Fairy Tale Fix - 23: Baba Yaga’s Super Busy

Episode Date: August 3, 2021

FINALLY, more Baba Yaga! Kelsey retells the popular Russian fairy tale Vasilisa The Beautiful, a dark tale of a poor maiden who is forced into the woods, and what deadly mysteries live within those woods you might wonder… Meanwhile, Abbie tells a dreamy Brazilian folk tale, The Princess With The 7 Pairs Of Shoes. Do you think that’s enough shoes though?

I'm ready to not be silent. We are ready to do a lot of talking and laughing, probably. Oh, yes. so as you know i spent some time in wyoming and I was so stoked to be back home. I was, so the weather actually, when I got home was really nice. It was only 90 degrees outside, which is like really,

really cool compared to the usual, like 110. Yeah. No, that's like a, my dad used to say like a balmy 92 degrees when that would happen. Yeah. It's like when he was living there.

Ideal. So I went for a bike ride and I decided just, it was so nice. I decided to just jump in the Creek. So I just found a spot. I kind of interrupted these teenage girls like time. And I was like, I promise I'm not taking your spot. I just got to jump in for a second, just a second, just a second to cool off. Oh my gosh. It was so nice. Like the smells of Bidwell park and the Creek just, I just went into like a little dam area where the water was flowing really fast. And I just like jumped in and it was so wonderful. I was in absolute heaven. I could have stayed there all day. I even got a little sunburn cause I wasn't actually planning to be

outside that long. I was just like planning and doing a short bike ride and it was amazing. That's what I'm jealous of. I do not have that out here. There is no swimming available, really. I love that park. And I think it was so appreciative because I had just been in Wyoming, not for that long either, but long enough that it made me miss everything. You know when you go out of town and you just have so much appreciation for where you live or another place. You're just happy to be home.

I couldn't imagine living anywhere that doesn't have Bidwell Park. It's my favorite thing in the whole world. Bidwell Park is pretty special. I gotta say. I truly miss Bidwell Park is pretty special. I got to say, like, I truly, I miss Bidwell Park a lot. Yeah. Like, there's a lot that I like about where I've moved to. Like, there's a lot to be liked about it in some ways.

Like, I think that I gained a lot by moving out here. But there are some things that I'm just kind of like, wow, yeah. Where's my park? Where's my swimming holes? Where's my bike paths? And where are my burritos? The real tragedy. There's no good Mexican food on the East Coast. Honestly, there's plenty of Mexican restaurants. I've eaten more Latin American food from a bunch of different countries than I have in my life. Like I have had like Peruvian food and Guatemalan food and the food from a bunch of different South American and Central American countries.

But as far as like good old fashioned, like California Mexican food, there is none, which makes sense because we're not because I'm not in California, but there's just something about like a street taco in California that like, yes. So, you know, I know what I'll be doing the next time I'm in California is I'm just going to be just like jamming as much burrito as I possibly can into my mouth. Before we get started, I just wanted to say that I don't think Abby's quite finished Cinderella is dead yet. I have not.

I have not finished it yet. I'm only halfway through. But I did and it is so good. I'm so finished it yet. I'm only halfway through. But I did and it is so good. I'm so excited about it. If you have a chance to read it and you love Twisted Fairy Tales or like different takes on them, this is so good. It was such a fast read too. It's not long. It's like 250 pages or something like that. And it is by Kaylin Barron. I think I said that right. It's so good.

Definitely check it out. I'm going to check out more books by her. By the time this comes out, we will have already picked our August book, but we're, but we're always compiling new books for the list. And I think sometime mid month, we'll be voting again on our book for September.

So if you're interested in that, I think the link to our Discord is on our website, fairytalefixpod.com. Go click on that, check us out and join our little book club. We're having a pretty fun time. Yeah. And another huge shout out to Maria, who has helped us so much with the whole Discord book club thing. She is organizing everything and just really making it happen. So we love you and appreciate you. Thank you so much, Maria.

Maria, you're the best. Thank you so much for helping us actually organize that. Yeah. I have no idea what to do at the book club. We're like, this would be a really good idea. What do we do next? How do we do that, though? And Maria had all of the answers because

she's the literal best. So thank you. Cool. Well, let's get into it. I am going to tell you a story today. Okay. And I'm really excited. I finally bought Russian fairy tales, that like big book of Russian fairy tales. Oh boy. Yes. The chonky one. The one that has all of them. Yes. It's chonky and gorgeous. And I'm super stoked. I chose Vasilisa the Beautiful.

Okay. Because I've seen it referenced and I've never read it. And I'm really excited to tell you it today. Okay. So do you want to give me three predictions for Vasilisa the Beautiful while I drink my wine? I'm so excited. I have the exact same anthology that you bought. And I've just kind of noticed that Vasilisa seems to be the name used for all of the women protagonists. And then Ivan has been used for all of the men for the most part. I almost did the Sea King and Vasilisa the Wise, but I kind of liked this one better.

Okay. I didn't finish the other one. I just kind of started it. I was thumbing through. I picked a lot of different ones before I settled on one. Okay. Well then what do I think this iteration of Vasilisa is going to be about aside from the fact that she is obviously beautiful? Well, then what do I think this iteration of Vasilisa is going to be about? Aside from the fact that she is obviously beautiful. I think that in this story, Vasilisa is a peasant lass. I think she encounters an old hag at some point in the story.

And part of her story is a dangerous trip through the woods okay she's a peasant maiden she meets an old hag and she goes through a dangerous trip through the woods these are my thoughts my predictions this is what i say those are all very good predictions they're all very wrong. No, they're very good. God damn it. Okay. Perfect. Okay. Lay it on me. Tell me about Vasilisa the Beautiful. I am very excited for my first Vasilisa story because I actually hadn't read any of them yet. Nice. Yeah, me either. So this is very exciting. Okay. By the way, just a quick note in our latest bonus episode, we do a blind reading, which we didn't read any of the fairy tales beforehand. And it was really fun. It was so funny.

So if you are interested in nonsense like that, make sure to check our Patreon out. Yeah. Consider becoming our patron. At fairytalefix.cash. By the way, one of our listeners helped us figure out why we couldn't be found on Patreon. If you've ever tried to join our Patreon and you typed fairytalefix into the search bar on the website and you couldn't find us, that's because we were marked as adult content and we're therefore unsearchable.

So you can search now if that is something you would still like to do and i believe that it was jordan who helped us figure that out on our discord thank you jordan and also thank you so much for subsequently joining our patreon as soon as you helped us figure that out we appreciate it all right tell me the story. Vasilisa the Beautiful. In a certain kingdom, there lived a merchant. Although he had been married for 12 years, he had only one daughter called Vasilisa the Beautiful. When the girl was eight years old, her mother died.

And on her deathbed, the merchant's wife called her daughter, took a doll from under her coverlet, gave it to the girl and said, listen, Vasily Sushka. Ooh. They say that a lot, which is hard for me to say. So I'm probably going to mess it up. Sorry.

