The Devil with the Three Golden Hairs
Title:The Devil with the Three Golden Hairs
Author: aillil
Rating: G I suppose
Pairing: Could be considered the clue of this, but honestly, one look at the rating...
Disclaimer: None of this is mine, and no copyright infringement is intended, even for those themes that never had a copyright to begin with.
Word Count: 2,160
Author's Note: This story is based on the Grimm tale, at least sort of. ;)
"Listen closely now, dear child, I'm going to tell you a story," said the young man to the baby boy in his lap.
They settled into one corner of the sofa and got comfortable, and eventually, the young man began to speak:
"Once upon a time there was a poor woman. She was married to a poor man, and together they had a whole band of children. When the newest addition to their family was born with a caul on its little head, the parents were very glad, because then they knew the child would be provided for, even though they couldn't afford it.
"The local seer foretold them that their boy would, at the age of fourteen, marry the princess of their little country. The village was greatly excited about this, and when a rich stranger appeared, they told him all about it. Unfortunately, the stranger was the king in disguise, travelling alone for a change, and since he was mean and devious in his heart, he hatched a plan to preserve his newly-born daughter's purity. With the help of a Confundus thrown on the parents and the Blarney Beverage to inspire the gift of the gab in him, he talked the parents out of their youngest child.
"In exchange for a sack of gold, they gave him the little boy in an old, sawed off cauldron, in which they had made a comfortable bed for him, secure in the knowledge that the child would always be graced with good fortune. The king took the make-shift crib and rode away on his splendid Abraxan horse. When he came by a small creek, he dropped the cauldron with the child into it, thinking that it would drown at the next weir. An Unforgivable could be traced back even to a king, but simple neglect… Well, who was to blame in such a case?
"It wasn't without reason, though, that the child was claimed to be lucky. Thus, it didn't drown at all, but swam, in its cauldron, down the creek, which morphed into a stream and eventually a large river that wound its way through the capital of the little kingdom.
"As it happened, a young boy was sitting on the banks of the river on the outskirts of the city, trying his hand in fishing on a particularly fine day in late summer, when the cauldron floated by. It got entangled in the tree branches that touched the surface in many places, and the young boy managed to haul it out of the water. He was most astonished to detect a little baby boy inside, and went up to the cottage next to that of his parents.
"In this cottage, there lived a married couple who hadn't yet been graced with a child despite trying all the spells and even curses they could get hold of. They took the baby boy gladly and adopted him as their own son without asking too many questions. He grew up into a well-mannered boy with a kind heart, and was the pride and joy of his foster parents.. Every day, they thanked Merlin for their good fortune.
"When the boy was four years old, the king came by the little cottage on a fine day and saw the boy playing in the garden. At once, the king recognised him and fearing for the purity of his baby princess' blood in later years, he sent some of his trusted men to find a way to get rid of the child.
"Soon, the men reported back to him, saying that they had set up a trap. Thus the king rode out to pay the happy family a visit. He was well-received by them and complimenting the proud parents on their fine offspring, he asked them whether the child could take a message to a house down the road. It was already late in the evening, but the streets were quiet and safe where the little cottage stood, so that the parents sent their little son on his way with a folded note.
"Barely past the front gates of his family's garden, the little boy was ambushed by a savage werewolf, whom the king's messengers had lured into the neighbourhood. The werewolf bit the child and was about to tear its small, white throat out, when the parents, alarmed by their child's terrified screams, rushed to its side and drove the savage creature away with their wands. Instantly, they Apparated to St. Mungo's, and while the child's life could be saved, it was too late for its health. The boy would turn into a werewolf himself come full moon.
"The dismay of the parents was great, while the king rejoiced over the success of his plan, certain that the couple would abandon their foster child now. But the parents were true in the love for their child, and took the boy home with them. They cared for him to the best of their ability and contacted many a scientist and quack in order to find a cure for their son's illness, but without success.
