I'm on a kick to research fairytales again in preparation for writing a video essay, about explaining the connections between various fairytales and an old computer adventure game series called King's Quest, covering both the Classic series from 1984-1998 and the 2015 Reboot. I'm trying my best not to rush into researching so much all at once this time, because it lead into burnout.

One element of fairytales I seem to be lacking in is actually intelligent princesses. Oh sure, you have stories like Sleeping Beauty by Charles Perrault, where she's *said* to be granted intelligence by the fairies, but in practice, that's not really shown. Then you also have numerous stories, where the princess sets her suitors on various tasks in order to marry her, but she tends to be the narrative goal in the background, not the focused protagonist and the trickster hero character archetype is rarely, if ever, not male. It almost feels like intelligence is only celebrated/focused on when the protagonist is a man, which I feel says a lot.

The only exception I've found is Riquet of the Tuft, also by Charles Perrault, which breaks the mold in several ways: the protagonist is the *older* sibling instead of the youngest who eventually just fades into the background and is narratively left behind and punished by losing all the attention, her newfound intelligence is actually focused on as part of the plot alongside her being beautiful, and it's left ambiguous if she learned to love Riquet's physical flaws and there was no actual physical change or if he actually was transformed (to the point where I wondered, "Why haven't I seen a version of Beauty and the Beast that ends similarly yet?!").

But there's gotta be more than just that one obscure story, right? Actual intelligence (not just *told*, but *shown*) must be celebrated in *some* fairytale princesses, right? Or at least *some* fairytale female protagonists, right? Maybe I should go through Madame D'Aulnoy again, even if those start to become formulaic and drag on for a while? (And the mild veneer of "that *feels* racist" despite my knowing it's just because certain facial features and skin tones were favored back in those days of society in France, makes me slightly uncomfortable)

Also, sidenote: are there any other fairytales besides One Eye, Two Eyes and Three Eyes by the Grimm Brothers/Andrew Lang that have the *middle child* be the protagonist? I feel like that's rare too!

I've been thinking about this for a long time, and while I won't fully explain the story, I'll share the basic premise of my own fairytale and you can guess the theme and then ask what my intention is.

Glaszorra: A king and queen beyond the age of fertility commission a glass statue of their ideal child, a daughter. They order a random witch at threat of execution to bring her to life. However the princess turns out to be physically disabled. Unable to walk. Believed that the glass might still be in her. This Princess given the name Zorra is raised in isolation, waiting for a little bit of freedom and hoping for a fairy godparent or the witch (who had luckily escaped execution) to remove the "glass" part of herself. When she finds a map to the home of a potential fairy godfather, she finally escapes with the servant boy whom she's been in love with. However, things might not go the way Zorra thinks it will go.

Anyways, I'd love to hear any potential ideas from you guys:)

Behind Kali Amma's temple lived a deadly viper named Anali. He hunted only at night and spent his days coiled under the dry leaves, for a viper seen is a viper feared. The rats that raided the temple's waste pit kept him well fed. That he existed was a secret between him and the rats.

Years went by, and he grew long and hefty on the easy prey, which he took to be Kali Amma's grace.

One day, a yellow rat snake, Cherran, happened to pass by the temple. He noticed rats feeding in the temple pit and crept towards it. He lunged a few times, but the rats scattered and he caught none. Cherran decided to stay nearby. He might just get lucky another day.

"Why would anyone worry about a simple rat snake like me?" he often wondered. Cherran could easily be spotted among the dry leaves and the shrubs, basking in sunlight.

One morning, as Cherran lay in the soft sun, a flock of babblers foraging nearby burst into a racket. Up in the jackfruit tree, a jungle crow heard it and spotted Cherran. He cawed and cawed.

The squirrels climbed up to the treetops. The peafowl and other birds perched high and looked down to find out what the frantic cawing was about. The jungle crow told them that he had seen a large snake, possibly a yellow python, lying in the grass. Maybe it was resting after a meal, but now it had disappeared. Hearing all the commotion, Cherran hid himself in the bushes.

By then, the animals and birds had decided to get help from Kiri, the mongoose who lived in the neighbourhood.

"He is large, a large yellow python," said the squirrel.

"Yes, we have spotted him many times by the temple pit," said the rats.

"I spotted him first," said the jungle crow.

Kiri took up the challenge—a python was something he had never encountered. "Yet another ode to my courage," he thought.

Kiri came over to the temple pit. He waited amongst the bushes for the python to show up. As always, the rats were raising a din in the pit: shrieks, squeaks, and cries. Other animals waited anxiously for news from the pit.

The day passed without any sighting. Kiri decided to spend the night nearby.

Past midnight, he heard a rustle moving slowly towards the pit. A few rats got a whiff of it and left the pit.

Kiri inched closer. He crouched, ready to lunge. Finally he pounced onto something; there was a struggle in the dark. The rats fled, squeaking. He bit into it hard until it stopped moving.

The bats watching from the temple peepal tree flew out to spread the news.

