The Firethorn Bird

THE FIRETHORN BIRD

by Cordites Tun

A few thousand years ago, there was a Tabaxi noble who had a beautiful and elegant wife with silky black fur. When they married he planed a Firethorn bush for her, in their garden, near the edge of the woods. They loved one another dearly, but they had no children. So they wished and prayed for some night and day, but still they had none. In front of their house was a yard, where stood a Firethorn Bush with beautiful bright red berries. The noble and his wife stood once in winter, and took some of the berries, and as they picked the red berry both cut their fingers, and the droplets of juice and their blood mixed as they fell onto the snow.

“Dear me,” said the wife, sighing deeply and looking sorrowfully at the blood, “if only we had a child as red as my blood, as sweet as these berries, and as white as snow!” The noble agreed.

While the wife spoke, she became so joyful. In her thoughts she believed as if her wish would surely come true. The noble too felt some delight fill his heart. Then the wife and the noble walked in the woods to sit by a stream, talking of what their imagined child would be like. The Wild Sisters Eldath and Mielikki listened.

A month passed, and the snow melted. Two months past, and the ground became lush and green. Three months gone, and the flowers came up out of the earth. Four months following, and all the trees in the wood burst forth, and the green twigs all grew thickly together. The little birds sang so that the whole wood rang, calling to Mielikki to come see their beauty. The blossoms fell gently from the trees. The fifth month passed, and she stood by the thorned Firethorn bush, and it smelt so beautiful, and her heart leaped for joy. She fell upon her knees, caring not for the grass stains on her gown. She was unable to speak a word. When the sixth month was gone, the berries was large and ripe, and she was very quiet. In the seventh month, the wife took the juniper berries, picking them without worry of the thorns, letting her blood form droplets on the berries flesh. She ate them eagerly, and became rather ill and melancholy. Then the eighth month went by, and she finally spoke. She called to the noble, weeping and said, “If I die, bury me under our Firethorn Bush.”

After this she was quite comforted and calm. The next month which was the ninth one, past by, and she gave birth to a child as white as snow, as sweet as the berries, and as red as blood. When the wife held it, she was so full of love, and smiled as she died.

Her husband buried her under the Firethorn Bush, and began to mourn very much. After a little time, he became calmer, and when he had wept a little more, he left off weeping entirely. He had a baby boy to raise. Soon afterwards he took another wife. A Tabaxi who unknowing to him was of mystic nature.

The second wife brought with her a daughter named Juniper. A small tabaxi girl with wide eyes and a soft purr. The baby boy of the first wife was as sweet as berries, and was as red as blood, and as white as snow. When the second wife looked at her daughter, whom she loved she felt delight. However, whenever she looked at the little boy, she hated him so, and it seemed as if he were always in her way, and she was always thinking how she could get all the property of the noble for her daughter.

one day, the wife was stilling in front of her mirror, and complaining out loud over the boy. The Goddess Sharran heard her, and possessed her, so that she was infuriated with the little boy. She found him playing in the soot from the fire. She pushed him about from one corner to another, and cuffed him here and pinched him there, until the poor child was always in fear. When he came inside from doing errands and chore, or from playing, he could not find a quiet place to creep into. he spent more and more time outside. The wife complained to the noble of the boy's laziness and for disobeying her.The noble could get not sense out of hs son.

Once, when the woman went up to her room, her little daughter came up too, and said, “Ma, give me an apple.”

“Yes, my darling child,” said the woman, and gave her a beautiful apple out of the chest. The chest had a great heavy lid, with a great sharp iron lock.

“Ma,” said Juniper, “can brother have one too?”

That vexed the woman, however she said, “Yes, when he comes inside.”

And when she saw from the window that he was coming, it was just as if the Goddess Sharran came into her so strongly, and she snatched away the apple from her daughter, and said, “You shall not have one before your brother.”

Then she threw the apple into the chest, and shut the lid close down. When the little boy came in at the door, the Goddess made her say kindly, “Son, will you have an apple?”

Yet she looked so angry all the time, that the little boy said, “Ma, ehy do you look so frightful! Yes, please give me an apple.”

