Tale 162: The Legend of Ryan (Misty)

(real tale: Pinkel the Thief)

"A long time ago, in a land far from here, there lived a widow who had three sons." Misty begins. "The two eldest though they were on the lazy side, some of the neighbors gave them work to do because their mom was highly respected. But by the time our story begins, they had both been so careless and lazy that their masters sent them home."

An uneasy silence fills the air before Misty continues "So they returned to their mother and youngest brother, who they didn't really like, because he made himself useful around the house, looked after the Combuskens, and milked the Miltank."

"What's this boy's name?" Ash interrupts.

Misty thinks of a suitable name for the boy. "Let's call him Ryan, okay?"

Ash nods in approval of the name, so Misty continues "Anyway, Ryan's brothers thought it was much nicer to live at home and do nothing than do chores they did not like, and they would have stayed by the fire till their dying day; but their mom lost patience with them. She was about to kick them out of the house when Ryan told her that he too was old enough to go out into the world and seek his fortune too."

"So did Ryan get to go too?" Melody asks.

"The woman wept many tears at telling her youngest son goodbye, but as she saw that his heart was set on going with his brothers, she did not try to stop him." Misty assures the group. So the boys left early in the morning with high morale, never doubting that their idea of work was there for the taking."

She pauses for a moment, then continues "But a few days of wandering opened their eyes. Nobody seemed to want them, or, if they did, the two lazy brothers said that they were not able to do all that the farmers or millers or woodcutters required of them. Ryan, who was wiser, would gladly have done some of the work that the others refused, but no one thought of offering him any. So they went from one town to another, living only on the Berries and nuts they could find in the woods, and getting hungrier by the day."

"And then?" Brock asks, piqued

"One night, after they had been walking for hours and were very tired, they came to a large lake with an island in the middle of it." Misty replies. "A bright light shone from the island, so bright that it looked like daytime. Just then, they spotted a boat in the reeds..."

"Azu?" Azurill asks.

"The eldest brother suggested that they use the boat to row over to the island." Misty explains. "So they rowed across in the direction of the light. As they approached the island, they saw that it came from a golden lantern hanging over the door of a house, while sweet tinkling music came from from some bells attached to the horns of a Shiny Gogoat. The boys' hearts rejoiced at the thought of being able to rest, but they entered the hut, they saw an ugly old woman inside, wrapped in a cloak of gold which lit up the whole house. They looked at each other uneasily as she came forward with her daughter, as they knew by the cloak that this was an infamous witch."

Ash swallows hard as Misty goes on "She demanded what the boys wanted, and the eldest brother explained they needed food and shelter for the night. The witch shooed the two elder boys away, but asked that Ryan stay with her, But Ryan talked the witch into letting him go with his brothers."

"So where did they go?" Brock wonders.

"They came at last to a palace in another land." Misty replies. "The king put the two eldest in charge of the royal stables, and Ryan he made the servant to his son the prince--who we'll call Destin. Ryan proved to be a clever and amusing servant, and the king noticed this as well, and often allowed him in his own service, which made his brothers very jealous."

"Uh oh..." Melody giggles.

"This went on for some time, and every day Ryan earned the favor of someone on the royal court." Misty continues. Finally, his brothers' jealousy was so powerful they couldn't stand it. So one day, they told the king of the wonderful lantern over the witch's hut. The king loved collecting all the rarest things he could find and asked where he could get this marvelous lantern."

"They told the king to send Ryan after it, right?" Brock smiles.

"That and if he succeeded, the king would make him chief advisor." Misty replies. "Ryan eagerly agreed, and set out for the island. It was late by the time he arrived, and almost dark, but he knew by the savory smell inside that the witch was cooking her dinner. So he climbed onto the roof, and watched till the old woman's back was turned, when he quickly grabbed a handful of salt from his pocket and threw it into the pot. Suddenly, the witch called her daughter and asked her lift the pot off the fire and put the stew into a dish, as it had been cooking for a while and she was hungry. But no sooner had she tasted it did she put her spoon down, and declared that her daughter must have been messing with it, for it was nigh on impossible to eat anything that was all made of salt."

"The boys laugh as Misty goes on "So the girl took her bucket in one hand and the golden lantern in the other, and hurried to the well. Ryan followed, being careful to keep out of the way of the light. When she stooped to fill her bucket at the well Ryan pushed her into it, and snatching up the lantern hurried back to his boat and rowed off from the shore, all without the witch knowing what he had done."

Brock leads some applause at this. "The sun had not yet risen when Ryan returned to the palace, and, entering the king's chamber, he held up the lantern, making it as bright as the heavens." Misty continues. "The king woke with a jump, and when he saw the golden lantern, he hugged Ryan and appointed him his chief advisor.

"I have a feeling I know where this is going..." Ash giggles.

"Of course, this made the brothers more even more jealous; and some weeks later they told the king of the Shiny Gogoat. Ryan eagerly agreed to get it, in exchange for a portion of the kingdom." Misty explains. "This time it was easier for Ryan to approach the island unseen, as there was no lantern. But, on the other hand, the Gogoat slept inside the hut, and would therefore have to be taken from under the very eyes of the old woman. How was he to do it?"

"You tell me." Brock challenges.

"The first thing he did when he reached the shore was to look for a piece of wood, and when he had found one, he hid himself close to the hut, till it grew dark and near the hour when the witch and her daughter went to bed." Misty explained. "Then he crept up and fixed the wood under the door, which opened outwards, in such a manner that the more you tried to shut it the more firmly it stuck. And this was exactly what happened when the girl went to lock up for the night."

Ash chuckles as Misty continues "They gave up on it after a bit of a struggle, and as soon as they were asleep, Ryan saw his chance. He tiptoed inside, and gave the Gogoat its favorite food. While the Gogoat was eating, Ryan stuffed each golden bell with wool, being ever alert in case the witch woke up, and what kind of Pokemon he would turn into when he was discovered. But the snoring still continued, and he worked as quickly as he could. When the last bell was full he offered the Gogoat more food, and it and followed Ryan all the way his boat, all without the witch having a clue what had happened.

"Ooh..." Melody giggles.

"The king was so delighted with the Gogoat that he always kept it by his side, night and day; and, as he had promised, Ryan was made ruler over a third of the kingdom." Misty explained. "The brothers were even more furious, and a few weeks later, they told the king about the golden cloak."

"Ryan said he'd get it, right?" Ash smiles.

"And if he could do it, he would receive the princess'--who was named Brenna--hand in marriage and be named his successor." Misty adds. "So Ryan put a large bag inside his coat, and pushed off from the shore, being careful to reach the island in daylight. When he got there, he walked up to the hut. The witch threatened to kill him, but before she could rend him with a knife, Ryan suggested he have one last meal--and if she wanted, poison the broth, for all he cared."

Brock stifles a giggle as Misty continues "The witch did just that, but Ryan just poured the poisoned broth into the bag, then played dead. The witch believed Ryan really was dead, and left to go get some ingredients for a potion. That bought Ryan enough time to take the cloak and escape, all without the witch having a clue what really happened."

She concludes "He carried the cloak to the palace, and in return received the hand of Princess Brenna in marriage. When it came time for Ryan to ascend the throne, he ruled his subjects with a wise and just hand alongside Brenna. As for his brothers, he did not punish them, but left them in the stables, where they grumbled all day long."