A long time ago, in a far away village, there lived a young man named Tenuto

A long time ago, in a far away village, there lived a young man named Tenuto. His parents were terribly musical and they had decided to name him after one of the Italian terms they had seen in their books. His parents brought him up well and he was gifted as a child in music and academics. At the same time, he worked hard on his uncle's farm and he grew up intelligent, strong and handsome. He was the village's most eligible bachelor, but the admiring glances and praises had, alas, made him far more arrogant than any man should have been. He felt that there was no one in the town who was good enough for him, none that matched him in any way, whether it was in talent or intelligence or facial features. Eventually, he went to his parents and told them of his decision to leave the village.

"I have decided to leave the village," Tenuto declared stoically, his hands on his hips and his feet set apart in a way that he felt looked like a heroic and determined stance. "I will go out into the world and seek my fortune. I will find myself a worthy bride and I might return, a wealthy man."

His intentions were to refer to the fact that when he was a wealthy man, he might return to the village, but his parents, who had never been able to deny him anything and doted upon him as though he were the first-born in the world, developed the impression that he would return to them, regardless of his riches. So they packed him a large bag of food and drink and gave him half of the money they had managed to save over the years, kissed him and wished him luck. And off he went.

For three days and three nights, Tenuto found himself traveling along the dusty road, with not a single house in sight. On the fifth day, he found himself at the elaborate gateway of a rich kingdom. Boldly, he entered, sauntering through the doors as though he already owned the kingdom. All around him, whispers abounded and glances sneaked their way to his face. Finally, a little old man tottered his way up to the youth and spoke to him in a wavering, frail voice. "Welcome, stranger," he greeted politely. "Has though come to try thy hand at the king's challenge?"

"No, old man," Tenuto said. "I have not heard of this challenge. What may it be?"

At this, the old man turned pale and he hid his face as though he wished he had not spoken. "It is a task of grave danger," he whispered. "Many men hath made their way through these here gates and to the castle. They have eaten of the food of his king and drank of his wine, then they leave in the morning and none have ever returned."

"That is because they all decided to go no further halfway along the road," Tenuto said scornfully. "Most like they ran back to their small little towns and villages, ending up just like their parents and marrying the country girls that all seem to be named Bess."

"I do not think so, young man," the old one told him gravely. "The prize of this challenge has caught many a man's heart, and once it is in the clutches of this prize, it will forever stay there until they have gone back to the earth's womb. They eyes capture you, they transform you: they make you want to risk your life, just for those eyes."

"And what eyes might those be?" Tenuto asked, eager at the prospect of a prize. "The many sparkling eyes of a rare diamond?"

"No. Not even a rare diamond couldst capture the heart of a man so badly. No, it is the eyes of the princess, whose hand in marriage shall be given to the man who completes the king's task."

Tenuto scoffed. "And why would I want a mere girl?" he said disdainfully. "Crown and title aside, she is nothing but a girl. And her life of privilege should prove her hard to care for and quite useless. But I shall try my luck at this task. It may be that I should get something out of it other than the hand of a princess."

The old man gave a mournful groan and took Tenuto's hands in his soft ones, patting them sympathetically. "Yet another one," he said, almost to himself. "May the luck of the gods be with you, wherever you may go."

Tenuto nodded curtly and without another word, he pulled his hands out from in between the old man's and marched off towards the castle. The guards let him in without question, both of them in awe of his stunning face and golden hair, thinking that here, finally was a nobleman who was capable of completing the challenge that had been proffered for ten and one year now. The high chancellors, some of whom were in charge of keeping track of the king's appointments, took one look at him and scuttled out of his way, leaving his path clear. His entire journey through the halls was more or less uninterrupted, except for a wise old woman, who took one look at him and wailed an unintelligible prophecy in his face.

