It
had not always been so, however. They had been wealthy and she had gone to the
best schools with the best families. The girl’s mother had died 5 years ago and
their fortunes began to plummet. The stock market crashed and many people lost
fortunes. Small businesses such as theirs could no longer price their wares competitively
with the supermarket chains. Their mini-empire of 8 independent shops closed
one by one, until they had one lonely store left. Her father was forced to sell
their big house and fancy cars and move into the apartment they used to rent
out for a fair price to those less blessed then they had been. Beth (for that
was her name) could no longer afford to go to her fine school and graduated
from the local public high school with 238 other kids that no one took any
particular notice of. College was no longer an option for her, since, although
she was clever, she did not do well in school. She began to work with her
father in the bakery every day and they managed to get by admirably.
Now,
Beth had never done well in school, but she loved to read. Perhaps that was her
downfall, as she was often lost in a dream world and did not take much notice
of the world around her. She didn’t have many friends, so spent her spare time
writing fantasy stories and knitting beautiful treasures that she gave away to
local churches and shelters to use or raffle off for fundraising.
One
day, while traveling through town, their state’s Governor stopped by for some
fresh bread on his way back to his hotel. Upon entering, he realized that Beth’s
dad was his old neighbor.
“How’ve
you been doing? You moved out so suddenly, no one knew where you went to,”
“Well,
unfortunately, we’ve fallen on some difficult times, but Beth and I manage to
make the best of it.”
“Oh,
yeah, Beth! I forgot about her, she used to go out with my son, didn’t she? He’s
at NYU now, and is looking at Master’s programs in California. Where does Beth
go to school?”
“Actually,
she’s stayed home to help me out, we run the bakery together.”
“Really?
That’s too bad, she was always a cute girl.”
“She
helps me quite a bit, I’m lucky to have her. She keeps busy writing her stories
and knitting. She’s very sweet and has golden talents.”
“I’d
better get back, we’re on the campaign trail and I’m on a schedule. They’re
talking about nominations for President, so I’m busy, busy, all the time. Great
to see you again!”
The
Governor left and Beth and her father went about their business, forgetting all
about his visit until several months later when they received a phone call from
his aide.
“Governor
Jones asked me to call and request that Beth come to the capital, he would like
to see her golden knitting. Please come with all the materials needed to produce
some samples for the Governor and his family.”
Beth
began stammering into the phone, “but, um, ma’am…”
The
aide took no notice, “Be there next week, the Governor will be back from
Washington and he will have some free time to visit with you.”
She
hung up and Beth stood there stunned. She told her father what the aide had
said and both of them stared at each other for a long time, not sure what to
make of the call. Finally, Beth found her voice.
“Dad,
I can’t knit gold. Who’s ever even heard of something like that?”
“I’m
not sure dear. Unfortunately, Governor Jones was never the sharpest knife in
the drawer, we’ll just have to go visit with him and explain there’s been a
misunderstanding.”
A few
days later, Beth packed a few things and loaded their only car for the drive to
the capital. Her father had to stay behind to run the bakery, because they
couldn’t afford to close it while they were out of town. She hugged him goodbye
and promised to call when she got there.
She
drove the several hours to the state capital and pulled up in front of the
Governor’s mansion. A maid answered the door, and after a brief security check,
Beth was led into a spare room with a bed, dresser, comfy chair, and yards and
yards of yarn. The maid couldn’t answer any of Beth’s questions, but promised
to send someone in who could. A few minutes later, Governor Jones’ aide came
in.
“Excuse
me, but what is all this yarn doing in here?” Beth asked her.
“The
Governor will return from Washington tomorrow morning and would like a golden
blanket made out of it for him to take on the campaign trail. He’s announcing
his bid to run for President and thinks it might give him a conversation piece
when speaking with reporters.”
“But,
I can’t knit yarn into gold, that’s impossible,” Beth protested.
“Well,
then the Governor will have to sue you and your father for misrepresentation
and seize your assets.”
“We
never misrepresented anything, the Governor misunderstood something my father
said, is all. If I could just speak with him-“
The
aide cut her off, “I suggest you figure out how to start doing what the
Governor wants or prepare for the consequences. He’s a very powerful man and
does not take well to being deceived.”
With
that, she strode from the room and Beth was left alone. She sat on the bed,
wishing she had a cell phone so she could call her father. With no way out, she
began to cry.
Soon,
she heard a noise in her room. She knew the door hadn’t been opened, so she
looked up, startled. There, in the center of the room stood a small,
well-dressed man. There was something odd about him, but Beth couldn’t quite
place it.
She looked at him and
then asked, “Where did you come from?”
“Why
are you crying?”
