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There once was a pool, tucked away in a hidden glade in the forest. This small pool had shimmering crystaline waters that sparkled in the dappled sunlight, and any who laid eyes upon it had the urge to drink its cool waters, or slip in for a quick dip. But a dark and terrible secret hid in this pool. Some said that it was a siren, others that it was a water horse, and still others claimed it was a giant serpent. But what one and all agreed, is that it was a cursed place, and any who got too close to those waters, would be dragged under and devoured.
In the vicinity of this wood was a simple village, filled with hard working and earnest people. Among them though was a young maiden whose head was often in the clouds. She spent her days daydreaming of enchanted places, and looking for fairies under flowers. Although she was a dreamer, she was kind to those around her and her smile brought warmth to all who witnessed it. As they watched her weave flower wreaths and leave out sweetened water in the hopes of luring in any passing pixies, they’d simply shake their heads with a smile.
“She’ll grow out of it in time,” they all told themselves. But as she grew into a lovely young maiden, the unshakeable belief in the magical and the special never left her. She continued to dream of the wondrous and the mysterious. So when she heard of an enchanted pool that was home to a creature of legend, not all the warnings and dissuasion of the villagers combined could have stopped her from seeking it out.
So convinced was she that this poor maligned creature was just misunderstood that she packed a bag with treats and flowers and anything else she could think of as gifts and set out into the woods to find it.
“So many people fear the unknown and the mysterious that they turn a perfectly harmless Visitor into a monster in their stories. I’m certain that’s what happened here,” she thought out loud as she passed beneath the branches of the woods. Deciding that no self-respecting magical pool would be simply set along the main path for anyone to stumble across, she veered off the dirt path onto a narrow hunting trail.
For hours she wandered the woods, stopping now and then for a drink of sweet juice she had packed, or a bite of fluffy freshly baked bread. Her feet were getting quite sore and she had been scratched several times by unruly brambles, but she didn’t feel the slightest bit discouraged. This was an adventure! And even if she had felt any weariness, the lure of seeing the mystical with her own eyes for the first time ever would have propelled her forward.
Finally her patience was rewarded. As she stepped through a break in the trees she laid eyes upon the pool. It was everything she could have hoped for, and looked every bit like an enchanted place. The slightest mist hovered in some spots here and there, where the sun didn't quite reach. On one side an old willow trailed its branches lazily in the water, as if it too was lured in by the sparkling water.
She was so overjoyed she did a little dance right then and there, her happy laugh breaking the hush of the place. Her exuberant display having relieved a bit of the excited energy she was brimming with, she moved closer to the pool stopping several feet back. Not because she was afraid of course, but there was an order to these things, and it would be terribly rude to intrude without so much as introducing oneself. And she so wanted to make a good impression.
“Hello?” she called out. Silence reigned over the glade. For the first time she noticed that she heard neither insects nor birds in this place. All was as still as the surface of the pool. Well of course an enchanted place is going to look and sound different from a normal glade, how else would one know they were somewhere special?
“It’s alright, you don’t need to be afraid, I mean you no harm,” she tried again. “My name is Jei.”
Perhaps they were just shy, she thought, so she climbed up onto a large flat rock that hung over the pool and began setting out the gifts she’d brought. She set out a wreath of flowers she had strung together, because after all, who doesn’t like receiving flowers, and dug into her pack for the treats. Pulling out a cup and the container of juice she paused. How does one offer a drink to someone underwater? Simply pouring it into the pool seemed inappropriate. So she just poured a glass and set it aside on the rock, alongside a plate with a hearty slice of bread. She had even brought a tiny container of honey, because everyone knew fae creatures loved sweets.
After she had finished arranging the items to her satisfaction she spoke once more, “I brought you these gifts as a way of saying hello. Oh I do hope we can become friends!”
Although nothing but silence answered her, she wasn’t dismayed. Good things take work after all. The smooth waters looked so cool and inviting, and her feet ached a little so she was seriously tempted to stick them in, but held herself back. After all this pool was someone’s home, and sticking your hot, and possibly smelly, feet into someone’s home uninvited was just plain rude.
Instead, she pulled out some bread for herself as well and as she ate, she talked about the village where she came from, and shared some silly stories of her adventures and the people there. Her throat a bit parched from talking, she eyed the water, imagining how good and fresh it would taste. The last of her juice had gone into the cup for her soon-to-be new friend. With a wistful sigh, she instead stood, picking up her small bag. The reason people got into trouble with the creatures they encountered in the stories was almost always for trespassing or taking things that didn’t belong to them, and she wasn’t going to make that error.
She left the cup and plate and flowers where they were, perhaps her new friend would come out and taste them after she had left. She was a stranger who had visited unannounced after all, maybe next time they could have a proper chat.
“I’ll just leave these here for you, for whenever you want them. Next time I’ll bring some fruit. Some peaches maybe? Or perhaps apples?” she mused out loud, not really expecting an answer.
So her shock was evident when the still water suddenly rippled and bubbled and a deep voice echoed from its depths, “As you brought offerings and didn’t taint my pool in any way, I will allow you to escape with your life this one time. But if you ever come back here again, I will drag you to the depths from which you will never return.”
His pronouncement made, the voice fell silent and the waters slowly returned to their placid state.
Now at this point, most sensible people would be thanking their lucky stars for their narrow escape and hurrying home, never to darken these woods again, with a story to tell at the tavern for years to come. Jei of course, was not the most sensible girl in the village. Rather than being frightened, she was thrilled beyond measure. The stories were right, there was someone here! And he spoke to her! And liked her gifts! This was the best day ever!!
