By dawn, she still hadn't figured out how to work the magic, and none of the straw had turned into gold. King Cedric scowled at the pile as though it were a personal insult. "Miller's Daughter, you haven't even tried. Was the spinning wheel not fine enough for you?"
She only had to delay the king for a few days. "Sire, I did try to tell you. I can't spin straw into gold. I'm sorry my father lied to you."
"I've been lenient with you, Miller's Daughter. Spin this straw into gold by morning or you will be executed." The king stormed out of the room and slammed the door behind him.
Spinning gold for the rest of her life was certainly preferable to losing it entirely, right? She gagged at the thought of marrying the king, but even that was preferable to dying.
She glared at the pile of straw. The fey said that she had magic; she just had to figure out how to work it.
If she could figure it out, it would only take a few hours at most, but should she? Or should she rely on the help of a mysterious fey who didn't have the decency to outline the terms of their deal?
She grabbed a fistful of straw and tried to spin it to gold. The straw splintered and broke, but nothing magical happened.
Cursing both the king and her father, she closed her eyes and clenched her fist around the straw she was holding, wishing she was anywhere but here.
Her arm and her hand grew warm, which then increased to an itch, and she felt her hand become heavier. She opened her eyes in horror, seeing that the straw and her hand had transformed to solid gold.