Hello! I am back! Unfortunately, I've hit a hard bit of writer's block for my Dimensional Rip story, and I recently read Goose Girl. I really enjoyed it, but wanted to know more about some of the stories, so I began to weave my own versions of the stories in my head. So then I thought, why not see if others like these stories I come up with, created off the basis of what the book tells me? Unfortunately, this is a relatively unknown story, so I don't know if anyone will even ever read this, but if you do read this, please enjoy it!


First story, of a baker who baked birds from dough and sent them out the window in search of a treasured pot of apricot preserves (quoted directly from the book, page 3.)

Baker Brown hummed an old folk tune, smiling as he worked bread dough beneath his hands. His young, sickly daughter watched with joy as the bread moved beneath his large hands.

"Da," she said, one day where she coughed more than usual, "Nana said the thing to help my cough would be a jar of apricot preserves in your bread. She said it would be so good..." she smiled, imagining.

Baker Brown smiled down at his daughter, then thought about it for a moment. "Sweetie, I don't think there are any apricot trees nearby here, and money is tight recently."

The girl frowned slightly. "Da, can you try to get some?" Baker Brown ruffled her hair fondly. "I'll try, sweetheart."

When the girl went to bed that night, she said, "Good night, daddy. Someday soon, I want to try the apricot preserve bread."

The next morning, the girl was wracked with coughs. Baker Brown was worried. "Why are you so much sicker now?"

The girl said, "I don't know, but the apricot preserve will help. Nana said so."

Baker Brown sighed. Nana was the town witch, who was said to be truly magical and could speak to birds to find what she needed. Baker Brown decided to go to Nana that day and ask her where to find apricot preserves.

Nana smiled slightly when Baker Brown approached. She was a young woman, with a round , smooth face, eyes brown like rich soil, and long hair that was black as night. She had come to Kildenree from Bayern, allegedly escaping an abusive father.

"My, Mr. Brown, you have finally taken time to come by!" she smiled at the baker.

"I came to ask about these apricot preserves you told my daughter about. Would you happen to have some with you, or some way to get it without paying outlandish prices?"

"Hm, hm," she clucked. "I own none, since we live in such a small town, and I presume that travelling to the main city and purchasing a small jar for some 20 steeds would be an outlandish price, no?"

Baker Brown frowned. "Yes, indeed."

"Then, I have another way to get it. wait just a moment." Nana turned around and trilled several shrill notes. A bird with a bold red chest and yellow crest fluttered down, and trilled several notes back.

Nana nodded, then trilled some more. The bird hopped twice, trilled a single long note, then flew into her hut.

Baker Brown watched these proceedings with a slight frown on his face. Other townspeople watched her, agape. Then the bird returned clutching a scroll, just parchment tied with red string, scarcely larger than the bird, which was about the size of a child's fist. Nana laughed slightly, seeing it flashing its wings like a hummingbird.

Nana trilled again, then took the scroll gently. The bird flew away, leaving behind a red feather. "Here you go. A recipe for doughbirds." She smiled.

"Doughbirds?" Baker Brown asked dumbly.

Nana nodded. "Doughbirds. They function like birds, but they're made of dough. My mother told me the recipe."

Baker Brown asked, "Why do I need doughbirds?"

"You must find a certain pot of apricot preserves, which lay hidden in the woods. However, your child grows weaker by the second, and you cannot leave her alone. Therefore, every day you must make 3 doughbirds and send them out in search of these preserves. Nothing else will do but apricot to save her, and normal apricot preserve will not fully heal her. Only these will." Nana nodded sagely.

Baker Brown pursed his lips, then said, "Thank you." He nodded once, then walked off.

"Good day!" Nana called after him, cheerily.

