div id="chapters" style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; color: #2a2a2a; line-height: 19.4443206787109px;"
div class="userstuff" style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; word-wrap: break-word;"
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5;"My dear unfortunate listener,/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5;" I am at my wits end. I've tried everything to shake this awful feeling. I've sat by the window brooding over the meaning of its nature. I've engaged company and conversations to forget it's there. But it's like a festering shadow I cannot get rid of, a nightmare I cannot wake from. Worst of all I know it's because I've lost something. But I can't remember what. I've ransacked every memory and dream. I've pull out all my hair. I've given up sleep. But this torment never stops. I am at my wits end./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5;"You must be thinking, "Look at this strange creature, for it speaks like nothing but a loon! Lock it away! Lock it away!"/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5;"And you're quite right, I should be locked away. By all means, you are free to put me down and be on your merry way. But if you have a minute to spare, then just maybe, you can help find what I've lost and free me from this nightmare./p
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p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5;" /p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5;"I'm not quite sure where the beginning was, but it most definitely had a field. It wasn't a rocky desert ground, or a neatly trimmed grass pitch. No, it was a perfect meadow with butterflies, dandelions and a soft fragrant breeze. The sun was bright and warm, to a id="FALINK_6_0_5" class="FAtxtL" style="outline: 0px; font-style: inherit; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 0px; cursor: pointer; color: #1c7dff !important; text-decoration: underline !important; border-top-width: 0px !important; border-right-width: 0px !important; border-left-width: 0px !important; border-bottom-color: #1c7dff !important; display: inline !important; background-color: transparent !important; padding: 0px 0px 1px !important 0px;" href=" /works/2619062#"cast/a a mid-summer's haze, quite the a id="FALINK_2_0_1" class="FAtxtL" style="outline: 0px; font-style: inherit; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 0px; cursor: pointer; color: #1c7dff !important; text-decoration: underline !important; border-top-width: 0px !important; border-right-width: 0px !important; border-left-width: 0px !important; border-bottom-color: #1c7dff !important; display: inline !important; background-color: transparent !important; padding: 0px 0px 1px !important 0px;" href=" /works/2619062#"pictures/a setting for an afternoon of games. I remember a companion. She was as delightful as a bounding bunny. We ran through this meadow, chasing after various flitting creatures. Her laugh would warm even sulkiest stone. Her smile would shine brighter than the sun itself. Her hair dazzled a brilliant gold. I remembered wanting to touch her hair, but when I reached for it, I realize my skin was the same shade. I was ecstatic by this surprise for some reason./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5;"My companion looked at me puzzled and said, "Of course you're gold, silly. What other color would my favorite playmate be?" span style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"So the pair of us continued to a id="FALINK_1_0_0" class="FAtxtL" style="outline: 0px; font-style: inherit; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 0px; cursor: pointer; color: #1c7dff !important; text-decoration: underline !important; border-top-width: 0px !important; border-right-width: 0px !important; border-left-width: 0px !important; border-bottom-color: #1c7dff !important; display: inline !important; background-color: transparent !important; padding: 0px 0px 1px !important 0px;" href=" /works/2619062#"play/a, pleased with the fact that she loved me and I loved my princess./span/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5;"We scampered to the linden tree far out in the middle of the field./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5;""Hello, a id="FALINK_5_0_4" class="FAtxtL" style="outline: 0px; font-style: inherit; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 0px; cursor: pointer; color: #1c7dff !important; text-decoration: underline !important; border-top-width: 0px !important; border-right-width: 0px !important; border-left-width: 0px !important; border-bottom-color: #1c7dff !important; display: inline !important; background-color: transparent !important; padding: 0px 0px 1px !important 0px;" href=" /works/2619062#"father/a!" Princess called out./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5;""My child! Come give your old man a kiss," rustled the leaves on the tree. She gave the trunk a peck, and even I wrapped my arms around to give a quick hug./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5;""What have you been up to, sweet daughter?"/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5;""We've been exploring the hills today. I found a rabbit hole, and I tried to go down but it just yelled 'it's Alice's hole! Go away!' Then I found a red cape that grew hair and chased a boy who was not afraid. My favorite was watching the blue egg. Oh father, it was the loveliest of all. A beating heart hatched out of it and went thump, thump, thump."