There was no fanfare as Tenuto had expected as he entered the king's throne room. His eyes, so disdainful and full of scorn and arrogance, trailed to the girl sitting at the king's side and he felt his heart leap out of its place. The princess' eyes were green as all the grass in the world could ever be, yet they shone as though they had stars in them. Her hair looked as though it had been made out of spun silk the colour of red-gold. Her lips were perfect and were naturally the colour of a deep red rose and her complexion was pale as snow, yet with the rosiness of apples in her cheeks. Her eyelashes fluttered upwards and she flashed a smile at Tenuto. A brief smile it was, and yet it managed to ensnare his heart completely. With one look, he knew that he would lay down his life for this magnificent girl with the grass green eyes and red-gold hair.

"Have you come to try to take my daughter away from me as well?" the king asked in a voice that rumbled like thunder. His eyes were solemn and wild whiskers sprouted over his face, making him look quite terrifying. His eyes were onyx black and there was a maniacal possessiveness in them and some slight madness. Tenuto said nothing, his eyes fixed on the princess.

The king bristled and frowned so hard that his eyes were barely visible. "You task," he roared mightily, "is to bring me back the Flower of Eternity. It is said to be the most beautiful flower on earth, with petals soft as satin and always oddly warm, like blood. And yet, the Flower is blye and it has the ability to heal whatever wound or illness of the person that it brushes. But beware. The Flower of Eternity is said to be guarded by a chimera, a creature with a head like a lion whose mane is as bright and as flaming as the sun, the body of a goat with scales as tough as a dragon's and the hind legs of a hare, which could easily overtake you on those sticks you call legs."

Tenuto might have made a very rude comment at this point, but, upon setting his eyes on the princess, he was, like the old man had said, completely transformed. His heart was no longer arrogant and he no longer regarded himself as above everyone else. He looked up determinedly at the king and said: "I will go."

A profound silence descended upon the hall at this declaration. The princess smiled sincerely and Tenuto felt his heart jump. "Very well," the king said, folding his arms across his chest. "You shall leave tomorrow and tonight, we shall feast in your honour."

"No," Tenuto said. "I will leave tonight. Not even tonight. I will leave now."

There was another silence. "Then what are you waiting for?" the king asked. He nodded to the guards and they escorted the young man out. Then, he stood up himself and left the room. The princess floated down the steps, gently picking up her skirts of dark blue, and signaled for the guards to stop. She turned to Tenuto and whispered gently in his ear: "The chimera cannot be killed by any weapon manufactured by mortals," she warned. "And since thou possess not any other such weapon, thou shalt have to find another way to get by it."

So saying, she pulled her skirts out of her feet's way and swept out of the room. Tenuto pondered on this as he left the kingdom and continued along the road. He had not thought to bring weapons. All that he had in the bag on his pack were a few clothes, some food and the money that his parents had given him. He traveled for many days, only stopping to rest when he was very tired. At the end of the week, he came across a wild river. The bridge had broken many decades ago and it was much too deep to cross on foot.

The sound of a crudely played flute caught his ear. He looked around and there, in a funny little boat, there say a funny little man with a nose like an eagle's beak and a wide hat atop his shaggy head. Without hesitation, he wandered up to the man. "Sir," he inquired humbly, "would I be able to appeal to you to bring me across this cursed river?"

"Nae if ye have no payment," the man said simply. Then he went back to playing his flute.

Tenuto fished in his bag and held out the bag of coins. "Will this do, sir?" he asked. "Will you take me across now?"

The man took the coins and inspected them. "Nae if ye have no payment," he repeated. He looked up at Tenuto and tilted back his wide hat. "This is not enough." He handed him the silver flute. "Play it," he ordered. "And if thou playest well, then shall I ferry you across."

Tenuto took the pipe gingerly as it was a magnificent silver thing. Having being brought up in a family as musical as his, he was well-versed in many forms of instruments. He put it to his lips and blew. And such a song did he play. He played of broken hearts and of spirits unable to return; he played of fields of dreams and artificial flowers and finally, of silver doves and black ribbons.