They did their best to grant him access to wizarding society, and when it was time for the boy to receive proper schooling, they wrote to a number of private tutors asking them to teach their son. Every time, the king intervened and ordered the tutors to turn the parents down, so that - as a last resort - the parents contacted the headmaster of the most prestigious school in the little kingdom, all their hope gone.
"The headmaster had a kind heart, though, and honestly considered the parents' request. The king had anticipated this and sent the headmaster a letter, commanding him to refuse the parents, because his daughter was to attend this very school. But the letter went astray and fell into the hands of a cunning band of dragon keepers. The dragon keepers read the letter and rewrote it, thinking that a teenage werewolf would make for a good addition to the student body of the school.
"When the headmaster received the letter, he thought it came from the king. He felt assured in his kindness and sent the desperate couple's son a letter of acceptance. The parents were very happy and proudly sent their son off to school in autumn of that year. Because of his sweet nature, the boy was soon liked and respected by the other children, and he became friends with the princess. Not much after, she found out about his illness, but instead of running away in fear, she became even more interested in him. She had always had a penchant for going against her parents.
"The king didn't hear about any of this, as he was out of the country for several years, trying to win some war or other and sending many a young man into a gruesome death.
"Meanwhile, the boy and the princess became more fascinated by each other, and their affection grew with every passing day. When they were fourteen, they consummated their relationship and were thus married by the antiquated laws of the little kingdom. The princess wrote home to inform her mother of the informal wedding, without mentioning that her new son-in-law was a werewolf, of course. Although the queen was at first disappointed by the lowly origin of the boy, she soon took a liking to him, consoling herself with the thought that his blood was sufficiently pure, even if his family didn't belong to the highest circles.
"When the king returned from his war business two years later, it was the first time he heard of his daughter's marriage. He spoke to his wife, curious which well-connected Slytherin boy the princess might have chosen. He asked her about the boy, only to realise quickly that all his plans concerning the boy had been thwarted, and incandescent with rage, he Flooed the headmaster of the school.
"The headmaster was mystified at first, but after a while it transpired that the letter of the king had to have gone astray six years previously. Since no-one could be blamed except a band of mangy dragon keepers, who had long since moved on, the king retired for the night and threw a tantrum of epic proportions in the privacy of his own quarters. The next morning, his rooms were a wreck, left to be cleaned up by the house elves, but he had hatched another plan against the werewolf.
"He wrote to his son-in-law, inviting him to the castle for the summer holidays. The boy and the princess were delighted when they read the letter, thinking that the king would accept their marriage. When they arrived at the castle that summer, they quickly realised that this was not so. Instead the king had decreed that he would only recognise the marriage if the boy were to bring him three very precious things that he called the devil's golden hairs.
"The boy didn't have any idea what the king was talking about, but took on the challenge in the hope that he would be accepted as a member of the royal family, once he had accomplished the task. After discussing his options with his wife, he went out into the world in search of the three golden hairs, leaving his princess behind.
"Travelling from one place to the next, he learnt that his parents weren't his biological parents at all, but had adopted him out of a cauldron, and that the king wasn't quite the benevolent ruler he made out to be at times. While the first thing came to him as a surprise, the other one didn't, not after the portrait of a certain Dilys Derwent had informed him of the Floo call the headmaster had received earlier that year.
"Eventually he even ran across the devil, or rather the being he associated with that name, but the creature only had brown and grey hair and wasn't in the mood to let him look for any stray golden strands. It offered him shelter, though, in exchange for a favour, but the boy declined, shrinking back in horror before the bloodstained teeth of the manlike creature.
"When he returned to school in September, he hadn't found out anything about any golden hairs - be it the devil's or anyone else's - and went to his princess to give her the bad news. They hadn't seen each other for a month and a half, and he was shocked to see how thin and drawn she looked, his beautiful princess.
"'What has happened, my love?' he asked.