Remember and heed my last words. I am dying. And together with my maternal blessing, I leave you this doll. Always keep it with you and do not show it to anyone. If you get into trouble, give the doll food and ask its advice. When it has eaten, it will tell you what to do in your trouble. Oh my God. It's a typically dark opening to a Russian fairy tale.

Also, there's a creepy doll. Wow. Okay. This story is actually very dark. I really love it. After his wife's death, the merchant mourned as his proper and then began to think of marrying again. He was a handsome man. I had no difficulty in finding a bride, but he liked best a certain widow because she was elderly.

I know. He had his eyes on this widow. Okay. And she had two daughters of her own, the same age as vasalisa he thought that she was an experienced housewife and mother so he married her but was deceived or she did not turn out to be a good mother for his vasalisa of course not because stepmothers are evil. Evil stepmother trope. Aww. That's too bad. It is. It is.

So, Vasilisa was the most beautiful girl in the village. Her stepmother and stepsisters were jealous of her beauty and tormented her by giving her all kinds of work to do, hoping that she would grow thin from toil and tan from exposure to the wind and sun. In truth, she had a most miserable life. exposure to the wind and sun. In truth, she had a most miserable life. But Vasilisa bore all this without complaint and became lovelier and more booksome every day. I love that it says that. I love that a lot.

She became lovelier and more booksome. While the stepmother and her daughters grew thin and ugly from spite. Although they always sat with folded hands like ladies. Good for them. Always maintaining the ladylike posture. I also just think it's, it's interesting when,

when reading folk tales like these of, of being reminded just how much beauty standards have changed over time. Yeah. I noticed that too. That they like, they're hoping she'll become thin, which that's all we're conditioned to want. Now, yeah, thin and tan, which is all white women are told to want. And then thinness for all of us, for pretty much all women everywhere these days. Yep.

So, wow. Interesting. But not in that story. She's booksome. She thick. She grows more booksome by the day. I'm very excited for her. And her sisters are skinny, ugly people.

So how did all this come about? Vasilisa was helped by her creepy doll. Without its aid, the girl could never have managed all of that work. And in return, Vasilisa sometimes did not eat but kept the choicest of morsels

for her doll. And at night, when everyone was asleep, she would lock herself in the little room where she lived and would give the doll a treat saying, now little doll eat and listen to my troubles. I live in my father's house, but I'm deprived of all joy. A wicked stepmother is driving me from the white world. Tell me how I should live and what I should do. And the doll would eat and then would give her advice and comfort her in her trouble and in the

morning she would perform all of the chores for vasalisa oh oh that's great vasalisa the lazy bones i was i was sorry like i i'm sorry i hate to interrupt once again but I was just going to ask, how often does she do this again? Like every day. Every day? I'm just saying that when I was a teenager, if I'd had any kind of toy that would have done all of my chores for me, I would have absolutely taken that path every single day forever. And I had a very happy childhood. I don't have half as much of a reason to kind of be just sort of generally depressed. It sounds like Vasilisa just doesn't like chores. Yeah.

Maybe that's why her stepmother is so frustrated with her. And it's more of like a little mermaid style. Like you're ruining my life. We obviously, we haven't talked about Snow White yet, but that is the exact impression I got watching Snow White, a tale of terror with Sorenie Weaver as the stepmother. Yes, exactly. Because she was such a little brat. Awful teenager. Maybe that's just because we're really conditioned to love Sigourney Weaver and...

Oh my gosh. How could you not love Sigourney Weaver? She was just right. She's just right all the time. She's Sigourney Weaver. She's just correct. She was just right. She's just right all the time. She's Sigourney Weaver. She's just correct. So in the movie version for this fairy tale that Disney has yet to do, Sigourney Weaver's got to be a stepmother. They'll get Sigourney Weaver to do it.

I'm sure she'll be delighted. God, I love her. Vasilisa the Lazy Bones would rest in the shade and picked flowers while the flower beds were weeded, the cabbage sprayed, and the water brought in, and the stove fired. The doll even showed Vasilisa an herb that would protect her from sunburn. She led an easy life thanks to her doll. It's something that her mother left her, which is really sweet.

Yeah, that's really nice. Good for her. I'm coming back around, and now I'm on the good for Vasilisa train. I do love Vasilisa. She's a great character. So several years went by, and Vasilisa grew up and reached the marriage age she was wooed by all the young men in the village but no one would even look at the stepmother's daughters because they're thin and ugly because

they ogos the stepmother was more spiteful than ever and And her answer to all the suitors was, I will not give the youngest in marriage before the elder ones. And each time she sent a suitor away, she vented her anger on Vasilisa in cruel blows. So that's no good. Now the stepmother can't be Sigourney Weaver because I don't want to watch Sigourney Weaver like hit children. Okay, fair. I have to be somebody else and doubt maybe one day the merchant had to leave home for a long time in order to trade in distant lands the stepmother moved to another house near that house was a thick forest

i smell points coming My smell point's coming. And in a glade of that forest, there stood a hut. Yes! Yes! Oh, my God. Yes, please. Give me Baba Yaga. Give me. Can you guess who lives in that hut?

Baba fucking Yaga. It is Baba fucking Yaga. Yes! In that hut. And she never allowed anyone to come near her and ate human beings as if they were chickens. Delicious. Yes, queen. Having moved into the new house, the merchant's wife, hating Vasilisa, repeatedly sent the girl into the woods for one thing or another. But each time, Vasilisa returned home safe and sound.

Her doll had showed her the way and kept her far from Baba Yaga's hut. Gotta get rid of that doll. That doll is, like, amazing. Mm-hmm. I would like one of those, please. How did her mother come by this doll is my question. Where is that story? I feel like it was blood magic. I hope so. I think her mother come by this doll is my question. Where is that story? I feel like it was blood magic.

I hope so. I think her mother was a witch. Her mother was Baba Yaga. Oh, shit. That would be like the ultimate twist. That's not it, though. Oh. Autumn came.

The stepmother gave evening work to all three maidens the oldest had to make lace the second had to knit stockings and vasalisa had to spin and each one had to finish her task the stepmother put out all the lights over the house leaving only one candle in the room where the girls worked and went to bed the girls worked the candle began to smoke and one of the stepsisters took up scissors to trim it, but instead, following her mother's order, she snuffed it out as though inadvertently. What shall we do now, said the girls. There is no light in the house, and our tasks are not finished.

Sus. This whole thing is sus. Okay. What's the plan here? Oh, I guess somebody has got to go to baba yaga and get some light wait no that what no what why that doesn't make any sense why would that it's a trick it's a trap why do you why do you need to go to baba yaga to get light? I guess that's where the light is.

You can't go borrow like a candle from your neighbor? I guess not. Maybe they're out too far in the middle of nowhere. Hey, you know what? I'm not going to question it. I want Baba Yaga in this story. Fine. She has to go borrow a candle from Baba Yaga, I guess.

