work he had originally set out to do and eventually forgot about his encounter with the old woman.

Nine months later, the wife gave birth to a daughter. Both parents were ecstatic until they looked at her. She was hideous. She was small, wrinkled, and her skin had a slight hint of gray to it. When the baby began to cry, she sounded like a flock of crows being run over by a tractor-trailer. The wife was so terrified by the sight of her own baby that she died of shock. Feeling grief stricken by his wife's death, he left the baby in the care of the local doctor as he went for a walk in the woods to clear his mind. Midway through his walk, he came across the old woman sitting on the same rotted tree stump as before. Filled with grief and rage he ran up to the woman and verbally lashed out at her. When he finally calmed down, he explained the situation he was now in. The old woman cocked her head and stared at him with a puzzled expression on her face and asked, "Is this not what you wanted? You said yourself that it didn't matter whether the child was beautiful or ugly, short or tall, or even gray. You will still care for her with all the love in your heart, right?" The newly widowed husband bowed his head and sighed. He knew that she was right. He was about to head back when the old woman stopped him. "You are a good man and I hate to see you so miserable over this so I have decided that I will give your daughter a gift." The husband looked up at the woman with slight interest. "I will give her an ability that is so coveted, it would help her marry a king." The husband was engrossed with her words. "What is the gift?" He said impatiently. "You will just have to wait and see." The old woman replied. He thanked her for the conversation and made his way back to his baby.

The husband was true to his word and raised the little girl with all the love in his heart. He named her Rumplestiltskin, a feminine name that meant, "lovely but deformed". To protect her from the harsh realities of the world, he never let her leave the house. For all anyone knew, the baby had died along with her mother. Eventually the husband forgot all about the old woman's promise to give his daughter a special gift and went on with his life raising his daughter. As Rumplestiltskin grew, her hideous features grew along with her. Her gray skin turned darker and darker every day until it resembled elephant hide. Her wrinkled skin sagged all over her body and she never grew over three feet tall. Lastly, her voice continued to stay as a harsh cackle but eventually steadied out until it sounded like someone with Bronchitis. Through all of this, she still had the brightest spirit and the happiest outlook on life that her father had ever saw. One morning while wandering through the house, young Rumplestiltskin found herself in the attic. Her father was out or he would have never let her in there. The attic is where her father had moved all of her mother's belongings because he never had the heart to throw it away. She coughed when she pushed open the hatch and years of dust began pouring over her. She brushed herself off and decided to explore her mother's old things. A bicycle, old clothes, piles of straw that was used to stuff the beds with until they had enough money to buy a plush mattress, and an instrument that Rumplestiltskin had never saw before. It looked like the wheel of the bicycle had been propped up on a four-legged stool, except that this contraption was made of wood. Full of curiosity, Rumplestiltskin decided to try it out to see what it could do. She fiddled with every piece until she realized that there were pieces of thread on it. She had heard of these before. They were called spinning wheels and they were used to make thread or yarn. Rumplestiltskin was a smart girl and it took her no time to figure out how to use it and before she knew it, she had spun all the wool that was in the attic. Wanting to continue with her fun she decided to try and spin other things. She tried spider webs and old fabrics, but none gave her the same feeling of accomplishment that the wool had. Sad that her fun was ended because her materials ran out, she picked herself up off the spinning wheel stool and began to go back downstairs.

Just as she was about to open up the hatch that led back to the main levels, she felt something tickle her foot. It was a piece of straw. Rumplestiltskin was an eager little girl, so she decided to give the straw a try. She sat on the stool and mounted the straw to the spinning wheel and began to spin. At first, it seemed like nothing was happening but then she saw a little sparkle emitting from the other side of the spinning wheel. The straw was slowly but surely changing its texture and threaded out into what looked like gold. Amazed by what she had just done, Rumplestiltskin spun all the piles of straw that were in the attic. She had just finished the last pile when she heard her father's footsteps on the walkway outside. So she shoved all of the gold thread she created into a sac that was lying on the floor and ran back downstairs to greet her father. Rumplestiltskin decided that she was going to keep this a secret from her father because if she told him then she would have to explain that she had disobeyed him and went into the attic. And a secret it remained.

