Misfit Emporium
An original fairy tale by Amy Mitchell, written for our book,“Magic Lanterns”, a collection of pictures and tales.
The rabbit sat pulling up bits of sweet summer grass. It was a plain rabbit, the same grey-brown of all wild rabbits. Christopher walked over to it, expecting it to dart away, but it didn't. He could tell as it turned to run that he should follow, so he did. The rabbit moved with great purpose down a stone path.
The rabbit stopped in front of a vivid wildflower, nosing an orange butterfly on top. Looking closely, the boy saw it had a woman's face with perfectly coifed blond hair and tiny tears streaking her cheeks. One of her wings was bent. He gathered healing herbs from the forest floor and carefully set the break. Soon she flew off, good as new.
Christopher never knew when the rabbit would come, but he always followed. Once to a snail the size of a large beach-ball who wore a tiny top-hat and an impeccably round pair of spectacles. Except for the large crack in his shell, he looked quite dapper. It took some time, but Christopher was able to fuse the wound.
Next there was the green-scaled creature not much larger than a chicken, and when he moaned, fire came from his mouth creating a sooty ring in the grass. Christopher looked him over, avoiding the hot puffs of air, struggling to find the problem. The dragon's enormous mother paced nearby.
Finally, Christopher reached over to one of the clawed feet. The infant pulled back, resisting the soft pads of his feet being touched. The mother moved closer as a warning. Christopher found the prickly thorn. The youngster howled and burnt the top of a tree with his fiery breath when it was pulled it out. But after the salve was applied, he ran off to play as if nothing had happened.
The rabbit appeared a few days later looking grim and worried. Christopher followed him for miles, all the way to the saltwater edge of the sea. The beast that laid half on the beach and half in the sea was so gigantic and angry that it stunned Christopher. The massive head heaved in front of him.
Christopher walked hesitantly, but quickly. When he was a foot away, the mouth opened and he saw rows of teeth stacked on top of each other. He immediately saw that one was blackened and broken. It must have been causing great pain. Without thinking he reached in and grasped the tooth. The mouth automatically shut, but the pressure on his arm was light. The rabbit ran around the beach agitated.
Despite his fear, Christopher wrapped his small hand around the tooth and yanked. The eyes of the beast opened as it started to give. He had expected soulless black eyes, but they were like two tiny iridescent pearls. His arm was released at the same time as the tooth. To this day, he has a row of white scars that climb up his arm reminding him that healing and hurt go hand in hand.
Misfit Emporium: Mixed Media Painting