"The princess burst into tears, and he wrapped her in his arms. She sobbed uncontrollably, tears running down her pale cheeks and snot coming out of her aristocratic nose, until his shirt was all wet and cold and icky. Sitting down with her in his lap, he framed her beautiful face with his hands and looked deep into her red-rimmed eyes. Eventually she said:
"'My parents are horrid, horrid people, and I've run away from home.'"
"Enough already!" came a young woman's voice, and both the young man and the boy child were rudely pulled from their fairy tale universe.
Both looked up, aghast.
"Remus," said Lily sarcastically, "last time I checked, your parents were also your biological parents. You and your mother are real look-alikes, by the way. And they have yet refrained from selling you to Sirius' father. Though sometimes I do wonder why."
"The king bit would go down exceptionally well with Sirius' father, though," said Peter.
"'M not a princess," protested Sirius from his curled-up position in one corner of the Potter's sofa.
Peter raised an eyebrow. "That," he remarked, "is debatable."
A flash of black, and Sirius was hovering over a shrinking Peter.
"I'll show you princess, I swear I will," he growled, wand aimed at Peter's face.
Lily pulled Sirius back by the collar of his robes and fixed him with a stern look. "No violence in front of Harry."
With a smirk, Sirius sank into a bow before her, pressing a kiss on her hand. "As my queen commands."
"Hands off my wife, and no disrespecting her," James mock-snapped at him.
Lily flashed him an unimpressed look. "Off to the kitchen with you. That salad of yours should be quite wilted enough by now."
Remus turned back to Harry, who was still sitting on his lap, and said:
"Now, even though the boy and the princess were so rudely interrupted during their heart-wrenching tête-à-tête, they managed to sort out their difficulties. The king and queen had to accept that their princess had decided to have a life of her own, and once they didn't try to let something happen to the young couple any longer, they all lived happily ever after."
Sirius bent down to Harry and looked straight at him, winking once.
"Don't let yourself be fooled, godson. I most certainly did not cry once I'd left my parents' house."
The end, since we all know they did not live happily ever after.
Author: aillil
Rating: G I suppose
Pairing: Could be considered the clue of this, but honestly, one look at the rating...
Disclaimer: None of this is mine, and no copyright infringement is intended, even for those themes that never had a copyright to begin with.
Word Count: 2,160
Author's Note: This story is based on the Grimm tale, at least sort of. ;)
"Listen closely now, dear child, I'm going to tell you a story," said the young man to the baby boy in his lap.
They settled into one corner of the sofa and got comfortable, and eventually, the young man began to speak:
"Once upon a time there was a poor woman. She was married to a poor man, and together they had a whole band of children. When the newest addition to their family was born with a caul on its little head, the parents were very glad, because then they knew the child would be provided for, even though they couldn't afford it.
"The local seer foretold them that their boy would, at the age of fourteen, marry the princess of their little country. The village was greatly excited about this, and when a rich stranger appeared, they told him all about it. Unfortunately, the stranger was the king in disguise, travelling alone for a change, and since he was mean and devious in his heart, he hatched a plan to preserve his newly-born daughter's purity. With the help of a Confundus thrown on the parents and the Blarney Beverage to inspire the gift of the gab in him, he talked the parents out of their youngest child.
"In exchange for a sack of gold, they gave him the little boy in an old, sawed off cauldron, in which they had made a comfortable bed for him, secure in the knowledge that the child would always be graced with good fortune. The king took the make-shift crib and rode away on his splendid Abraxan horse. When he came by a small creek, he dropped the cauldron with the child into it, thinking that it would drown at the next weir. An Unforgivable could be traced back even to a king, but simple neglect… Well, who was to blame in such a case?
"It wasn't without reason, though, that the child was claimed to be lucky. Thus, it didn't drown at all, but swam, in its cauldron, down the creek, which morphed into a stream and eventually a large river that wound its way through the capital of the little kingdom.
