Unhappily Ever After: A Collection of Feary Tales

The Fairest

THE FAIREST

The king's war led many men to their deaths. Yvette Messerschmidt was a young widow that was left with her two-year-old daughter, Sonya, to raise. She made a quiet living selling various healing potions, beauty creams, and medicinal saves to the townspeople of Ashmore. It was a humble living but Yvette enjoyed it and the villagers respected her.

The widow's house was a small but sturdy structure and situated next to the lush green forest. There were all sorts of plants and herbs surrounding the cottage. Whatever was not on grown nearby was foraged in the woods or bought from peddlers.

It was a fine spring morning when the town leader, Klaus Meyer, pulled in front of Yvette's home. He was a distinguished looking man who had just entered his thirty-fifth year. His fifteen-year-old daughter, Hilde, stepped down from the carriage gently shaking out her long skirts. Everyone agreed that the beautiful girl was the fairest maiden in the land. She was well educated though learning was considered unnecessary for a female. She had impeccable manners and, like her father, was very ambitious.

Yvette greeted the pair as Sonya sat on a soft blanket munching on a red juicy apple in the corner. "Good morning."

"Good morning." Klaus replied. "My daughter wishes to speak with you in private." With a nodded the older man exited to wait in the widow's garden.

"I need a love potion." Hilde said.

Yvette smiled indulgently thinking that the girl had a crush on a young man and needed something to boost her confidence in order to speak with him. Picking up a vial of harmless herbs she held it out to the girl.

"No." she said firmly. "I need Cupid's Arrow."

Almost dropping the vial in shock, Yvette quickly set it down on table. "Where did you hear about that?"

Almost two hundred years ago, two women fought for the attention of a young prince. Desperate they slipped the effective yet slightly poisonous tonic to the boy. He died from ingesting such a large quantity. The women were executed following his death. His parents, the king and queen, ordered the Cupid's Arrow be destroyed and healers were forbidden from ever using it again.

Most people thought the story was a myth or fable. Very few had ever heard the name of the herb since it was almost extinct. The plant is rare to find and only someone with the knowledge of how to prepare it can successfully keep from killing the intended love.

"It doesn't matter. But I heard that you were sold some a few months back." Hilde said with a sly edge to her voice. "Since there is no new man living here, my guess is that you still haven't it. You also have a significant debt with the money exchangers thanks to your now deceased husband. They've been trying to settle more accounts recently. I'm sure you will be getting a notice soon."

The healer's petite frame stiffened. She didn't like the direction of this conversation and worried about what might come of this. The loan was being paid back but there was no way she could pay it back all at once if the lender decided to demand immediately reimbursement. She and her daughter would be out on the streets.

"Give me the Cupid's Arrow or else." The pretty face twisted into a maniacal smirk full of evil intent.

Taking a deep breath, Yvette walked slowly over to a hidden lockbox that contained her most expensive and rare herbs. Pulling out a tied burlap pouch, she removed a small tin. The pale green, almost white, powder was added to several other ingredients and poured into a tiny vial. Muttering a few words in an ancient tongue, the bottle glowed a bright green for a few seconds before becoming clear.

"One drop and only one drop for seven days." Yvette said. "You have to be the first thing he sees after he drinks it and the potion will create an imprint."