The Troll knew the ways of the woods. He knew the plants and which are best eaten and which are not. He began to think of the beautifully carved wooden horse and that those who chased him into the sea must surely find such creations valuable. The Troll found just the vine he was after. It had no scent or taste but, if handled, it would make one quite ill. In his heart, he truly wished no harm, but his mind was clouded with anger. He could not hear his heart.
He began carving all manner of forest creatures and covering the carvings with the nectar of the vine. He had to use leaves of other plants to apply this nectar to protect his own hands lest he himself become ill from touching it. After he had made many of these wooden creatures, he filled his bag with them and sought to make himself a disguise so he would look more like those who had chased him away. The Troll spun flax and made a large weave to cover himself and to cover his head. It was large enough to cover his whole body so that he could stoop to be the size of an ordinary human. He covered his skin with white spores. He looked at his reflection in a pool, added more spun flax of a lighter colour to cover his head, and was quite pleased with his disguise. Still, he was very wide, but he thought little of this and headed to the village early the next morning.
The Troll came to the village and called out in a sing song voice that he had wooden animals. The children were very interested as the disguised troll began to take out the wooden creations. As the children gathered, so did the parents. They all admired the handy work of this mysterious carver. Even the Old Toymaker came to see and did admire the creations. When asked where did he come from, the Troll answered in a high voice like a bird that he had come from beyond the forest. When asked if he had seen a troll, he said he had not. The people of the village hearing the high voice and the flaxen locks began to call the troll an old woman. The troll handed out all of the toys to the village children and saw they were happy as they ran off to play. The Old Toymaker asked how the mysterious old woman had come to be such a wonderful carver. As the troll answered, his heart began to feel heavy. He knew the children would become ill from handling the toys but forced his mind to remember being chased by fire. The Old Toymaker invited the troll to her shop, the troll became more anxious with each step. As he stepped inside the shop he was amazed to see so many wonderful creations.
It was full of carved figures. Some were in the shapes of animals he recognized and some were beasts he'd never seen. There were tools everywhere. There were even soft dolls that were wonderful to touch. The troll marveled at the wonderful creations and was unaware that with each step he was treading upon his cloak. With each step, his large green troll body was becoming exposed. The Old Toymaker was no fool and quickly realized that this was the troll that had been chased away the previous day. Still, the Old Toymaker said nothing. She only waited for the troll to realize his cloak was on the floor. The troll realized soon enough and was unsure of what to do when the Old Toymaker asked what the troll was doing with the bundle of the children's things just before the villagers chased him into the sea. The troll explained and the Old Toymaker shook her head. She knew the people of the village were easily frightened and quick to judge. She told the troll to put his cloak back on and to stay in the shop. She told him she would find a way to help the people of the village to know that the troll was a good soul. Now the troll remembered the wooden toys he had given out. He began to feel terrible that the children could become sick because of his anger. He realized is folly and told the toymaker the whole story. She listened carefully and scolded him for letting his anger get the best of him. She asked if there was anything he could do. The troll knew what would turn back the effects of the sickening vine, but he would need to leave quickly to make it. They devised a plan and the old woman quickly lead the disguised troll out of the village.
Once out of the village, the troll ran as fast as he could, leaving his disguise in a hollowed tree as he could run much faster with out it. Trolls can run fast, very fast. In the times of old, trolls used to run and catch their horses by the tail. In no time at all, the troll had found the leafy green fragrant clump he was looking for and in no time at all had made his special brew. He carried it in an earthen jug and ran to the village, putting on his cloak and flaxen locks along the way. The disguised Troll and the Old Toymaker called upon each of the villagers in their homes. Some children had began to feel ill and so the old troll treated them with his healing brew and also took back the toys with a promise to return them the next day. And so it was for each house they visited. None of the children felt ill for long. For the healing worked just as the Troll knew it would.
All the carved toys had been accounted for and once back at the Old Toymaker's shop, the Troll quickly began to make new toys. He had such a joy using the tools of the Old Toymaker and she marveled at how quickly and finely the Troll could work with such large hands. The Troll worked all night until he had remade each carving. He was particularly good at carving horses. The Old Toymaker suggested he rest after each of the toys had been redelivered. This was good advice as the Troll had not slept since the night before last. After the toys were delivered, he lay down and fell into a deep sleep.
