Cindy's Grim Tale - Why Didst Thou Dim the Light?

Hello Steemians!

I mentioned how writing your own fairy tales can be therapeutic in a previous post. That post also explains the 3 STEEM bounty I have set on my June fairy tale posts. You can learn more about using storytelling as therapy and the requirements for the bounty there.

If you missed the first part of my fairy tale, you can check it out here.

The second part of my fairy tale is a special tribute to my father. We had a magical relationship from early on.

Ruth returned from the hospital with Rhonda, but Cliff stayed in the hospital under medical watch. One day a black bird did come and roost on the cottage roof, and Ruth said this was a bad sign.

Sure enough, the next day a messenger delivered the news that Ruth’s four year-old nephew, Bobby died in his bed. Bobby was the son of Ruth’s brother, Jimmy, and put the gleam in his eye.

With Cliff still sick, the family was not able to journey back to the land of the Deep South to comfort Jimmy and to help him bury Bobby.

Eventually Cliff was able to return to the cottage, but he was still unable to return to the Special Forces duty. After some months, just before Rhonda’s first birthday, Cliff took his family back to the castle in the Deep South land.

No longer able to do battle, he had been released from all his duties as a knight. From that day forward, Cliff was very sad.

Soon after they had returned to Deep South land, they visited Ruth’s father, Sir Red, who was an inn keeper.

Sir Red begged Cindy to massage his legs. Cindy begged Sir Red that she would not, because she feared something she did not understand. But, Sir Red begged all the more and finally persuaded her to massage his legs.

The next day his wife Lady Alma sent word that Sir Red had passed in the night. The medical men said his death was caused by a blood clot that traveled from Sir Red’s legs to his heart, stopping it from beating for evermore. Although Cindy did not speak of it to anyone, she now knew why she had feared massaging Sir Red’s legs.

Cliff and Ruth were both unhappy. They had many quarrels, which was very upsetting to Cindy and Rhonda. Cindy now desired to leave the castle so she worked to be accepted to attend the training school village in the Appalachian Mountains of the South land.

It was half a day’s journey from her father’s castle. It was a wondrous and exciting adventure to gather with all the apprentices that came to the training school village.

The training school village became Cindy’s new home and she was very happy there. She even visited the village pub and made merry with her new friends while trying the ale served there.

The taste of the ale did not please Cindy, but she drank it anyway, to feel its magical powers. Still, the ale did not please her as it did Ruth, so she did not take the ale frequently. Although Cindy was unaware of it she had a special gift, and many people were drawn to it.

Her new happiness was soon shattered when she received a message that her father had fallen from more disease of the heart.

She journeyed to her father and he insisted that she return to school, so as not to lose all that she worked to obtain from the training school village. Cindy studied, made merry with her new friends and often thought of her dear father.

One day another message was delivered and Cindy feared her father was not well. As she read the parchment, she was at first confused. The message was instead about Ruth’s brother, Jimmy. He had taken his own life on the path to his in-law’s cottage!

Ruth left and Jimmy center

Cindy had to journey back to her old village to attend the burial ceremony. Some time passed after Cindy had returned to the training school village before she felt happy with her friends again.

Less than a year later, another message came. This time the news delivered was about Cliff’s mother, Lady Marian. She had been raped and murdered by a madman in the land of the Buckeye trees.

The news of this atrocity sent Cliff into a fit of rage. He journeyed to the Buckeye land to attend the trial of the madman, proclaiming he would choke the life from the man himself.

Cliff’s cries of outrage and his reputation as a former knight caused the sentries of the court to block him from entering the court until they had stripped him and made sure he was free of any weapons. Although he objected, one sentry remained with Cliff for the duration of the trial.

Lady Roberta, who lived in the cottage with Cliff’s mother, had also been brutally attacked by the madman, but was able to attend the trial.

The madman had dug Lady Roberta’s eyes out with scissors, but a magician had been able to restore some of her sight. With the restored vision in only one eye, Lady Roberta identified the man that brutally attacked her and killed Cliff’s mother, Lady Marian.

Some time passed. Cindy continued to pursue her studies, only going back to her father’s castle for holiday feasts and during Christmastime.

But the day did come that a messenger brought the news that Cliff had used magic pills and an elixir to take his own life in a room at a distant inn on the outskirts of the village.

With her heart racing, Cindy journeyed back to see her father peacefully resting; his pain had ceased.

On that day, the sun did stop shining and all the planets dropped from the heavens. Cindy was lost.

All the pictures shown in this post are scanned copies of original photos and a newspaper clipping from a family album!

Much love to my father! Daddy, you will always be my hero!