The Dream Castle

I.

Far away in the hills of Magicland lay the village of Wondertown. And everything always went well in Wondertown. The Farmer grew and harvested his crops. The Blacksmith made tools and horseshoes out of iron that he smelted in his furnace, and then beat with a hammer on an anvil. The Grocer sold cabbages from his greengrocer shop, and The Townsfolk went happily about their daily lives. And in the middle of Wondertown, on a large black rock, sat The Dreamer. He just sat and daydreamed all day, and as he dreamed he built a beautiful Dreamcastle in the sky above the village. No one could see The Dreamcastle that he built, except for The Fairies that lived in it. The Fairies were also unseen by humans, and lived peacefully in The Dreamcastle which The Dreamer built for them. Everything went well and everyone was happy as the years flowed on in Wondertown

II.

But one day things went wrong in Wondertown. The Farmer came into the village complaining. He said, "I work all day under the hot sun tending my crops, and all The Dreamer does is lie around all day and do nothing but daydream. It's not fair! Then The Blacksmith said, "I toil and sweat all day in front of a blazing furnace, while all The Dreamer does is sit around and dream, something must be done about this. The Grocer added, "And I have to sell cabbages for a living. I have to sell one thousand cabbages a month, just to pay the rent. That is a lot of cabbages. This Dreamer does nothing but loaf around all day, he must work like the rest of us! And The Townsfolk shouted, "He must work, or he must leave! So The Mayor went and told The Dreamer, "The Townsfolk say, you must find a job like all of them, or you must leave Wondertown. I'm sorry Dreamer. So The Dreamer went all over Wondertown looking for a job, but no one would employ him. "You're only a Dreamer, you can't work, they would say, and close the door in his face. As the sun set over Wondertown it threw its red glow over the farther mountains. The Dreamer left the village as night fell, by the lonely road that led down to the forest.

III.

There were four Fairies that lived in The Dreamcastle. They were; Gertrude the Golden Fairy, that tended to The Farmers crops, and saw that they grew well and did not fail. Rocksy the Red Fairy tended to The Blacksmith's furnace, and saw that it was always burning, and that the fire never died. Gabriella the Green Fairy tended to The Grocer's cabbages, and saw to it that they did not go off. And finally there was Sally the Silver Fairy who looked after the weather in Wondertown. She saw to it that it was never too hot, or too cold, and that the Townsfolk were always happy. They had seen The Dreamer being driven off by The Townsfolk, and when they got home that night, their beautiful Dreamcastle had disappeared. The four Fairies; Gertrude, Rocksy, Gabriella and Sally went off to find The Dreamer, because they knew that where he was, they would find their Dreamcastle.

IV.

When The Townsfolk awoke in the morning, they found the village was colder than it had ever been, even though it was the middle of spring. There was no Fairy to tend to the weather, but the people did not know this. The Farmer went down to his fields, and found that his crop had failed. There was no Fairy to tend to his crops. The Blacksmith could not get the fire in his furnace burn, no matter how hard he tried. There was no Fire Fairy. The Grocer's cabbages all went off that day, because there was no Fairy to see to it that they kept fresh. Because of all these disasters, and the bad weather, The Townsfolk were truly miserable. The Mayor was at a loss for what to do, when a little red haired girl came and spoke to him. "The Townsfolk drove The Dreamer away, she said, "and that is the cause of all the trouble. When he left, the Fairies that tend to the weather, crops and fire left with him. If you bring him back, they will come with him, and things will return to normal. The Mayor could sense that the little girl was telling the truth, and afterall, this was Wondertown, and stranger things were known to happen. He decided to follow her advice, and went to look for The Dreamer down in the forest. When he found him, he fancied he could sense the presence of Fairies, and so he asked him, "Dreamer, perhaps we were a little harsh, would you like to return to the village? "O.k. said The Dreamer. And the two men walked back to Wondertown. And the four Fairies went where The Dreamer went, for where he went; there went their home.

V.

And as soon as The Dreamer returned to Wondertown, things started going well again, so much so, that The Townsfolk did not even mind having him around. The Farmer grew a new crop that did not fail. The Blacksmith's fire burned fiercely once again. And The Grocer received a new load of cabbages, which did not perish. The weather was fine, and all the people were happy. And The Dreamer dreamt and dreamt, and as he dreamt, he built for the Fairies the most beautiful Dreamcastle in the sky that they had ever seen. And they were all happy forever.