Notes: A rewrite of the fairy tale Diamonds and Toads for the tobreakaspell fairy tale challenge on Livejournal.
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Ealdor Manor was pressed against the low hills to the east of royal city of Camelot and was the home of the Emrys family. Below the house sprawled the town of Ealdor, its namesake, while the orchards stretched beyond the formal gardens and tiny kitchen vegetable patch in the back of the manor. Lord Emrys had married his wife Nimueh when she was young and she had borne him two sons, Mordred and Merlin. Both children had the dark hair and bright blue eyes of their mother but the young boys could not be more different from each other. Mordred was selfish and mean while Merlin was sweet and kind. You would never have known the two were raised in the same household by the way they acted.
Lord Emrys died when the boys were just reaching their teens, leaving them alone with their mother. Nimueh's favorite child was her elder son, Mordred. Their mother thought Mordred could do no wrong and he knew he was the favorite. Mordred was spoilt and had a mean attitude, a temperament much like Nimueh. As a child, Mordred had been known to bite and pull the hair of the Nanny if she didn't give him what he wanted in a timely manner. As a teen, the self-centered Mordred often harassed the house servants and was harsh with the orchard workers. Everyone at Ealdor Manor stayed clear of Mordred if they could.
Merlin was a different story. Nobody knew how Merlin turned out so kind and caring with a mother like Nimueh and an older brother like Mordred. The younger brother was known to help the servants in their chores and enjoyed speaking with them. He knew the names of all their family members and always seemed genuinely concerned when he asked after them. He loved to read in the garden and was often seen wandering around the orchard trees. The young boy never yelled and always smiled at people. The workers for Ealdor Manor would whisper that dear Merlin seemed a little off, a little Fey, but was charming nonetheless.
"Merlin?"
Merlin sat up at the call, peeking around a tree trunk where he was hiding from his family again. "Allison?" He closed the book he was reading and stood, stepping out onto the garden lawn. "Ally?" he called.
A woman in a faded yellow dress and apron appeared behind a tall topiary on the patio. "There you are. Lady Nimueh is looking for you. She's in the parlor." Allison gave the young man a sympathetic look as he grimaced.
"I don't think I want to know what Mother wants now," muttered Merlin. He smoothed down his old coat, fingering a hole at the cuff, and sighed. He needed new clothing but only Mordred ever received new things; mostly because the elder brother was very vocal in demanding them. Merlin sighed and dredged up a smile for the young maid, one of the house staff Merlin had befriended. "Thanks, Ally. I better get going." Allison cast a concerned look at the retreating back of the young man as he disappeared in the manor.
Merlin slipped into the house and ghosted lightly down the hallway. He could hear his mother and older brother in the parlor and a new level of dread settled in his stomach. Merlin stepped into the room and saw that they were both seated on the couch. Nimueh was petting Mordred's hair, his head in her lap and curled up on the seat like a puppy. He was complaining about something or another in a low voice.
"I know, my poor dear," Nimueh cooed. "That nasty maid was very mean to you. I'll make sure she never has another job in Camelot." Mordred whined and Nimueh looked sharply up at her younger son. "Merlin, one of the maids broke a vase up in Mordred room. Fetch a mop and clean up the mess. Be quick about it, now. I don't want poor Mordred unable to enter his room for long and he could step on some broken glass."
Merlin nodded. "Yes, Mother." He escaped out of the parlor and hurried down the hallway and down some short stairs to the kitchen. He burst in and headed straight for the knot of woman and men by the fireplace. "What happened?" he asked with concern.
The cook raised her head and pursed her lips at Merlin. "Mordred threw a vase at Gwen when she couldn't find those ugly purple shoes of his. She's cut her hand up."
Merlin shook his head and sighed. "He threw those shoes away last week."
"That's what I told him!" cried a voice. A stableman shifted aside and Merlin could finally see the young dark haired Gwen. Another of the kitchen helpers was mopping up her hand and binding it. "But he just yelled at me and then threw that horrid yellow vase from the table at me!" Tears swam in her eyes but did not drop and she was clinching her uninjured hand into a tight fist.
Merlin knelt and patted her arm. "There was nothing you could have done, Gwen. Mordred knew those shoes were gone. He was just looking for an excuse. I'm so sorry."
The young maid looked at the dark haired man, expression shifting between anger and fright. "I'm going to be fired aren't I?"
Merlin sighed. "My older brother will most likely demand it."
Gwen gave a frustrated cried through her teeth. "I need this job! Papa will be so disappointed with me if I have to go back home!"
Merlin bit his lip. "I know a man in the royal city, a physician of the people. I'll write you a note for him and he'll find you a position in another household. You shouldn't stay here. Mordred will just make your life miserable." He snatched up some paper from a cabinet and wrote quickly, folding it and handing the message to Gwen. "David, could you take Gwen into town please? William will get her a place on the next postal carriage to Camelot but she can't stay here. She'll just be a target for Mordred's childish rage. I'd do it myself but I've been ordered by Mother to clean up the vase in Mordred's room."