Back at home, Baker Brown opened the scroll. A small pouch fell out, and he held it, light in his hand, as he read the scroll. "A fist-sized lump of dough, two small, semi-shiny stones, and a single... Animorta stone." He blinked at the strange word, then opened the pouch and tilted it slightly. Out fell a small wave of stones, which were red swirled with gold and black. He smiled slightly. "Animorta stones." He put them back in the pouch, then began to knead the dough. He read the scroll's instructions. "Knead the dough until it is good to be placed into an oven, then shape the dough with your hands into a roughly birdlike shape. Then place the two semi-shiny stones where the eyes are to be, and then slit the breast and place in an Animorta stone where the heart would go. Then reseal the breast and let it sit for 3 minutes. It will begin to sing, and will listen to you command it once. After that, it will do as you ask and then crumble." He did as it said, making 3 birds, and after the three minutes the birds trilled strange birdsong which he had never heard before.

"You three birds, go in search of Apricot Preserves in the woods, which will heal my daughter." The birds trilled in pleasure, then flew off, leaving soft bits of dough in the shapes of tiny little feathers.

Baker Brown spent the rest of the day tending to his daughter, until the three birds came back, empty handed. They trilled in defeat, then crumbled into breadcrumbs. Among the pile were the two eyes, but it appeared that the Animorta stone was gone.

He did the same for 18 days, creating birds in the morning to search, and tending his daughter, who grew weaker by the day. Each day, the birds came back empty handed at night, crumbling and leaving behind only the crumbs and the stones. The Animorta Stones were never in the pile of breadcrumbs, though. Finally, on the 19 day, he was left with only a large mound of breadcrumbs, many stones that shone, and 3 Animorta Stones, the largest three. He despaired, for no bird had come back with even a drop of preserve. He made the three birds, and then tended his daughter. The village doctor said tomorrow would certainly be her last day. Nana frowned but urged Baker Brown to continue with the birds.

Finally, finally, at the end of the 19 day, the birds returned, quite late at night. Baker Brown turned around, expecting them to be empty handed, but starting in surprise when he saw the birds bursting into crumbs like fireworks around a small jar. He opened the jar, and tasted just a fingertip's worth of the substance. "Apricots..." he breathed in utter amazement, then he rushed to the oven, kneading dough like he'd never done before. He baked furiously, adding the preserves to the dough, then shoving it into the oven. Finally, the bread was done. He sprinkled the breadcrumbs from the past birds, which had miraculously not gone bad or stale in any way, and then rushed to his daughter's room.

"My child!" He exclaimed. "I finished the bread!" The daughter smiled radiantly, and looked at him. Then he noticed something was wrong.

"Da, it's too late, I'm disappearing..." And she did seem to be fading in spirit. Her eyes were dulling. He begged, "Sweetheart, eat the bread!" But the child was nearly gone.

"Da..." she said, finally, and she died. Baker Brown sobbed in anguish, too late to save his child.

3 days later, the burial was to take place. Nana came up to Baker Brown and said, "Why didn't you give her the bread?" for he held the platter with the bread, which remained in perfect condition.

Baker Brown said, "It was too late."

Nana frowned and shook her head. "It is never too late." And she took the bread and approached the coffin. "Child, eat." she breathed, and knelt down beside the young girl, looking the same as before. Then she broke off a piece of bread. "It is not yet your time."

Nana placed the bread in the girl's mouth. Baker Brown looked on in agony, until he saw her little mouth moving, chewing the bread and swallowing. Then the girl sat up, in her own coffin, smiling.

"Da, you made the bread perfect!" She exclamed, smiling as the sun just risen from the night.

Baker Brown sobbed in relief and ran up to the girl, hugging her. The townspeople all started, a wave of black cloth shifting in surprise. "She lives!" they exclaimed.

The girl ate more bread, and grew healthier with each bite, until she looked fit and a healthy as any other child in the village.

Nana smiled. "Child, welcome back."


So. Was it any good? Do you think this was a good idea? I hope it was. I left appearences to your imagination, mostly, save for Nana... :) I'll write another story, and hope for a review, although I'm not expecting any... haha... please review if you're reading this! I want reviews! They are the bread of life and joy to me! :D