/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5;"My princess chattered on and on. The tree shook its leave in amusement. I could have listened all day. When she finished her tales of adventures, she plopped down at the base of the tree and sighed. "And now, I've run out of games to play."/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5;"How could I let my princess be disappointed? I wiggled this way and that, until I had a small bounce under my feet. I jumped higher and higher. At first, she didn't understand. "What in the world are you up to!?" she cried./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5;"But the higher I jumped, a twinkle grew in her eyes. She clapped her hands, jumped up and caught me. She tossed me higher than I could go myself, and I almost reached the middle branch. She shrieked with delight as I soared down again. She threw me up, with all her might this time. Boy, was I flying. I soared past the top leaf of the linden tree. For a moment everything stopped. I could see the horizon meeting the brim of the perfect blue sky. I could feel the sleepy white clouds. I could smell the purest air and the taste of freedom. It was bliss beyond compare. But the shade of the canopy and a brisk wind washed over me again as I fell. I turned over onto my stomach to see the smiling expression on her face. But the sight before me brought quite a scare./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5;"A maze of linden branches coiled around her completely. It bound her ankles, waist, arms and neck. It pierced her skin so very deep. Instead of ruby ichor, she bled thick slime of green. She tried to scream for me, but it was drowned out. The mast of the tree groaned as it bent this way and that, for a violent storm had rolled in. Though I tried hard to rush to her side, I was swept away in the gust. span style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-weight: inherit; font-style: oblique; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"Splish, splash, splish, splash,/span went the horrid rain. I could barely see beyond the farthest limbs of the tree. Suddenly a croaking voice echoed in the torrent,/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5;"span style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-weight: inherit; font-style: oblique; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;""Have you forgotten/span/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5;"span style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-weight: inherit; font-style: oblique; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"what you have promised/span/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5;"span style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-weight: inherit; font-style: oblique; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"down by the well's cool water?/span/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5;"span style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-weight: inherit; font-style: oblique; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"Open up and let me in!"/span/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5;"The roots ripped wide open and a stinking odor reached me. Chips of thin gold swam in the wind. A dark rotting well was sucking me in. I fell deep in this well and all hope was gone for I never saw my princess again. The water was cold and heavy, and I would have surely drowned if I were capable of breathing. No, it would have been a better fate than the horror I was now to live in./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5;"I was not alone in my decent, though company was not as I expected. Strange debris floated by. Just to name a few, there was a torn silk sheet, clumps of white horses mane and, curious of all, a broken wand made from a Baobab tree. What good were any of these when I could do nothing but sink? Deeper and deeper I went, in the seemingly endless pit. But I hit the bottom and slumped in a bed of molting mud. I nearly jumped out of my skin when a nasty frog crawled right up next to me and whispered, "Lift me up beside you."/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5;"I screamed and tried to roll away. But the mud thickened to keep me in place. It hopped around me to get a better view. "My, my, this old water-splasher has got a lucky streak. Just the other day a witch came by, said she would smite me in this wretched hell. To change my ways would do me well. But what does that old wart know. Why work hard, swimming up all the way, when my cure just fell, span style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-weight: inherit; font-style: oblique; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"plop, /spanright into my lap, oh my sweet prey?"/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5;"If only I had listened to my mother and not strayed, I would have never fallen in such despair. I should have locked myself away and played with pillows and curtains for the rest of my days. The nasty frog hopped all around, busying himself with who knows what. He pulled out a plate and goblet, and set it out. He poured out wine and lit ear wax candle for light. He babbled on and on about what fun he would certainly have, quite oblivious to the stains on my cheeks, I might add./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5;""Now, let's play a little game I like to play. You must be familiar for I have seen you do this with your companion of fair." He brought a morsel of awful grub to my lips. He grabbed my cheeks and said, "Open wide!"Before I could do anything, he thrust it down my