"As it happened, a young boy was sitting on the banks of the river on the outskirts of the city, trying his hand in fishing on a particularly fine day in late summer, when the cauldron floated by. It got entangled in the tree branches that touched the surface in many places, and the young boy managed to haul it out of the water. He was most astonished to detect a little baby boy inside, and went up to the cottage next to that of his parents.
"In this cottage, there lived a married couple who hadn't yet been graced with a child despite trying all the spells and even curses they could get hold of. They took the baby boy gladly and adopted him as their own son without asking too many questions. He grew up into a well-mannered boy with a kind heart, and was the pride and joy of his foster parents.. Every day, they thanked Merlin for their good fortune.
"When the boy was four years old, the king came by the little cottage on a fine day and saw the boy playing in the garden. At once, the king recognised him and fearing for the purity of his baby princess' blood in later years, he sent some of his trusted men to find a way to get rid of the child.
"Soon, the men reported back to him, saying that they had set up a trap. Thus the king rode out to pay the happy family a visit. He was well-received by them and complimenting the proud parents on their fine offspring, he asked them whether the child could take a message to a house down the road. It was already late in the evening, but the streets were quiet and safe where the little cottage stood, so that the parents sent their little son on his way with a folded note.
"Barely past the front gates of his family's garden, the little boy was ambushed by a savage werewolf, whom the king's messengers had lured into the neighbourhood. The werewolf bit the child and was about to tear its small, white throat out, when the parents, alarmed by their child's terrified screams, rushed to its side and drove the savage creature away with their wands. Instantly, they Apparated to St. Mungo's, and while the child's life could be saved, it was too late for its health. The boy would turn into a werewolf himself come full moon.
"The dismay of the parents was great, while the king rejoiced over the success of his plan, certain that the couple would abandon their foster child now. But the parents were true in the love for their child, and took the boy home with them. They cared for him to the best of their ability and contacted many a scientist and quack in order to find a cure for their son's illness, but without success.
They did their best to grant him access to wizarding society, and when it was time for the boy to receive proper schooling, they wrote to a number of private tutors asking them to teach their son. Every time, the king intervened and ordered the tutors to turn the parents down, so that - as a last resort - the parents contacted the headmaster of the most prestigious school in the little kingdom, all their hope gone.
"The headmaster had a kind heart, though, and honestly considered the parents' request. The king had anticipated this and sent the headmaster a letter, commanding him to refuse the parents, because his daughter was to attend this very school. But the letter went astray and fell into the hands of a cunning band of dragon keepers. The dragon keepers read the letter and rewrote it, thinking that a teenage werewolf would make for a good addition to the student body of the school.
"When the headmaster received the letter, he thought it came from the king. He felt assured in his kindness and sent the desperate couple's son a letter of acceptance. The parents were very happy and proudly sent their son off to school in autumn of that year. Because of his sweet nature, the boy was soon liked and respected by the other children, and he became friends with the princess. Not much after, she found out about his illness, but instead of running away in fear, she became even more interested in him. She had always had a penchant for going against her parents.
"The king didn't hear about any of this, as he was out of the country for several years, trying to win some war or other and sending many a young man into a gruesome death.
"Meanwhile, the boy and the princess became more fascinated by each other, and their affection grew with every passing day. When they were fourteen, they consummated their relationship and were thus married by the antiquated laws of the little kingdom. The princess wrote home to inform her mother of the informal wedding, without mentioning that her new son-in-law was a werewolf, of course. Although the queen was at first disappointed by the lowly origin of the boy, she soon took a liking to him, consoling herself with the thought that his blood was sufficiently pure, even if his family didn't belong to the highest circles.
"When the king returned from his war business two years later, it was the first time he heard of his daughter's marriage. He spoke to his wife, curious which well-connected Slytherin boy the princess might have chosen. He asked her about the boy, only to realise quickly that all his plans concerning the boy had been thwarted, and incandescent with rage, he Flooed the headmaster of the school.