Do you want her to go to Baba Yaga or not? I do. I do. I do. I'll shut up. Well, the first stepsister says, the pins on my lace give me light. And I shall not go. And the second sister, you know, I shall not go either, said the one who was knitting the stockings.

Because my knitting needles give me light. Which, do they? How do they do that exactly? Yeah. I don't understand, but both of them cried to their stepsister, Vasilisa, you must go,

go to Baba Yaga. And they pushed her out of the room. She went to her own little room and put the supper she had prepared before her doll and said, now Dolly eat and aid me in my need. They're sending me to Baba Yaga for a light and she will eat me up. Cool. Yeah. All right.

You know, I didn't know Baba Yaga was like the keeper of the light, but apparently Baba Yaga is the light person that you go to when your candle goes out. Despite the fact that there is a non-zero chance that she will eat you. Right?

The doll ate the supper and its eyes gleamed like two candles. Fear not, Vasilisa, it said. Aw. Go where you were sent. Only keep me with you all the time. With me in your pocket, you will suffer no harm from Baba Yaga. Vasilisa made ready, put her doll in her pocket, Yes. Yes. Go, Vasilisa.

Vasilisa Yushka. Vasilisushka. Vasilisushka. It's like her little baby name, which I think is really cute. Yeah, it's like a diminutive. It's cute. She walked in fear and trembling. Suddenly, a horseman galloped past her.

His face was white. He was dressed in white. His horse was white. And his horse's trappings were white. And Daybreak came into the woods. She walked on farther and a second horseman gout passed her and he was all red he was dressed in red and his horse was red and the sun began to rise okay and it's very mysterious right i i mean i'm god so many

questions they may be answered vasalisa walked the whole night and whole day and only the following evening did she come to the glade where baba yaga's hut stood the fence around the hut was made of human bones and on the spikes were human skulls with staring eyes the doors had human legs for doorposts human hands for bolts and a mouth with sharp teeth in place of a lock. Ugh. I'm so happy. Nightmare fuel. So fun.

I love Baba Yaga's whole aesthetic. I like it a lot. She's really got like a specific style. Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm. She found a look and ran with it. She sure did. Yes, absolutely.

Vasilisa was numb with horror and stood rooted to the spot. Suddenly, another horseman rode by. He was all black. He was dressed in black and his horse was black. He galloped up to Baba Yaga's door and vanished as though the earth had swallowed him up and night came. But the darkness did not last long. The eyes of all the skulls on the fence began to gleam. And the glade was as bright as day.

Vasilisa shuddered with fear, but not knowing where to run remained on the spot. So I think that's where the light came from. I guess it's just known that like her, that's like light. Maybe. Maybe. Yeah. That the skulls on the top of her fence posts just light up at nighttime.

I don't know. I think I mentioned being excited for Halloween earlier. Yeah. This story is very Halloween vibes. It is. I had to do one early. I love it. Thank you.

Thank you for doing this. Perfect for your thunderstorm aesthetic. I mean, honestly, because the clouds are just like thunderbolt gray outside and it's just getting darker and darker and darker. Oh, I'm jealous. Excellent. Excellent aesthetics. Soon, a terrible noise resounded through the woods. The trees crackled.

The dry leaves rustled. Terrible noise resounded through the woods. The trees crackled. The dry leaves rustled. And from the woods, Baba Yaga drove out in a mortar, prodding it on with a pestle and sweeping her traces with a broom. Yes. So is she riding this mortar? Yeah.

It's like huge. Baba Yaga, instead of like a witch's broom, Baba Yaga's vehicle for transportation is a mortar and pestle i have never heard that and that's so fucking awesome it's extremely cool that this is how she gets around because sometimes her hut itself is perched on chicken legs and then the hut walks around on its chicken legs uh so sometimes that's how she moves around but if she's just like on her own being a badass uh she's riding in a mortar fuck yeah that's how she moves around but if she's just like on her own being a badass uh she's riding in a mortar fuck yeah that's so cool yeah the illustration has it has legs yes perfect yes that is they don't mention it in the story in this specific story that's usually how her hut is configured i love it god baba yaga so cool i know baba yaga is extremely cool

she rode up to the gate stopped and sniffing the air around her cried fee fee i smell a russian smell who is here which i love she could just smell russians specifically uh i bet they smell like pepper i don't know why but okay i don't know why either that's just what i imagine like but like in a like i like pepper like that smell if we have any russian listeners please confirm do you smell like pepper vasalisa came up to the old witch and trembling with fear bowed low to her and said it is i grandmother my stepsisters sent me to get some light very well said baba yaga it's obliging

i know them but before i give you the light you must live with me and work for me. If not, I will eat you up. And then she turned to the gate and cried. Hey, my strong bolts unlock. Open up my wide gate. And the gate opened and Baba Yaga drove in whistling. Vasilisa followed her and everything closed again. Having entered the room, Baba Yaga stretched herself out on her chair and said to Vasilisa followed her and everything closed again. Having entered the room, Baba Yaga stretched herself out on her chair and said to Vasilisa,

Serve me what is in the stove. I am hungry. Okay. Yeah, she's just, she lives there now. Hello, I would like to borrow a candle. You may absolutely have a candle after you have been my servant for an indeterminate amount of time. And then I will give borrow a candle. You may absolutely have a candle after you have been my servant for an indeterminate amount of time and then I will give you a candle.

Seems fair. I like it. It's fair. Vasilisa lit a torch from the skulls on the fence and began to serve Yaga the food from the stove. I like how it literally just says Yaga.

It does? Like that's just her new nickname. Okay, Yaga. It's very informal. enough food have been prepared for 10 people vasalisa brought kvass mead beer and wine from the cellar and the old witch ate and drank everything leaving for vasalisa only a little cabbage soup a crust of bread and a piece of pork which actually sounds pretty decent. That's fine.

That sounds like enough food. Is it a gourmet meal? No. Is it going to fill you up? Yeah. You know, no complaints, Vasilisa. You get your protein. You get your carbs.

It's fine. Then Baba Yaga made ready to go to bed and said, tomorrow after I go, see to it that you sweep the yard clean the hut cook the dinner wash the linen and go to the corn bin and sort out a bushel of wheat and let everything be done or I will eat you up having given these orders Baba Yaga began to snore Vasilisa set the remnants of the old witch's supper before her doll wept bitter tears and, Dolly, eat and aid me in my need. Baba Yaga has given me a hard task to do and threatens to eat me up if you do not do it all. Help me. And the doll answered, fear not, Vasilisa, the beautiful. Eat your supper and say your prayers and go to sleep. The morning is wiser than the evening. Oh, call back. Callback.

The morning is wiser than the evening. That is one of my favorite lines in Russian fairy tales. That's from The Frog, right? Was the last time we heard that one? Uh-huh. I think that was a, it had to have been Russian or at least close. I would think it was a Ukrainian story was how it was attributed in the book. That must be a common saying.

