Short Stories

Jorinda and Jorindel ~ T Twisted Tale

This is a story is getting the “T” treatment. It was originally told  by the Grimms’ Kinder und Hausmarchen which translates as Grimms’ Children’s and Household Tales. We know them as Fairy tales.
A note about this story: This was originally written as the witch being an old Fairy.   The Victorian era gave us the ethereal fairy that is eternally good, however, pre-Victorian, Fairies were often seen as dangerous and viewed with suspicion. What we called a witch was called a fairy. This was most likely because they were magic and magic was evil.

Jorinda and Jorindel

Once upon a time there was a very old castle that stood in the middle of the dark, gloomy old woods, which is of course, normal for old castles. You know the type. If they were doing renovations on a TV show they would pick this place and, of course, run into all kinds of structural, electrical joirndaand plumbing issues. This would cause a problem with the budget, but in the end, would turn out beautiful.  Except this castle would not be on TV because this tale takes place way before TV and there was a witch who lived in the castle. Kind of puts the whole kibosh on the whole 60 minute house renovations for our viewing enjoyment.   This witch, she liked to say she was a fairy for she was a tad delusional, enjoyed spending the day in the form of a owl or a cat.  Who could blame her? Her nose drooped so far down it almost reached her chin which was turn up so much it almost reached her nose.  Not even going to talk about her skin conditions. Poor thing.  When night fell, she would return to her true form, that of an old, wrinkled, warty witch. The Witch (if she had a name no one knew it or else I would use it instead of Witch) had be-spelled the castle and the land around it so that if a lad came near he would be fixed to the spot like a living statue.  He would remain that way until the old witch came and released him.    She would only do so if he promised to never come back.  If a young maiden came by, she was not so lucky, for the old witch turned her into a bird and into a cage.  The witch would then hang up the cage in a chamber in her castle. The old witch had seven hundred cages in the castle with beautiful birds in every one of them.

In the village several miles away, there lived the most beautiful of all maidens in the land. She was so beautiful that she won every modelling contest in the surround realm.  Her name was Jorinda and she was in love with a shepherd named Jorindel. They were to be married soon.  Oh!  The tabloids had gone crazy with their articles and the paparazzi followed the pair everywhere. A Jorindabeautiful maiden in love with and about to marry a plain ol’ shepherd was big news. The gossips mongers were going crazy with rumors of pregnancy, forced marriage, you name it.  One day, the pair decided to get away from everyone and snuck into the woods. They were being careful to stay away from the old witch’s castle, they had heard the rumors.  It was such a beautiful afternoon, but soon both were tired.  Jorinda had not worn the proper shoes. She had had no idea they were to go traipsing through the woods that day.  Jorindel tired of hearing her complain about her feet and how hard it was to walk in 6 inch heels. decided they should go back. When they turned around, however, there were many paths. Neither one had been paying attention so they were good and lost.  Jorinda had starred in a movie about being lost in the woods so she knew about being lost. She suggested they sit and wait for rescue.  Jorindel agreed and so they sat.

After a bit, Jorindel looked behind him.  He discovered that they had, without knowing it, sat down close to the old castle.  Afraid, he turned to Jorinda, who was singing a song. She had won The JorindaVillage Got talent and Village Idol both, her singing was stunning.  Jorindel forgot what he was going to say and closed eyes to listen to Jorinda’s song. Eyes eyes flew open when her song ended abruptly.   The poor lad saw his beautiful bride to be turned into a nightingale.  Jorindel tried to go to her, but he was stuck fast to the ground.   Soon the old witch, shuffled into view. She laughed at Jorindel, her voice scratching his ears. She grabbed Jorinda and put her in cage. Jorindel tried to say something but he could not. He could not move or speak.  Nothing he could do.   The nasty woman shuffle doff with Jorinda in a   gilded cage, but came back shortly.   She sang this song.:

‘Till the prisoner is fast, And her doom is cast, There

stay! Oh, stay! When the charm is around her, And the

spell has bound her, Hie away! away!’

He thought her voice was awful, like sandpaper on a wash board, and the lyrics were dubious at best, but he was suddenly free.  Like all men he was embarrassed he lost his truelove and could not Jorindago back to his village.  The thought of facing the paparazzi and the questions made shudder. He decided to wander about. One day he found a strange village.  There he stayed and found a good job keeping sheep.  Yet many times he went back to the castle to try to figure out how to get in there and save his beloved.   Not to mention he was getting weary of always looking over his shoulder, lest a reporter showed up unannounced. He never could figure out a way into the castle, though.   He despaired of ever finding her again until one day he a dream.  In his dream a good fairy came to him and showed him a beautiful purple flower with a precious perfect dewdrop in the middle. Everything he touched with this flower become un-enchanted. He awoke the next day and spent a week looking for the flower. Finally he found it. He plucked it, and without hesitation ran to the witch’s castle.

With flower in hand, he found he didn’t become fixed as before. He went to the door and touched it with the flower. The door opened. Jorindel walked around a bit admiring what must be antiques strewn about the place. Finally, he came upon a chamber that had 701 birdcages all filled with beautiful nightingales.  One of them must be his Jorinda!  He took a good look, all the birds looked the same and they all sang the same song. He sighed. He wasn’t sure how he would be able to find his Jorinda, when the witch came into the chamber.  She shrieked at him obscenities at him. She is a witch. It is what they do, so Jorindel was not offended.  She grabbed a cage with the most beautiful bird in it.  Jorindel knew that must be his love so he ran after the witch and touch the cage with the flower. Suddenly the cage disappeared and there before him stood his Jorinda. He then touched the witch and she disappeared in a cloud of smoke.   After the coughing fit caused by second hand witch smoke, The two lovers hug each other overjoyed.  After making Jorindel take off her heels, the pair went about touching all the other cages turning the birds back into maiden.

Jorinda and Jorindel were married  in Camelot , but the papers and rags only slightly paid attention. They were consumed with the fact that 700 maidens thought lost forever suddenly showed up. There were some happy reunions and some not so happy, seems like some of the lads had moved on. Oh such scenes. The castle? Well, Jorindel and Jorinda waited seven years before filing an abandoned property claim and then buying the castle and the land, Jorindel was a bit nervous, but with the witch gone, so was the spells. They tore down the castle and built a beautiful new manor on the land.   Oh it was a beauty.  Tastefully decorated by the top designers it became the place to see and be seen.  Jorinda and Jorindel had a dozen children all looking their mother, thankfully ,and they all lived happily ever after.

Joirnda