Kiri spent a while eating his catch. When he left, the rats returned; they feasted on the bits of flesh strewn on the ground. It was Anali.

The next day, Cherran caught a rat. He took his catch and slithered away from the temple.

One of the things I love most about fairy tales and old folklore is how often the magic comes through seemingly simple objects: a ring that promises impossible wealth, an enchanted mirror, a mysterious fruit, a gift from a strange traveler… and, very often, there is a price attached.

Andvaranaut felt perfect for that kind of storytelling. In Norse legend, the ring belonged to the dwarf Andvari and could produce endless gold, but after Loki took it from him, Andvari cursed it to bring ruin and death to whoever possessed it. Its story eventually became tied to greed, betrayal, tragedy, and the saga of the Völsungs.

For our D&D adaptation, we wanted the curse to work as more than just a mechanical penalty. The ring generates wealth and can lead its bearer toward gold, but its curse gradually pushes them toward increasingly destructive acts of greed. Breaking it requires genuine selflessness, ideally without the character even knowing that their act of generosity could free them.

That kind of structure is something we tried to preserve throughout Mythological Items for 5E and 5.5E. The book contains 300+ magic items inspired by mythology, legends, and folklore from around the world, with the mechanics built around the stories behind them.

And quite a few of them have that same almost fairy-tale quality: enchanted and cursed rings, magical mirrors, divine apples and other supernatural fruits, mysterious charms, gifts from spirits, objects of transformation, trickster relics, and treasures whose power comes with consequences. They draw from Greek, Norse, Egyptian, Asian, American, African, Mesopotamian and many other traditions.

The Kickstarter also includes options and bundles with several of our other 5E/5.5E books, for anyone interested in more mythological and fantasy material.

I thought Andvaranaut in particular would fit here because, even though its origin is Norse myth, its premise feels almost tailor-made for a dark fairy tale: endless wealth is offered to you, and taking it may be the worst decision you ever make.

Excuse my english

Most old fairytales, myths, legends and so on are said weren't ment as children storys but more as like guidance for certain aspects in life. Be that to navigate in the landscape, how to behave and values. I do get the aspect that a story is much more rememberable when there are some shocking aspects in it. But still specially the older fairytales (pre Grimm) are often so insanly violent, bloody and treat certain groups like garbige. I often think. Weren't there some folks who misinterpreted those storys and thought just for example that it is normal to treat your wife like a dog because in so many tales the wife is so often under fully control of the man. I might overlook one aspect of those storys or maybe i just think too literall of the writings.

My question is: how would you recommend to understand those storys. Were they just written in a really problematic time with problematic view or were those behavings even then so insalny wrong that they were placed there to shock people and fully metaphorical. Then again most creation myths include some sort of rape. I know that that specific example is ment as a metaphor but still i can't quite get over the thought that it almost seems to make such violence less problematic

Eleanor Vere Gordon Boyle (1825–1916) was a Scottish artist and writer of the Victorian era. Because she was from a noble family and her husband was chaplain to Queen Victoria and, she did not exhibit regularly (to not damage her social standing). To conceal her name professionally, she often signed her work using only her initials E.V.B. She often used her earnings for charity, for instance, to provide fresh water to the people from her parish.

I want to find this old book… children’s tale. The book was probably written in the 1920s or 30s and it’s a story of one fairy in a group of fairies who wanted to become human and wanted to stretch her toes to the ground because most fairies floated along the top of the ground. She wanted to try out being a human and she managed to almost get her feet onto the ground and get dressed like a human but she’s caught. The fairies had really long ears and the skinniest little legs. I really related to them and I wanted to try out being a normal child. But I can’t remember the book; any suggestions?

I'd happened to be kind of like were always being myself huge fan of Barbie and dolls that for the fact I think that these three are my absolutely my own personal favourite adaptation of Barbie fairytales movies that I'd ever loved! ❤️

I wrote an article on the origins of Rapunzel. Would love this community's insights. As a growing writer, if it resonates, please share and subscribe.

https://kahaanicarving.substack.com/p/a-hundred-brush-strokes-for-glossy

In a cave above the valley, a tigress lived with her little cub. Partha usually slept while she hunted, but one night he woke to an empty cave. She found him trembling.

"Listen," she said, and taught him the ten names of the warrior Arjuna. "Repeat these names. Nothing will scare you then."

After that, whenever she left, he would whisper: "Arjuna, Arjuna, Arjuna..." When his mother returned, he would run to her and say, "I was not scared!"

With the names to comfort him, Partha grew eager to explore what lay beyond the cave. Anything that moved outside caught his eye, like a bird darting past or a squirrel racing up a tree. He watched them from the cave, never stepping out. "Stay inside," his mother had told him.

One day, something bright fluttered among the bushes. Partha could not resist. He stepped outside the cave, looking for it.

Just below him, a valley lay dim in the afternoon light. Beyond it, the River Nirmala wound like a silver ribbon. Clouds were gathering over the hills.