Then she felt that she must speak to him. ““Come pick out an apple for yourself.” said she, and opened the chest's heavy lid.

As the little boy stooped over, the Goddess Sharran prompted the wife, and smash! she banged the lid down, so hard that his head flew off and fell among the red apples. Then she was seized with terror, and thought, “My husband will kick me out. How can I get rid of the blame of this?”

So she went up to her room to her chest of drawers, and took out of the top drawer a black cloth, and placed the head on the neck again, and tied the handkerchief round it, so that one could see nothing, and set him before the door on a chair, and gave him the apple in his hand.

Soon after, little Juniper came to her mother, who stood by the kitchen fire, and had a pot of hot water before her, which she kept stirring round.

“Ma,” said little Margery, “brother sits by the door, and looks quite pale, and has an apple in his hand. I asked him to give me the apple, but he did not answer me, and I became frightened.”

“Go on ask him again,” said her mother, “and if he will not answer you, then box him on the ear.”

Then Juniper went over, and said, “Brother, give me the apple.”

But he remained silent, and so she gave him a box on the ear, and his head fell down.

Juniper was so frightened, she began to cry and sob. Running to her mother, and said, “Oh, ma, I have knocked my little brother’s head off!” and she cried and cried, and Could not be comforted.

“Juniper,” said her mother, once more influencesd by the Goddess Sharran, “what is it you have done! Quiet now, so i may think. It cannot be helped now." then she said "We will cook him in vinegar and sugar.”

Then the mother took the little boy, and chopping him in pieces, put him into the pot, and cooked him in vinegar and sugar. Juniper stood there, and cried deeply more and more, and all her tears fell into the pot. No salt was added - although the tears made it so salty more sugar had to be added.

When the noble came home, and sat down to dinner, he said, “Where is my dear son?”

The mother brought a great big dish of black soup, and Juniper cried and cried without ceasing. Then the father said again, “Where is my dear son?”

The wife said, “He has gone into the woods. I have not seen him all day long. He told Juniper he would not return.”

“What does it he goes there for? And he has not stayd long enough to say good-bye to his pa!”

“Oh, he wished very much to go. I dared not stop him." She added, thinking on her feet, "He wanted to travel to see the family of his ma.”

“Well that i can understand.” said the father, “I am sorry he is not here. He ought to have bade me good-bye.”

After that he began to eat, and said, “Juniper, what are you crying for? Your little brother will be sure to come back.” he said, “Wife, what a delicious this food tastes, although a little salty. Give me some more.” And the more he ate, the more he wanted. He again said, “Give me more. Shall you not have any of it? I feel as if it were all mine, but I can share a little with you and Juniper. If she will stop her tears.” And he ate bowl full after bowl full, throwing the bones under the table, until he eaten it all.

The wife did not eat any. Juniper did not eat. Nor did she stop her tears. Juniper went to her drawers, and took out of the bottom drawer her best silk handkerchief, which was a gift from the noble. She then fetched out all the bones from under the table. She tied them up in the silk handkerchief, and took them out of doors, and shed many bitter tears over them. Then she laid them under the Firethorn bush in the green grass. She picked a finger on a fallen thorn. Her blood soaked into the soil. Juniper said kind words and asked Mielikki to take them to feed the bush. Once she had put them there, she felt quite happy, and did not cry any more.

Soon the Firethorn bush began to change. The twigs kept dividing and then closing, just as if the tree were clapping its hands for joy. After that there went up from it a sort of mist, and right in the centre of the mist burnt a fire. Out of the fire flew a beautiful bird, who rose up high in the air, singing deliciously. When the bird was out of sight, the Firethorn bush was just as it had been before, only the silk handkerchief with the bones was gone. Juniper felt quite pleased and happy, just as if her little brother were still alive. And she went back into the house to dinner, whistling a tune he and her adored.

The bird flew away, sat himself on a miner’s house, and began to sing:
“The ma, she killed me;
The pa, he ate me;
It was My sister, who
Gathered up all my bones,
Tied them in a handkerchief,
And laid them under the Firethorn bush.
I tweet, I twitter, I chirp!
What a beautiful bird am I!”

