The Ruby Necklace

  Once upon a time, there was a little girl named Goldie. Goldie was a bright and cheerful girl. Her dancing blue eyes made one want to twirl and whirl and watch her smile. Her long golden hair was let loose and it fell softly about her shoulders. All who caught but a glimpse of her immediately loved her. As it so happened, she and her entire family were to board a ship to Greenland. A witch was also on the ship, and though she was very evil, she liked the little girl. She was very selfish and wanted little Goldie all for herself.

       She created a hurricane and made it rush at the ship. She made sure that she and Goldie were the only ones to survive. The two were washed ashore and despite all of the witch's precautions they were unconscious and were taken to a little cottage by some kind folk. When the witch awoke, both she and Goldie were in a little room, surrounded by a group of concerned faces. The little girl was up and talking. She was begging the people in the cottage to look for her parents.

       A search revealed her entire family, not one had been spared. She wept for hours, inconsolable. The kindly people of the cottage wept as well, for they felt the child's sorrow. After a few days, Goldie had cried herself out, and the witch began to warm her to the topic of her adoption. Goldie agreed to go with the witch on one condition. She wanted a bit of her family. The witch took a drop of blood from each of the dead bodies and with her magic, turned each drop of blood into a perfect, sparkling red ruby, brighter than the blood that formed them. Goldie slipped the rubies onto a lock of her thick, golden hair. Years passed, Goldie grew up, and one day, when she was 27 years old she and the witch died in a car crash. She was buried in a grave next to her parents, along with the ruby necklace. It had stayed with her near all her life, and it was not going to leave her during her death.

       Many years passed. It was now 20 years to the day she died. Some grave robbers opened up her family's graves and unable to find anything, turned to her's. Her body had been decomposed, and all that was left were the rubies and her golden hair. The robbers took the rubies and split them up. Soon, their gang broke up, and they went their separate ways. 

       Five years later they all met again on a ship. They rubies had acted as a lucky charm, for they had become wealthy and successful. But that night the boat sank. The robbers sank with the ship and the rubies. The rubies sank to the bottom of the sea and were swallowed by a fish. A  poor fisherman caught it and thinking they were shiny bits of glass, took them home. He had a small pot the size of his palm, in which he kept them. It was placed on the window sill. Some birds took them thinking that they were berries. They landed in a graveyard and tried to eat them. When they discovered that the bright red things were not berries they quickly lost interest and flew away. 

       When the place was silent and no one was watching. The rubies slowly rose and hovered for a second. They then shot towards Goldie's grave and suddenly a figure rose. A pretty little girl with golden hair jumped up and did a merry dance. More people came out. Goldie and her family dance again