You know, fairly close, I think, culturally. A lot of stories in common. There was an Ivan in that one. Yep. Very early the next morning, Vasilisa awoke after Baba Yaga had arisen and looked out of the window. The eyes of the skulls were going out and the white horseman flashed by and it was daybreak. Baba Yaga went out into the yard, whistled, and the mortar and pestle and broom appeared before her, which is awesome.

The red horseman flashed by and the sun arose. Baba Yaga sat in the mortar, prodded it on with the pestle and swept her traces with the broom. Vasilisa remained alone and looked out about Baba Yaga's hut and was amazed at the abundance of everything and stopped wondering which work she should do first, for lo and behold, all the work was done. Yay!

The doll was picking up the last shreds of chaff from the wheat. Ah, my savior, said Vasilisa to her doll. You have delivered me from death, and all you have to do, answered the doll, creeping into Vasalisa's pocket, is to cook the dinner, cook it with the help of God, and then rest for your health's sake. So at least the doll's leaving her a little work. Not like letting her completely off the hook. Right. Like you got to do something, Vasalisa. Mm-hmm. Also, maybe Baba Yaga would have noticed if dinner was already cooking but

vasalisa was still asleep how did baba yaga not notice that vasalisa was still asleep baba yaga's super busy she's gonna go out and do her witch shit she sure is yeah she's got to go find other humans to eat and help make her i've you know i withdraw the question she's so busy super busy i get it okay when evening came vasalisa set the table and waited for babayaga dust began to fall and the black horseman flashed by at the gate and night came only the skull's eyes were shining the trees crackled and the leaves rustled. Baba Yaga was coming, and Vasilisa met her. Is everything done? asked Yaga. Please see for yourself, Grandmother, said Vasilisa. Baba Yaga looked at everything and

was annoyed that there was nothing she could complain about, and said, Very well, then. Then she cried, My faithful servants, my dear friends, grind my wheat. And three pairs of hands appeared. What? Just like floating in the air? Okay. They took the wheat and carried it out of sight.

Baba Yaga ate her fill, made ready to go to sleep, and again gave her orders to Vasilisa. Tomorrow, she commanded, do the same work you have done today, and in addition, take the poppy seed from the bin and get rid of the dust, grain by grain. Someone threw dust into the bins out of spite. Having said this, the old witch turned to the wall and began to snore, and Vasilisa set out feeding her doll.

The doll ate and spoke as she had spoken the day before. Pray to God and go to sleep. The morning is wiser than the evening. Everything will be done, Vasilisushka. Oh, that is such a great saying. I like it. I do too. Like every time I hear it, I'm just kind of like,

hmm, that's so wise. It really is. The morning is wiser than the evening. Just remember that all the time. That's good advice. The next morning, Baba Yaga again left the yard in her mortar, and Vasilisa and the doll soon had all the work done. The old witch came back, looked at everything, and cried,

My faithful servants, my dear friends, press the oil out of the poppy seed. And three hands appeared, took the poppy seed, and carried it out of the poppy seed and three hands appeared, took the poppy seed and carried it out of sight. Baba Yaga sat down to dine. She ate and Vasilisa stood silent. Why do you not speak to me, said Baba Yaga. Because I'm terrified you're going to eat me if I say anything wrong. Yep. You stand there as though you were dumb. I dare not speak, said Vasilisa. But if you'll give me leave, I'd like to ask you something.

Go ahead, but not every question has a good answer. If you know too much, you will soon grow old. Which is also excellent advice. Yeah. God, I fucking love Baba Yaga. She's like getting bored with her house guest. She's like, okay, well, you're not really providing me much entertainment and I guess like I'm probably not going to be able to eat you.

So what good are you? So Vasilisa asks, as I was on my way to you, a horseman on a white horse, all white himself and dressed in white, overtook me. Who is he? He is my bright day,

said Baba Yaga. Then another horseman overtook me. He had a red horse, was red himself and dressed in red. Who is he? He is my red sun. And it's sun, like the sun in the sky yeah okay yeah i was like oh my that's my son that's my son and who is the black horseman whom i met at your very gate grandmother he is my dark knight and all of them are my faithful

servants. I also really love that Vasilisa just calls Baba Yaga grandmother. Yeah. I think that's really cute. I also was noticing that and really enjoying it because it's cute, but it's also respectful. Yeah, yeah.

And sort of respects her status as sort of this ancient spirit quasi deity slash elemental force of nature that that the sun the day and the night all serve baba yaga is such a interesting concept yeah it really is yeah i i really like that as part of like her mythology that's really interesting i know we're gonna have to come up with some like baba yaga note google doc or something so we can keep track of all the like lore on baba yaga yeah because it really varies from story to story like what what purpose she's serving in the story at the moment. Yeah. Because sometimes she's really helpful in this one. I mean, she is helpful, but she also

sounds like everyone's really terrified of her. Yeah. Vasilisa remembered the three pairs of hands but kept silent. Why don't you ask me more, said Baba Yaga. She's like super bored. That will be enough, Vasilisa replied. You said yourself, Grandmother, that one who knows too much will grow old soon. It is well, said Baba Yaga, that you should ask only

about what you have seen outside my house, not inside my house. I do not like to have my dirty linen washed in public, and I eat the over curious. She's so sad. I love her. She is my role model.

Me too. Now I shall ask you something. How do you manage to do the work I set for you? She's like, Oh my God. Oh, she fucking knows. Is she going to tell the truth?

She does. Immediately. Vasilisa says, i am helped by the blessing of my mother and baba yaga shrieks so that's what it is get you gone blessed daughter i want no blessed ones in my house and she dragged vasalisa out of the room and pushed her outside the gate took a skull with burning eyes from the fence, stuck it on a stick and gave it to the girl saying, here is your light for your stepsisters. Take it. That is what they sent you for. Oh,

like, oh, gross. I don't want any blessed people in my house. Nasty. Oh God. Get out of here. Your mother loved you gross get out man i love baba yaga me too i mean i also there i think there's an interpretation there too where

that's a kind thing she does of like, Oh, a blessed daughter. Like, and she's just like, kind of like putting on airs of being really gruff about it, but she still gives her, her gives her her lamp and doesn't make a servant of her anymore. Cause she's just like, clearly someone loved you.

Yeah. I do have a couple of interpretations that I'll tell you at the end. Oh, good. Okay. All right, go on. I did look up a little history.

So, Vasilisa ran home by the light of the skull, which went out only at daybreak. And by nightfall the following day, she reached the house. As she approached the gate, she was about to throw the skull away, thinking that, surely, they no longer needed a light

in the house. But suddenly, a dull voice came from the skull saying, do not throw me away. Take me to your stepmother, which is creepy. Okay. And honestly, no creepier than a talking doll that does all your chores. That's true. What is creepier?

A talking skull or a talking doll? A talking doll without question. Than a skull that's eyes are like lit up. I would find the doll creepier. I'm not saying I wouldn't find the skull creepy. I'm just saying that the doll is creepier, especially since the doll eats and then talks. At least like a skull used to be a living person. A doll is a manufactured object in to be a living person. Yeah.