When he awoke, the Old Toymaker told him her plan. He was frightened but agreed. Shortly after, the Old Toymaker went into the square and called all the village people. She reminded the village people of the troll they had chased into the sea. She reminded them of the bundle the Troll carried. She explained that he was bringing the children's belongings back and that this was evidence of the good in him. Many disbelieved, but the Old Toymaker persisted. She told them that the troll didn't die in the sea and that the troll in great anger had come disguised as an old woman intending to do harm to the village. Now upon hearing this, the village people began to shout and roar. The Old Toymaker had much work to do in calming the crowd. She quickly told of the poison and the change of heart. Still the villagers were angry and frightened, but they could not deny the healing brew. The Old Toymaker spoke of the good in the Troll over and over. The villagers trusted the old woman, but they did not trust the Troll. The villagers agreed that the Troll could stay, but only under the care of the Old Toymaker. A few of the villagers found this agreement too unsettling and decided to keep the toymaker's shop under watch that evening.
The Troll was frightened at the presence of the watchful villagers, but the Old Toymaker just told the troll to do his good work. The Troll wondered what he should do. He remember the joy on the children's faces when he put his carvings in their hands. He remembered how the children especially loved the horses. He decided to make a horse big enough for a child to ride. He worked into the night. The Old Toymaker smiled upon his diligence and persistence. He dreamed of children riding the horse and just what kind of movement it should have. In his mind's eye, he pictured the movement of the horse rocking and rocking. On the bottom of the horses legs he carved two large crescent moons from the front leg to the back leg, one on each side, so that the horse rocked back and forth. By morning, he had completed this rocking horse.
The Old Toymaker was amazed at the Troll's work, so finely crafted and beautiful to behold. The villagers who had meant to keep watch had actually fallen asleep and where startled by the Old Toymaker as she opened her shop doors and asked the Troll to bring out his work. The villagers were still frightened by the troll, but they were also amazed at this beautifully carved wooden rocking horse. They had never seen the like. One of the villagers went to get his children and they rode upon the rocking horse with great joy. The Old Toymaker and the Troll were overjoyed. The villagers slowly approached the Troll. They asked his name. He said he had never had one. The Old Toymaker suggested Horace since it was so close in sound to the wonderful horses the troll created. The Troll agreed and he was called Horace from then on.
The people came to find Horace to be quite handy and useful in the village. Not only could he carve beautifully, he could also easily lift a wagon or move any number or large stones. Of course, as the villagers called on him to help, they also returned favors. A seamstress made him a fine set of trousers and tunic. A cobbler made him sturdy boots, although Horace preferred to be barefoot. And so with all the villagers it went this way. The people of the village had become very friendly with the Troll now called Horace. Horace had become very friendly with those around him. What made him the happiest was helping the people of the town. He had been alone all his life. He had never known companionship. He had never known the the joy of children laughing, but now he knew it everyday. He made a rocking horse for every child in the village. He watched them rocking back and forth and holding races with each other and laughing the whole time. Seeing this filled his huge troll heart full of joy. There was no doubt in the mind of the villagers that Horace was a good soul. In fact, they were so convinced, they decided to rename their village Rocking Horse village. The Old Toymaker was quite pleased as you know, it could have ended differently.
Times were good for Horace, the Old Toymaker, and the villagers of Rocking Horse village until some villagers had come back frightened from a trip into the forest. A fearsome creature that was quite large, similar in size to Horace, and looked to be mostly red had chased the villagers a great distance from the forest. Some said it was a troll, but others disagreed. One thing was certain, the villagers were afraid for their village. After a discussion with the villagers, Horace agreed to seek out what this thing was to get a good look at it. He was by far the quietest and had the greatest sense of smell and sight, not to mention the largest and strongest. However, Horace was not fearless. In truth, he was very fearful. Given that he cared a great deal for the villagers and that they were such great friends, he would put that fear aside and sneak into the woods to find out just what this thing was.
Part 3 coming soon...
i like this book very much thanx i cant wait for part 3
Posted by: sabrina | February 22, 2010 at 03:29 PM
I love this part! And I can't wait to get to the next one.
Posted by: freelance writing jobs | January 26, 2012 at 08:27 AM