The Taking Of The Golden Bird
Night One: The Mansion Of The Golden Bird
I had a dream last night...
I saw the Prince, having just reached the other side of town in the early morning, stretching his limbs as he stepped out onto the road.
Nearby, in the grass, sat the Fox, patiently waiting for him.
The canine hopped out onto the road and happily approached the boy. “I’m glad to see that you took my advice, and stayed at the humble inn.”
After a yawn, the Prince replied “Yes. As shabby as it was, it was comfortable enough for me to get a good rest. I didn’t see my brothers though. They must’ve moved on.”
The Fox didn’t say anything about what he had seen, but turned around to head down the road. “We best get going. I will show you where the Golden Bird is.”
“Are we really in that much of a rush? I haven’t even had any breakfast yet.”
The Fox turned around and sat down to wait, watching as the Prince pulled out a golden apple from his sack. “From where did that come? Your father let you take such a treasure on your journey?!”
The Prince casually shook his head. “A man in the village gave it to me. Saying that I looked the most deserving to have it. The Golden Bird must have dropped it. I just didn’t want it to go to waste.”
The Fox lowered his brow as the Prince raised the fruit to his mouth, only to growl and jump toward the boy, knocking the apple out of his hand!
As the fruit bounced across the road, the Prince turned to the canine in confusion. “What was that for?!”
“The fruit, it has been poisoned! You would be best to leave it alone.”
“But how can you be sure?” asked the Prince. “Who would have done such a thing.”
“Someone is trying to trap you. See for yourself, spit upon the golden apple.”
The boy wasn’t sure, and though it wasn’t something the son of a king would normally do, he spat on the apple, causing a spot on it to change into a deathly purple!
So the Fox scooped it up in his paw and threw it into the woods, turning around to present his tail to the Prince. “We best not wait around here any longer. Sit upon my tail and I will take you to the thing you seek.”
The boy looked out at where the apple landed, then back at the animal. “All right.” but wasn’t sure about how the canine was to take him. “Am I really to ride on your tail? I am far to big.”
“I am no ordinary fox.” replied the creature.
So the Prince seated himself on the animal’s tail, with the Fox saying:
“Hold on!”
And away they went, flying over stock and stone, until the wind whistled through their hair!
They went on and off winding roads, across forest paths, and around patches of trees, until they arrived at the gates of a grand estate.
Letting the Prince get off, the Fox turned around to face the boy. “You must wait until nightfall before going in.” he instructed. “You will see many guards about, but they will all be sleeping, allowing you to easily slip into the mansion. On the eastern side of the house, there will be a large room, in which you shall find the Golden Bird, sitting by a window, inside an old wooden cage. Beside it, there will be a beautiful golden cage, but do not be tempted to move the bird into it, or it may go badly for you.”
“All right.” the Prince agreed. “I hope it will be as you say.”
“It shall. Eat the berries and nuts of the forest if you must, I will meet you out here at first light tomorrow morning.” And with that the Fox turned and disappeared into the grass and bushes among the mansion’s front gates.
The Prince patiently waited until the sun had set, just as the Fox instructed, and began to make his way toward the mansion. There wasn’t a guard to be found, when the boy rounded a corner and came face to face with half a dozen armed men! And just as he thought he had been caught for sure, he heard one of the men let out a deafening snore. They were asleep after all, but standing straight up in their places!
So the Prince quietly stepped past them, making it into the mansion, and heading for the eastern side of the house to retrieve the Golden Bird.
–Charles M Warren
Night Two: The Man Of The Mansion
I had a dream last night...
I saw the Golden Bird, inside a dark room, with a wooden cage secured around it.
A window was nearby, from which you could see a wonderful landscape illuminated by the moon’s light.
And across from the wooden cage on the other side of the window, there stood a beautiful, ornate golden one.
The room was large, with strange decorations on the walls, where all was quiet and still, until a sharp groan echoed across the room, as a door on the far side opened, and in stepped the Prince.
He crept up to the bird in the cage, mesmerized by the creature’s glistening feathers, when the golden cage next to him suddenly caught his eye.
“What a spectacular piece!” he quietly exclaimed, running his fingers across an etched decoration at the top. “Fine craftsmanship indeed!”
He turned back to the bird, and it was now looking back up at him, looking as tame as a parrot. So the boy carefully opened the cage door, and stuck in his hand to see how the bird would react. But the fowl let the Prince pet it and stroke its beak.
The Prince turned back to the gold cage, “What a shame it would be to carry this bird away in anything but a cage such as that!”
So he reached in and got the bird up on his hand, gently lifting the bird out of the wooden cage’s opening, and into the golden one, setting the animal down on the fancier roost.
“There, that wasn’t difficult at all.” said the Prince, slowly swinging the cage door shut.
