The Little Gray Man

: The Grey Fairy Book

A nun, a countryman, and a blacksmith were once wandering through

the world together. One day they lost their way in a thick, dark

forest, and were thankful when they saw, in the distance, the

walls of a house, where they hoped they might obtain refuge for

the night. When they got close to the house they found that it

was an old deserted castle, fast falling into ruins, but with

some of the rooms in it still habitable. As they were homeless

they determined to take up their abode in the castle, and they

arranged that one of them should always stay at home and keep

house, while the other two went out into the world to seek their

fortunes.



The lot of remaining at home fell first to the nun, and when the

countryman and the blacksmith had gone out into the wood, she set

to work, tidied up the house, and prepared all the food for the

day. As her companions did not come home for their mid-day meal,

she ate up her own portion and put the rest in the oven to keep

warm. Just as she was sitting down to sew, the door opened and a

little gray man came in, and, standing before her, said: ‘Oh! how

cold I am!'



The nun was very sorry for him, and said at once: ‘Sit down by

the fire and warm yourself.'



The little man did as he was told, and soon called out: ‘Oh! how

hungry I am!'



The nun answered: ‘There is food in the oven, help yourself.'



The little man did not need to be told twice, for he set to work

and ate up everything with the greatest possible despatch. When

the nun saw this she was very angry, and scolded the dwarf

because he had left nothing for her companions.



The little man resented her words, and flew into such a passion

that he seized the nun, beat her, and threw her first against one

wall and then against the other. When he had nearly killed her he

left her lying on the floor, and hastily walked out of the house.



In the evening the countryman and the blacksmith returned home,

and when they found, on demanding their dinner, that there was

nothing left for them, they reproached the nun bitterly, and

refused to believe her when she tried to tell them what had

happened.



The next day the countryman asked to be left in charge of the

house, and promised that, if he remained at home, no one should

go hungry to bed. So the other two went out into the forest, and

the countryman having prepared the food for the day, ate up his

own portion, and put the rest in the oven. Just as he had

finished clearing away, the door opened and the little gray man

walked in, and this time he had two heads. He shook and trembled

as before, and exclaimed: ‘Oh! how cold I am.'



The countryman, who was frightened out of his wits, begged him to

draw near the fire and warm himself.



Soon after the dwarf looked greedily round, and said: ‘Oh! how

hungry I am!'



‘There is food in the oven, so you can eat,' replied the

countryman.



Then the little man fell to with both his heads, and soon

finished the last morsel.



When the countryman scolded him for this proceeding he treated

him exactly as he had done the nun, and left the poor fellow more

dead than alive.



Now when the blacksmith came home with the nun in the evening,

and found nothing for supper, he flew into a passion; and swore

that he would stay at home the following day, and that no one

should go supperless to bed.



When day dawned the countryman and the nun set out into the wood,

and the blacksmith prepared all the food for the day as the

others had done. Again the gray dwarf entered the house without

knocking, and this time he had three heads. When he complained of

cold, the blacksmith told him to sit near the fire; and when he

said he was hungry, the blacksmith put some food on a plate and

gave it to him. The dwarf made short work of what was provided

for him, and then, looking greedily round with his six eyes, he

demanded more. When the blacksmith refused to give him another

morsel, he flew into a terrible rage, and proceeded to treat him

in the same way as he had treated his companions.



But the blacksmith was a match for him, for he seized a huge

hammer and struck off two of the dwarf's heads with it. The

little man yelled with pain and rage, and hastily fled from the

house. The blacksmith ran after him, and pursued him for a long

way; but at last they came to an iron door, and through it the

little creature vanished. The door shut behind him, and the

blacksmith had to give up the pursuit and return home. He found

that the nun and the countryman had come back in the meantime,

and they were much delighted when he placed some food before

them, and showed them the two heads he had struck off with his

hammer. The three companions determined there and then to free

themselves from the power of the gray dwarf, and the very next

day they set to work to find him.



They had to walk a long way, and to search for many hours, before

they found the iron door through which the dwarf had disappeared;

and when they had found it they had the greatest difficulty in

opening it. When at last they succeeded in forcing the lock, they

entered a large hall, in which sat a young and lovely girl,

working at a table. The moment she saw the nun, the blacksmith,

and the countryman, she fell at their feet, thanking them with

tears in her eyes for having set her free. She told them that she

was a king's daughter, who had been shut up in the castle by a

mighty magician. The day before, just about noon, she had

suddenly felt the magic power over her disappear, and ever since

that moment she had eagerly awaited the arrival of her

deliverers. She went on to say that there was yet another

princess shut up in the castle, who had also fallen under the

might of the magician.



They wandered through many halls and rooms till at last they

found the second princess, who was quite as grateful as the

first, and thanked the three companions most warmly for having

set her free.



Then the princesses told their rescuers that a great treasure lay

hidden in the cellars of the castle, but that it was carefully

guarded by a fierce and terrible dog.



Nothing daunted, they all went down below at once, and found the

fierce animal mounting guard over the treasure as the princesses

had said. But one blow from the blacksmith's hammer soon made an

end of the monster, and they found themselves in a vaulted

chamber full of gold and silver and precious stones. Beside the

treasure stood a young and handsome man, who advanced to meet,

them, and thanked the nun, the blacksmith, and the countryman,



for having freed him from the magic spell he was under. He told

them that he was a king's son, who had been banished to this

castle by a wicked magician, and that he had been changed into

the three- headed dwarf. When he had lost two of his heads the

magic power over the two princesses had been removed, and when

the blacksmith had killed the horrible dog, then he too had been

set free.



To show his gratitude he begged the three companions to divide

the treasure between them, which they did; but there was so much

of it that it took a very long time.



The princesses, too, were so grateful to their rescuers, that one

married the blacksmith, and the other the countryman.



Then the prince claimed the nun as his bride, and they all lived

happily together till they died.