I've been enjoying writing little fairy stories to go with my pictures lately. Here's one I did for the birthday of a very lovely customer.x
The Tale of the Ice Maiden
By Justine Pateman
Once there lived a beautiful
maiden. She had sun-kissed skin, hair the colour of ripened corn and eyes as
blue as the sky. Every day she would take her father’s goats up to pasture in
the high meadows on the mountains. While the goats grazed the tasty grass she
would sit among the flowers and sing. Her lovely voice would carry high up in
the clear mountain air. One day, in early spring, when the snows were still low
upon the mountain and touching the meadows, the girl came with her goats and as
she sat she sang. The Snow King, who was patrolling the edges of his empire
heard her melody. He followed the sound until he saw her. He fell instantly in
love with her. He desperately wanted to meet her but he couldn’t go near her as
she sat in the sunshine and it was too warm for him – he would melt! And she
would never come near him as it was too cold. So the Snow King had to content
himself with watching her from the cool shadows.
The snows stayed low on the
mountain all summer as the Snow King continued to watch the maiden and listen
to her beautiful singing. And so the summer wore on and day after day the
beautiful maiden climbed to the high pastures with her goats and sang, and each
day the Snow King fell more deeply in love. But she never knew as she never saw
him. The summer ended and with autumn came cooler, shorter days. The snows
crept further into the meadows but still the girl went with her goats.
One day disaster struck. One of
the goats slipped while climbing on the rocks and got stuck. The girl couldn’t
leave one of her father’s flock behind so she climbed down the steep rock face
to rescue it. It was icy and dangerous. The Snow King tried to warn her but all
she heard was the howling of the wind. He tried to melt the ice but his breath
was too cold. The girl’s fingers were numb with cold. The rocks were too
slippery with ice. She had nearly reached the goat. Suddenly, the goat made a
giant leap and made it to safety. But his clattering hooves sent the slippery
rocks sliding down, deep down into the chasm. The girl’s fingers slipped and
she fell down into the depths.
The Snow King desperately tried
to cushion her fall with a drift of snow. She had fallen so far and the snow
wasn’t deep enough. The beautiful maiden was dying and her lovely voice would
be silenced forever. With tears in his eyes the Snow king leaned over his love.
Her eyes flickered open and for the first time the girl saw him. She saw a
handsome man dressed in glittering icy robes. She saw his deep blue eyes full
of love for her and she wasn’t afraid. Despite her pain, she smiled at his
beauty and the Snow King leaned towards her and kissed her gently on the lips.
His kiss was so cold it took her last breath away. But that icy kiss also froze
her. Her skin turned white and her hair turned blue. Taking her hand the Snow
king led her to his ice palace high up in the mountains.
The flock of goats made their way
on their own down the mountain and it was in vain the girl’s father and
villagers hunted for her. She was never found. But every so often, when the
winter storms are raging, the lovely singing of the girl can be heard amongst
the howling of the wind. The villagers, tucked up in their homes tell stories
of the Snow King and the beautiful girl who became his Ice Maiden. As they tell
these tales, the Snow King and his Ice Maiden bride dance and sing in the snow
and the wind.
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