An older maid scowled. "You don't need to do that, Merlin. We'll clean up the mess."
"No, May. If Mother found out that it wasn't me that cleaned up the vase then we'll all be punished. I'll do it. It's no problem."
Gwen grinned a little lopsided and threw her arms around the surprised young man. "Thanks you so much, Merlin. I don't know what I would have done without you."
Merlin smiled and patted her shoulder before pushing her away. If he didn't hurry then Nimueh would yell at him for being too slow. "Don't worry about it, Gwen. I hope Gaius is able to help you. I need to go and so should you. Best of luck in Camelot." Everyone in the kitchen watched Merlin snatch up a bucket and hurry out of the backdoor of the manor.
Merlin walked around the side of the house and through the outer iron gate up the path to the well. The dirt walkway curved gently up a hill, rising slowly above the house roof. The well stood next to a lone apple tree, now just starting to fruit, and Merlin could see the tops of the orchard trees behind the manor. When the sun set, this hill would be the last to be bathed in golden light before the sun sank beyond the horizon. He set his bucket down and then released the latch on the turn handle on the well. The scoop bucket fell with a plop into the water. Merlin drew the water out and poured it into his own bucket. "Spare an old woman a drink, my Lord?"
Merlin started at the scratchy voice and looked up in surprise. An old woman dressed in a ratty dress and thin shawl stood on the path from town. Her skin was wrinkly but her bright blue eyes stared at him with a clear mind. She was walking with a cane and trembled slightly. Had she walked all the way up the hill, all the way from town? "Are you alright?" asked Merlin. He reached forward and grabbed her elbow gently to support her. "Here, please sit down." Merlin led her to a rock and helped her sit. "You must be tired. Let me get you that drink." He fetched a metal cup from the notch in the well wall and dipped it into the bucket. Merlin took the cup to the older woman and supported her hand as she drank.
"Ah, thank you," said the old woman with a satisfied gasp.
Merlin smiled and glanced back toward the house. "If you'll come with me, I can get you a meal in our kitchen and you can rest awhile. Lettie will be glad for someone to talk to. More water?" He filled the cup again and turned back toward the old woman when a blinding white light shocked him into tripping over the bucket and falling to the ground.
When he could see again, Merlin found the old woman gone and stood in her place was a beautiful young woman. The woman had long dark hair slipping over her shoulders and wore a splendid green dress with a silver belt. What struck Merlin silent in astonishment were the two gossamer wings sprouting from her back, huge and glorious. She didn't look as if she fit correctly into the space she was standing in, the edges of her body blurred and Merlin couldn't tell where the bottom of her dress ended and the grass started. "Merlin," she greeted him. It spoke of a summer wind, warm and soft. It pulled on memories of first snows, pure and untouched. Merlin felt tears spring to his eyes for some reason. "You've been very gracious to a poor old woman, offering me water, food, and shelter. For that you shall be rewarded. As you offered me gifts, so shall you be given them in return." Merlin blinked up at the woman as she reached forward and caressed his cheek; the brush of a flower petal, the flutter of a bird's wing. Her fingertips sent warmth through his skin, down into his bones. "Thank you, Merlin." One last smile, the echo of a baby's first laugh, and the fairy faded from sight.
Merlin sat on the ground for several minutes, struck dumb and suddenly a little cold, until the spilt water began to seep into his trousers. He righted the bucket and blinked around the area. "What was that?" he asked himself. Something fell into his lap and Merlin looked down to find a gold coin, a sparkling diamond, and a rose bloom in his lap. He blinked down at them. "Where…?" A silver coin joined the pile in his lap. Slowly, Merlin raised a hand to his lips. "What…?" A blue sapphire hit his palm and rolled down his sleeve. Merlin stared at it before quickly clapping both hands over his mouth. Were those things falling from his lips? Merlin scrambled to his feet and raced back to the manor, forgetting the water bucket by the well.
When Merlin burst into the kitchen of the manor he startled the old cook into dropping a spoon into the soup pot. "Lettie!" cried Merlin. The cook watched a flower pop into existence from the young man's mouth and tumble to the ground. "Help!" A gold coin rolled across the floor and Merlin clapped his hands over his mouth.
"Merlin, goodness! What happened?" demanded Lettie. She guided the dark haired man to a stool and sat him down. "Calm down. That's it."
"I think a fairy enchanted me!" exclaimed Merlin. They both watched as coins, gems, and flowers dropped to the floor at his words.
Lettie picked up a perfect white lily and looked at it in astonishment. "Child," she breathed.