The miner sat sharpening his axes. He heard the bird, which sat on his roof, and sang, and he thought it very beautiful. He stood up, and as he went over the door-step, only one of his boot slipped off. Still he went right into the middle of the street, with one boot and one sock on. He had on his leather apron; in one hand he carried an axe, and in the other the held a oily cloth. The sun shone brightly up the street. There the miner stood, and looked at the bird.
“Bird,” said he, “how beautifully you can sing! Sing me that song again.”
“Na,” said the bird, “I will not sing for nothing. If you give me a shiny token, I will sing it again.”
The miner went into his home. Returning with a gold chain.
“Here you go,” said the miner, “have the gold chain - now sing to me that song once more.”

Then the bird came and took the gold chain in his right claw, and went and sat before the miner, and sang:
“The ma, she killed me;
The pa, he ate me;
It was My sister, who
Gathered up all my bones,
Tied them in a handkerchief,
And laid them under the Firethorn bush.
I tweet, I twitter, I chirp!
What a beautiful bird am I!”
Afterwards the bird flew away to a shoemaker’s workshop, and set himself on his roof, and sang:
“The ma, she killed me;
The pa, he ate me;
It was My sister, who
Gathered up all my bones,
Tied them in a handkerchief,
And laid them under the Firethorn bush.
I tweet, I twitter, I chirp!
What a beautiful bird am I!”

When the shoemaker heard it, as he mended a pair of navy shoes. He ran out of his door without his shirt, for he had been sweating inside as he worked. He looked towards his roof, and had to hold his hand over his eyes, so that the sun should not dazzle him.
“Bird,” said the shopemaker, “how beautifully you can sing!”
He called in at his door, “My wife, just come outdoors. There is a bird on our roof which can sing so beautifully.”
Then he called his daughter and his workpeople. So they all came into the street, looked at the bird, and saw how handsome tthe creature was - for he had bright red and white feathers, and his neck shone like real gold, and his eyes twinkled in his head like stars.

“Bird,” said the shoemaker, “now sing me that song again.”
“Na,” replied the bird, “I will not sing again for nothing. You must give me something for a song.”
“Wife,” said the man, “go to get the sapphire gem, it is on the highest shelf there to be placed on a pair of navy shoes - bring it.”
The shoemaker's wife went and fetched the sapphire gem.
“There,” said the man, “now sing me that song again.”

Then the bird came and took the sapphire gem in his left claw and flew back on the roof, and sang:
“The ma, she killed me;
The pa, he ate me;
It was My sister, who
Gathered up all my bones,
Tied them in a handkerchief,
And laid them under the Firethorn bush.
I tweet, I twitter, I chirp!
What a beautiful bird am I!”

And when the bird had finished, he flew away, with the chain in his right claw and the sapphire in his left.
The bird flew far away to a field. Sitting on top a haystack. In the field there worked twenty workers. They were glistening with sweat in the hot sun.
The bird flew up, and sat on a haystack, and sang:
“The ma, she killed me;"
One worker stopped to listen.

"The pa, he ate me;"
Then two more workers stopped and listened.

"It was My sister, who
Gathered up all my bones,"
Then five more workers stopped to listen.

"Tied them in a handkerchief,
And laid them under the Firethorn bush."
Then only two workers remained toiling in the field.

I tweet, I twitter, I chirp!
What a beautiful bird am I!”
Then the last two workers stopped too, and heard the last two words.

“Bird,” said the last man to stop, “how beautifully you sing! May I hear that song from the beginning.”
“Na,” answered the bird, “I will not sing twice for nothing. What shall you give me so I shall sing it again?”
“The mill has a millstone,” said he, “if it belonged to me, I should freely give it.”
The owner of the mill, and all the mill workers had come out to only hear th last line of the song.
“I agree,” cried the mill owner, “if the bird sings it again, he may have it.”

Then the bird came down, and all the mill workers took poles, and lifted the stone up. The bird stuck his neck through the hole in the millstone, and put it on like a collar, and slowly flew back to the haystack. Then the bird sang:
“The ma, she killed me;
The pa, he ate me;
It was My sister, who
Gathered up all my bones,
Tied them in a handkerchief,
And laid them under the Firethorn bush.
I tweet, I twitter, I chirp!
What a beautiful bird am I!”