throat. With each bite, it got harder to swallow. Just to make a sport out of me he poured wine all over my face. Unlike smooth liquid it should be, it burned of milky white acid instead. I felt broken and scared, worse than any nightmare. My princess was taken from me and no father to sweep me away. I was nothing by a playing ball that rolled whichever way it was thrown. No arms or legs. No voice or head. I was stuck in the mud with a monster that didn't care. I looked up to see the surface, hoping to see a glimpse of blue, maybe a bubble of that crisp air. Instead I saw a series of stairs. If only I had a way to climb, to free myself of this horrid crime./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5;""I'm tired and want to sleep as much as you do. Lift me up, or I'll tell you father!" the frog cried. He hopped over to my side and buried his head against me. Maybe it was the wine, but a rage flared up inside me. Whose father would come and punish me? The one who tore out all the hair on my princess? No there was no one to save or punish but me. I could live forever in this nightmare, or wake up and climb the stairs. The shredded silk sheet fluttered by and settled atop the frog and me. Within a minute the water reverberated with a steady croaking from its vocal sac. This was my one and only chance./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5;"The more I fidgeted the more the mud pulled me in. Worm and parasites dug holes to make me sink. Looking around, there was nothing but decaying organic filth, pieces of fish flesh, twig shards and rotten seeds and leaves of a linden tree. If only I had rope, to tie to that first rung of that grand stairs, it would be a start. Before I could lose the last of my hopeful light, the strands of the white horses' main drifted down. What was even more surprising was the fact that I had grown hands. Not mighty like a king's fist or nimble like an old woman's finger tips, but simple human hands. Saving my delight for later, I made quick work of the strands and secured a loop around the rung and myself. Slowly as to not disturb the frog, I pulled my way out. It seemed impossible at first, the mud was as thick as rock. But it soon gave way and I slid closer to the wall. The frog snorted once or twice but bundled in the silk, it didn't figure my absence. Triumphant, I started to finally climb. Funny thing was I felt better than when I flew to the sky. But I was nowhere as high, and rung after rung I scaled the wall. Instead of floating debris wafting higher past me, span style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-weight: inherit; font-style: oblique; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"I was passing it/span. Traces of mud washed off my golden skin. I made it three fourths of the way out before disaster struck./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5;""YOU UNGRATEFUL PEST! WAIT AND SEE HOW I TAKE YOU WITH ME! YOU CAN'T RUN FROM ME!" shrieked the frog./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5;"Around and around, the water churned in anger. The vortex almost ripped me off the ladder. But this was my only chance, and I wasn't about to give it up. I spurred up the little courage I had and continued to climb. span style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-weight: inherit; font-style: oblique; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"Splish, splash, splish, splash, /spanI could hear its webbed feet swimming. It's croaking got louder and loud, until it was deafening. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw a pink tongue whip towards me. Without another thought and reached out for it, and squeezed tight. As much as it could scream with its tongue hanging out, it wailed and thrashed, fighting my grip. I swung it right and left, till it went limp. When I let go, I thought it was dead. But how can I be so easily freed. It opened its eyes and watched me climb. The marks of its poisonous tongue began to burn on my hand. Even if I had climbed out this well, I would not live. This monster would take me down, even as it sank to the ground./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5;"Whipped around by the vicious vortex, the wand of Baobab tree zoomed towards me. How helpful would a broken wand be? But for some reason I reached out for it anyways. When I did, the frog suddenly seized as if cursed with a terrible disease. It trembled and shuddered, while it began to bloat. Golden blood oozed from its eyes, nose, and pores. The burn on my hands started to shine a brilliant gold. The water boiled and seethed. Something was happening, for good or worse, I never knew./p
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p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5;" /p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5;"As you can see, I truly am a loon who should not be free. I've tried with all my might, to pass it off as a dream, but visions of green and gold leak through my every waking moment. In fact, the last thing I can remember is waking up that morning, and seeing my reflection in the mirror. At first I thought I had a study build and chin, green eyes, golden hair, with a mighty stance like a prince. But I rubbed my eyes and saw the three cracks in my mirror that has always been. Some days I'm not sure if I've even woken from this fairy tale. Never the less, if you have any insight, please address you're response to the publishing house of Brother's Grimm./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5;" align="right"Yours