He gave the flute back to the funny little man upon finishing. The man was staring at him in a curious way. He took off his wide hat and scratched at his head, then put it back on and jerked his head towards the boat, indicating that Tenuto could step on. He did so happily and the ride to the other bank was smooth even though the waters were rough.

At the end of the journey, he stepped onto the bank and bowed low to the boatman, thanking him for his passage. The little man snorted, but stopped Tenuto as he was about to leave. He handed him his silver flute and folded his arms across his chest as the youth took it. "Shalt ye ever run into any trouble," he said, "play a few notes and thy enemy shall never stop dancing for a quarter of an hour."

Tenuto thanked him graciously and went on his way.

By now, he had lost track of the time he spent on foot. All he knew was that it was a long time before he came to a large mountain with a gate in it. It was steadfastedly locked and try as he might, he could not get it open. It was then that he heard the mournful blowing of a panpipe. Along the roadside, just beyond the copper gates, there sat a man with eyebrows as long as his chin and a wispy white beard that was the only thing to cover his nakedness, blowing on the instrument. The old man looked up and grinned lopsidedly.

"Welcome stranger," he said in a booming voice that surprised Tenuto. "Have ye come to try your hand at opening these gates?"

"I have tried, sir," Tenuto admitted sheepishly.

"Well, then ye'll just have to go around, won't ye?" the man said, uncaring and unaffected, swaying back and forth.

"I don't think I have the time, sir," he said. And here, he explained the nature of his journey, how he heard of the king's challenge, his scorn and disdain, the beauty of the princess and how he would do anything just to win her heart.

The man laughed. "And what makes ye think I care?" he asked, smiling like a child. "Ye'll just have to go around like all the others, unless ye want to gi'me the clothes on yer back."

"Well, if it is clothes you want—"

"Need."

"I'm sorry?"

"I don't want the clothes, I need them," the old man explained gravely.

Tenuto did not answer and he took all the spare clothes out of his bag and gave them to the old man. The man with the long eyebrows politely walked behind a bush and put the clothes on, layer after layer, and yet he never seemed to feel the heat of the sun and it never looked as though he had more than a pair of clothing on. When he was finished, he proffered the panpipes to Tenuto, who took it. "Play," he ordered simply.

Tenuto put the pipes to his lips and played. It was a rousing song now, and the pipes sang of wars and blood and the terror and sweat; they sang of the swords and the pikes as they danced in viciousness and finally of the flags of victory. And as he played, the gates of the mountain slowly inched open, uttering such a sound that it sounded like the crack of lightning, almost drowning out the song of the panpipes. When he finished, he offered it back to the old man, who shook his head and refused it. "Ye gave me all ye had, so here will I give you all I have," he said, then he bounded off into the trees. Tenuto walked through the gate, thinking that this was quite an unfair trade.

The tunnel was long and dark, with many winding paths. In the middle of the eerie darkness, there came the sound of a violin, expertly played. Being born in a musical family such as his, he was immediately drawn to the sound of the instrument. It was being played by a handsome young manin fine clothes of silver and blue. As he moved his arms, flashes of sparkling gold flowers shimmered in the material, and then disappeared.

At the sound of footsteps, the man stopped playing. "Who is there?" he called out, gently putting his hands down to his sides and careful not to scratched his stringed instrument. Tenuto stepped out of the shadows and apologized for the intrusion. The man sighed with some relief and put his violin back in its case. His hands seemed to lose their strength at the last minute and he fumbled with his instrument, catching it just in time.

The young man grimaced. "Alas, it has been many a day since last I ate, having been stuck in this hole for so long," he lamented. "I think that I shall die here, alas."

"Can you not find your way out?" Tenuto asked, alarmed.

"Nae if ye can play a song beautiful enough," the young musician replied. "I have been practicing many days now, and only today have I come up with a song perfect enough. Alas, I think I would not have enough strength to play it to-day or ever after."