When Rumplestiltskin was old enough to go out on her own and find a husband, she begged her father to introduce her to some of the gentlemen in town. Not wanting to disappoint his daughter but not wanting to cause her emotional grief, he made her wear a long, black hooded cloak and he led her off to the big city. Rumplestiltskin was amazed to see all of the bright and happy faces of men, woman, and children while walking the streets. She wanted to be a part of their fun too but her father warned her never to take off her cloak while she was in the city. After a few hours, Rumplestiltskin's father decided that he was going to book the two of them a room for the night and told her that she could go and find a nice pub or eatery to find supper for herself while exploring the city. Rumplestiltskin made her way through the bustling city and found a pub that was teeming with young men. She smiled and entered the pub. She sat down on a stool and ordered some mutton and a glass of port. Midway through her meal, a young man sat beside her and ordered something to drink. He looked over at Rumplestiltskin for a moment and asked her why she was wearing a winter cloak when the heat of the summer was upon the city. She turned towards him and explained that she was very ugly and wanted people to get to know her for her instead of her looks. The young man smiled and continued to talk to her. He asked her generic questions like where she was from or what she liked to do. She responded to his questions and reflected back with some of her own. They found themselves talking for hours and eventually the entire pub seemed to melt away from around them. It was almost midnight when Rumplestiltskin realized the time and had to go home. She said good-bye to the gentleman and made her way outside. She wasn't even three steps outside of the pub when someone grabbed her hand. She gasped and turned around. It was the gentleman from the pub. "What are you doing?" She questioned. "I want to kiss you goodnight." He casually replied. Rumplestiltskin hadn't felt so great in her entire life. He put one of his hands on her waist and pulled her closer to him. He slowly took his other hand and lifted it up towards her hood. Their faces were inches apart when his hand lightly pulled on the large hood. Within seconds, the mood changed. The gentleman took one look at Rumplestiltskin's exposed face and retched in disgust. He immediately pushed her away from him and ran down the road faster than the tears could flow from Rumplestiltskin's eyes.

Rumplestiltskin wandered the streets too embarrassed to go back to her father and tell him what happened. Rumplestiltskin decided that she was done with men and was just going to spend the rest of her life living with her father. She imagined that no one in the world had ever been as sad as she was now. Suddenly, a piercing cry assaulted her ears from the small window of a large building that was only meters ahead of her. Being a kindhearted person, Rumplestiltskin went to see what was wrong and made her way towards the building. When she got closer, she realized that this wasn't just any building, this was the royal palace. Astounded that anyone would be upset in such a glamorous place as the palace, Rumplestiltskin decided to see if there was anything that she could do to help. She looked up towards the window and saw that it wasn't that far up above her. If the person was so distressed, why didn't they just jump down? Rumplestiltskin dug her long nails into the brittle stone and scaled the wall. It only took her seconds before she pushed herself through the window. She dusted herself off, pulled down her hood (she wasn't concerned about looks anymore now that her feelings were trashed), and looked to see who was crying. She spotted a beautiful girl, about Rumplestiltskin's age, sitting and weeping in the corner of a large room filled with straw. "Um, excuse me." Rumplestiltskin quietly peeped. "Is there anything I can so to help you?" The girl looked up at her and rudely replied, "Unless you know how to spin all this stupid straw into gold by sun up, get away from me you old man!" Feeling offended by her tone but still wanting to help, Rumplestiltskin revealed the secret that she had never even told her father. "Well first of all I am not a man, I am a woman. And second of all, it just so happens that I do know how to spin straw into gold." The beautiful girl rose her head and looked over at Rumplestiltskin. "Oh, then get to it old man. The King will have me killed if you don't spin all this straw into gold by sun up. So chop chop!" Rumplestiltskin contemplated whether she should even help this selfish girl. But her father had taught her to treat others the way that she would like to be treated. So she sighed, sat down at the spinning wheel that was standing in the center of the room, and began spinning while the beautiful girl snored on the soft straw.