A doll is a manufactured object in the shape of a person. Like, I'm just saying. You know, I am going to have to put up a poll on our social media. What's creepier? Which do you think is creepier? Because I'm really curious. Well, Kelsey, which do you think is creepier though oh that's a good point i actually hadn't thought about it i think they're both very creepy you're right definitely

the doll especially because it eats that's weird doll i wasn't even thinking about my opinion i hadn't formed one before I was asking you. You're right. You're correct. That is creepy. Because it eats. That's the creepy. That is the creepiest part for sure.

If it didn't eat, it would be less creepy. It might be a toss up. It might be a toss up. It might be a toss up. But the fact that the doll consumes food makes it makes it weirder. Anyway, go on. Vasilisa looked at the stepmother's house and seeing that there was no light in the windows, decided to enter with her skull. For the first time, she was received kindly. Her stepmother and stepsisters told her that since she left they had had no fire in the house and they were unable to strike a flame

themselves and whatever light was brought by the neighbors went out the moment it was brought into the house oh boohoo perhaps your fire will last said the step stepmother. It better be. It's from the fucking witch. The skull was brought into the room and its eyes kept staring at the stepmother and her daughters and burned them. They tried to hide, but wherever they went, the eyes followed them. By morning, they were all burned to ashes. Yes. Only Vasilisa remained untouched by the fire. Yeah.

Baba Yaga likes her. Wow! Who wouldn't like Vasilisa? Oh, you get a doll to do all your work for you? Mm-hmm. That's cool. Work smarter, not harder. Mm-hmm. Baba Yaga appreciates that kind of go-getter efficiency.

Oh, yeah. Yeah, they just die instantly in like one sentence. That's incredible. Apparently, in not every version, they die. Oh, okay. Some versions, they don't. In this one, they do. So, in the morning, Vasilisa buried the skull in the ground, locked up the house, and went to the town.

A certain childless old woman gave her shelter, and there she lived, waiting for her father's return. One day, she said to the woman, I am weary of sitting without work, grandmother. Buy me some flax, the best you can get. At least I shall be spinning. And the old woman bought good flax and Vasilisa set to work. She spun as fast as lightning and her threads

were even and thin as hair. Even and thin as hair. So she's not making the doll do this. That's interesting. Yeah, maybe she's just really talented at spinning. Maybe not Vasilisa the lazy bones after all vasalisa that hasn't figured out her calling yet she spent a great deal of yarn and

it was time to start weaving it but no comb fine enough for vasalisa's yarn could be found and no one would undertake to make one vasalisa asked her doll for aid and the doll said, bring me an old comb, an old shuttle and a horse's mane and I will make a loom for you. Vasilisa got everything that was required and went to sleep. And during the night, the doll made a wonderful loom for her. By the end of winter,

the linen was woven and it was so fine that it could be passed through a needle like thread. In the spring, the linen was bleached and vasalisa said to the old woman grandmother sell this linen and keep the money for yourself and the old woman looked at the linen and gasped no my child no one can wear such a linen except the czar and i shall take it to the palace. Ooh. Ooh. I see. I see. I see.

Okay. Oh, yeah. Things are happening. The old woman went to the czar's palace and walked back and forth beneath the windows. The czar saw her and asked, what do you want, old woman? Your majesty, she answered, I have brought rare merchandise. I do not want to show it to anyone but you. The czar ordered her to be brought before him, and when he saw the linen, he was amazed. Of course he was.

Yeah, because it's fucking awesome. Vasilisa's talented as hell. I like how it appears to be unrelated to any of the other parts of this story. This is a different story. This is a different story. This is is basilisa the beautiful 2.2 2. okay gotcha or wait wait chapter 2 yeah 1.2 okay 1.2 something like that this is a different story this is the sequel yes sorry so just basilisa the beautiful too yes what do you want it for asked the czar it has no price little father czar i have brought it as a gift to you and the czar thanked her and rewarded her with gifts the czar ordered shirts to be made from the linen

it was cut but nowhere could they find a seamstress who was willing to sew them. For a long time, they tried to find one. But in the end, the Tsar summoned the old woman and said, You have known how to spin and weave such linen. You must know how to sew shirts of it. Well, it was not I who spun and wove this linen, Your Majesty, said the old woman. This is the work of a maiden to whom I've given shelter. Then let her sew the shirts, ordered the Tsar.

The old woman returned home and told everything to Vasilisa. I knew all the time, said Vasilisa to her, that I would have to do this work. Why does it sound like she's complaining? It does sound a little like she's complaining. I still feel like it's Vily's of the lazy bones. Oh, man. Like, I knew when I made it that no one could possibly be good enough to sew with it.

Uh-huh. I knew this would fall on me. What a bummer. God damn it. What a burden this is to go sew shirts for the Tsar. She locked herself in a room and set to work. She sewed without rest and soon a dozen shirts were ready. The old woman took them to the Tsar and Vasilisa washed herself,

combed her hair and dressed in her finest clothes and she sat at the window. She sat there waiting to see what would happen. She saw a servant of the Tsar entering the courtyard and the messenger came into the room and said, The Tsar wishes to see the needlewoman who made his shirts and wishes to reward her with his own hands. Vasilisa appeared before

the Tsar and when the Tsar saw Vasilisa the Beautiful, he fell madly in love with her. Of course he did! my goodness she knew it that's why she put on her nicest dress she was so ready long game vasalisa the clever no my beauty he said i will not separate from you you shall be my wife he took he took vasalisa by her white hands seated her by his side and the wedding was celebrated at once of course he had a wedding feast ready to go soon and lo and behold vasalisa's father returned it was

overjoyed at her good fortune and came to live in his daughter's house because fuck his, you know, widow and his other stepdaughters. Meh, whatever. Who cares? Vasilisa took the old woman into her home too, which is very sweet.

I love that. That's great. Yeah. And carried her doll in her pocket till the end of her life. The end. Wow. So you got three points. Holy crap.

I know. Good for me. Yeah, girl. Oh, dang. I mean, does peasant count as merchant? Merchant count as peasant? Merchant class? Merchant's daughter.

