April 19
Dear Diary,
Today, my father has decided it’s time for me to get married. He
told me any man can have my hand. He doesn’t care who it is. I know my father
wished I was a son, but I don’t understand why he hates me so much. Since I was
a kid, he has been distant towards me. Oh well. Soon, because of him, I will marry
some strange man and never see him again.
April 23
So, it happened. A man came for my hand. He is the most atrocious
man I think I’ve ever seen. I cannot believe father would let a man like that
take me. He just wants me out of his hair. I went to the hen-wife to ask for
advice. She said, “Say you will not take him unless they give you a coat of
silver cloth.” And tomorrow, that’s just what I’ll do.
April 25
Dear Diary,
I told him what the hen-wife had said and he did it! He showed up the next day with the coat. Tomorrow I’m
going back and trying again. Hopefully this time, she gives advice that will put an end to this man's advances. I’ll let you know how it goes.
Love,
April 29
Ugh, it didn’t work! Again! This time, she told me, “Say you will
not take him unless they give you a coat of beaten gold.” And of course, he
returns the next day with said coat. I cannot win. I do not want to marry him! He’s
old, ugly and has a weird smell. Why can’t I marry for love? Father and Mother
married because they loved each other. Why can’t Father let me do the same?
Until next time..
Love,
May 3
I returned one more time to the hen-wife. Once again she told me
to tell the man, “Say you will not take him unless they give you a coat made of
the feathers of all the birds of the air.” This time when I repeated her
message, he sent a man with peas to cry out to the birds, “Each bird take a
pea, and put down a feather.” To which they obliged. He returned THAT NIGHT
with the coat. He is relentless. I went back to the hen-wife asking her what I
must do this time. She responded, “Say they must first make you a coat of
catskin.” I did so and now I must wait. Hopefully this request is too much for
him and he will give up. One can only hope though.
Love,
May 7
Dear Diary,
He returned with a coat of catskin…OF COURSE! I cannot marry this
man. So I have decided to leave. I won’t be a bother to Father and I won’t have
to marry that man. It’s a win win for everyone, except for the man, but I don’t
care. He can find someone else.
May 13
Dear Diary,
Sorry it has been so long. When I left Father’s, I put my catskin
coat on, grabbed the other coats and ran. Eventually I came upon a castle. I hid
my dresses outside and went in to ask for work. The only work they could give
me was scullion, which means I do all the dirty work in the kitchen, GROSS! It’s
better than being married to that gross man I suppose. Anyways, the cook hates
me. She is so cruel all the time. She has also given me the name Catskin,
because of my dress. At least I don’t have to tell anyone my real name.
May 24
Oh my, so much has happened since the last time I wrote. The most
important is that I met the love of my life! He’s so handsome and sweet. The
only problem is that he is the young lord of the house. I can never be with him. A
few days ago, he was returning home, so the lady of the house threw a grand
ball to honor him. I snuck out that night, bathed in a crystal waterfall and
put on my coat of silver. As soon as I walked in, nobody could take their eyes
off me. I received so many compliments that night. I accidentally bumped into the
young lord and we immediately fell in love. He asked me to dance and we did so
all night. It was magical. Sadly, it had to come to an end. I hope to see him
again.
May 29
I saw him again! Word around the house is that the lord fell in
love with the lady in silver and refuses to marry anyone else. They threw
another ball and of course I had to show up. I snuck out again, bathed in the
crystal waterfall (it makes my skin so soft), and this time I wore my coat of
beaten gold. Once again, all eyes were on me. It made me nervous. I thought
someone would recognize me as the scullery maid, yet nobody did. Again, we danced all night and it
was magical. Afterward, I had to rush back to the kitchen before the cook
realized I was gone. She would not be happy if she found out what I was doing.
June 6
Dear Diary,
So much has happened! They threw another ball. This time I wore my
coat of feathers. Everyone was in awe of my dress. I felt like a princess. My
love and I danced all night, yet again. Once the night came to an end, I had to
hurry back to the kitchen. Only this time, he followed me. He saw me change
into my catskin dress and immediately knew who I was. When he told me of his discovery, my heart
sank. I knew this was goodbye. How could he love me? A dirty scullery-maid. I
was wrong though. He told his mother that he wanted to marry me and fell ill
when she told him no. The lord told the doctor that he refused to take any
medicine unless it was from my hands. The lady of the castle had to approve or
her son would die. Now, we are set to be married at the end of the month! My
dreams have finally come true and I couldn’t be happier.
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