"I have some food in my bag, but no way of getting out of this mountain," Tenuto said. "And it is of the utmost importance that I get back to the kingdom in time." Here, he told the man of his journeys and the reasons behind it.

At the end of the tale, the young man, who had been all the while sneaking glances at his bag, said: "If ye share your food, I will open the doors and ye shall escape this forsaken mountain with me when the doors open," he offered.

"Agreed," agreed Tenuto. He took out all manner of food that he had in his satchel and the tow of them shared it. At the end of the meal, the musician led Tenuto to the gates and he played a song so beautiful that it put all the other songs that Tenuto himself had ever played to shame. Slowly, and with the same rumbling noise as before, the gates opened. Beyond it, there was a large field of yellow and purple flowers and their perfume filled the entire valley.

"Now I shall take my leave of you," the musician said. He handed the case which held the delicate violin to Tenuto. "I have no use for it now. But it may be of some help to you with your task. May the luck of the gods be with you." Tenuto thanked him and in a blink of an eye, the musician was gone.

After a few minutes' walk, Tenuto came across a large cave and in front of it, there slept the monster that the king had spoken of. The chimera had its head in its hoofs, its man billowing gently behind it, floating and golden. There was a vicious heat coming from its head of hair and its scaled goat's body rose and fell evenly as it breathed. Every so often, the legs would twitch and Tenuto was sure that it was having dreams about chasing some poor animal or another that would be its food.

Tenuto edged his way to the cave, careful nto to wake the beast. The eyes of the chimera twitched and Tenuto froze, unable and too afraid to move. The chimera stood up, then turned on its side and passed back into slumber. Tenuto breathed a sigh of relief and ran towards the cave as fast as he could. But just as he reached the foot of the cave, he tripped on a root that must have been hundreds of years old and uttered such a yelp that it woke the beast.

Having caught sight of him now, the chimera gave a roar of rage and with a huge leap, it jumped in front of Tenuto, allowing him to pass no further. It growled fiercely as Tenuto looked desperately in his pockets and was just about to pounce when a single silver not, like the chime of a church bell, made its legs twitch on their own accord. As the note became a song, the chimera found that it had no control of its limbs any longer and it danced itself out of the youth's way. Tenuto, seizing the opportunity , ran into the cave, ignoring the coats of jewels along the walls. It was just as well, for had he touched one, the chimera would have stopped dancing and whatever Tenuto used against it would have had little more effect than that of a needle.

But as the funny little man with the funny little hat had said, the flute would only have the chimera dance for as long as a quarter of an hour and soon, the silver flute fell to the ground, useless and rusty, and the chimera was now free to give chase. With its quick legs and large bounds, it soon overtook Tenuto again. Tenuto could feel the beads of cold sweat on his back. Desperately, he took out the panpipes and played a note, hoping that it might induce the same effect that the flute had.

Instead, yet another large chimera came bounding out of the fields of time and space. It looked much like the fiery one, yet it had a mildness about the eyes and it was completely black, its mane flashing with stars. Without hesitation, the black chimera threw itself at the golden one and the two became preoccupied with fighting each other, leaving Tenuto enough time to run further.

At the end of the cave, there was a fountain that spouted wine. Tenuto ignored this and headed immediately for the rocks where a small, humble looking bluebell was growing out of them. Gently, he plucked it and he felt it shrink in size in his hand. He cupped it in his hands and put it in the pocket of his coat.

Alas, the experience of the fiery chimera gave it much of an advantage over the black one and it soon killed it. The panpipes fell to the ground in pieces, clawed apart by the chimera. It growled now and its eyes flashed in rage as Tenuto emerged from the cavern. It pounced and Tenuto found that his legs were rooted to the ground. He covered his face and was just beginning to prepare for the pain that would come with his death when the bow and violin jumped out of their case. The bow was now a magnificent flashing sword and the body of the stringed instrument now became a large shield with a copper snake on it.

