Fiction from The Literary Review

Dearest Roland

THE BROTHERS GRIMM

Once upon a time there was a woman, a real witch, who had two daughters, one ugly and wicked, whom she loved because it was her real daughter, and one beautiful and good, whom she hated because it was her step daughter. Came a time when the step daughter had a pretty apron and the other really liked it and became envious. She told her mother she had to have that apron.
     “You be quiet, my child,” said the old woman, “and you shall have it. Your stepsister has long deserved to die. Tonight, while she is sleeping in bed, I will come and knock off he head. Just you make sure that you get to lie on the side by the wall and push her all the way to the front.” That would have been the end of the poor girl if she hadn't happened to be standing in the corner and heard everything. All that day they would not let her out the door and when the time came time to go to bed the ugly sister got in the bed fist so she could lie down on the side by the wall. But as soon as she was asleep, the girl gently pushed her all the way to the front and took her place by the wall. In the night the old woman came creeping and in her right hand she held the axe and with her left she felt to make sure there was someone lying there. Then she took hold of the axe with both hands and chopped and chopped off her own child's head.
     When she had gone away, the girl got up and ran to her dearest Roland and knocked on his door. When he came out she said to him, “Listen, dearest Roland, we must hurry up and flee. Stepmother meant to chop off my head but got her own daughter instead . When day breaks and she sees what she has done we are lost.” “I advise you,” said Roland “to first take away her magic wand or we won't be able to save ourselves when she starts to come after and pursue us.” The girl went and got the magic wand and then she took the death head and dripped three drops of blood onto the earth, one in front of the bed, one in the kitchen and one on the stair. Then she hurried away with her dearest Roland.
     Now when morning came, the witch rose and called her daughter and wanted to give her the apron, but the daughter didn't come. “Where are you?” called the witch. “Why, right here, sweeping the stair,” answered the first drop of blood. The old woman went out, saw nobody on the stair and called again, “Where are you?” “Why, right here warming myself in the kitchen!” cried the second drop of blood. So she went out into the kitchen but again saw nobody. And she called once again, “Were are you she herself had chopped off.
      The witch got furious, leaped to the window and because she could look a long way into the world, she saw her step daughter hurrying away with her dearest Roland. “That's not going to do you any good,” she cried, “however far you have already gotten, you're not getting away from me!” She put on her seven mile boots in which she could walk one hour with every step and it wasn't long before she had caught up with them. The girl saw the witch striding toward her, and took the magic wand and changed her dearest Roland into a pond and herself into a duck swimming about in the middle. The witch stood on the shore, threw pieces of bread into the water and did everything she could to tempt the duck to come to her, but the duck would not be tempted and the old woman had to go away with nothing gained. Upon this the girl and her dearest Roland took on their natural form and walked on all night until the break of day. Then the girl changed herself into a beautiful flower that grew in the middle of a hedge of thorns, and changed her dearest Roland into a fiddler. Not long after, the witch came striding up and said, “My dear fiddler, am I allowed to pluck the beautiful flower?” “Oh, yes,” he answered “and I will accompany you on my fiddle.” Now the witch in her great haste crept into the middle of the hedge to pluck the flower, knowing very well who that flower was, and the fiddler started playing and the witch had to dance whether she wanted or not for it was a magic dance. The faster he played the farther she was forced to leap and the thorns tore the clothes off her body and pricked her till she was bloody and sore and as he did not stop playing she had to keep on dancing till she fell dead on the ground.
      Now they were free of the witch and Roland said, “I will go to my father and arrange the wedding.” “Well then I will stay here for the time being and wait for you. So that nobody will know who I am I will change myself into a red fieldstone.” Roland went away and the girl stood there as a red stone in the field and waited for her dearest Roland. But it happened when Roland got home, that he fell into the trap laid by another and she got him to forget the poor girl who stood there a long time but in the end, when he did not and did not come back, she was sad and changed herself into a flower and thought: Someone is sure to come walking along and will step me into the ground.
      But it so happened that a shepherd was keeping his flock on the field and saw the flower and because it was so beautiful, he plucked it, took it home and put it in his cupboard. From that moment on strange things went on in that shepherd's house. When he rose in the morning all the work had been done—the room swept, table and benches cleared, fire in the stove, and the water carried in; midday he came home and the table was set, and a good meal all prepared. He couldn't understand what was going on for he never saw any other person nor could anybody have remained hidden in the little house. It was certainly nice to be so well taken care of but finally it scared him so he went to see a wise woman to ask her for advice. The wise woman said, “There's magic behind this; tomorrow very early in the morning watch and see if anything in the room stirs and if you see anything, let it be what it may, quickly throw a white cloth over it and the magic will cease. The shepherd did as she had said and the next morning, just as day was breaking, he saw how the cupboard opened and the flower came out. He ran quickly and threw a white cloth over it and so the magic was broken. In front of him stood a beautiful girl who confessed that she had been the flower who had taken care of his household. She told him her story and because he liked her, he asked her if she would marry him, but she answered, “No,” for she wished to be true to her dearest Roland even though he had abandoned her. However she promised that should would not leave the shepherd but stay and keep taking care of his household.
      Now the time of Roland's wedding approached. According to custom, it was made known throughout the land that all the young girls should come and celebrate the bridal pair with song. The faithful girl heard about it and was so sad she thought the heart in her body would break apar. She did not want to go, but the other girls came to take her along with them. When her turn came to sing, she stepped back until she was the only one left and now she had not choice. She began to sing and when her song came to Roland's ears he jumped up and cried, “I know that voice. This is the true bride and I will have no other.” Everything he had forgotten and that had disappeared out of his mind, came suddenly home into his heart, and the faithful girl was married to her dearest Roland, and her sadness was over and her joy began.