“Because
the Governor got some sort of insane idea that when I knit, the yarn becomes
gold and it’s the most absurd thing I’ve ever heard of! And, now he wants me to
make him a gold blanket to take on the campaign trail with him or he’ll sue my
father and I for everything we own.”
“I
could do it for you, for a price.”
“What
do you mean? You know how to turn yarn to gold?”
“I
do, and would be willing to help you out.”
“I
don’t have much, what do you want?”
“Your
car.”
“Done!”
Beth cried. “What do we need to get started?”
“Knit
the blanket today and I will be back at midnight to turn it to gold.”
Beth
worked all day and into the night, but finally finished a beautiful blanket.
The small man returned at midnight as promised and bid her sleep. Once asleep,
she didn’t awaken until the next morning when the aide knocked. The first thing
she saw when she opened her eyes was her blanket, shining and beautiful, with
different shades and types of gold replacing the pattern of yarn she had woven
into it. She lifted it, and it was light and soft, just as yarn would be, but there
was no sign of the little man anywhere. She handed the blanket to the aide and
was soon visited by the Governor.
“Perfect,
this is exactly what I wanted! Now, I need a sweater for my wife to match. She’ll
be making appearances on my behalf and will need to look fabulous.”
“Sir-“
Beth protested, “I think you misunderstand-“
“Nonsense!
I’ll have more yarn delivered immediately!” With that, he stormed from the
room.
Beth
waited, and soon the aide came back with twice as much yarn and a hot meal as
well. She refused to speak or answer any questions, so Beth sat down and
ate. She began to lay out the yarn
again, crying, when she heard a voice.
It
was the little man. “Why are you crying?”
“You
did such a wonderful job that now the Governor wants a sweater for his wife. I
don’t know what to do.”
“Begin
to knit it, and I will be back at midnight to work my magic if you will pay my
price.”
“What
is your price?
“That
diamond on your finger.”
“That
belonged to my mother.” She thought for a minute, and then agreed. She began
working and soon it was midnight. The strange man returned and again bid her go
to sleep. She woke up in the morning just as the day before. The sweater was
beautiful and had intricate gold work throughout, so she handed it to the aide
and prepared to be sent home.
Instead,
the Governor came in, with a new demand. “I need one for my dog, to match my
wife. If you get it finished, I’ll let you marry my son, James. He’s considered
quite the catch around campus.”
Beth
sighed, and waited for the next batch of yarn to come up. When it was finally
delivered, she called softly, “Little man, are you there?”
He
appeared a short time later, “Now what would you like?”
“I
have to make one for the dog, too. Can you help me again?”
“I
will help you one last time, but my price is steep. If you can pay, I will
help.”
Beth
was nervous, but answered, “What is your price?”
“I
want your first born child.”
“I
couldn’t!” She was horrified. “I’ll just have to tell the Governor that I can’t
do it anymore.”
“And
then what, young lady? Admit you lied and deceived him the last two times?”
Beth
burst into tears, “You’re right, I have no choice. OK, I agree. I’ll see you at
midnight.”
All
happened as before, and the next morning Beth was introduced to James. They
remembered their lost love, and when he graduated from NYU that spring, he
proposed to her.
Several
years passed, the Governor did become President, and James and Beth got
married. Soon she was pregnant, and had a little boy. Three days after she came
home from the hospital, while she was alone in the nursery with her baby, the
little man appeared.
“We
had a deal, young lady, and I would like your son.”
“No,
please,” Beth began to sob. “I couldn’t. He’s my baby!”
“You
made a deal with me, I held up my end of the bargain, now it is time for you to
pay up!”
“But,
he’s my son. How could you take him from me?”
The
man looked her squarely in the eye. “How could you make such a deal? You never attempted to negotiate or see if we
could change the terms. You can not blame me for your inability to understand
the consequences of your actions. You made an agreement, now honor it, or I
will tell the President how you deceived him and shortchanged me.”
“But,
what will I tell my husband?”
“That
is not my concern. Hand over the child, he will be well-cared for and will want
for nothing, I assure you.”
“How
can I know? What do you plan to do with him?”
“My
wife and I are both endowed with magical gifts, as you have witnessed, but are
unable to have children. All she wants in this world is to share her love with
a child, and I intend to make her happy. Your son will fill a need she has had
for years, and now I am finally able to give her the one thing I have been
unable to. Honor your bargain, Beth, and give me the boy, you will have more
children and this is my last hope.”
Beth
sobbed and kissed her baby one last time, then handed him over.
“You
will love and care for him?”
“As
if he were my own flesh and blood. I will send you pictures and updates from
time to time, but never interfere or tell him who you are. I can ruin your life
and that of your family in the blink of an eye, but I am not heartless. I am
Christopher Rumpelstiltskin, remember my name and consider your debt paid.”
And,
with that, he and the child were gone.