And when he had done singing, all those listening had a tear in each eye. The bird opened his wings, and though he had in his right claw the chain, in his left the sapphire, and round his neck the millstone, he flew far away to the noble’s house.

In the room looking out to the Firethorn bush, sat the noble, his second wife, and little Juniper at dinner.
The noble said, “Oh, how happy I am! It is joyful to be together. I know my son will return soon.”
“For me,” said the wife, “I feel quite frightened, as if a dreadful storm was coming.”
However Juniper sat quietly. She cried and cried.

Then there came the bird flying, and as he perched himself on the lowest part of the roof of the noble's house.
“Oh,” said the father, “I feel so happy, and the sun shines out of doors so beautifully! Listen! It is just as if I were going to see an old friend.”
“Na,” said the wife; “I am so frightened, my teeth chatter, I am shivering yet it feels as if there was a fire in my veins”, and she removed her dress, so sat only in her undergarments. The noble tore open thje windows. Juniper sat in a corner, and conitnued to cry, holding her apron before her eyes, until the apron was quite wet through.

The bird perched upon the Juniper-tree, and sang: “The ma, she killed me"
Then the noble's wife shut her mouth, blocked her ears, and shut her eyes tight. She did not want to speak, see or hear. Yet there was a thobbing in her throat, a roaring in her ears like the loudest thunder, and her eyes burned and flashed like lightning.

"The pa, he ate me"
“Oh, wife,” said the noble, leaning out the window, “look at that beautiful bird! Does he not sings so splendidly? And the sun shines so warm. There is a smell like real cinnamon!”

"It was My sister, who"
Then Juniper laid her head on her knee, and sobbed out loud.
The noble said, “I must go out to the garden. I must look at the bird closer.”
“Dear man, do not go outside.” said the wife; “Fetch me some water instead. It feels to me as if the whole house shook, and I am in flames.”
But the noble went out and watched the bird, which still went on singing:

"Gathered up all my bones,
Tied them in a handkerchief,
And laid them under the Firethorn bush."

"I tweet, I twitter, I chirp!
What a beautiful bird am I!”

After that, the bird flew from the roof over to the Firethorn bush. As he did, he let the gold chain fall, and it fell right on to the man’s neck, fitting exactly round it.
He went in and said, “See what a beautiful bird that is. Look it has given me such a splendid gold chain!”
But the wife was frightened, and knelt down on the floor, and her cap dropped off her head.

Then the bird sang again: “The ma, she killed me"
The wife wailed, “Oh, that I were a thousand feet under the earth, so that I might not hear!”

"The pa, he ate me"
Then the wife fell down, as she had fainted.

It was My sister, who
Gathered up all my bones"
Juniper stopped drying, and said, “I will go outside too, and see the bird. I wonder if it will give me anything.”
The sapphire dropped into Juniper's hands, as the bird circled once above her.

"Tied them in a handkerchief,
And laid them under the Firethorn bush.
I tweet, I twitter, I chirp!
What a beautiful bird am I!”

Then Juniper was very joyful. Her fingers smoothed and polished the sapphire. She danced and jumped about. She said, “I was so unhappy when I came out, and now I am so delighted! That is a wonderful bird; he has given me a sapphire. See how it shines.”

“For me,” cried the wife, and jumped up, and her hair stood on end like she had been hit by lightning, “I feel as if the world were come to an end; I will go outside. Just perhaps I shall feel easier.”

But as she went out of the door, smash! The bird dropped the millstone on her head, and she was crushed into ground.

The Tabaxi noble and Juniper heard it, and rushed out to see what had happened.
There was only the millstone and blood where the wife had been. A shadowy smoke rushed away from the smashed body.

A great flame and smoke rising up from the place the Firethorn bush stood. When that was finally gone, there stood the noble's son, in front of the Firethorn bush. He was alive again - as if he had never died.

He took his father and Juniper by the hand, and all three had tears in their eyes. The noble hugged his son. Suddenly the noble was very hungry. They were so happy to be together again. As they ate dinner together, the noble's son explained how he had truely died.

---

Based on The Juniper Tree by the Grimm Brothers.