The sword fought and fended the blows of the chimera and as Tenuto ran, the shield protected him from its heat and heavy hoofs. Further and further he ran, until he was out of breath , and not even then. Every time he stopped, the shield nudged him further until his lungs were fit to burst. The sword guarded, parried, thrust, inflicting small wounds on the chimera in the areas that would slow it down. Rocks crumbled and fell as the screams of the beast rocked the mountain. All around him, Tenuto could see the falling rocks and it was only when the sword thrust itself through the chimera's forehead that they stopped. The golden creature slumped to the ground and died, its mane of fire and light now extinguished.

Now, there were no more dangers in Tenuto's way. He found that the mountain with its two gates, as well as the fierce river, were no longer in the way. Happily, and with a spring in his step, he made his way back to the castle where he was greeted with a fanfare he found most distasteful.

"For days have I travelled, sir, and many dangers have I faced, all for the sake of your daughter," Tenuto announced in the throne room as soon as he had been cleaned and fed. "And here have I the Flower of Eternity."

He held it up to the light and the many heads in the room craned their necks and strained their eyes to get a look. The king looked down at it with disgust. "A bluebell?" he roared, gripping the sides of his throne. "It has been described as a rose, made of glass stained with blood, and you bring me a bluebell? Where are the thorns of diamonds? Where are the leaves of satin? This is not the Flower of Eternity!"

"But it is, sir," Tenuto said calmly. And so saying, he pulled a knife out of his pocket and slashed it quickly across his wrist. Blood dribbled down his hand, staining his clean clothes with carmine liquid. He took the bluebell and gingerly brushed it across his hand. Immediately, the wound healed, not even leaving a scar. It was as though it had not been there at all.

Murmurs at once filled the throne room. "And now, majesty, I have won your daughter's hand in marriage," Tenuto reminded, almost shyly.

The king bristled with anger. Eleven years ago, when he had first posed the task, he had been completely in his right mind. But now that the madness of power had taken over, he found that he was not willing to keep his side of the bargain and yet he yearned for the Flower more than ever now.

"Have it, then!" he bellowed. Quickly, he grabbed his daughter by the hand, placed it on the throne and, before she could even scream, cut her hand off and threw it on the ground in front of Tenuto. "There is her hand in marriage!"

The princess, seeing the bloody stub that used to have a pearl white hand attached to it, uttered such a shriek that it could be heard all over the world. And everyone thought it was the faint ringing of the church bells. She jumped up from her chair and, with tears running down her cheek, ran out of the room, not even bothering to pull her skirts out of her way.

Some say it was becase of this that she tripped and fell down the stairs, breaking her neck. Other claim that she threw herself down in her despair. And there were some that whispered that the king's guard had pushed her, thinking that she had no right to be a princess now that she was imperfect. These are all rumours, however, and the cause of her death is not known.

The king was soon usurped and the kingdom fell under a man who claimed himself to be the General of the kingdom. He ruled well and there were none who had any complaints. Tenuto, after this betrayal, never did return to his village. Instead, he wandered the world in despair. Finally, he found himself at the edge of a large swamp and, in an attempt to kill himself, threw himself in. But suicide is a crime of the highest degree by the gods of his time and, instead of dying, he was transformed into a swamp monster, dripping with mud and with leaves stuck in his hair. He was punished to forever roam the earth, with all the memories of his princess, until he found her. And it was then, and only then, that he would be able to move on. And ever since then, mothers have told their children the story of the Bogster of the Black Lagoon.

FIN

A/N: When I first mentioned the Bogster of the Black Lagoon in an RP post, it was intended to be a kind of spoof of the legendary Monster of the Black Lagoon. Later on, a lack of things to write about made me fill my post with this fairy tale, which has elements of every kind of fairy tale that I have read before. For instance, the beginning started with the main character being something like the Star Child in Oscar Wilde's story, and then it became something a little more generic, with a quest for something unknown. This is my first fairy tale ever and I hope that you enjoyed it as much as I enjoyed writing it.