Whatever. You know what? Non-royalty. Yeah. She was a peasant for sure. Excellent. Three points for Abby. I nailed all three of those. Good for me. Yeah, you did. Good job. Oh, wow. It was a long time in coming. Oh, boy. That was so fun. I agree. I thought that was really beautiful. Oh, so I looked up Vassalisa the Beautiful and tried to find some history on it. There wasn't so much history

as there were just different versions, but I really loved some interpretations, and you can find all of these on Wikipedia. But according to Wikipedia, it says, the white and red and black writers appear in other tales of Baba Yaga and are often

interpreted to give her you know like kind of like a mythological significance yeah and in this story it specifically kind of refers to them as depicting the conflict between the sunlight vasalisa the storm her stepmother and dark clouds heristers, which I thought was pretty cool. That's pretty cool. Okay. The coolest interpretation, I think, is from Clarissa Pinkola Estes, and she interprets the story as a tale of female liberation. So Vasilisa's journey from subservience and strength and independence, she interprets Baba Yaga as the wild feminine principle that Vasilisa has been separated from which by obeying and learning how to nurture she learns and grows from so I took that as like Baba Yaga kind of helps her grow her independence and like helps her

kind of get out of the being obeying of her stepmother even though i don't know she does just kind of show up and like the skull just takes care of yeah but but but but i think that because where i was seeing that show up in basilisa was when the old woman takes her in and she decides that she wants to actually like be industrious and do something for herself yes uh so so i can see it in that way of baba yaga takes her in uh teaches her teaches her whatever lesson you want to interpret that as even though like vasalisa still didn't do any of the work vasalisa was probably like uh i love baba yaga because she's amazing yeah as we all do or that and and kind, yeah, teaches her a little independence and then removes the obstacle to that independence for her. And then Vasilisa is able to make her own way in the world after that.

Yeah. And I do like the idea that it was her mother's love who protected her from Baba Yaga. Oh, yeah. That's really sweet. I think that's lovely. I think that's really beautiful. And then Baba Yaga as this sort of older, fierce woman who lives alone in the woods teaches her a little independence.

And I really vibe with that. Oh my gosh, me too. That's a cool interpretation. I like that. Yeah, I thought it was interesting. I think there's more to it. You could probably read about it if you go to Wikipedia. But I thought that was cool. And obviously my fix is that, you know, every fix I have for every fairy tale in existence is I want Vasilisa to just go out and become a witch.

Actually, I would also really love for her to be close with her stepsisters and stepmother. And then they just form a coven of witches. That would be incredible. with her stepsisters and stepmother and then they just form a coven of witches that would be incredible so what i like about this story is that it's unusual in a you know stepmother a wicked stepmother trope story but there's a lot of like examples of of um women supporting each other yeah definitely for sure baba yaga is kind of like a mentor in a weird, as much as a cannibalistic mythological being can be a mentor. I love that she finds Vasilisa's like a bore and she's like, ask me some questions. Like, oh my God, do you talk? And then also the old woman supporting

Vasilisa and then Vasilisa in her turn supporting the old woman and that the people who are left out are the ones who aren't kind and who aren't supportive and don't. Yeah, that's a really good point because she does have a lot of like female help and just support in general in this whole story. Yeah. And she turns around and she passes that on when she gets the opportunity to do that. And the people who die are people who don't who aren't cooperative in that way i don't know i like that you do too it's a good story i don't know like fix wise i think my biggest issue with the story is what a thin excuse the very thin excuse that she got sent to Baba Kaka in the first place on, which is, Oh no,

the light went out. I guess you're going to have to go to Baba Yaga to get the candle. That kind of seems like an inside, like, like you, or if you know Baba Yaga, like if you know, you know,

kind of situation. Like this, this probably isn't the first Baba Yaga story that most Russians hear so maybe that's kind of a normal thing so what made me want to read this story was actually the artwork I've seen for Baba Yaga for Vasilisa specifically where she's holding the skull and it's glowing it's really beautiful okay so I'll post those in the Instagram sometime this week, but the artwork is just gorgeous,

and that's kind of what made me want to read it. Wow, okay. I definitely, I'm excited to see that artwork. Yeah, I think we need to focus and read more Baba Yaga stories.

Obviously. I think that's the answer, is more Baba Yaga on the pod. I think there's more to her than we realize. So I'm stoked. Me too. That was an excellent story. So I'm reading today from Brazilian Folk Tales by Livia de Almeida and Ana Portea, edited by Margaret Reid McDonald. And this book does a really good job of breaking down all of the, well, I'm sure not all of, but breaking down a bunch of the cultures that contribute to Brazilian folklore and Brazilian culture in general. So, you know, European people,

indigenous people, and then also African people have all been living in Brazil for a couple hundred years at this point. And it's kind of produced a really excellent fusion of so many stories from so many different traditions all over the world. And I found one, the one that I wanted to read today is one that is actually the Brazilian version of a Brothers Grimm story that I really love. Nice. So this is the princess with the seven pairs of shoes. And this is the Brazilian version of 12 dancing princesses. Oh,

cool. Okay. Seven shoes, 12 princesses. The math does not add up. No, not at all. Do you know the 12 Dancing Princesses? I do not. Story? Okay. Excellent. I have notes on the Grimm's Brothers version that I will tell you after I've read you this story to tell you how this is different, but also follows a lot of the same pattern. I'm excited. Yeah. So go ahead and give me your prediction for the princess with the seven pairs of shoes from Brazil. Okay. I will say that Abby messaged me earlier about what she was going to be telling me. And I said, that's not enough shoes.

I still need more. More shoes. I'm going to guess that seven shoes is a lot in this story. I feel like that's like, there's just, that's a lot of shoes. It's an excess of shoes. I'll take it. Somehow. Okay. Somehow it It's an excess of shoes. I'll take it. Somehow. Okay. Somehow it will be an excess of shoes.

Is it too cheap if I say I'm going to guess there's a ball? You can guess there's a ball. I told you the title of the German version. So. I mean, I'm guessing they're dancing because there's a party or some of some sort. I really want to get the princess doesn't have a name i feel like that's a little obvious didn't we say we couldn't guess that anymore yeah because she never does they never but this is brazilian i don't know that would be different that's true i'm gonna guess that i think i think what you're allowed to guess is the princess has a name because that's more of

a more of an outlier oh i like I like yeah, that's true. Okay. I'm not guessing that though. I feel like that's a terrible prediction. It's wrong more often than not. Yeah. Seven pairs of shoes. I've got way more than that. It's just not enough shoes. I need all of shoes. I've got way more than that.

It's just not enough shoes. I need all the shoes. But I only wear like two of them day to day. Hold on. I had so much time to think about this and I haven't. I never do.

I'm really mad because in our bonus episode, I got five points and they don't go toward my total. And they don't count. They do not matter at all. And all three of my predictions were right on your story this episode. So. I'm like running through all the tropes in my head. Is there a talking animal? Is there a tricky king?

Probably a maiden is going to marry into royalty. No, she's going to, everyone's got to be royal at the end. Okay. So let's see if I've distilled these down. Prediction number one, the seven shoes will be excessive somehow that's more than enough shoes yeah the second prediction is oh that there's going to be a ball okay or a party of some sort where they dance so my third prediction is going to be that there's an angry sibling love it i is that okay? Yes.

Absolutely. That's fine. Totally fine. You can guess whatever you want. Because you're not going to get that point. Because that's not right. All right. Okay. Let's hear it.

The Princess with the Seven Pairs of Shoes. Long ago and far away in a kingdom whose name has been forgotten, there was a princess who wore out seven pairs of shoes every night. No one knew how to explain that mystery. The king decided to marry the princess to the man who discovered the answer to that riddle. But he forewarned that those who tried and failed would lose their heads. That's so dramatic. It's very dramatic. Yes.

