Work Text:
Wind is a wondrous thing, felt but never touched, heard but never speaking, and delivering but never asking for payment. Modern times allowed people to forget the first delivery person if it could be given the title person. The wind delivers the rain that hides the sun and nourishes the land. The wind delivers the cool breeze on a hot day. The wind carries the voices of lovers who have been separated by land and sea. The wind delivers seedlings to create forests big and small. The wind blows terrible storms to protect lands that should not be looked upon, hiding monstrosities.
No matter how many modern titans rise the wind will always reign supreme as a delivery person, and no one knows this better than grandmothers as they've lived for so long they've learned to listen to everything around them. If only to hear something new. The wind is such a grand delivery person it once turned a poor girl into a queen, and this is her story.
She lived in a town a long time ago with her grandmother as her parents had died when she was very young. She was so poor she could barely buy bread and milk for herself and her grandmother. She took odd jobs until the day the king set a tournament. The king proclaimed that all those who signed up would be given a plot of land that they must hoe, seed, and water with no help from animals or tools. If they could do this then they would win a hearty bag of gold.
The poor girl wanted to win so badly that she signed up the first chance she could. The night before the tournament her grandmother bade her to her side and told her how to win. The morning of the competition the poor girl came bright and early with nothing but the clothes on her back and a small basket. She began using her hands to turn the soil never touching the basket, she scratched and worked the hard ground to soft soil until nightfall. While others stayed behind to sow their seeds she left for the cliff. At the cliff, she opened the basket and pulled out a paper with a poem about the wind a flower, and a needle. She turned to the cliffside and called out "wind please accept my payment" and threw the paper to the wind. Then she picked up the needle and pricked her finger, dripping 6 drops of blood into the flower. "Wind please accept my payment" she called again and threw the rose to the wind. With that she left for her home.
When she arrived she pulled out a red ribbon and wrote the words 'deliver over my plot and blow the dirt so it covers, then delivers the clouds to rain over the plot'. With that, she tied the ribbon to a post then set a bag of seedlings and a bucket of water under the post and went inside. When she awoke the next morning there was a great commotion. At the tournament, there were many tried souls who spent the entire night trying to seed and water the land. But the poor girl was the only person to have completed the task. She was given her bag of gold and proudly went home to her grandmother.
A few days passed and the kind proclaimed another tournament. The prince had fallen in love with another prince of a far-off kingdom, but that kingdom was currently at war and the two had not been able to speak for the longest of time. So long that the prince had begun to wonder if his lover was still alive. So the king proclaimed that whoever could deliver a letter to the prince and find a way to confirm he was alive would be given two bags of gold and a large plot of land.
Many hummed and hawed at the tournament, the prize was as great as the danger they would face journeying to the war-torn country. The only one to sign up was the poor girl who proclaimed that she alone could complete the task. Overjoyed the prince gave the poor girl a letter and asked if she could bring back proof his lover was alive. She agreed and while others believed she would go to the market for supplies she headed home for her basket.
She returned to the cliff with her basket and sat down. She pulled out a small drum and called to the wind "Wind please accept my payment, and began to sing. She sang of the wonders of the wind and its many powers. When she was done she reached into her bag and pulled out a flint and a bowl of berries. She used the flint to start a small fire and she called out "Wind please accept my payment", and threw the berries into the fire. The smell of the fire was of fresh fruit with the spice of ash.
And with that she left for her home, when she arrived she pulled out a red ribbon and wrote 'deliver the letter to the intended, then deliver something of the intended. With that, she tied the ribbon to a post then set a bag of seedlings and a bucket of water under the post and went inside. When she awoke the next morning the letter was gone but a figure lay sleeping under the post. She woke the figure and brought him to the castle. To the kingdom's amazement, the poor girl had delivered the letter and brought back the prince's lover in but one night. She was given her reward with flurries of praise and a personal invitation to the royal wedding.
A few days passed but this time there was a grim proclamation. The soldiers who invaded the prince's lover's country were riding to their kingdom. The prince's lover's kingdom had fallen and they were coming to claim this country as well. Some wanted to fight, others wanted to flee, and all feared death. Many started packing and soldiers began sharpening their swords for war. As strong as the soldiers were and as wise as the court was no one could come up with a way to save the kingdom. they bickered for day and night until the poor girl stepped forward.
She told the king that she could solve the problem without anyone having to fight or leave their homes. The village, the markets, the castle, and the fields would all remain unharmed. The king proclaimed that if she could achieve all that she promised that he would step down as king and name her queen. The poor girl agreed with the condition that she and her grandmother be moved into the castle now. The king agreed and the two were brought to the castle. While the grandmother sat in her rocking chair and listen to the people's worries the poor girl stayed locked in her room working night and day. The light under her door was always lit and mumbling could be heard in the hallways.
A week passed and the poor girl finally emerged from her room. Her hands were callused, bloody, and smeared with ink. Her face was marred with deep bags under her eyes and her hair and clothes were unkempt. Before she left the palace she told everyone to spread the word that tonight she would save the kingdom and for everyone to stay inside and rest. The left the palace only taking a small basket with her and returned to the cliff.
At the cliff, she reached into the basket and pulled out a heavy stack of paper "wind please accept my payment" she called and threw the hundreds of papers to the wind. Each one detailing the majesty of the wind. She reached into the bag and pulled out a flint and 23 bowls of spices. She struck a fire and called " wind please accept my payment" and threw the spices one at a time into the fire until the flames smelt like a grand banquet. She brought out her drum and called "wind please accept my payment" then sang until her throat burned and her words would only come out as cracking notes.
Finally, she pulled out a bouquet of white Lillies. She began to think of how miserable the people would be if they were conquered. How her grandmother would worry. Of the pain and fear each person felt. And she began to cry. Fat tears rolled down her cheeks and fell onto the Lillies opening them further and glistening like diamonds on each petal. She turned to the wind and in a scratchy voice whispered "Wind please accept my payment" and threw the flowers to the wind.
And with that she left for the castle, walking among the abandoned village roads. As eyes watched her through windows curious and anxious. She entered the castle and walked up the stairs. She walked through extravagant rooms, never stopping, eyes determined. She walked until she reached the entrance of the highest tower of the castle. She climbed staircase after staircase her feet and legs aching for rest. She was fatigued and hungry but at that moment she felt nothing but courage.
Once she reached the top of the stairs she climbed a ladder sitting on the wall. Up the latter and through the latch until she was outside of the tower on the observation deck. From the deck, she could see for miles. In the far distance was a small light that signified the march of soldiers. Turning away she pulled herself up the railing and onto the roof where at the highest point in the kingdom she tied a red ribbon to the lightning rod. With that, she climbed down and went to sleep in her grandmother's chambers.
When the invaders reached their destination they stopped confused. They had been told the prince of their new kingdom resided here in a palace but there was no palace. There were no homes or shops or markets or fields. All that was there was an open empty field. The grass was unmoved and untouched as if nothing had ever been laid upon it. No sign of human or animal life marked this place. The soldiers looked high and low for the fabled kingdom but all they could find was a single red ribbon that read 'deliver to safety.