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    Aunt Ursula's Atlas
    Aunt Ursula's Atlas
    Aunt Ursula's Atlas
    Ebook122 pages1 hour

    Aunt Ursula's Atlas

    By Lucy D. Ford

    ()

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    About this ebook

    On a high shelf, in a hidden library,
    There is a book of unknown wonders.

    Open its pages. Explore mysterious lands.
    See for yourself what lies within
    Aunt Ursula's Atlas.

    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherDeby Fredericks
    Release dateDec 12, 2016
    ISBN9780997780703
    Aunt Ursula's Atlas

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      Book preview

      Aunt Ursula's Atlas - Lucy D. Ford

      Aunt Ursula's Atlas

      Dedication

      For the two women writers who have inspired me:

      Andre Norton

      Ursula K. LeGuin

      Indicia

      TEXT © 2023 BY DEBORAH J. Fredericks.

      Cover illustration and design by Margaret Organ Keane.

      All rights reserved.

      No generative AI has been used in the conceptualization, development, or drafting of this work.

      No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means, including information storage and retrieval systems, without written permission from the author, except for the use of brief quotations in a book review.

      This is a work of fiction. All characters and events portrayed in this book are fictitious, and any resemblance to real people is purely coincidental.

      Also by Lucy D. Ford

      Masters of Air & Fire

      Acknowledgments

      THE DRAGON KING WAS originally published in Song of the Siren electronic magazine, June 2003

      The Changeling Daughter was originally published in Song of the Siren, January 2004

      Table of Contents

      Forward

      1. The Donkey and the Unicorn

      2.  The Dragon King

      3.  A Basket of Trouble

      4. The Beggar of Banberelle

      5. The Dragon Stone

      6. The Changeling Daughter

      7. The Lemon Tree

      8. Harvest Day

      9. Lady Swallow

      10. The Dragon's Ghost

      11. The Raggedy Old Woman

      Forward

      THERE ONCE WAS A YOUNG girl who loved fairy tales. She adored the beautiful visions. An underground forest where the trees had leaves of silver and gold. A princess ensconced on a glass hill.

      Then there were the marvelous and terrifying creatures. Dwarves, dragons, fairy godmothers. Wicked witches, talking cats, dogs with eyes the size of saucers. Cruel or kind, she loved them all.

      The young girl savored their mystery and magic, how anything could happen in a fairy tale. The great and proud might fall so they could learn compassion. The lowly might face mortal peril and somehow persevere. What seemed to be nonsense could hold deep meaning.

      Years passed, and the girl became a woman. She wanted to be a writer, so she studied and worked hard, just like any princess or soldier in a fairy tale. Although she had read a lot of books, and enjoyed most of them, she still loved fairy tales best of all. She decided that she wanted to write new fairy tales, so she could share all the beauty and danger, the mystery and magic, with other young girls and boys.

      The woman discovered a curious thing: it was really hard to get fairy tales published. They are too long for some magazines and too short for others. They are too simple, or too complex. Too sad, or too happy, or just not real enough.

      Well, the woman was discouraged, but she kept writing fairy tales. Soldiers and princesses don't just give up, you know. Now she has written enough tales to fill up a book. She's published it herself and she offers it to you with the humble hope that, whoever you are, whether princess or tailor, soldier or goat girl, you will fall in love with fairy tales, too.

      So, are you ready? Got a backpack with some rope and a bit of bread? Got your hiking boots and your waterproof cloak? Then come along as we explore the wonders and terrors of Aunt Ursula's Atlas!

      ❦

      The Donkey and the Unicorn

      ONCE THERE WAS A DONKEY who lived on a farm between a vast forest and a swift-running river.  She was a large and sturdy donkey with rough gray fur, great heavy hooves, and a loud braying voice.  Together with the other donkeys on the farm she worked hard, ate well, and slept contentedly.

      Now it happened that a unicorn lived in the wildwood.  On the nights of the full moon, he came to drink from the river's clear waters and eat the tender grass on its banks.  The unicorn had to cross the farm to get to the river.  One night, the donkey awoke and saw the unicorn passing near the corral where all the donkeys slept.

      The unicorn was graceful and shy, with sleek fur like starshine and a mane like moonglow.  His eyes were dark pools brimming with secrets, and his horn curved like the golden sickle of the moon.  The donkey was enchanted by his loveliness.  She stared, entranced, until he vanished from sight in the wildwood.

      The next day the donkey was bursting with tales of the marvelous unicorn.  She could speak of nothing else but his slender legs and flowing tail.  For the first time, the donkey realized what drudgery it was to pull a plow and be whipped by the farmer if she tarried.  She longed to be as free as the unicorn.

      After a few days, the other donkeys became bored with her endless stories.  Finally the oldest donkey sneered, If the unicorn is so wonderful, why don't you go with him?

      Oh, I couldn't do that, stammered the donkey.

      But the oldest donkey had given a name to her desire, and so the donkey waited anxiously for the unicorn to return.  Night after night she stayed up late—all in vain.  Just when she was about to give up hope, the full moon rose again and the unicorn glided across the meadow on his cloven hooves.

      Just as before, the donkey was overwhelmed by his beauty.  Before she could think better of it, she leapt the bars of the corral and galloped to his side on her great heavy hooves.

      O unicorn, she brayed, you are so beautiful!  I want to be like you.  Please let me come with you into the wildwood.

      The unicorn was surprised to see her, and not well pleased.  He said to himself, What do I want with a great, hairy, noisy creature like this?  But the donkey was very earnest, and her words flattered him.

      He snorted with amusement. Very well.  But remember, it is what you asked for.

      Rejoicing, the donkey followed the unicorn into the forest.  But the wildwood was dark and full of tangled branches.  The donkey could barely see her way.  The unicorn was small, quick, and slender.  He could squeeze through narrow gaps in the trees where the donkey, because she was so big, could hardly manage.  Soon her sides were bruised and scraped, and it was all she could do to keep up with him.

      She will soon fall behind, thought the unicorn, and I will be rid of her.

      But the donkey persisted, and she somehow stayed with him all through the night.  At dawn, the exhausted donkey lay down beside the unicorn in a thicket of downed branches.  Now, the donkey was used to being awake in the daytime and sleeping at night, while the unicorn moved only in darkness.  It was hard for her to sleep.  The bed seemed prickly compared to the soft straw of a stable.  The donkey rolled over and over, disturbing the unicorn, and when she finally fell asleep, she began to snore.

      The unicorn felt very put-out by his companion.  That evening, he said to himself, Tonight I shall push her harder, until she has to go home.

      Despite her wounds and her weariness, the donkey put on a cheerful face and asked where they might find some breakfast.  So the unicorn led her onto high rocks where wildflowers bloomed in the night.  His dainty feet had no trouble with the narrow ledges, but the donkey's great heavy hooves began to ache.  The buds the unicorn nibbled seemed sour compared to the mashed oats the farmer used to give her after a hard day's work. 

      Moreover, the unicorn was truly a wild creature, silent and wary, while the donkey chattered constantly.  She tried to be quiet when

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