Come on, king. The young men in the kingdom were all scared. No one wanted to risk his head, even for such a prize. But there was a traveler named Joao who had heard about the mystery, and he decided to try his luck. He presented himself to the king and said that he was ready to solve the riddle his royal highness informed him about all the intricate tortures reserved for those who failed all leading to the hideous death by beheading that's so classic fairy tale king it's a classic fairy what fuck? Joao was not impressed at all.

He just asked to spend the night in a connecting room with the princess. And when all was set up, Joao went to his room where he planned to spend the night and watch all the princess's movements. But the girl had already guessed

what he was planning to do and ordered her lady-in-waiting to offer Joao a cup of tea, which would make the boy sleep heavily. He, okay, more drugging. Mm-hmm, more drugging of the people. Also, I should have guessed that the man would have a name, but not the princess.

Oh, obviously, Joao is important, he's a man. And already, it's not enough shoes, apparently. It's still not enough shoes. I like this girl she needs more shoes anyway okay so she has her lady in waiting give him tea that will make him sleep heavily joelle was no fool though he mistrusted the gentle lady who so kindly offered him a cup of tea and as soon as she left he threw the liquid out the window. Oh, clever,

clever. He's smart. He's read a fairy tale before. He has, he understands the assignment. Then he laid down and he pretended he was fast asleep, snoring loudly. So the princess would hear him.

And as soon as the princess was ready for bed, Joao doubled his attention. He had already noticed that the princess had an iron chest under her bed and that sometimes you could hear strange noises coming from inside. And around midnight, he heard the princess's voice. Calicote, calicote.

From the vault came a little imp that kept repeating, it is time, princess, it is time, princess. It is time. Oh, fun. Mm-hmm. I love imps. Me too. Imps are the best.

They turn into cats and they take princesses places. They're just fucking with you. So the princess gets ready really quickly and puts six pairs of shoes inside the chest, including the ones she was wearing. She had seven beautiful, brand new satin shoes. Oh, my gosh. Is the imp going to take the shoes? Is he like obsessed with them? Wait, hold on.

I'm getting 10th Kingdom vibes and I'm really excited about it. The imp got a hold of the chest and of the princess and left through the window joao followed them taking all precautions not to be seen outside there was a golden carriage with six black horses all arrayed in silver and gold calicote and the princess took the front seats joao hung on at the back of the carriage which which soon left at top speed. Suddenly, the road cut through a field covered with copper flowers. João reached out and grabbed one, and after looking at it in awe, he put it away in his backpack. And soon the carriage crossed a field with silver flowers, then one with golden flowers, another with emerald flowers, and then ruby flowers and

diamond flowers. Dang. I know. Doesn't that sound beautiful? I want to check out these fields. Yes. It's like, it sounds magical. I love it. It does. It was wonderful. Joao managed to get one flower from each field,

putting them away in his backpack, more and more amazed at the mystery. And finally, they arrive at the richest palace Joao had ever seen. It was all lit up, even the gardens, which were covered with even more exquisite flowers than the ones Joao had collected during the trip. From the halls, there came beautiful music. Joao looked through the windows and could see the servers and the guests, all richly dressed in silver and gold. Okay, did you ever watch Aladdin 2 with Jafar's return? You know, no. I've only ever seen Aladdin, the original Aladdin and Aladdin and the 40 thieves or Aladdin and the King of Thieves. Okay. Because in the second one there, I'm pretty sure this is,

yeah, yeah. It's the second one. And there is a jewel flower that Aladdin like gives to Jasmine. And I was obsessed with that because it was so beautiful. It has like a ruby inside and it's like gold on the outside and has emerald leaves. That sounds amazing. I just now remembered how much I loved that jewel flower. That sounds beautiful. Yes, please. I want that. Adam, if you're listening.

You know what to get Kelsey for your next anniversary. My birthday is coming up, you know? That's true. They arrive at this palace. It's all very exquisite. Joao can see servers and guests alike, all richly dressed in silver and gold and the princess and calicote join the other guests and go into the banquet room and carefully joao manages to climb through the window and hide himself under the table once in a while some guests would let a chicken bone or a turkey bone fall and they were also made of silver and gold what the the hell? I know. It's wild. What? I have questions. I know. I know. Does the turkey grow that way? Is that how the turkey comes in the egg?

It's just the bone part because that would be sweet. Yeah. It's just the bone. The meat is all still turkey and chicken meat. Okay. Okay. Okay. But the bone is silver or gold. Where is this going? We're getting there. Once the ball starts, the princess doesn't stop dancing. And every time one of her satin shoes was ripped, Calicote would run to her, throw away the worn out pair and take a new one from the chest. Joao, who was very smart, managed to get one shoe from each pair and hide them away in his backpack. It was almost two o'clock when the princess finally calls out, Calicote, it is time.

Yes, princess, let's go. And they both got in the carriage, which is waiting for them. And without losing any time, Joao went back to his spot on the back of the carriage, this time with his backpack full of incredible treasure, apparently. Hell yes. He's not a fool. Sorry. He's no fool. Joao is not an idiot. And they traveled so quickly that when the clock struck twice, they were all back in their own rooms and the carriage was gone. Calicote got inside the chest, which was hidden under the bed. When morning came, the king was anxious to have a solution for the riddle. Your Royal Highness, I will give you the answer tonight at dinnertime.

I beg you to provide a banquet and invite all the noble folks in the kingdom. Which the king agrees to do. which the king agrees to do. And dinner was progressing as usual that night when Joao got up and made a toast to the princess, saying he had some rich and mysterious gifts for her. Yeah, he does. Can we also just appreciate how much kings just love parties? Yes, we can absolutely appreciate that.

I feel like I would be a king because I love parties. Well, here's the thing. I think most human beings really love parties. And if you're a king and you have access to all this money and stuff and people to make it happen for you, then yes, you party all the time. I would throw so many parties. I just love that he's just like, yeah. Yeah, absolutely. You know what? There are so many parties. I just love that. He's just like, yeah, yeah, absolutely. I,

you know what I, it's been like two days since my last banquet and that's just, that's just too much time. So Joao is presenting gifts to the princess. In which garden would you find copper flowers? He says, as he takes a copper flower from his backpack and places it on the table and the princess goes pale.

In which one would you find silver flowers or golden flowers or emerald flowers, he said, laying them on the table. What about golden turkey feet and silver chicken feet? The guests were all amazed at such rich gifts, but the princess became paler and paler and Joao kept taking things from his sack. What about this shoe, your highness, and this, and this one? And Joao took out all seven satin shoes and placed them in front of the princess who could not stand anymore and fainted. Oh no. I know. Poor thing. I don't want those shoes. I've worn those already. Joao ran to the princess's room and got the iron chest he put it in front of the king and the princess there was a blast and from the inside there came a cloud of sulfurous smoke the princess opened her eyes and exclaimed joyfully i am finally free from the

curse of an envious fairy since the age of 12 i have been forced to wear out seven pairs of shoes every night oh no everyone rejoiced all the court admired the courage and wit of joao but no one admired him more than the princess herself and the king gladly gave the hand of his daughter to the boy they got married the next day and the wedding was unforgettable it says that believe it yeah i believe it it's great this king loves parties he was super stoked to throw that away he loves parties all of his parties are unforgettable and of course they lived happily ever after. The end. Aw, cute.