The beautiful girl woke up only when Rumplestiltskin had to shake her awake to get the last pieces of straw she was sleeping on. Rumplestiltskin finished the last of spinning just as the sun was peeking out from over the horizon. The beautiful girl looked around at all the gold thread and was awestruck by the brilliance. "Well, get out of here before the King comes you stupid old man!" Offended once again by this rude girl, Rumplestiltskin folded her arms. "Aren't you forgetting something?" she asked. "Oh, ya here." The rude girl conveyed as she threw a gold ring at Rumplestiltskin. Rumplestiltskin caught the tacky ring. All Rumplestiltskin wanted was a "thank you" but she figured that a ring would have to do. She climbed out the window just as the echoing footsteps of the King and his men reached the room. Rumplestiltskin pulled her hood back over her face and made her way to the hotel. Her father bombarded her when she finally walked through the door of the hotel room. He was furious with her but Rumplestiltskin was so tired from staying up all night that she didn't even pay attention to him. She took off her cloak and as soon as her head hit the pillow, she was off to dreamland.

Rumplestiltskin woke in the late afternoon. Her father had calmed down now that he knew she was safe and sound. It eventually came time again for the two of them to go and find a place to eat. Her father was persistent about going with her this time, but Rumplestiltskin refused. Rumplestiltskin found a small family owned eatery and grabbed something small to eat. After her meal, she decided to go for a cool midnight walk and once again a piercing cry assaulted her ears. "Ugh, what now!" She said to herself. Wasn't the King impressed with the gold from last night? She found the window where the cries were coming from and climbed up to wall. The room she was now standing in was twice as large as the room from last night and filled from wall to wall with straw. She was dressed in beautiful blue robes. The King must have been pleased with all of the gold. Once again instead of trying to spin the gold for herself, she cried and waited for someone else to do it for her. Obviously she had been a very beautiful child as well so she always got what she wanted. Rumplestiltskin pulled back her hood again and said hello. The beautiful girl looked up and crudely sighed. "Well it's about time old man. Get to work." Rumplestiltskin was becoming increasingly annoyed. "I will repeat myself one last time! I am not a man! I am a woman just like you!" The beautiful girl waved her hand at Rumplestiltskin. "Whatever old man. Just spin this straw before sun up so I don't get killed." Being the good-natured girl that she was, Rumplestiltskin ignored the rude comments coming out of this girl and sat down at the provided spinning wheel once again. She spun and spun and spun all night until she had to wake the sleeping girl to access the straw that she was resting on. She finished spinning just in time to hear the King and his men’s' footsteps echoing in the hall coming towards the room. "The beautiful girl straightened her dress to remove the wrinkles and looked back at Rumplestiltskin. "What are you waiting for old man! Get out of here!" she yelled. She was just about to climb out of the window when the girl called her again. "Here, I forgot to give you something." She threw Rumplestiltskin a small, rusty gold necklace. Rumplestiltskin didn't like getting these trinkets in return for her talent. She would have preferred a simple "thank you" but once again, she figured that the necklace would just have to do. Rumplestiltskin heard the slight creaking of the door just as she once again descended the palace wall.

