Holds-fast and the River's Son
Once upon a time there was a village that sat by a river. The river had always been kind to the village, providing shiny silver fish for the people to eat, plentiful water for their crops, and a passage for barges that provided trade up and down the river.
However, the river had a son who was jealous. He was tired of being a minor tributary. So, one day the river's son went to his father, and said, "Old man, you look tired."
The river scoffed at the idea, but gradually his son convinced him he needed a rest. So the river went down to the seaside for a holiday, and the river's son took his place.
The river's son was young and impetuous, and soon had the water running fast and turbulent. It ran too high, and drowned the fields, the fishermen could not go out for fear of the quick-moving water, and the debris it picked up which might knock them into the current. Even the barges could not make it down the river, because it was too turbulent. For the first time ever, the villagers feared they might starve.
So, after much discussion, they got together a delegation and sent them to the old witch who lived in the forest to ask for help.
"You must find the heart of the river," the witch told them She explained that somewhere in the river, there would be a snag, a rock, something that was the river's heart. If they could find this and wrest if from the river, the river would be tamed.
"But, if it is in the river, how will we do this? We can't breathe water!" the delegation protested.
The witch gave them an amulet, and informed them, "The one who bears this amulet will be able to breathe water. But beware, for it only will last for a quarter of a day!"
The village delegation protested that they needed more than one, because how could one person search the whole river in only six hours? But the old witch told them she only had one, and they should consider themselves lucky to get it, and go away now, as it was time for her nap.
So they trudged back to the village, and called another meeting to see who would go search for the heart of the river.
Now, in this village lived a woodcutter. A few years ago, the woodcutter had gone up north to a mining town to work for a while, but he decided that woodcutting was preferable, and returned. When he returned, he brought back a dog, unlike the other village dogs. He was a smallish dog, striped like a tiger cat, built like the village blacksmith, with a tail like a pump handle, and a mouth like a cave. His name was Holds-fast. Holds-fast was not popular in the village, as he had: trounced any dog in the village that challenged him, dug up the innkeeper's garden in search of gophers, stolen the butcher's apron from a clothesline and tore it into very small pieces, treed all the cats (at once!), and upset half the barrows in the market chasing a rat- among other offenses. Worse, if he was caught in the act and scolded, he would knock over his accuser and lick them.
Many people had objected, and told the woodcutter to get rid of the dog. But the woodcutter had one daughter, and she had been born sickly. Every year she had not been expected to survive the winter, yet somehow she had. This daughter loved Holds-fast, who slept on her bed, and warmed her when she had a chill. So the woodcutter would turn away anyone who complained to him about his dog.
The village held a meeting, to decide who would go look for the heart of the river. While they held the meeting, the amulet lay on a table in their midst. Suddenly, the dog Holds-fast bounded on to the table, seized the amulet, and swallowed it!
The village was outraged! Everyone tried to grab the dog, prepared to cut the dog open to recover the amulet. But Holds-fast was too quick for them; pursued by the villagers, he ran to the river.
And into the river! For Holds-fast was a very clever dog, and he understood quite well what he must do.
He trotted across the bed of the river, as quickly as he could. Every snag, and stone, and stick he came to he seized and twisted, in search of the heart of the river. There were many possibilities, and Holds-fast ignored none of them. For three long hours he searched. The river currents buffeted him, his paws were repeatedly caught and wrenched in the stones of the riverbed, he grew weary- but Holds-fast was not a dog to give up.
Finally, he came to a dark, twisted root. Indeed, it was like many other roots he had grasped and abandoned. But when Holds-fast took this root and pulled, the river erupted into a whirlpool around him.
He had found it! Now, he must pull it loose. But the river's son had no wish to be tamed. If the currents had seemed to strike Holds-fast before, it was as strokes from his young mistress compared to the buffeting he now received.
But Holds-fast was not a dog to give up, so he set his teeth, he closed his eyes, and he pulled.
Now the river's son undermined the ground beneath the dog's feet, the stones of the bed were washed away and replaced by sucking mud, that pulled the dog down. Surely he would seek solid footing!
But Holds-fast was not a dog to give up, so he found the one stone that the river's son had missed, braced a paw on that, and pulled.
The river's son sent a school of eels to nip at the dog with their sharp, eel teeth. They clung to his ears, and his tail. Surely the dog would let go, to defend himself from attack!
Indeed, it seemed for a moment that Holds-fast _would_let go, to grab the eels. But no, for he was not a dog to give up.
On the bank of the river, the whole village waited. They had followed the bubbles and turbulence of Hold-fast's passing. Now, they could tell by the violent agitation of the water that something was happening. It went on for a long, long time. Then the clock in it's tower began to chime.
Bong! It had been noon when Holds-fast had run into the river. Bong! For three hours, they had followed a trail of bubbles. Bong! The clock had chimed twice already since then. Bong! It was obvious the dog was fighting for the heart of the river. Bong! But surely, no dog could struggle so long, and win? Bong! The clock struck the sixth time, and the water was still. The woodcutter hung his head, and his daughter began to cry.
Then the water surged, UP! And Holds-fast jumped onto the bank, with a twisted root in his mouth. He shook it- HARD! And the river began to abate.
The river's son decided being a minor tributary was not so bad. The river came back from the sea, rested and jovial, and brought more fish. The village thrived again, Holds-fast was the most popular dog in the village!
And the old witch congratulated herself on smearing that bacon grease on the amulet.
The End.
