A rose for the blood of the innocent

Once, long ago, there was a good man who had two children. A girl by his first wife, who had died while giving birth to a beautiful child. The second was a boy from his second wife. The girl who he named, Lilith was as white as milk, her lips as crimson as cherries, ripe in summer. Her hair was like golden silk that flowed down to the ground. Her brother, Gavril, loved her dearly, and would follow her everywhere to protect her, even though he was the younger of the two.

Her stepmother despised her greatly though because her husband and son loved the child dearly.

One day she hatched a plan to be rid of fair Lilith forever.

“Child” she called one day, “Go to the candle maker and bring me some candles, for the nights get longer and we are almost out of candles”. So she gave some money to Lilith and sent her away, knowing that Gavril would come in to ask her where she was off to.

Sooner or later Gavril came in and asked her, “Where be my fair sister Lilith, for I much desire to play with her”.

“She has gone yonder, some miles out of town, to pick some wild roses; they are her favourites after all”.

“Then I will seek her out, for woe betide me if she even pricks her finger”, saying this he ran out after her. The evil stepmother smiled in his wake.

Lilith bought the candles and was off back home when she came across a stile. She put the candles down on the floor and began to climb over. Just as she was over a stray dog came and mistook the small bundle for food picked it up in his mouth and ran off.

So Lilith went back to the candle maker a second time and bought some more candles, when she came to the stile again she the bundle down and began to climb over again, this time a young crook came, thinking there was something valuable in the packet picked it up and ran off.

Lilith went a third time to the candle maker and bought some more, when she reached the stile a third time she began to climb up but she slipped and fell onto the candles and ruined them. She began to cry as she went home.

The stepmother was angry but pretended not to mind the loss. She called the child to her.

Gavril searched everywhere for his Lilith but could not find her, he visited all the places she could have gone but with no luck. Then he felt a dread in his heart he had never felt before and before he knew it he was off home running as fast as he could, a single word upon his lips, “Lilith”.

“Come, lay your head on my lap child, so that I may comb your hair”. Lilith laid her head on her stepmothers lap. When she began to comb Lilith’s hair the hair fell across her knees and onto the floor.

The stepmother hated her more for the beauty of her hair, so she said to her, “I cannot part your hair on my knee, fetch me a billet of wood”.

Little Lilith went and fetched her stepmother a billet of wood.

“I cannot part your hair with a comb” she said next, “Fetch me a knife”.

Little Lilith ran off once again and fetched a knife.

“Now” said the wicked step mother in a sweet tone, “Lay your head down on the billet”.

Lilith lay down her sweet, golden head on the billet. The stepmother raised the knife and cut her own step daughters throat, then proceeded to behead the child. Once she done so, she wiped the knife clean and laughed.

She then took the heart and liver of the girl, stewed them and brought them into the house for supper. The husband tasted the stew and shook his head, “I do not wish to eat this, it tastes strange”.

Just then Gavril came running into the house and asked, “Where is Lilith, tell me for I have searched everywhere and could not find her”.

The stepmother pushed down into a chair, took a spoon of the stew and tried to force feed him. He pushed her away and ran out into the garden, took up his sister, put her in a box and buried her.

There he sat and wept for days on end, there was nothing his mother or father could do to make him stop. Everyday a little green stem grew out of the ground and grew taller, everyday a bud would open revealing a crimson, wild rose. Gavril marvelled at this.

One day he awoke and found a white bird sitting on the bush. It sang a song again and again till Gavril thought he could hear words.

“Hear me sing a song

Hear me, sing along

My wicked mother slew me

My dear father ate me

My little brother whom I love

Weeps below, I sing above

Hear me sing a song

Hear me, sing along”.

The bird flew off and sat out side a shoemakers shop.

“Hear me sing a song

Hear me, sing along

My wicked mother slew me

My dear father ate me

My little brother whom I love

Weeps below, I sing above

Hear me sing a song

Hear me, sing along”.

“Sing again” said the shoemaker.

“Give me those red shoes and I shall sing again” the bird replied.

The shoemaker gave the bird the shoes and then sang again. It flew off to a tree outside a watchmakers shop and sang.

“Hear me sing a song

Hear me, sing along

My wicked mother slew me

My dear father ate me

My little brother whom I love

Weeps below, I sing above

Hear me sing a song

Hear me, sing along”.

“Sing again” said the watchmaker.

“Give me a watch and I’ll sing again” said the bird. The watchmaker gave the bird a watch with a gold chain. The bird sang again the flew off to a tree where millers were picking mill stones.

“Hear me sing a song

Hear me, sing along

My wicked mother slew me

My dear father ate me

My little brother whom I love

Weeps below, I sing above

Hear me sing a song

Hear me, sing along”.

“Sing again, sweet bird” they said.

“Give me a mill stone and I shall sing again” replied the bird. So they hung a mill stone around the bird’s neck and it sang again. It then flew away, holding the shoes with one foot, the watch in the other, and millstone about its neck.

It flew back to the house and banged the millstone against the eaves of the house.

“It thunders” said the step mother. Gavril ran outside and a pair of crimson shoes fell out the air and landed in his hands.

He ran inside and showed them to his mother.

The bird banged the millstone against the eaves of the house again.

“It thunders” said the stepmother again.

This time the father went out side and a watch with a golden chain fell out the sky and landed in his hands.

The father ran in, laughing and showed them what he brought.

“See what the thunder has brought us” they said.

The bird banged on the eaves of the house once more.

This time the stepmother an out side saying, “What does the thunder bring me?” Out of the sky fell the millstone and hit her on the head. The step mother stumbled to the ground and died.

The white bird was never seen again.