Her father didn't question her when she walked in that morning. He just gave her a disapproving look and let her go to bed. When Rumplestiltskin woke up, it was late afternoon once again. Her sleep patterns were erratic thanks to the late night spinning, but she was just trying to be a good person. Her father had decided that they had had a long enough stay in the big city and told her that they were leaving the next morning. Rumplestiltskin was grateful for this. That way, no matter how many times the girl cried for her Rumplestiltskin's help, she would be too far away to hear it. Through it all, Rumplestiltskin did feel bad for the girl. She had been raised with the luxury of everything she could ever want. This caused her to become self centered. Rumplestiltskin was going to go for one last midnight walk, just to see if the girl needed anything else. Sure enough, as soon as Rumplestiltskin reached the palace, her ears were once again assaulted by piercing cries. She found the window and climbed the wall. She was now standing in a room that was larger than the first two rooms put together. Filled from wall to wall with straw. The girl was sitting in the corner with her arms crossed. She was wearing the most beautiful robes that Rumplestiltskin had ever saw. They were made from the gold thread that she had been spinning for two nights now. The girl stood up and moved towards Rumplestiltskin. "Ok, so the King says that he will marry me if you spin all the straw in this room tonight. He also said that as Queen, I wouldn't have to spin straw again for the rest of my life. All you have to do is finish this room and I never want to see your ugly face again old man!" Rumplestiltskin had had enough. "Okay you superficial hound. This is the absolute last time I will ever do anything for you. I am a woman. Not a man. Not a transvestite. For the last time. I am a woman, okay?" Rumplestiltskin screamed. The girl rolled her eyes. "Fine, whatever you say old man. Now when you are done with the straw, I'll give you this gold dress and I don't want to see you again." Rumplestiltskin clenched her teeth. "I don't want your stupid dress. You think that a person who can actually spin straw into gold wants something that she can make herself? All I've ever wanted this entire time is an..." "Oh I know what you want." The girl interrupted. "You want blood. How about I give you my firstborn child. That should make up for everything right?" Rumplestiltskin was speechless. She had never stopped and thought about actually having a family. She would raise it better than the self centered girl whose only accomplishment in life was getting everyone else to do everything and anything for her. After weighing the pros and cons, Rumplestiltskin accepted.

"This night flew faster than the previous ones for Rumplestiltskin. While she was spinning, her mind was preoccupied with visions of her beautiful adopted baby. Teaching it how to talk, walk, and raising it the good old-fashioned way. Filled with morals and beliefs. The child would grow up with her and it would love her unconditionally, unlike the rest of the world. Rumplestiltskin finished a little earlier than usual so she had time to watch the sun come up through the east-facing window. She had never saw such a beautiful sunrise in her entire life. "Maybe this will be the beginning of a New World for me." She quietly said to herself. When the girl woke up, she looked at Rumplestiltskin and harshly gestured towards her to leave. Rumplestiltskin made her way back to the hotel room and found her father waiting for her. She was very tired from spinning all night but she still made the long trek back home.

About a year later, news spread to her little town that the Queen had just given birth to a gorgeous baby girl. Rumplestiltskin put on her black cloak and made the trip by herself back to the big city to claim her payment. Now that she knew the sex of the child, her fantasies were more accurate. She could see herself staying up late sewing intricate patterns into frilly dresses for her baby to wear. Teaching her how to be a lady and walk with poise and caring for her with every ounce of love that she held in her heart. When she finally arrived at the palace she immediately requested the Queen's company. The guards brought Rumplestiltskin to a small, intimate room where the Queen was sitting holding her sleeping baby. When the Queen looked up and saw the hooded silhouette, she gasped and fell to her knees at Rumplestiltskin's feet. "Please," she begged, "Oh, please don't take my baby old man. When I promised her to you I didn't realize how much I could love something so small. You don't know how much she means to me. Now that I have her I can't live without her. She is my world." Rumplestiltskin looked down at the groveling Queen and said, "You don't know how much that child means to me either. I am a lonely, ugly woman with a lot of love to give. Sure, I cannot give her a fancy palace to live in but that just means that she won't grow up spoiled. I will be able to raise her with honor, courtesy, and righteousness, which is something that you cannot give her yourself. A deal's a deal my Queen, and I'm here to collect my precious payment." Rumplestiltskin held out her arms to take the baby but the Queen screamed in protest. Hearing the Queen's cries, the waiting guards burst into the room. Now, Rumplestiltskin knew that she had no chance now to escape now so she thought up a plan. "Alright," Rumplestiltskin forcefully boomed to break through the sobbing Queen's shrieks. "I propose a challenge. If you win, you keep the baby. If I win, you hand her over willingly. Sound fair?" The Queen stood up and held her baby tightly in her arms. "What is the challenge?" Rumplestiltskin chuckled at her question. "Well, it's actually quite simple. You have three days to guess my name. If you can do it, then the baby is yours and I will never bother you again." The Queen pondered this for a moment and accepted her offer. The clock was ticking.