truly,/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5;" align="right"span style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-weight: inherit; font-style: oblique; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"The Golden Companion/span/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5;" align="right"span style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-weight: inherit; font-style: oblique; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" /span/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5;" align="right"span style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-weight: inherit; font-style: oblique; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" /span/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5;" align="right"span style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-weight: inherit; font-style: oblique; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" /span/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5;" align="right"span style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-weight: inherit; font-style: oblique; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" /span/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5;" /p
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div class="afterword preface group" style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.5em 3em 2.5em; padding: 0.643em 0.643em 0px; float: none; color: #2a2a2a; line-height: 19.4443206787109px;"
div id="work_endnotes" class="end notes module" style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 0px; padding: 0px 0px 0.643em; position: relative; width: auto; float: none; clear: right; min-height: 5em;"
h3 class="heading" style="border-width: 0px 0px 1px; border-bottom-style: solid; outline: 0px; font-weight: 400; font-style: inherit; font-size: 1.286em; font-family: Georgia, serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 0.5375em 0px; padding: 0px; line-height: 1; background: transparent;"Notes:/h3
blockquote class="userstuff" style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 1em; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 0.643em; padding: 0px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; word-wrap: break-word;"
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 0px auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5;"Hope this story made enough sense to actually warrant some feedback. br /I'm on my hands on knees, begging you... there might be tears...br /but please! Please! PLEASE! rate, comment, critic... even if you think this is the stupidest thing you've ever been tortured with. Even that will be some help for me. br /I know that the physical appearance of the please may not effect you decision... maybe the cherry on top... but it would be much appreciated./p
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div class="userstuff" style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; word-wrap: break-word;"
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5;"My dear unfortunate listener,/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5;" I am at my wits end. I've tried everything to shake this awful feeling. I've sat by the window brooding over the meaning of its nature. I've engaged company and conversations to forget it's there. But it's like a festering shadow I cannot get rid of, a nightmare I cannot wake from. Worst of all I know it's because I've lost something. But I can't remember what. I've ransacked every memory and dream. I've pull out all my hair. I've given up sleep. But this torment never stops. I am at my wits end./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5;"You must be thinking, "Look at this strange creature, for it speaks like nothing but a loon! Lock it away! Lock it away!"/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5;"And you're quite right, I should be locked away. By all means, you are free to put me down and be on your merry way. But if you have a minute to spare, then just maybe, you can help find what I've lost and free me from this nightmare./p
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p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5;" /p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5;"I'm not quite sure where the beginning was, but it most definitely had a field. It wasn't a rocky desert ground, or a neatly trimmed grass pitch. No, it was a perfect meadow with butterflies, dandelions and a soft fragrant breeze. The sun was bright and warm, to a id="FALINK_6_0_5" class="FAtxtL" style="outline: 0px; font-style: inherit; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 0px; cursor: pointer; color: #1c7dff !important; text-decoration: underline !important; border-top-width: 0px !important; border-right-width: 0px !important; border-left-width: 0px !important; border-bottom-color: #1c7dff !important; display: inline !important; background-color: transparent !important; padding: 0px 0px 1px !important 0px;" href=" /works/2619062#"cast/a a mid-summer's haze, quite the a id="FALINK_2_0_1" class="FAtxtL" style="outline: 0px; font-style: inherit; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 0px; cursor: pointer; color: #1c7dff !important; text-decoration: underline !important; border-top-width: 0px !important; border-right-width: 0px !important; border-left-width: 0px !important; border-bottom-color: #1c7dff !important; display: inline !important; background-color: transparent !important; padding: 0px 0px 1px !important 0px;" href=" /works/2619062#"pictures/a setting for an afternoon of games. I remember a