The Traveller And His Companions

 

Once, through a wintry wood, there came a traveller in the cowelled habit of a monk with a walking staff in his hand.
He looked like a pilgrim on some sacred journey to a holy place.
And as he was walking through the wood a rabbit who had popped its head out of its burrow asked,
"Where are you going, old peregrine?".
"I am going to see the witch of the winter", said the man, "To demand that she let in the spring".
"Can I come with you?", asked the rabbit, "For I would like to have some words with her myself. Its been so cold this winter that I've had to eat frozen carrots".
"Company upon a long journey is always a blessed thing", said the traveller, "I would welcome your company, Sir Rabbit".
So the Rabbit joined the traveller upon his journey to see the winter witch and they walked through the wintry forest and out the other side and, on the other side, they came to a frozen lake where, upon the shore of the lake, they met a mother duck and her four ducklings.
"Hello there", said the Mother duck to the traveller, "And where are you travelling to this chilly winter morning".
"Hello to you, Mother Duck", the traveller replied, "I am just off to see the winter witch to demand from her that she let in the spring".
"Can I come with you?", asked the Mother Duck, "For I would like to give that old witch a piece of my mind. Its been so cold this winter that I can barely keep my little ducks warm. Even their feathers are turning blue with the cold".
"As I told Sir Rabbit", said the Traveller, "Company upon a long journey is always a blessed thing and I would welcome your company, Mother Duck".
So the Mother Duck and her four ducklings joined the Rabbit and the hooded traveller and they all walked over the frozen lake to the other side.
And on the otherside they came to a snowy hill and, climbing up the snowy hill, they passed by an old goat.
"Where are you all off too?", asked the Goat, gruffly when it saw them.
"Hello there, Sir Goat", said the traveller, "We are just going to see the Witch of the Winter to demand that she let in the spring".
"Hmm?", thought the goat, stroking its goaty beard, "Well that seems like a bit of a fools errand if you ask me. But I think I might join you for I've got a bone to pick with that old witch myself. This winters been so cold that my horns are turning to icicles".
"The more the merrier, Mr Goat", said the old traveller, "Your company would be most welcome".
And so they walked down the other side of the snowy hill until, on the other side, finally they saw the palace of the winter witch; a palaced carved from ice that sparkled and glittered, covered in a roof of snow.
But then, as they were approaching the door of the palace, to knock upon it suddenly, the rabbit pricked up its ears.
"Wait", he said, " I hear something. Something infront of the palace. I can hear it breathing".
Then the rabbit started to sniff the air.
"Yes there is an invisible wolf infront of that palace, guarding it", he said, "I am sure of it".
Then the traveller, picking up a handfull of loose snow, threw it out infront of them and his three companions all saw the snow land upon the head of an invisible wolf making its snarling face visible.
Then the wolf, realizing that they could see it, started to growl and show its sharp teeth that were all made of ice and, suddenly, as quick as the winter wind, it leapt upon the hooded traveller.
Fortunately, the traveller had his old walking staff with him and, striking the wolf upon the head and hind quarters he drove the ferocious beast away.
"I thank goodness for your excellent hearing, Sir Rabbit", said the traveller, "Without it I may never have seen that wolf".
But then, suddenly, the Traveller and his companions noticed something odd about the air infront of them. It was starting to turn white.
Then, before any of them knew that it had happened, suddenly they found themselves surrounded in a thick, freezing fog.
"This is no good", grumbled the goat, "I can't see two inches infront of my face".
"I don't know what you're complaining about", said the Rabbit, "Its me who should be complaining. You keep bumping into me with those big horns of yours".
"I'm sorry", said the Goat, "But, in this fog, I can't see where I'm going".
Just then however, the Traveller had an idea.
"Mother Duck", he said to the Duck, "Can you and your ducklings fly above this fog and quack as loudly as you can. We'll follow your quacking, then you can lead us to the door of the palace".
"Very well", said the Mother Duck then, to the four little ducks she was holding close to her, two under each wing, she said, "Come my little ducklings. Flap your wings and fly above this fog and quack as loud as you can".
Then the Mother Duck and her four little Ducklings flew up out of the fog and, seeing the door of the Winter Witch's palace poking above the fog, she flew towards it with her ducklings flapping behind her and they perched upon the door.
"Now remember", she said to her Ducklings, "Quack as loud as you can so they can hear us".