"An old woman appeared while I was at the well and asked for a drink. I gave it to her and offered her a meal in the kitchen but she turned into this beautiful fairy and told me I would be rewarded. Then she disappeared and now every time I speak a coin, gem, or flower falls out!" explained Merlin in a panicked voice.
"Okay! Stop speaking!" cried Lettie, chasing down some rolling coins. She quickly gathered up everything that had fallen and stuffed it into a nearby pot. "By the heavens, Merlin, I think you've had a fairy gift given to you. It's not unheard of for fairies to put such a spell on people they find worthy. It's a great honor."
"How do I stop it?" Merlin ignored the following plink, plunk as some coins and gems fell to the floor again.
"Stop it?" echoed Lettie in surprise. "Why would you want to stop it?"
"I can't stay like this, Lettie! If my Mother found out…" Plink, plunk, chunk. Merlin pushed the rose and lily from his lap, looking like he was about to cry.
"Oh," breathed Lettie in distress. She shook some coins off her shoe and bit her lip. "Well, I suppose we could go back to the well and see if the fairy is still there or maybe go see a witch."
"Do you think that will help?" Plink, plink. Merlin looked down sourly at the gold and silver coins on his lap and handed them to a bemused Lettie.
"Merlin!" Both Lettie and Merlin looked up in mute horror. "Merlin!" Lady Nimueh's voice was coming closer as she yelled.
Merlin looked at Lettie in terror. "Help me," he hissed. A yellow gem and tiny purple flower fell from his lips.
Lettie pulled him up and pushed him across the kitchen floor. "Quickly! Into the store room." Merlin was pushed into the room and Lettie closed the door behind him. There was a pair of tiny windows up high in the store room, letting in a weak light. It smelled musty and Merlin fought not to sneeze as his mother's screeches grew closer and finally sounded in the kitchen. Lettie greeted her and Nimueh demanded to know where her son was. Merlin shut his eyes tightly and tried to make himself smaller.
"Merlin?" asked a soft voice behind him.
Merlin gasped and spun around. "Ally!" he cried at the maid. A brilliant opal bounced to the floor. Allison looked down at it in surprise, having just seen it pop into existence in front of Merlin's mouth like Lettie had moments ago. The door swung open harshly and Merlin spun back around. "Mother! Mordred!" Plunk, chink. Mother and two sons stared down at the glossy pearl and green emerald now sitting at Nimueh's feet.
"Merlin," said Nimueh slowly. "What happened?" Merlin clapped his hands over his mouth and stared at his mother with wide blue eyes. Nimueh glared and grabbed Merlin's wrists, yanking him forcibly from the small store room. "Tell me what happened!"
"Ow! Let go!" cried Merlin. A gold coin and two tiny yellow buttercup blooms fell through the air.
Nimueh stared at them, Mordred gaping behind her, and then shook Merlin. "How are you doing that? Speak!"
"There was a fairy at the well! She enchanted me!" A small rain of coins, gems, and flowers rolled across the kitchen floor. Mordred seemed to break out of his daze and snatched up some of the coins and gems. A few flowers were crushed under his boots. Allison slowly picked up the perfect pink rose bloom that had fallen at her feet, looking astonished.
"A fairy?" echoed Nimueh. "Why?" Merlin bit his lip and was shaken again for hesitating. "Why!"
"She asked for a drink of water and I gave it to her. She looked like a tired old woman and I offered her a meal and rest at the manor. Then she was suddenly a beautiful fairy and she said I would be rewarded. Then these things started falling from my mouth," Merlin explained in a hurry, terrified. A storm of coins, gems, and flowers rolled and bounced across the kitchen floor. By now, the rest of the household was crowded around the doors of the kitchen, staring at the young man with riches falling from his lips.
Nimueh released her young son and Merlin quickly dashed to the other side of the table. She too fell to her knees and snatched up as many coins and gems as she could. "You were given a fairy gift," growled Nimueh. "Mordred," she snapped.
The elder son looked up from a small pile of coins and gems. "What?" he whined.
"Go up to the well and watch for an old woman. Maybe if you hurry we can catch the fairy and you can be given the same gift," instructed Nimueh. "Be nice to the old woman, Mordred. She's a fairy in disguise." She yanked Mordred up from the floor and pushed him toward the door. "Hurry! Before she moves on!"
"But, Mother!" cried Mordred.
"Now!" Mordred flinched and raced out of the doorway. Nimueh glanced around at the gathered workers and narrowed her eyes. "If I find that one of you has a coin or gem in their possession I'll have you flogged! They're mine! Get out! Out!" she screamed. Everyone fled from the kitchen in fright. Merlin ran up the stairs, his eyes hot with tears and his mother's screaming ringing in his ears.
Mordred stumbled up to the well and glared around the area. He didn't see anybody and scowled. "Be nice to an old lady, Mother says. What old lady? This is all Merlin's fault. All he had to do was clean up my room. He's such an idiot." He kicked the side of the well.
