Lucrezia drops her gaze to him, absently brushing away golden strands from his face while resting her other palm against his neck, lightly, as always. "No candy house, unfortunately," and even if she did understand the kinds of stories they would prefer, she would rather tell ones more distant and closer in other ways.
"So brother and sister walked the entire day over meadows, fields and stony places until they came to a large forest come nightfall. They were so weary with sorrow and hunger that they lay down in a hollow tree. When they awoke the next day, the sun was already high in the sky, shining down mercilessly into the tree. Then the brother said, 'Sister, I am thirsty. If we find a little brook I would go and take a drink.' And the brother stood up and took his sister by the hand, setting off to find it.
"But the stepmother was a witch and she saw how the children fled and had crept after them quietly, bewitching all the brooks in the forest. So when they found a little spring leaping brightly over the stones, the brother rushed to drink out of it, but the sister heard how the water said as it ran: who drinks of me will become a tiger, who drinks of me will become a tiger. Then the sister cried, 'Pray, dear brother, do not drink or you will become a wild tiger and tear me to pieces.' The brother did not drink though he was so thirsty, saying, 'I will wait for the next brook.'
"When they came to the next one, the sister heard this one also say: who drinks of me will become a wolf, who drinks of me will become a wolf. Then the sister cried out, 'Pray, dear brother, do not drink or you will become a wolf and devour me.' The brother did not drink and said, 'I will wait until the next spring, but then I must drink for my thirst is too great.'
"And when they did find the third brook, the sister again heard the water sing as it ran: who drinks of me will become a deer, who drinks of me will become a deer. The sister said, 'Oh, I beg you, dear brother, do not drink or you will become a deer and run away from me.' But the brother had knelt down at once and drunk some of the water, and as soon as the first drops touched his lips, he lay there a young deer. So now the sister wept and the little deer also, sitting sorrowfully near her.
"Until at last the girl said, 'Be quiet, little deer, I will never ever leave you.'"
She stops then, as if she has reached the end of the story, leaning down now to kiss Joshua on his brow.
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"So brother and sister walked the entire day over meadows, fields and stony places until they came to a large forest come nightfall. They were so weary with sorrow and hunger that they lay down in a hollow tree. When they awoke the next day, the sun was already high in the sky, shining down mercilessly into the tree. Then the brother said, 'Sister, I am thirsty. If we find a little brook I would go and take a drink.' And the brother stood up and took his sister by the hand, setting off to find it.
"But the stepmother was a witch and she saw how the children fled and had crept after them quietly, bewitching all the brooks in the forest. So when they found a little spring leaping brightly over the stones, the brother rushed to drink out of it, but the sister heard how the water said as it ran: who drinks of me will become a tiger, who drinks of me will become a tiger. Then the sister cried, 'Pray, dear brother, do not drink or you will become a wild tiger and tear me to pieces.' The brother did not drink though he was so thirsty, saying, 'I will wait for the next brook.'
"When they came to the next one, the sister heard this one also say: who drinks of me will become a wolf, who drinks of me will become a wolf. Then the sister cried out, 'Pray, dear brother, do not drink or you will become a wolf and devour me.' The brother did not drink and said, 'I will wait until the next spring, but then I must drink for my thirst is too great.'
"And when they did find the third brook, the sister again heard the water sing as it ran: who drinks of me will become a deer, who drinks of me will become a deer. The sister said, 'Oh, I beg you, dear brother, do not drink or you will become a deer and run away from me.' But the brother had knelt down at once and drunk some of the water, and as soon as the first drops touched his lips, he lay there a young deer. So now the sister wept and the little deer also, sitting sorrowfully near her.
"Until at last the girl said, 'Be quiet, little deer, I will never ever leave you.'"
She stops then, as if she has reached the end of the story, leaning down now to kiss Joshua on his brow.