Prompt 30: Color (Fairy Tale)

Mind over Misery has come up with a fantastic writing prompt: Colors…read the post, it’s interesting, but as is written we each have our own rapport with colors 😉 so here’s my story!

Fairy Tale

The Weasel and the Witch

Once upon a time..a long long time ago, in a land where men and animals lived yet side by side, there lived a weasel.

Black he was, unlike his brothers and sometimes he could have been mistaken for a cat, so bushy was his tail.  He went by the name of Justin, though none of his relatives knew why, as this was typically a human’s name.

Justin loved mankind.  He was always attracted to their warm fires.  Now, you should know that weasels are not man’s favorite beast.  Well, of course dog is, and sometimes cat but weasels rate a very low position on mankind’s list of favorites.  This is because Justin’s brothers and sisters are great hunters…and sometimes, they hunt chickens and you know what that means!

Justin though was very particular about what he ate. He wasn’t at all attracted to chickens.  He found their noisy cackling ways very boring.  He was really attracted to the white houses of men, and their yellow warm fire in cold winter days.

One day Justin came upon a particularly inviting house.  The walls were high, it’s true, but no chicken sounds came beyond those grey walls.  So, as the rain came pouring down, he ran from the bushes and right up the wall!  He stood at the top of the wall for a few moments, then hopped onto the porch.

The courtyard had long been abandoned, but he couldn’t know this. Once a beautiful witch had lived there.  She had put an enchantment over the courtyard.  A warm inviting red glow vibrated through the night, but men never stepped foot into her courtyard by day or night. Inside the courtyard, Justin found a warm spot and looked on as a phantom feast took place.  Men and women dressed in red danced around a blazing fire, as the beautiful witch sat on a dais looking down upon them.  There were tables full of the most lovely smelling roasts and sweet confections.  The music had blue tones to it…mystical haunting flutes and sitars…Justin found it all so very beautiful, that he too decided to join the dances!

He ran up to a swaying lady and went quite ignored.  He’d half expected to be shouted at or to hear the lady scream at very least, but this was not the case. So he danced to the enchanted music, until the witch spoke to him using his name.

“What are you doing here Justin?  Who invited you to my party?” she asked kindly.

Justin was very surprised.  He was, yes, attracted to humans but had never understood a word they said to him.

“Ah, fair Lady, I was invited by your fire and the warm red glow of your courtyard.  I came to take shelter and was invited to dance by your lovely music!”

She laughed a tinkling laugh, “And my dear Justin, are you having fun?”

“Oh yes sweet Lady!” he said with a bow, “And I would never want this night to end!”

“You are such an honorable guest!  Some have come, but they had black hearts and wanted only to steal my hidden treasures.  Is there something I can do for you?”

Justin was quite happy.  He could speak with and understand this lovely human, which was all he could have ever wished for, so he told her this quite truthfully (it’s difficult if not impossible for animals to lie, did you know this?)

“Justin, you will from this day, always to be able to understand and speak to humans, but I’m afraid I do you no service!” She waved her hands across his head and  transformed him into a handsome, slim, black man.  She also put a sleeping charm and a forgetting charm on him, so that when he awoke, he only knew that his name was Justin, but knew nothing of his past.

The inhabitants of the village found the strange young black man wandering in their village the next morning.  He was such a gentle person that he was soon taken in by a family.  Over the years, he learned more and more about all aspects of men, and soon realized that often they were deceitful and spiteful to each other.  He learned about the selfishness of the rich and the envy of the poor.  He learned about cruelty and hatred.  However, he also learned about love and gentleness, of generosity and altruism, of truth and openness.  People were usually very kind to Justin, it was actually hard to be otherwise.  There were some outsiders who came to visit though that treated him quite badly, because his skin was dark, and so they thought he must be in cahoots with demons. But the villagers protected him and exiled those who would harm Justin.

As he grew older, he grew very wise.  The people loved and respected him and went to him when they had problems and misunderstandings, because he could usually help them understand what they should do.

When Justin was about 90 years old, he lay on his pallet thinking it was time to move on from this world.  He called his youngest son to him and asked this young man to accompany him into the forest just beyond the village.  Passing by the grey wall of the beautiful witch’s courtyard, Justin wondered why he’d never seen them before!

He had his son lay his pallet under a shady tree and asked him to leave him and go and get some mulled wind.  The son hesitated, worried that his father might pass away whilst he was gone.

“Go, go my son.  I’m fine laying here under the shade listening to the whispering of the wind in the leaves. If I should follow the wind, know that, all will do the same one day so don’t be sad!”

His son left him and once the young man was out of sight, the beautiful witch came to Justin.

“Ah, my sweet Lady!  I see you once again before I die!” he sighed suddenly remembering her and that magic night and his former existence.

“Nay, nay my Justin dear, die you will not.  You will live forever in the hearts of these villagers you have always been attracted to.  Are you happy that I granted you your wish?”

“Yes my dear, quite happy and fulfilled.  Life as a human has been…interesting!”

“Is there anything else I might grant you?”

“Most precious of Ladies, I would kiss your lips one time before I go on my last journey.”

So, she got upon her knees and caressed his face and he gave her his longed for kiss.

At that moment, a great golden light surrounded them both and they transformed  themselves into golden spirits!  They travelled hand in hand to another forest, in another time and another world, forever together.

“Wasn’t that a lovely adventure dearest Justin?”

“Oh yes it was my dear, and now, where shall we go?”

N.B.  If you’ve read the my response to the Trifecta Challenge you have seen what inspired this tale 😉