Prologue

One night in a small village, a woman was quietly giving birth. It was painful, but if she screamed her whole plan would be ruined.

"It's a girl!" the woman exclaimed softly. After her child was quieted and cleaned, the woman laid her in a crib.

"I'll name you Lydia," she decided, writing her newborn daughter's name on a small piece of paper. Then she placed the paper on the crib, and picked Lydia up again.

When she had sang her daughter to sleep, the woman gathered up her few belongings and put them in a pack, then put on a cloak and walked out of the door. As she walked out of the village, she looked back and whispered, "I'm sorry, Rumplestiltsken. I just don't love you anymore." The woman stopped looking back, and continued walking towards the port.