Warning; venacular change and archaic language. i.e. this is written old-fashioned


Once upon a time, a woman lived with her daughter whom she loved dearly, her step daughter whom she despised, her husband and a dog that did not bark.

One winter day, the mother gives the step-daughter the thinnest clothes she could find; a torn summer dress, a single cloak and shoes with holes in, and a basket. She ordered her to go out into the meadows to collect roots to cook with. The step daughter cried, because she knew that is was too cold for roots to grow, and definitely too cold for her to be outside in such meagre clothing. But her stepmother does not listen, and the poor girl is forced to go. The dog follows her to the door, then sits by the window to wait for her return.

She walks through the meadows for many hours, the cold seeping through her clothes and shoes and chilling her to the bone. Many times she digs through the snow with her bare hands, only to find dry mud.

A pedlar came stumbling through the meadow. He was almost naked, aside from a pair of ragged trousers, and so thin he was almost a skeleton. He was old, so old all the hair on his head had run away to his chin, forming a beard that almost reached his knees. His feet were bare, his teeth chattered, and his hands shook.

Now at first, the girl is very frightened by this pedlar. however, she soon takes pity on him, taking off her shoes and cloak to give to the man. The pedlar protests, but the girl says to him;

"I am younger than thee, but the cold is merciless to the aged. I am to go home soon; I feel thee have greater need of these then I."

The pedlar is very grateful, and he walks around the meadow with her. Eventually he asks her;

"For what does thee dig through the snow?"

"I am searching for roots."

"There are no root, silly child! It is far to cold for anything but the holly and the wolves!"

"I know, but my stepmother insisted."

"Thy stepmother sounds like a cruel woman."

"I do not think so."

"Thee does not think so?"

"No, I do not. She is cold to me, but I do not believe people are truly cruel, only unkind if they believe they need to be."

"And why would thy stepmother believe that this," the pedlar gestured to the holes in the snow, "Is needed?"

"We need roots for food."

"Does thy stepmother not know that root will not grow in this cold?"

The girl cannot answer.

The pedlar smiles suddenly, "Follow me, child. I have something to show thee."

The girl is of course surprised, but follows him. They walk together, out of the meadows and into the woods.

Under a huge tree in the middle of a clearing, a wooden chest sits. The old man tells the girl to open it.

When she opens the chest, she finds it full of gold and jewels. She turns back to the pedlar in awe and confusion to find that he is gone. Where he had stood, a man in thick furs floats, mist rising from his body, giving him a very frightening appearance. But the girl is not afraid; this man is Father Frost, and he has given her no reason to fear him.

"This chest is thine to keep," Father Frost tells the girl, "Whenever thee open it, it shall have the very thing that thy needs. Cherish it, kind girl, for thine is of good heart and thy have earned this gift."

At the house, the mother stirs a hot stew, cackling to herself of her victory. The dog jumps down from the window, barks three times and says;

"The good girl is coming home! The good girl is coming home! The good girl is coming home!"

Of course, the mother, father, and daughter are alarmed by this, and very confused. An hour passes, and the step daughter arrives home, wrapped in a fur coat and hat, sturdy boots on her feet, and a wooden chest under her arm.

Her stepmother is not amused. "Where are the roots?" she demands.

The step daughter put the chest on the floor, and opens it. Inside were dozens upons of roots, from turnips to potatoes to leeks, large and clean and ready to eat.

Her father is delighted to see this, and the step daughter tells the story of the pedlar whom had lead her to this marvellous magical chest. However, she does not tell them that the pedlar was Father Frost, fearing that she would not be believed. The dog curls at her feet, asleep.

The step sister grows jealous, and the next day she begs her mother to let her go out into the meadows for roots. At first her mother refuses, believing such menial labour to be below her beloved daughter, but her daughter is restless. Finally, her mother gives her thick boots, and warm coat and hat, and a basket half-filled with food.

The daughter walks to the meadow, and leans against the fence, waiting for the pedlar. Minutes pass, and she grows impatient. She wanders further into the meadows, eating at one of the cakes her mother had given her.

After several hours, the pedlar comes stumbling through the meadow.

"May I kindly have thine hat, dear girl?" he asks.

"No," she answers, "If I give it to thee, then I shall be cold."

"Then perhaps, some of the food in thy basket, then?"

"No. If I give it to thee there shall be naught enough for me. And ugly pedlars such as thyself should not be prying at people's baskets; thy may be mistaken for a thief."

"Thine is a rude girl."

"No, me is not. Thine is a rude man for asking me to suffer for thy sake."

The pedlar begins to stumble away. At first, the daughter thinks good riddance of him, until she remembers her step sister's story and begins to follow him. The pedlar does not seem to notice, and leads her out of the meadows into the woods.

He stops by a tree, and gestures her forwards. Under a huge tree in the middle of a clearing, a large wooden box sits.

The daughter drops her basket and runs up to the box, opening it. It is empty.

She turns to the pedlar in anger to find that he is gone. Where he had stood, a man in thick furs floats, mist rising from his body, giving him a very frightening appearance.

At the house, the dog leaps up from the fireplace, barks three times and says;

"The bad girl shall be buried! The bad girl shall be buried! The bad girl shall be buried!"

Days pass, and the daughter does not return home. Anxious, the mother sends her husband and the dog to find her.

The man and dog wander through the meadows for several hours. As they pass through the meadows and near the woods, the dog barks three times and runs off into the trees, making the man run after it.

Under a huge tree in the middle of a clearing, a large wooden box sits. The dog runs up to it.

The man opens the box. Inside lays his step daughter, stripped of her furs, boots and hat, holding a series of shrivelled roots by the flowers.

As the man weeps, a pedlar hobbles into the clearing.

"My good fellow," the pedlar says, "May I offer my aid in delivering this child to her home?"

The man accepts the pedlar's aid. The pedlar is skinny, dressed in nothing but a pair of ragged trousers, a thin cloak, shoes with holes in them and a fur hat. Nonetheless, he heaves the box onto his shoulder and carries it, never complaining of the weight or of fatigue. The dog pads alongside the pedlar happily.

The mother weeps when the box is set down in her house. She turns on the pedlar, blaming him for her daughter's death.

"My good lady," the pedlar says, "I merely carried her."

"Poppycock!" the woman cries, "That is her hat thee wear upon thine head!"

"And it is thy step daughter's cloak I wear upon my back! And it is thy step daughter's boots I wear upon my feet! Care thee naught for that?"

The woman has no answer. The dog barks as the windows fly open, bringing in gusts of wind.

The wind dies, and the windows close. The pedlar is no where to be seen, and neither is Father Frost. The woman lies on the floor, dead.

The dog bars three times and says;

"The wicked woman is dead! The wicked woman is dead! The wicked woman is dead!"

And the girl and her father lived happily ever after, free of the cruel mother and selfish daughter. Their dog never barked, and neither the peldar nor Father Frost are seen again.

The end.


Pedlar; homeless person
Thee; you
Thy; your (when followed by a consonant), or you passive
Thine; your (when followed by a vowel)
Me is; I am. Yep, they said this in Old English
Naught; not
Pollycock; bullshit

Please note that I am not an expert in Old English, there are very likely to be many mistakes.

Talking animals, magic chests, shapeshifting men, 'be nice or die' morals and an aprupt ending. I've got this fairytale shit down

Based mostly on Russian fairy story Morozko meaning Jack Frost, Father Frost or King Frost. 'Kind and Unkind Girl' fairytales like this were quite prevailant in Europe, to teach a moral of 'be nice and good things will come your way, be a dick and you will die alone and miserable'.

I own nothing
-Laurel Silver