But the Golden Bird’s tail feathers had not cleared the opening, and as the fowl attempted to turn around, he found that he was stuck fast to the cage door! And before the Prince knew what was happening, the bird began to shriek, and shriek!
Suddenly, guards flooded into the room, seizing the Prince, and calling for their master, as the bird was placed back in the wooden cage.
Lamps were lit all around the room, revealing dozens of stuffed and mounted animals across the walls and on the floor, as the owner of the mansion came in to inspect the intruder.
“And just what do you think you’re doing, trying to take my precious bird?!” he asked.
“I beg you pardon, kind sir. I can explain everything.”
“Then let’s hear it!” he replied.
The Prince raised his right arm, glancing at the guard holding onto it to let him move it freely, then removed his hat and pointed on the feather that decorated it. “This feather belonged to your bird. We found him stealing our golden apples.” he explained. “My father is a great and mighty king, and he would pay up to a quarter of his kingdom for your bird.”
“Well he’s not for sale!” snapped the man. “He was given to me by the old lady of the golden castle! It was payment for me to hunt and kill all the foxes of the forest!”
“I deeply apologize, kind sir.” said the Prince, growing more desperate. “My father will more than make up for your troubles from this night, I can assure you.”
“No! You will.” explained the man. “Since you’re so good at sneaking into places, I’ll let you have the Golden Bird, if you can get me the Golden Horse!”
“Very well.” agreed the boy, just happy at the chance to get out of there. “I will make my way there this very moment.”
The man signaled to his guards to let the boy go, and allowed the Prince to leave his mansion unharmed, saying behind him “You best have that horse back here in a week, or that bird will be the next thing I’ll stuff!”
The Prince made his way past the front gate, and to the spot where the Fox said he would meet him at day break.
When morning came, the boy started to wonder where the Fox was, when he heard its voice from behind him:
“What trouble you have gotten into! This all happened because you did not heed my advice. But be of good courage, I will help you get the Golden Horse as well. Hop on my tail once again and I shall take you to it.”
So the Prince seated himself on the animal’s tail, with the Fox saying “Hold on!”
And away they went, flying over stock and stone, until the wind whistled through their hair!
–Charles M Warren
Night Three: The Rider And The Princess
I had a dream last night...
I saw the Golden Horse, with the arrogant Rider on his back, making their way toward the castle of the Golden Princess.
The Rider requested that he enter the castle grounds, and was allowed in. He rode to the castle garden, and found the Princess sitting under a tree with her maid-servant.
“Good day, lovely ladies.” he said, slowly riding up.
The Princess saw the Golden Horse and jumped to her feet, ignoring the rider, and petting the horse on the head.
“Quite the beauty, isn’t he?” said the Rider.
“You know,” the Princess began, without even looking up, “we have a pantry that you’re welcome to, if you’re hungry.”
“Ha ha ha. That’s quite all right.” he replied. “Actually,” and he dismounted, “I came to ask for your hand in marriage.”
She turned to him in shock. “Marriage?! I hardly even...” then pulled herself back together, “My parents, they wouldn’t approve, you know.”
“But I talked to your father.” he explained.
“And.”
“And he said... whatever makes you happy.”
The Princess gave a sigh of relief, as the Rider went on.
“And I know that this horse will make you happy.” he told her.
“Then I’ll marry the horse!” she joked.
“Would you like to ride him?” he asked.
Her eyes grow wide with excitement. “May I?”
“Of course, of course.” replied the arrogant Rider, extending his hand to help her up.
But she moved around to the opposite side of the horse, and quickly swung up by herself.
The Rider, seeing that he had reached out in vain, merely stroked the top of the horse’s head, saying “You’ve heard how I obtained such a beautiful horse, haven’t you?”
The Princess looked at her servant with concern, replying “No, I suppose I have not.”
“It was three bears.” he explained. “Three bears had captured this darling little girl,” suddenly turning to the Princess, “With hair, almost as beautiful as yours.” trying to act as charming as possible. “They were threatening to cook the little girl, but couldn’t decide whether they wanted her rare, medium, or well done.”
“Where is the horse in this story?” she asked.
“Well, uh. I’m getting to that.” he assured. “Actually, to make a long story short, I saved the little girl by mixing up the bears’ dinner forks, and giving them poison apples. So her father gave me the Golden Horse as a reward!”
The maid-servant stepped out from the shade of the tree. “You just made that up on the spot!”
The Princess looked at the Rider curiously. “What kind of apples?”
“Great big golden ones!” he replied, gesturing the size with his hands. “See there! You know the sort!”
“And just where did you get them?” the maiden asked.
“Well, uh. The girl’s mother, she gave them to me, for me to use!” he explained. “And they all lived in this big golden– er, uh, house. Big golden house.”