companion. She was as delightful as a bounding bunny. We ran through this meadow, chasing after various flitting creatures. Her laugh would warm even sulkiest stone. Her smile would shine brighter than the sun itself. Her hair dazzled a brilliant gold. I remembered wanting to touch her hair, but when I reached for it, I realize my skin was the same shade. I was ecstatic by this surprise for some reason./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5;"My companion looked at me puzzled and said, "Of course you're gold, silly. What other color would my favorite playmate be?" span style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"So the pair of us continued to a id="FALINK_1_0_0" class="FAtxtL" style="outline: 0px; font-style: inherit; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 0px; cursor: pointer; color: #1c7dff !important; text-decoration: underline !important; border-top-width: 0px !important; border-right-width: 0px !important; border-left-width: 0px !important; border-bottom-color: #1c7dff !important; display: inline !important; background-color: transparent !important; padding: 0px 0px 1px !important 0px;" href=" /works/2619062#"play/a, pleased with the fact that she loved me and I loved my princess./span/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5;"We scampered to the linden tree far out in the middle of the field./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5;""Hello, a id="FALINK_5_0_4" class="FAtxtL" style="outline: 0px; font-style: inherit; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 0px; cursor: pointer; color: #1c7dff !important; text-decoration: underline !important; border-top-width: 0px !important; border-right-width: 0px !important; border-left-width: 0px !important; border-bottom-color: #1c7dff !important; display: inline !important; background-color: transparent !important; padding: 0px 0px 1px !important 0px;" href=" /works/2619062#"father/a!" Princess called out./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5;""My child! Come give your old man a kiss," rustled the leaves on the tree. She gave the trunk a peck, and even I wrapped my arms around to give a quick hug./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5;""What have you been up to, sweet daughter?"/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5;""We've been exploring the hills today. I found a rabbit hole, and I tried to go down but it just yelled 'it's Alice's hole! Go away!' Then I found a red cape that grew hair and chased a boy who was not afraid. My favorite was watching the blue egg. Oh father, it was the loveliest of all. A beating heart hatched out of it and went thump, thump, thump."/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5;"My princess chattered on and on. The tree shook its leave in amusement. I could have listened all day. When she finished her tales of adventures, she plopped down at the base of the tree and sighed. "And now, I've run out of games to play."/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5;"How could I let my princess be disappointed? I wiggled this way and that, until I had a small bounce under my feet. I jumped higher and higher. At first, she didn't understand. "What in the world are you up to!?" she cried./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5;"But the higher I jumped, a twinkle grew in her eyes. She clapped her hands, jumped up and caught me. She tossed me higher than I could go myself, and I almost reached the middle branch. She shrieked with delight as I soared down again. She threw me up, with all her might this time. Boy, was I flying. I soared past the top leaf of the linden tree. For a moment everything stopped. I could see the horizon meeting the brim of the perfect blue sky. I could feel the sleepy white clouds. I could smell the purest air and the taste of freedom. It was bliss beyond compare. But the shade of the canopy and a brisk wind washed over me again as I fell. I turned over onto my stomach to see the smiling expression on her face. But the sight before me brought quite a scare./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5;"A maze of linden branches coiled around her completely. It bound her ankles, waist, arms and neck. It pierced her skin so very deep. Instead of ruby ichor, she bled thick slime of green. She tried to scream for me, but it was drowned out. The mast of the tree groaned as it bent this way and that, for a violent storm had rolled in. Though I tried hard to rush to her side, I was swept away in the gust. span style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-weight: inherit; font-style: oblique; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"Splish, splash, splish, splash,/span went the horrid rain. I could barely see beyond the farthest limbs of the tree. Suddenly a croaking voice echoed in the torrent,/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5;"span style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-weight: inherit; font-style: oblique; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;""Have you forgotten/span/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5;"span style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-weight: inherit; font-style: oblique; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"what you have promised/span/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5;"span style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-weight: inherit; font-style: oblique; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"down by the well's cool water?