"The headmaster was mystified at first, but after a while it transpired that the letter of the king had to have gone astray six years previously. Since no-one could be blamed except a band of mangy dragon keepers, who had long since moved on, the king retired for the night and threw a tantrum of epic proportions in the privacy of his own quarters. The next morning, his rooms were a wreck, left to be cleaned up by the house elves, but he had hatched another plan against the werewolf.
"He wrote to his son-in-law, inviting him to the castle for the summer holidays. The boy and the princess were delighted when they read the letter, thinking that the king would accept their marriage. When they arrived at the castle that summer, they quickly realised that this was not so. Instead the king had decreed that he would only recognise the marriage if the boy were to bring him three very precious things that he called the devil's golden hairs.
"The boy didn't have any idea what the king was talking about, but took on the challenge in the hope that he would be accepted as a member of the royal family, once he had accomplished the task. After discussing his options with his wife, he went out into the world in search of the three golden hairs, leaving his princess behind.
"Travelling from one place to the next, he learnt that his parents weren't his biological parents at all, but had adopted him out of a cauldron, and that the king wasn't quite the benevolent ruler he made out to be at times. While the first thing came to him as a surprise, the other one didn't, not after the portrait of a certain Dilys Derwent had informed him of the Floo call the headmaster had received earlier that year.
"Eventually he even ran across the devil, or rather the being he associated with that name, but the creature only had brown and grey hair and wasn't in the mood to let him look for any stray golden strands. It offered him shelter, though, in exchange for a favour, but the boy declined, shrinking back in horror before the bloodstained teeth of the manlike creature.
"When he returned to school in September, he hadn't found out anything about any golden hairs - be it the devil's or anyone else's - and went to his princess to give her the bad news. They hadn't seen each other for a month and a half, and he was shocked to see how thin and drawn she looked, his beautiful princess.
"'What has happened, my love?' he asked.
"The princess burst into tears, and he wrapped her in his arms. She sobbed uncontrollably, tears running down her pale cheeks and snot coming out of her aristocratic nose, until his shirt was all wet and cold and icky. Sitting down with her in his lap, he framed her beautiful face with his hands and looked deep into her red-rimmed eyes. Eventually she said:
"'My parents are horrid, horrid people, and I've run away from home.'"
"Enough already!" came a young woman's voice, and both the young man and the boy child were rudely pulled from their fairy tale universe.
Both looked up, aghast.
"Remus," said Lily sarcastically, "last time I checked, your parents were also your biological parents. You and your mother are real look-alikes, by the way. And they have yet refrained from selling you to Sirius' father. Though sometimes I do wonder why."
"The king bit would go down exceptionally well with Sirius' father, though," said Peter.
"'M not a princess," protested Sirius from his curled-up position in one corner of the Potter's sofa.
Peter raised an eyebrow. "That," he remarked, "is debatable."
A flash of black, and Sirius was hovering over a shrinking Peter.
"I'll show you princess, I swear I will," he growled, wand aimed at Peter's face.
Lily pulled Sirius back by the collar of his robes and fixed him with a stern look. "No violence in front of Harry."
With a smirk, Sirius sank into a bow before her, pressing a kiss on her hand. "As my queen commands."
"Hands off my wife, and no disrespecting her," James mock-snapped at him.
Lily flashed him an unimpressed look. "Off to the kitchen with you. That salad of yours should be quite wilted enough by now."
Remus turned back to Harry, who was still sitting on his lap, and said:
"Now, even though the boy and the princess were so rudely interrupted during their heart-wrenching tête-à-tête, they managed to sort out their difficulties. The king and queen had to accept that their princess had decided to have a life of her own, and once they didn't try to let something happen to the young couple any longer, they all lived happily ever after."
Sirius bent down to Harry and looked straight at him, winking once.
"Don't let yourself be fooled, godson. I most certainly did not cry once I'd left my parents' house."
The end, since we all know they did not live happily ever after.