"May I have a drink, young man?"
Mordred spun around but instead of an old woman he's been told to find he saw a young noble woman. The lady was fair of face and had a gentle smile, wearing a rich cloak. Mordred sighed. "Get it yourself," he said sourly. He sat on a rock and looked away, pouting.
"Can you help me?" asked the young woman again. "I cannot lift the handle to the pulley."
Mordred rolled his eyes, barely looking at her. "Look, just go down to the tavern in town. I'm not a servant and I'm waiting for someone. You're wasting my time."
"What a horrible child." A bright light filled the area and Mordred fell over his rock perch with a cry. When he looked up he saw that the woman had lost the cloak and two wings now shone on her back. She regarded Mordred with stony eyes, lips unsmiling.
"You're the fairy?" cried Mordred. "But you didn't look like an old woman!"
"Indeed," said the fairy coolly. "You too shall be rewarded with what you deserve. So you offered to me foul word, so shall your words create foul things." She began to glow, blinding the young human.
"No, wait!" cried Mordred. But it was too late, she was gone. Mordred stood and looked around. "What foul things?" A snake slid over Mordred's foot and he leapt back with a scream. "What's going on here!" This time, the young man saw the frog, beetle, and snake fall from the air in front of him and went mute with shock. Slowly, he put his hand up to his mouth and spoke; "What?" A slimy toad fell onto his palm and Mordred stared at it in horror. The toad croaked and stared up at him with annoyed bulbous eyes. Mordred dropped the amphibian with a cry. "Mother!" The black spider fell from his lips as Mordred raced back toward the manor.
Merlin looked up from where he was sitting stiffly in the corner of the parlor as he heard a ruckus in the hall. Nimueh was sitting on the couch, a pile of coins and gems in front of her. She stood as Mordred burst through the doorway. "Mordred? What happened?" she demanded.
The elder son threw himself at his mother. "I found the fairy but she gave me something awful!" Nimueh stared in shock as frogs and insects fell onto her lap as Mordred sobbed. "It's nothing like what she gave Merlin!" A snake coiled off Nimueh's knee and with a screech she pushed Mordred away from her and leapt up from the couch. "Mother?" cried Mordred. Another spider sprang from the young man's lips and scuttled under the rug.
Merlin shrank back from his mother's murderous look as she turned sharply toward him. "This is all your fault!" Nimueh screamed. "You lied to me!"
"No, Mother! I didn't!" cried Merlin. The sight of coins and gems falling from his lips only seemed to make Nimueh angrier and Merlin dodged away as she reached for him. "Mother!" The single pearl that fell disappeared among the insects created by Mordred sobbing words.
"Get out!" screamed Nimueh. "Get out of my house! You're no longer welcome here and I never want to see you again! Get out!" Merlin looked at his mother in astonishment. She picked up a vase and threw it at him, screaming all the while for him to leave. "Get out! Leave! Miserable child! I'll kill you! Out!" She knocked over a table holding a tea set and it crashed to the floor, crockery shards flying.
Merlin raced toward the door, his heart pounding. "You're mad!" An ornate box shattered near his head as Merlin disappeared out into the hallway. He ran down the corridor, tears clouding his eyes and fear making his heart pound. All he could think about was getting away, a flight response to danger. He burst from the outer door and hurried down the garden pathway to the gate. Merlin swung the gate open and ran away from the manor as fast as he could, hearing the sounds of things breaking back inside the house and the wail of his pitiful older brother. Over it he could hear the enraged and maddened screaming of his mother, still yelling she would kill him.
Blind terror carried Merlin far past the edge of the orchard, deaf to the calls and shouts of the workers he surprised with his flight. He ran through the darkening forest until a tree root managed to catch his foot and Merlin fell. His scream of surprise and fear produced a misshapen, cloudy quartz. It took several minutes lying among the leaf litter to calm his breathing and slow his heart. Merlin finally pushed himself up and leaned against a tree trunk, wincing at some bruises. His wrist gave a hard twinge and Merlin cradled it against his chest.
He looked around the gloomy forest, unsure which way he had come from. Not that he would return to the manor. Merlin dared not stay another minute in that house with his mother. He was sure she had lost her mind completely. But Merlin had fled Ealdor Manor without stopping for supplies. He had no food, no clothing, and nowhere to go. "What am I going to do?" he muttered. Merlin looked down at what his words produced, picking up a gold coin. Well, at least he would never want for money. All he had to do was speak and all the money he would ever need would fall from his lips.
But how would he buy things? If he asked the merchants for the items, then coins and gems would appear. Merlin could just imagine what an uproar such a phenomenon would cause. He'd be hunted down or…Merlin stopped his imagination from continuing. Shivering in the gathering cold, Merlin pressed himself back among the gnarled roots. How was having precious things fall from his lips a reward when it had cost him his only home?