Once upon a
time there were four friends who were neighbors. They were all girls around the
age of 14. One day while they were gathering fresh berries in the forest, they
noticed a beautiful garden they had never seen before. The four girls wandered
into the garden in awe. The flowers were more beautiful than any they had seen
before. One of the girls reached out, mesmerized by the garden’s beauty and
took one of the flowers. She wanted nothing more than to have the beautiful flower
for her own. As soon as she pulled the flower from the bush an ugly witch
appeared, cackling and holding the wrist of the girl who had taken the flower. The
other girls were able to escape except the one who had taken the flower.
“How dare
you take what isn’t yours!” The witch screeched. “Your punishment shall be
death.”
“Please,
no! I’ll do anything! Please don’t kill me!” The girl begged.
The witch
thought for a minute and then demanded, “Bring me your first born child when it
reaches seven years of age.”
Eager to
save her life, the girl agreed.
Many years
passed and the girl forgot about the deal she had made with the witch. She had
a beautiful daughter that she named Marigold because her hair was as golden as
the marigold flower.
When the
girl was six years old, she happened to wander into the same garden her mother
had. The witch was in the garden in disguise as a lovely young woman.
“Well,
hello, honey.” The witch said to Marigold.
“Hello,”
Marigold responded. “I these are pretty flowers.”
“They are,
aren’t they?” The witch responded. “What would you think about coming to my
garden again tomorrow?”
“Yay!”
Marigold let out an excited squeal.
“Marigold,
I am your aunt. Tell your mom she has to honor the deal she made with your aunt
in the garden.”
When
Marigold returned home, she told her mom what the witch had said. Marigold’s
mother was terrified. She loved her daughter and could not bear to see her
taken from her.
“Don’t go
see your aunt again, Marigold.” Her mother demanded.
The next
day, Marigold was playing in the forest and the witch appeared again.
“Why don’t
you come visit my garden?” She asked Marigold.
“My mom said
I wasn’t allowed to see you again,” Marigold explained.
“So she does
remember,” the witch huffed under her breath. To Marigold she asked, “Dear, how
old are you?”
“I am six,”
Marigold said proudly.
“Wow! When
is your birthday?” the witch questioned.
“Tomorrow!”
Marigold said excitedly.
“Tomorrow
you’ll be seven,” the witch stated. “Come to my garden tomorrow and I will give
you a wonderful present.”
Marigold
was beside herself with excitement! She had such a desire to see the beautiful
flowers again.
The next
day Marigold went to the garden and the witch took her and locked her away in a
tall tower with no doors or stairs. The witch loved the girl and raised her as
her own; however, she kept Marigold locked in the tower with no company other
than herself. When the witch would come to the tower to visit, she would tell
Marigold to let down her long, golden hair and the witch would climb up her
hair.
On Marigold’s
eighteenth birthday, she decided she would leave the tower and explore the
world for herself. She requested a special dinner from the witch that would
require her to travel through the lands to gather the supplies for three days’
time.
While she
was away, Marigold cut her hair and secured it to the wall, and then threw the
rest out the window. She climbed down her hair and escaped into the forest.
Marigold walked and walked until she finally came to a village. She was
wandering through the village mesmerized by the people and environment. As she
was trying to take in all her surroundings, she accidentally bumped into
someone and caused all they were holding to fall on the ground. Marigold
dropped to the ground immediately to collect the dropped items and return them
to their owner.
“I am so
sorry,” Marigold said as she stood up to return the belongings. As she was
about to hand the items to the owner, her eyes locked with the most handsome
man she had ever seen. She pulled her eyes from his and started blushing.
He looked
at her with such a strange expression. “Milady, I must know your name,” he said
staring at her beautiful blushing face. She was the most gorgeous woman he had
ever seen.
The two met
every day for a long while, and their relationship grew stronger with every
meeting. Finally, the man asked her to marry him. He revealed to her that he
was actually the prince and always wanted to marry a woman who didn’t love him
for his riches. Marigold had no idea of his fortune. She happily agreed to
marry him, and the two lived happily ever after.
Author's Note: I decided to mix a few of the stories I read. I read the Italian Popular Tales by Thomas Crane. One of the stories was like a beauty and the beast story. I used the garden part from that story. Then I used the story from Rapunzel for most of it. I also liked the last story I read The Faerie Queene by Edmund Spenser because it gives women such a strong, independent role. I really like the idea of that so I wanted Marigold to save herself and make her own way.