Rumplestiltskin set up a small camp on the outskirts of the town and stayed there until she was needed back at the palace. Before sunset of the first day, Rumplestiltskin made her way to the palace and asked the Queen if she knew her name. The Queen being as dim-witted as she was only recited men's names. "This is going to be easier than I thought." Rumplestiltskin said to herself under her breath as she left the palace so the Queen could find more names. Before sunset on the second day, Rumplestiltskin once again made her way to the palace and asked her if she knew her name. The Queen recited a list of new names but none of them were correct. "She has just one more chance and she will never guess it. Not in a million years." Rumplestiltskin chuckled to herself as she left the palace. Rumplestiltskin was getting a little bit hungry so she decided to stop in a pub for some dinner. Rumplestiltskin was so happy with the outcome of the contest so far that she decided to celebrate early because she wouldn't have any partying time when she had to take care of the baby. So Rumplestiltskin ordered as much food and wine that her body could handle and left the pub feeling completely full and slightly tipsy. The next morning, Rumplestiltskin woke up in her tent with a gigantic headache. "That was a pretty bad idea." She grunted to herself. "Good thing I didn't make a fool of myself. Did I? I really can't remember a thing I did." Rumplestiltskin decided to let the last nights memories fade away and focus on her prize that she would surely be receiving later that day. Before sunset, Rumplestiltskin made her way to the palace for the last time. She walked up to the Queen and asked her, "What is my name?" The Queen rested her chin on her hand. "Hmmm.... Is it Rumplestiltskin?" Rumplestiltskin was shocked. How could such a dim-witted Queen come up with such an intricate name? "You're right." Rumplestiltskin bowed her head in disappointment. "But how..." "How did I guess it?" The Queen interrupted. She was still as inconsiderate as ever. "Well, for the past few days I have sent some of my guards out into the city to find every single name that they could. Last night one of my guards came to me and said that he had found your campsite." She grinned. "He said that he saw a small old man dancing around a campfire singing:"
"Mary had a little lamb,
Whose fleece was white as snow,
And everywhere that Mary went,
Rumplestiltskin is my name."
The Queen shrugged. "Not the best song I've ever heard. It didn't even rhyme, but it was all I needed to hear. What an ugly name Rumplestiltskin is. Suits a terrible ugly old man such as yourself perfectly I guess. Now get out of my sight before I have the guards send you to the dungeons." Rumplestiltskin left the castle with her head hung low. Had she not celebrated her success the last night, then she would have never been dancing and singing drunk around her campfire.

Rumplestiltskin had made her way back home and eventually rumors spread to the town about a wicked old man who tried to steal the Queen's lovely baby. Rumplestiltskin listened to as many of the rumors as she could, none of which were the truth. In every one, the Queen was a helpless maiden who was tricked by an evil little old man named Rumplestiltskin, or Johnnybobbypin, Crinklegoatline. There were a lot of ridiculous names that went around in these rumors. There were even a few rumors going around that the old man killed some of the Queen's faithful guards in a bloody battle, however that rumor came to be. The good news was that since no one in her town knew that she existed, Rumplestiltskin could live her life in the safe seclusion of her own home. Although one day Rumplestiltskin did venture out in her black cloak and bought a kitten from a local mill. She made it a beautiful satin bed with intricate patterns and taught it how to play nicely outside with the other cats. And they all lived happily ever after.

THE END