The Man and the Hopping Pot

There was once and kindly old man by the name of Antonio, who had a pot that according to the village, was believed to be made of magic. He never did let the village know what made his pot magic, but every time some misfortune happened Antonio would simply stir his pot and whatever concoction came out it would heal the troubles.

From miles and miles around, people would come to him with their troubles, and Antonio would always be more than happy to make his concoctions and make everything better.

Yet all good men must die. At the right old age, Antonio passed on; leaving everything he had to his son, Lovino. Lovino wasn't anything like his father, and he didn't see the point in helping others if it didn't help him.

When Antonio had died, Lovino found a small slipper inside of the pot. It was much too small for him, and was very soft and thick. On top of that, there was only one. Inside the slipper was a note in Antonio's writing saying, "In the fond hope, Lovi, that you never need it."

Lovino scoffed, and threw the slipped back in the pot, cursing his father's soft heart. Lovino threw the pot into the cupboard, thinking that it was rubbish and not even worth his time.

Just a few hours later a peasant woman knocked on his front door.

"My daughter is sick," she told him. "Your father used to make her a special mixture with his pot-"

"Like I give a damn!" He yelled at her. "Why should I care if your daughters dead?"

Then he slammed the door on her face and went to pick tomatoes.

Almost immediately though after he shut the door, there was a large clanging. Lovino went into the other room to see the pot that he had abandoned earlier, hopping around the room. It had sprouted a single foot, and was making the worst noise on his floor. It seemed sick as well, the way that it was coughing like a person and sniffling. Lovino did everything he could to make it quiet, but nothing seemed to work.

"Shut the fuck up! Stupid pot," Lovino complained to himself. He went upstairs, hoping that the pot would stay downstairs, but it followed him without trouble. Each step it took made the biggest 'clang' that Romano had ever heard in his life. Romano decided to go throughout his day like normal, when there was another knock at the door.

"Please m donkey has gone missing. Without him, I can't make any money, my family will go hungry!" The old man pleaded.

"And I'm hungry now bastard!" Romano roared, slamming the door shut.

Now the pot hopped into the room on its single foot, but now its foot was more like a donkey's hoof, and it had the ears and tail of a donkey! It was making the human groans and donkey squeals as well.

"Shut up!"

Still the pot did not quiet, and it followed Romano around wherever he went, making as much noise as it could. Right when the sun began to set in the horizon, there was another knock at the door.

"My baby! My baby is sick," she cried. "Won't you please help-"

Romano shut the door on her before she could even finish. The pot banged into the room, now wailing the cry of a child.

No one else came to bother Romano for the rest of the week, but the pot seemed to get more and more annoying with as the villages troubles grew. It grew worse and worse, and wouldn't let Romano get a moments rest. Soon his lack of sleep made it so that Romano couldn't eat, and not even his delicious tomatoes tasted the same. No matter what, the pot would not sit still or be quiet.

Finally Romano could not take it anymore. He went and stirred a concoction in the pot, just the way that Antonio had taught him. Then, with as much as he could carry, Romano ran out of his house with the hopping pot still following him.

"Bring me your troubles! I'll solve them all! Everything!" Romano yelled in town, making everyone come out of their homes. "I'll cure sickness, mend things, even comfort! I have my father's pot and everything shall be well!"

And with the pot still at his heels, Romano went and cured everything that he could.

The poor girl that the woman had come to him earlier was healed with just one taste of the potion. He told the man with the missing donkey to place some on his porch and he would find the donkey the next morning on his porch. Sure enough the next morning the donkey was there. Then Romano went and gave some to the sick infant, and the baby was healed in the hour.

By the end of the night the pot was shiny and clean, and most importantly, quiet.

"Well pot? Are you happy now?" Romano asked, he was bitter towards the pot, but he couldn't deny the fact that it felt good helping all those people.

In response the pot burped out the single slipper that had been inside it before, and allowed Romano to place it on its foot. Together they went back home, with the pots footsteps muffled at last. From that day forward, Romano helped the villagers out and asked for nothing in return, just like his father before him, lest the pot cast off its slipper and begin to hop once more.