/span/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5;"span style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-weight: inherit; font-style: oblique; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"Open up and let me in!"/span/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5;"The roots ripped wide open and a stinking odor reached me. Chips of thin gold swam in the wind. A dark rotting well was sucking me in. I fell deep in this well and all hope was gone for I never saw my princess again. The water was cold and heavy, and I would have surely drowned if I were capable of breathing. No, it would have been a better fate than the horror I was now to live in./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5;"I was not alone in my decent, though company was not as I expected. Strange debris floated by. Just to name a few, there was a torn silk sheet, clumps of white horses mane and, curious of all, a broken wand made from a Baobab tree. What good were any of these when I could do nothing but sink? Deeper and deeper I went, in the seemingly endless pit. But I hit the bottom and slumped in a bed of molting mud. I nearly jumped out of my skin when a nasty frog crawled right up next to me and whispered, "Lift me up beside you."/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5;"I screamed and tried to roll away. But the mud thickened to keep me in place. It hopped around me to get a better view. "My, my, this old water-splasher has got a lucky streak. Just the other day a witch came by, said she would smite me in this wretched hell. To change my ways would do me well. But what does that old wart know. Why work hard, swimming up all the way, when my cure just fell, span style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-weight: inherit; font-style: oblique; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"plop, /spanright into my lap, oh my sweet prey?"/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5;"If only I had listened to my mother and not strayed, I would have never fallen in such despair. I should have locked myself away and played with pillows and curtains for the rest of my days. The nasty frog hopped all around, busying himself with who knows what. He pulled out a plate and goblet, and set it out. He poured out wine and lit ear wax candle for light. He babbled on and on about what fun he would certainly have, quite oblivious to the stains on my cheeks, I might add./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5;""Now, let's play a little game I like to play. You must be familiar for I have seen you do this with your companion of fair." He brought a morsel of awful grub to my lips. He grabbed my cheeks and said, "Open wide!"Before I could do anything, he thrust it down my throat. With each bite, it got harder to swallow. Just to make a sport out of me he poured wine all over my face. Unlike smooth liquid it should be, it burned of milky white acid instead. I felt broken and scared, worse than any nightmare. My princess was taken from me and no father to sweep me away. I was nothing by a playing ball that rolled whichever way it was thrown. No arms or legs. No voice or head. I was stuck in the mud with a monster that didn't care. I looked up to see the surface, hoping to see a glimpse of blue, maybe a bubble of that crisp air. Instead I saw a series of stairs. If only I had a way to climb, to free myself of this horrid crime./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5;""I'm tired and want to sleep as much as you do. Lift me up, or I'll tell you father!" the frog cried. He hopped over to my side and buried his head against me. Maybe it was the wine, but a rage flared up inside me. Whose father would come and punish me? The one who tore out all the hair on my princess? No there was no one to save or punish but me. I could live forever in this nightmare, or wake up and climb the stairs. The shredded silk sheet fluttered by and settled atop the frog and me. Within a minute the water reverberated with a steady croaking from its vocal sac. This was my one and only chance./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5;"The more I fidgeted the more the mud pulled me in. Worm and parasites dug holes to make me sink. Looking around, there was nothing but decaying organic filth, pieces of fish flesh, twig shards and rotten seeds and leaves of a linden tree. If only I had rope, to tie to that first rung of that grand stairs, it would be a start. Before I could lose the last of my hopeful light, the strands of the white horses' main drifted down. What was even more surprising was the fact that I had grown hands. Not mighty like a king's fist or nimble like an old woman's finger tips, but simple human hands. Saving my delight for later, I made quick work of the strands and secured a loop around the rung and myself. Slowly as to not disturb the frog, I pulled my way out. It seemed impossible at first, the mud was as thick as rock. But it soon gave way and I slid closer to the wall. The frog snorted once or twice but bundled in the silk, it didn't figure my absence. Triumphant, I started to finally climb. Funny thing was I felt better than when I flew to the sky. But I was nowhere as high, and rung after rung I scaled the wall. Instead of floating debris wafting higher past me, span style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-weight: inherit; font-style: oblique; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"I was passing it/span. Traces of mud washed off my golden skin. I made it three fourths of the way out before disaster struck./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5;""YOU UNGRATEFUL PEST! WAIT AND SEE HOW I TAKE YOU WITH ME! YOU CAN'T RUN FROM ME!" shrieked the frog./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5;"Around and around, the water churned in anger. The vortex almost ripped me off the ladder. But this was my only chance, and I wasn't about to give it up. I spurred up the little courage I had and continued to climb. span style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-weight: inherit; font-style: oblique; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"Splish, splash, splish, splash, /spanI could hear its webbed feet swimming. It's croaking got louder and loud, until it was deafening. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw a pink tongue whip towards me. Without another thought and reached out for it, and squeezed tight. As much as it could scream with its tongue hanging out, it wailed and thrashed, fighting my grip. I swung it right and left, till it went limp. When I let go, I thought it was dead. But how can I be so easily freed. It opened its eyes and watched me climb. The marks of its poisonous tongue began to burn on my hand. Even if I had climbed out this well, I would not live. This monster would take me down, even as it sank to the ground./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5;"Whipped around by the vicious vortex, the wand of Baobab tree zoomed towards me. How helpful would a broken wand be? But for some reason I reached out for it anyways. When I did, the frog suddenly seized as if cursed with a terrible disease. It trembled and shuddered, while it began to bloat. Golden blood oozed from its eyes, nose, and pores. The burn on my hands started to shine a brilliant gold. The water boiled and seethed. Something was happening, for good or worse, I never knew./p
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p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5;" /p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5;"As you can see, I truly am a loon who should not be free. I've tried with all my might, to pass it off as a dream, but visions of green and gold leak through my every waking moment. In fact, the last thing I can remember is waking up that morning, and seeing my reflection in the mirror. At first I thought I had a study build and chin, green eyes, golden hair, with a mighty stance like a prince. But I rubbed my eyes and saw the three cracks in my mirror that has always been. Some days I'm not sure if I've even woken from this fairy tale. Never the less, if you have any insight, please address you're response to the publishing house of Brother's Grimm./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5;" align="right"Yours truly,/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5;" align="right"span style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-weight: inherit; font-style: oblique; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"The Golden Companion/span/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5;" align="right"span style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-weight: inherit; font-style: oblique; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" /span/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5;" align="right"span style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-weight: inherit; font-style: oblique; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" /span/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5;" align="right"span style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-weight: inherit; font-style: oblique; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" /span/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5;" align="right"span style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-weight: inherit; font-style: oblique; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" /span/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5;" /p
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div class="afterword preface group" style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.5em 3em 2.5em; padding: 0.643em 0.643em 0px; float: none; color: #2a2a2a; line-height: 19.4443206787109px;"
div id="work_endnotes" class="end notes module" style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 0px; padding: 0px 0px 0.643em; position: relative; width: auto; float: none; clear: right; min-height: 5em;"
h3 class="heading" style="border-width: 0px 0px 1px; border-bottom-style: solid; outline: 0px; font-weight: 400; font-style: inherit; font-size: 1.286em; font-family: Georgia, serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 0.5375em 0px; padding: 0px; line-height: 1; background: transparent;"Notes:/h3
blockquote class="userstuff" style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 1em; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 0.643em; padding: 0px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; word-wrap: break-word;"
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 0px auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5;"Hope this story made enough sense to actually warrant some feedback. br /I'm on my hands on knees, begging you... there might be tears...br /but please! Please! PLEASE! rate, comment, critic... even if you think this is the stupidest thing you've ever been tortured with. Even that will be some help for me. br /I know that the physical appearance of the please may not effect you decision... maybe the cherry on top... but it would be much appreciated./p
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