But the Princess wasn’t convinced, deciding she had had enough. She looked down at the horse’s rider, “And you don’t mind if I take the horse out a little beyond the castle?”
“Anything to please you, my dear. Absolutely any–” but he was interrupted by the maiden.
“Thank you so much!” she exclaimed, guiding the horse over to her maid-servant. “How about a ride?” she asked, extending her hand out to her attendant.
She didn’t know how to respond, with the Rider just as puzzled, when the Princess grabbed her maid-servant’s hand, and swung her up behind herself.
Pulling the Golden Horse around, they galloped out of the garden, and flew out the front gate of the castle, racing faster than any normal horse could go.
–Charles M Warren
Night Four: The Princess' Brother
I had a dream last night...
The Princess rode the Golden Horse to the north, with her maid-servant sitting behind her. They flew through thickets and valleys, and jumped over streams and stones, until they trotted out onto a tall hill that rose above the forest.
The Princess pulled the horse around, taking in the view around them, when they saw the Golden Castle, shimmering in the sun.
The maid-servant couldn’t believe what she was seeing. “Have you ever seen such a structure?!”
“No.” she replied. “But I’ve heard stories about it.” She pulled the horse around, and led him back down into the woods.
“What stories?” the maid-servant asked.
“My brother, before he died, was trying to retrieve for me the Golden Bird, as a Birthday gift. And he and his wife sought the help of the old woman that lives in that castle, who was the last one to see either of them alive.”
“Oh, I see.” she replied. “So your brothers wife? She was also..?”
“Well,” the Princess began, guiding the horse through a small stream. “At first we had hoped that she might have escaped the woods around Golden Castle, but no one has seen her since my brother was taken away from us.”
Then, whipping the horse’s reigns, the Princess urged the horse to race off again.
They zig-zagged around trees, leaped over fallen logs, and ran through the spray of majestic waterfalls.
Until the Princess pulled back on the reigns, and got the horse to slow down, leading him into a dark patch of woods.
“This is where it happened.” she explained, pointing to a patch of leaves on the ground. “And there,” she began, pointing out at some thick foliage above them, “Is where the Golden Castle is.”
“Could you tell what happened?”
“Yes. All we could find was the shredded pieces of his riding cloak.”
“Wolves?” the maid-servant asked.
“Most likely. But we could never be certain. The only thing that can be certain, is that I’m going to find whoever left my brother out here to die, and ensure that they pay for what they have done!”
The maid-servant looked around nervously. “Then maybe we should get back to OUR castle.”
“Yes. I suppose you are right.” the Princess replied, turning the horse around and urging him to go faster.
–Charles M Warren
Night Five: The Fox At The Horse's Estate
I had a dream last night...
I saw the Fox, leading the Prince through tall grass at dusk, making their way along a fence of crisscrossed logs.
“There is the stable.” explained the Fox. “The instructions are the same as before; Wait until nightfall, and you will be able to sneak into the estate, where all the guards and groomers will be fast asleep.”
“I will not fail you this time.” the boy assured.
“That is not all. When you go to lead the horse out of his stall, you will see a common leather saddle, and a shiny gold one. Take heed this time. You must take the leather saddle. Do not be tempted, or it may go badly for you.”
“I will do exactly as you say. Once the stars appear, I will sneak in, and only use the leather saddle to take the horse.”
“Good.” replied the Fox. “Now I must tend to business of my own.” and he hopped off through the grass, sprinting into a run along the fence.
As the surrounding area continued to grow darker, the Fox headed for the stables. And as he got closer, I began to hear the sound of someone whistling, getting louder and clearer, until I realized that it was the Fox himself who was whistling!
The Fox continued his haunting melody, trotting past the guards as they fell asleep, and even walking into the Golden Horse’s stall itself.
“Be still, majestic one.” The Fox told him. “You will soon be in the proper hands.”
Turning around, the Fox left the stables, and trotted along the side of the manor, sniffing up at the windows as he passed them.
Finally, he found one that seemed to catch his interest, hopping up on the ledge, and looking through the cool glass at what was inside.
Scratching at the window, he managed to get it open enough to slip inside, dropping down onto the wooden floor.
It was a bedroom, where a man lay, quietly sleeping.
The Fox sprinted over toward the man, and leaped up onto the end of the bed, where he began to growl.
The man sat up. “What in–”
“Stay away from her!” demanded the Fox. “Leave the Golden Princess alone. She does not fancy you, and you only fancy her for her father, the king, and what that would bring you alone. So stay away, or I shall return and ensure that you do!”
It was the arrogant Rider he was speaking to, who looked just as confused as he was scared. “Who are you?! Is this some kind of trick?!”
“Sleep!” shouted the canine, whistling once more, until the Rider slumped back to his pillow. “Now if only the Prince comes through.”
–Charles M Warren
(Continued to Week Three)