And at first the Mother Duck could hear the Traveller, the Rabbit and the Goat calling out from the fog; the Traveller saying, "That's good, keep quacking, Mother Duck we're almost there"; the rabbit saying, "Ouch! Stop bumping into me with those horns" and the Goat saying, "Sorry".
But then suddenly, she heard them all go quiet and the Mother Duck started to worry.
"They should have found the door to the palace by now", she said to her ducklings, "I wonder whats happened to them".
And, telling her ducklings to stay where they were, the Mother Duck flew down into the fog to try and look for the Traveller, the Rabbit and the Goat.
Unfortunately, the freezing fog that had enveloped the Traveller and his companions also happened to be a magical fog that, when they breathed in its mist, put the Traveller, the Rabbit and the Goat to sleep and, having fallen asleep, they were all lying on the cold ground.
And the Traveller, while he was asleep, was dreaming of a beautiful springtime meadow full of flowers and birds chirping in the trees.
But then, suddenly, in his ear, the Traveller heard a loud, "Quack! Quack! Quack!".
It was the Mother Duck who, having landed upon him was quacking loudly in his ear.
And, woken by the loud quacking, the Traveller got back onto his feet then, tapping about with his walking staff like a blindmans cane, he found the sleeping rabbit and goat; waking them both up by prodding them in the ear.
"What? What?", said the Rabbit, waking with a start, "Where am I? And what happened to that big carrot I was eating?".
"You had fallen asleep", said the Traveller, "The fog put us all to sleep".
"Oh then it must have been a dream", said the Rabbit, sleepily, "What a pity".
But then, following the quack of the ducks again, the Traveller, the Goat and the Rabbit found their way to the door of the Witch's palace.
But when the traveller tried to open the door, he saw that it was locked; frozen shut.
"I don't know how we'll get through the door", he said to the others, "Its made of thick, solid ice".
"Leave that to me", said the Goat, "I know how to open a door".
And, lowering his head, the Goat charged towards the door as fast as he could and, when he did, he went smashing through it, shattering it to icy splinters.
But then, the obstacle of the door gone, the Traveller and his companions warily entered the palace of the Winter Witch.
And inside they saw a blue skinned woman dressed in white fur, silver and diamonds.
"How dare you enter my palace", she said, roaring in a voice like the cold Northern wind that made the Mother Duck, the Rabbit and the Goat all tremble with fear aswell as cold.
"We have come", said the traveller, "To demand that you release the Spring".
"Demand?", shouted the Winter Witch, "Demand?".
Then she threw her head back and started to laugh like an icy gale.
"Why you impertinent fools", she said, "You have no idea how powerful I am but I will show you".
And then, with just an icy stare she turned the mother and her ducklings, the rabbit, the goat and the traveller into statues of ice.
The poor traveller and his companions; little tears fell from their frozen eyes but they were not enough to unmelt them and, seeing them all frozen solid, the Witch of Winter started to laugh again, evilly.
But then, as she was laughing, suddenly, she noticed the sound of ice cracking and, looking in the direction of the sound, she saw that the hands of the frozen traveller were starting to thaw out.
"What?", shrieked the Winter Witch in surprise, "Impossible! No one can break free of my icy spell".
But then, suddenly, using his now freed hands, the Traveller lifted up the hood of his monks habit and underneath, the witch saw, he was wearing a glowing golden crown and had glowing golden hair and the glow of his face was blinding.
"I can", he said, casting off his monks habit completely and revealing himself to be a man made entirely of blazing, golden light, "For I am the Sun King".
Then suddenly, his walking staff turning into a golden sunbeam, he touched the Winter Witch with it and she started to melt away like ice.
"Help! Help! I'm melting", she shrieked as first her legs melted away from beneath her, then her torso and arms and, finally her head.
But then, when the witch had been reduced to nothing more than a large puddle of water and the water, touched by the heat of sun, had all dried up, the witch's winter spell was broken; all across the land, snow and ice started to melt; grass grew green again and flowers began to bloom.
And, like the Earth, the Mother Duck and her ducklings; the Rabbit and the Goat all started to unfreeze.
But then, seeing the glowing crown upon the Sun Kings head, they all started to kneel.
"I didn't know it was you, your majesty", said the Goat, "I would have been less Grumpy if I had".
"Get up", said the Sun King, smiling goldenly, "Spring is no time for kneeling. Spring is a time to rise; to feel joy; to run; to dance; to laugh and play. Go out my children and enjoy the Spring".
And so Mother Duck and her Ducklings; the Rabbit and the Goat all went out of the Winter Witch's palace and the all had a very wonderful Spring.