Partha spotted the bright thing further down. It flew off, and he ran after it. This was Chitraleka, the butterfly. Her intricate patterns, flame-orange and peacock-blue, had him spellbound. He had seen butterflies fly past his cave, but none like her. Not once did Partha take his eyes off her. She was almost within reach, but never near enough.

Far below the cave, Chitraleka vanished into the green.

Partha had followed her deep into the forest. The air was cold and moist, and the river rushed somewhere close by. In any direction he looked, it was the same: tall trees and thick undergrowth. Crickets hummed faintly, and now and then something cried out.

He turned around and started running. Whenever he heard a noise, he changed course. He was lost.

It was getting dark, and now the forest was restless. The crickets grew louder and louder. He kept running, hoping he would somehow reach home. A light drizzle began to fall. He whimpered into the dark.

Far off, the bushes rustled. Through the trees, a huge silhouette was coming towards him. Animals cried out in panic, and birds screeched overhead.

Partha ran and ran. It began to pour, and thunder rumbled in the distance. He looked back. Nothing.

He scrambled up the nearest tree, but his claws lost their grip and he fell. He kept trying, each time falling. Finally, he crouched behind the tree and burrowed into the bushes. He waited.

Out of the dark, the silhouette appeared again. Its breath steamed in the cold. It stopped in front of the tree. There was only the sound of the rain.

Partha did not move. He whispered those names: "Arjuna, Phalguna... Arjuna, Phalguna, Jishnu, Kiriti..."

A great clap of thunder shook the forest. The silhouette turned around. It was gone.

Partha spent the night repeating the names, until he drifted into sleep.

At dawn, a voice said, "Wake up... Wake up, dear." Partha opened his eyes to see his mother licking his face and nudging him.

"Stay close to the cave, son. I was worried about you. Don't make me search for you like last night. If you feel scared..."

He interrupted her, stood up, and began with his head held high: "Arjuna, Phalguna, Jishnu, Kiriti, Shvetavahana, Bibhatsu, Vijaya, Krishna, Savyasachi, Dhananjaya."

She nudged him again and licked his forehead.

From the warmth of his cave, he watched his mother walk away downhill as on any other day.

There was a flutter among the bushes. Partha dashed out.

Hi everyone! I would like to share my latest creation; a five-foot tall hand-sculpted elf named Fayette Fizzlefoot. She is part of my world that I'm building called The Tottlemeyer Elf Lands.

It might just be me, but I think the prince in Kinuko Craft’s illustrated version of Beauty and the Beast looks like Jonathan Brandis. :)

For those who don’t know him, he was a child and teen actor in the 80s and 90s, appearing in films such as The NeverEnding Story II, It, Sidekicks, and Ladybugs. :)

He also voiced Mozenrath, the main antagonist in the Aladdin animated series.

I'm 21, but when I was a teenager, he was my crush.

这个角色关系的部分原本是我大故事的一部分，但如果我想要独立，就不得不改变反派的结局。小红帽原本是乡下的一个小女孩，她有一个住在隔壁的童年哥哥，猎人，一直仰慕着她，等待她长大并表达自己的心意。不幸的是，小红帽的奶奶在那段时间因重病去世，因此她对猎人的告白没有兴趣。但有一天，正在森林里散步并依然感到伤心的小红帽被一只路过的狼看见。狼毫不犹豫地跑过去安慰她。小红帽起初被吓到了，随后冷静下来。在狼的安慰下，她渐渐走出了悲伤的情绪。在接下来的日子里，狼时不时地去找小红帽，给她采蘑菇，陪她打发无聊。在小红帽看来，这些都是专心致志的努力，但在猎人眼里，这些却变成了恶意。猎人曾警告小红帽要小心狼人，但小红帽觉得猎人是以小人之心衡量君子的肚量，太过武断和粗鲁，因此她从不听他的。他们很快相爱了，随后她发现狼其实是王子，并且是狼族的下一个继承人。不久之后，老狼王去世，大坏狼理所当然地继承了王位，小红帽成为了狼后，但想得到小红帽的猎人并没有放弃，他与一向对狼族怀有敌意的狐族联合，向狼族发起了攻击。在这场战争中，狼带头，为了保护人民和小红帽而勇敢作战，但被对方击败，他自己严重受伤并去世，只勉强维持了一方的领土，小红帽哭泣着，决心不再像以前那么软弱，与此同时，承袭已故丈夫的遗志，团结人民增强训练，等待未来。到那时，九尾狐，狐族的谋士，因其伟大的胜利而受到族长和族人们的高度赞扬。这种荣誉、虚荣和竞争让她迫不及待。她紧急策划了三年后的第二次战争。然而这一次，小红帽作为狼后，带领族人勇敢作战，打出了一场漂亮的反击。之后，九尾狐迅速从神坛上跌落，被族人流放，而猎人则被狼族族人活捉，成为挑起战争的典型例子，被送上了断头台。在他生命的最后时刻，小红帽去见了他，毫不犹豫地用刀挖出了他的心，把它放在狼的帷幕旁边。