I know. I think it's super cute. That was a fun one. I love fairies. Me too. You have to dance. You have to dance. There's seven pairs of shoes.

There's seven pairs of shoes. I mean, and as ever, my fix for this story is, why'd the bookend fairy curse her? What did she do? Like, why at 12? I need some more info thank you i'm gonna need a little more information uh maybe the fairy just also really loves parties i think the fairy just also really loves parties and maybe that's the ball oh i also have another question of if this palace exists within the physical realm, how come nobody else knows where it is? So in the German version of this story, it's 12 princesses because it's the 12 dancing princesses. And the man is a nameless soldier who is much older than all of the princesses? I noticed that the Brazilian version calls him boy a lot, which I like because it means that he and the princess are probably of a similar age.

Where this man is so much older than all of the princesses that he feels like he's not allowed to marry any of them except for the oldest one. And does he marry the oldest one? And so he marries the oldest sister. That's kind of different though yeah it's it's different usually who cares it's always the youngest it's exactly it's like who cares about age whatever um yeah he marries the youngest daughter but no and in the 12 dancing princesses he he's such a and it specifically says in the text that he's kind of an older guy and so he would feel weird about marrying any of the ones that were younger than the oldest one.

Yeah. So he marries the oldest sister. It's also the oldest sister who tries to give him like sleepy time drinks. Who drugs him. Quit drugging people, everybody. It's not cool. It's just, it's not cool. It's always bad.

It happens a lot in these fairy tales yeah i know people are getting people are getting roofied all over the place and people drugging people all the time although i do think it's funny that it's most of the men who get drugged yeah i don't actually think there's been i can't think of one specifically where the woman gets drugged not outside of like Snow White um and that's a woman drugging another woman basically yeah yeah that's some woman on woman crime there that's a different kind of drugging okay never mind but anyway it's always women like to poison people in fairy tales that's the that's the takeaway here. All right. I like it. So also in the German version, the soldier, before he gets to the king's palace, encounters an old woman in the woods who warns him not to drink anything the princesses give him

and who gives him a magic invisibility cloak. And then instead of like a field of copper, emerald, ruby, and diamond flowers, it's a grove of silver, and diamond trees oh that sounds pretty snaps off a twig oh and then also the princesses get to this ballroom uh via a trap door in their bedroom that leads them to like a magical alternate dimension uh that has all of this stuff in it dang okay and they are are also taken by 12 princes who they encounter beneath the trap door. Oh, so fairy magic.

Yeah. So it's very magic, but it's not a curse because at the end of the German story, the soldier exposes all of their secrets. Like, cause he's also like taken their shoes and, and snapped off twigs from the branches and stuff like that and then he lays it all out for the king and says like your daughters have

been out dancing all night and the and the princesses like guiltily admit to it it wasn't a curse like they were just out dancing all night well that makes sense because you know like father like daughters right they also really like to party i feel like that's fair i really like the brazilian version because i feel like it incorporates a lot of like other magic elements i like that the relationship is age appropriate and i like that the king really enjoys being dramatic threatening to behead people and likes throwing parties cool i like that there is an imp and a fairy. I mean, I guess that's kind of the same thing-ish. Imp usually means like demon to me.

Yeah, a little devil or demon. But fairies basically are that. Disney version of a fairy is something very different than all of the fairies we have read from actual fairy tales, which they are little like monsters, basically. Yeah, yeah, yeah. They are definitely like supernatural monster they're mischievous and usually not good i mean sometimes they are only when it's like a little kid or like someone innocent someone who really deserves it i

guess i don't know other than that they're here to fuck with you fairies are the ultimate chaotic neutral and i love them for that absolutely they're my favorite what's your fix for that just more answers oh yeah just uh more of a i would just want to know why the wicked fairy like cursed the princess you know what did she do did her father do something that merited her being cursed this way? And then also, like how no one has actually found this other palace since it does seem to be like a physical place. It seems that way. But yeah, fairies are tricky like that. Maybe the carriage is magic and it's like transmuting dimensions or something. That's cool. It is cool. Do you have a fix for this story? I really don't.

Besides someone other than the fucking dude has a name. Yes. Yeah. That's always an excellent one. Why does that guy have a name and nobody else? Nobody else gets a name except Joelle. It's a great name though. It's a very cool name.

I really like it. What was it called again? It was called The Princess with the Seven Pairs of Shoes. And it still wasn't enough shoes. I love that. Yeah. Yeah. I feel like you get a point for that. No, I only got one point because there was a ball. Yeah, there was a ball. You get two points. I think you get the ball and the number of shoes is excessive. I feel like I don't get that point. Here's why I argue why I don't get a point.

Okay, all right. It's because I said that was too many shoes. And in reality, in this story, that really wasn't enough shoes. She needed more. I guess I more mean that everybody was really concerned because she's been wearing out seven pairs of satin shoes a night, and that seems excessive. That's ridiculous.

Okay, you're right. I'm going to give myself a few points. I think you get that point. I really need them. I'm so behind. I'm sure of it. I only get points when they're bonus episodes. You only get points when it doesn't matter. And then you sweep the whole category. Well, that's because I get daring. Yeah, my bonus episode predictions. I need to do that more often. Yeah, because they don't matter. So I go a little I go a little wild with it. By the way, I have been looking for more vampires and fairy tales and I cannot find them. please tweet at us at fairytalefixpod. Email us at info at fairytalefixpod.com

because I need more vampires or just like any kind of weird mythological creature that's not common in a fairy tale. I would like help finding those and pointing them out. Yes. Please and thanks. Honestly, anything with like horror elements, I really think that we should be reading more of those.

This book, this Brazilian folktales book does have a section for scary stories. Probably do a couple of those coming up for the next few months because as we lead up to Halloween, I might read a few of the scary stories. Oh my gosh. Can it just be Halloween already? And I think that that's going to do it for us for today. Well, thank you so much for listening to fairy tale fix if you enjoyed the show as always we encourage you to subscribe and leave us a review on apple or stitcher or anywhere that you can leave us a review it definitely helps us out and if you love the show and want to support us you can get extra episodes merch books and other bonus content

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It's not a joke. Our email is info at fairytalefixpod.com. And that's it. Vasilisa, the work smarter, not harder, became Baba Yaga's apprentice and formed a coven with her and the old woman that took her in and as part of her explanation of the curse she was under the princess explained why the fairy cursed her just so that we had a little closure on that or the fairy herself appeared to tell us why she had cursed her and uh yeah after that they all lived happily ever after the end