Gudgekin the Thistle Girl Read Online Free PDF Page B

the eastern horizon, and all the people came down to the palace and waited, and soon the rim of the sun appeared, and later the whole sun, and before long it was noon, and they knew the old wizard wouldn’t make it.
    The reason was that the woodchopper had met him, in the fourth village the woodchopper came to, where he’d also met five old men picking peppers, and sometimes as they reached out for the peppers their hands were paws, and sometimes they were hands, and sometimes hoofs. The woodchopper quickly cut off all their heads, including the wizard’s, and stuffed them in his sack.
    The third to offer his help to the emperor was a wrinkled old mechanic with tattoos on his shoulders and birthmarks even on his ears. He said he wanted the whole empire and the emperor’s daughter’s hand in marriage.
    â€œThat’s a lot,” said the emperor, with a look of indignation. However, after swallowing several times, he clenched his fists and accepted, for the sake of his dignity, because he’d promised.
    So the mechanic went out, and he said he would be back by the third day’s sunrise. But no one believed him, and when the third day’s sunrise came, hardly anyone bothered to get up and watch for him. Sure enough, morning came as usual, but not the mechanic.
    â€œThat’s life,” said the people, for though they were optimists, they believed above all in regularity, and when two quests had failed they could easily predict, they thought, the third.
    â€œWell,” said the emperor, looking around despondently, “who’s next?”
    But nobody was eager to meet the challenge now. They said, “Your Imperial Majesty, there’s something fishy going on around here. The Shape-Shifters of Shorm never used to hurt people, they just shape-shifted. It was annoying and alarming and unnatural, but it wasn’t like this . In our opinion, you should have left well enough alone.” The emperor flew into a rage, but secretly he agreed with them.
    Just then who should appear at the palace gate but the woodchopper, dragging his huge sack of heads.
    â€œYour Imperial Majesty,” he said, “I’ve brought you the heads of the Shape-Shifters of Shorm. Is it true you’ll give me whatever I dare to name?”

    The emperor frowned. “What’s the catch?” he said.
    â€œNo catch,” the woodchopper said. “I just want to know the rules.”
    â€œAsk away,” said the emperor. “You’re among honorable men.”
    â€œAll right,” said the woodchopper. Then he said, not knowing how much the others had asked for, “I’d like a round-trip ticket to Brussels, to take a short vacation.”
    â€œDone,” said the emperor quick as a flash, and the people all laughed and poked each other and pointed at the woodchopper and laughed some more, and then they looked inside the sack. Sure enough, there were all the shape-shifters’ heads, and some of the time they were wolves’ heads, and some of the time they were peacocks’ heads, and some of the time they were oxen, and sometimes bears. But three of them, unluckily, were the knight, the wizard, and the mechanic.
    â€œWhat’s this?” cried the emperor. “Good heavens, this is murder! Guards! Guards!”
    The guards came running, and the emperor said, “Put this man in the dungeon. Tomorrow he hangs!”
    The woodchopper looked in the sack and now he noticed it too. He said, “Then I don’t get my vacation?”
    The emperor rubbed his chin. “Hmm,” he said. After a long period of reflection he said, “You can go visit Brussels, but you have to wear handcuffs, and I’m sending along guards. After you get back, you hang. Do you solemnly swear you won’t escape?”
    â€œI swear,” said the woodchopper.
    The people all nodded and agreed it was fair.
    So the poor old woodchopper traveled off to Brussels. When