Skull and Pestle: New Tales of Baba Yaga by unknow

Author:unknow
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: baba yaga, Russian folklore, fairy tale retellings, dark fairy tales, Russian fairy tales, Slavic folklore, witch
Publisher: World Weaver Press
Published: 2019-01-22T00:00:00+00:00

The Swamp Hag’s Apprentice

Szmeralda Shanel

A while back, some place down south, in Mississippi or Alabama, or maybe it was Georgia, in a town not far from the swamps, a mother lay sick in bed with not much time left to live. Her dark eyes that once sparkled like the stars in the night’s sky had grown dim, and her dark velvety skin had grown ashen and dull. Her husband and daughter, Queen, whom everyone called Queenie stayed by the bedside and prayed. They prayed not for a return of health, for she was way past hope for that, but instead for a gentle transition to the otherside. On her last night on earth, she gave her beloved husband a final kiss and asked that he leave her alone with her little girl.

“Come close now, baby girl,” the mother whispered, “and don’t you cry so for me child. You got to know that while it’s true I will be gone from this world, your dear mama will never be too far from you, lovey. Now here, I have something for you.” Queenie’s mother reached under her pillow and pulled out a tiny doll that wore a yellow and black dress, a red apron, a red headwrap and red boots. The little doll had many small braids all over her head and each braid was dressed with small beads and shells.

“Now listen here, sweet Queenie,” her mother continued, “this doll has been in our family for a long long time, passed down from mother to daughter since before slave times even. My mama told me that it was carried over by one of our people who was stolen from her village and put on the ship that came all the way from Africa. You keep her with you at all times, hidden away in your pocket. Never speak of her to another and never let another see her. Remember to feed her now and then and to give her something to drink. If you find yourself in any kind of trouble, you talk to this dolly and she will help make sure you turn out okay.” Queenie took the doll from her mama’s hands bent down and kissed her and with that kiss her mother released her last breath and passed on.

Though her mother told her she would always be close to her in spirit, Queenie still felt very lonely for her and there were nights when it was just plain impossible for her not to feel sadness in every bit of her soul. On those nights she lay in bed holding her dolly close and she would cry. One night, she was feeling this sadness and remembered how her mother told her to care for her doll. She got out of bed, got a piece of bread and a drink of milk for the doll and fed her.

Suddenly her doll’s eyes began to brighten, she breathed in and out, then she looked up at Queenie and said, “Oh dear sweet Queenie, I know you are sad and lonely for your mama but you are not alone, I am with you now.

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