Although she desperately wanted to talk more to the voice from the pool, she didn’t want to undo what she had gained thus far, so she left the glade with a spring in her step. Her painful feet were forgotten as she practically floated all the way home.
For the next few days she was even more lost in her head than usual, reliving every part of her encounter at the pool, occasionally bursting out with a giggle or happy squee. This didn’t worry the villagers much, as they just assumed she thought she had caught a glimpse of a fairy or some silly thing like that. However when she started scribbling in a notebook, muttering to herself as she wrote and crossed things out, that was unusual behavior even for her, and her neighbors took note. When asked about it, she assured them she was fine, she was just making plans. Relieved to see her thinking about the future for a change instead of lost in a daydream, they let her be.
Finally some weeks later, dressed in a warm cloak against the chill autumn winds, and carrying a small pack stuffed with only her most precious possessions, she went about the village, saying her goodbyes, telling them she was off on the grandest adventure of all time and she didn’t know if she would ever be coming back. They chuckled and waved, remembering her goodbyes the time when she was 6 and had found a mushroom ring she was certain would lead her to the realm of the fairies. Or when she was 10 and was certain she had calculated based on the stars that the wild hunt would pass by the village and she would join them.
Being a little more certain of the direction of the glade, it didn’t take her hours to reach it this time. Finally, she was going to see her prince again. For that’s what he was in her mind now. Even if it should turn out that he was a great and terrible serpent, well then he would just be a princely serpent! This was quite firmly set in her mind, and nothing would convince her otherwise. All the fairytales she had read as a child and as an adult for that matter had prepared her for meeting her prince, and she was ready no matter what form he took.
Stepping up on the large rock, she took off her warm cloak and left it on the ground, it would likely hamper her in the water, and tightened her pack. She calmly stepped out to the edge of the rock and called out fearlessly to the creature that dwelled in the depths.
“Hello? Are you there? It’s Jei, I’ve returned as I said.”
This time the water stirred immediately, churning and frothing much more than last time.
“I warned you the last time you came not to return here, you foolish human. Or did you think I’d spare you a second time?”
“Oh I’m well aware. You said if I came back here, I’d never be able to return to the village again right? That’s why I made sure to pack a bag and say my goodbyes before I came back this time,” she answered cheerfully.
The water paused its movements momentarily, and the voice seemed less frightful and honestly a little more confused, “You… what?”
“I thought long and hard about what you said, and I came to realize that you weren’t really threatening me, it was just your way to say that you were lonely and you wanted someone to stay with you forever. And you were really kind to let me go home and think it over and come to a decision myself, so I very much appreciated that.”
The water was more bubbling than frothing now, and the voice was most definitely confused, “..I was what?”
Completely nonplussed by his responses she continued on, “Thinking it over, I decided that although the villagers are quite kind, I really don’t fit in here. And after all, it’s not every day you meet a prince that wants to take you away with him.”
A sudden geyser of water shot out of the pool, spraying her in the face, along with a choked voice saying, “Prince??”
She discreetly wiped her face with her sleeve, not at all discouraged as she got to the point of her speech. “Yes, so I packed my bag, said my goodbyes and now I’m ready to come live with you from now on in your world. I’m not the best cook, but I’m a decent baker. And I know an absolute ton of stories I can tell you, so you’ll never have to lurk in pools hoping for some passerby to chat with!”
He had clearly lost control of this situation, and to some wisp of a human no less! The waters began violently frothing and crashing as though it were a stormy ocean rather than a mere pool in a glade.
“Hear this human, though it is too late for you, I am no prince, but a demon of the depths. And once I have claimed something as mine, I never let it go.”
“Oh...wow,” she said shyly, blushing, “that’s kind of romantic.”
The waters sprayed violently and what almost sounded like a groan mixed in with them, before a violent surge of water rose up. With it, something lashed out, coiling around her waist and yanking her down into the water. Deeper and deeper she went, lost in the darkness. Her lungs burned for air and her ears felt like they would burst under the pressure. Then suddenly she was rolling over a stone floor as the coils around her unwound, gasping for air. While she was remembering how to breathe, she sat up and looked around her. She appeared to be in some sort of small cavern, dimly lit by glowing moss creeping along the walls. She immediately looked for her prince, finally able to set eyes on him at last.
He stood next to a wall of shimmering water, the only apparent entrance. The rippling shadows of the water played over his skin. Shimmering scales dotted up the side of his neck, while deep purple horns that looked like coral grew from his head. His long serpentine tail hissed across the stone, sliding anxiously back and forth.
“I warned you that I was a demon. I even allowed you to escape once. So you have no one to blame but yourself for this,” he said with a scowl, the effect diminished by his agitated tail movements.
“Waaah, you’re so beautiful!” she exclaimed, eyes shining as she looked over her princely demon of the depths.
“Beau--” he choked, his face flushing beet red, as he ducked his head, his bangs covering his eyes.
While he sputtered and lashed his tail, she noticed an opening in the back of the cavern, and stood up, holding her hand out to him, “So, will you show me the rest of your place?”
***
And that is the story about how a daydreamer met the demon of her dreams. Of course back on the surface, the story went quite a bit differently. A lost traveler happened across her cloak at a spooky glade in the forest, and upon carrying it with him to the nearby village, the villagers quickly pieced together what had happened. And soon the tragic tale of the young girl drowned by a terrible demon, after all, who but a demon would take such a sweet and kind girl, spread across the land and was told for generations.
None of them were aware that she was very happy with her demon and, once he got used to the idea, he was very happy with the situation himself.