A long time ago, perhaps as much as two thousand years, there lived a couple in Germania:
Would you like to meet them?
[[Play as the rich man]]
[[Play as the beautiful and pious wife]]
[[Play as the mischievous squirrel]]
Grimm, J. and Grimm, W. (1886). The Almond Tree. (L. Crane, Trans. 1963). In V. Andonov (Webmaster), World of Tales. Retrieved from https://www.worldoftales.com/fairy_tales/Brothers_Grimm/Grimm_household_tales/The_Almond_Tree.html. (Original work published 1814)
You are incredibly wealthy, and that money makes you incredibly suitable as a suitor. You land yourself a beautiful and pious wife. Let’s call her Cinnamon. You and Cinnamon love each other very much, and while you both dearly wish and pray for children to raise, you are childless. Statistically, that is your fault, and not your wife’s, but because this is at least 2,000 years old, you fully blame her for her barren state.
How do you make your wealth?
[[Gambling]]
[[Thievery]]
[[Textiles]]
[[Plastics]]
You have a great faith in your Germanic deities.
You love your husband.
You wish for a child and so you pray.
What should you do?
[[Pray more]]
[[Consume mead]]
[[Go outside and eat an apple]]
You live in a beautiful almond tree outside the home of a wealthy man and a beautiful, pious wife. You spend most of your time enjoying vibrant sun rises and sun sets, tucking nuts away for the winter, and observing the humans in the house next to the almond tree.
You see the beautiful and pious woman, who has seemed quite sad of late, emerge from her home and come to stand under your almond tree.
What do you do?
[[Play with the almond in your paws and ignore the woman]]
[[Scurry down the tree to get a better look and eavesdrop]]You are married to a very beautiful and PIOUS wife.
Do you really want to engage in such a corrupting vice?
[[Yes!]]
[[No...]]You are married to a very beautiful and PIOUS wife.
Do you really want to engage in such corruption?
[[Yes!]]
[[No...]]You find great success in your textiles trade. You are an industry leader, and as a result, you and your wife want for nothing.
After much praying, your wife becomes pregnant, and you are overjoyed.
One day, your wife seeks you out and has something to tell you. Do you listen?
[[Yes]]
[[No]]
You are really ahead of the industrial curve, here, and in a few centuries, you would be rewarded for your innovation.
Your better choice, in this timeframe, is to choose [[Textiles]].You are incredibly devout, and you spend a great deal of time appealing to the ancient deities of Germania.
Prayer makes you hungry, and you choose to [[go outside and eat an apple ->Go outside and eat an apple]].You imbibe a small glass and enjoy the mead your wealthy husband provides.
You find yourself hungry, though, and [[go outside and eat an apple->Go outside and eat an apple]].Now, in the courtyard in front of your house stand an almond tree; and one day in winter you are standing beneath it, paring an apple, and you slice your finger open
Should you:
[[Tear your skirt and bind the wound]]
[[Suck on your finger]]
[[Let the blood drip on the virginal white snow and pray]]
Your skirts refuse to rip! You are forced to [[watch the blood drip onto the white snow->Let the blood drip on the virginal white snow and pray]].The taste is immediately unnerving, so you [[drop your hand ->Let the blood drip on the virginal white snow and pray]]. "Ah," you say, sighing deeply, and looking down at the blood, "if only I could have a child as red as blood, and as white as snow"(Grimm and Grimm.)
As soon as you speak these words aloud, your heart grows lighter, and you firmly believe that you will soon carry a child.
You are growing concerned about the future. What do you do?
[[Speak to your husband]]
[[Pray]]
You tell your rich husband, "If I die, bury me under the almond tree." This admission brings you peace.
You go into labor, deliver a beautiful baby boy, “as red as blood and as white as snow.” Life simply could not get any better than birthing a child. And so you die. Out of an overflow of joy. Or a massive hemorrhage. It’s a challenge to know.
Your soul and consciousness now may pass on:
[[You become the squirrel]]
[[You become Kale, another woman in the village]]You pray fervently to your ancient Germanian deities, and the ensuing peace strengthens your resolve to [[speak with your husband.->Speak to your husband]] [[Play as the mischievous squirrel]] You marry the wealthy man who is now a widower. Soon, you find yourself pregnant. You give birth to a child – a little girl! – and she, like her half-brother, is “as red as blood and as white as snow.” There seems to be some wild majick at work – or strong genes obviously passed on by the father – but more likely majick.
You love your daughter, but you find your heart growing colder and colder towards your step-son. You believe he stands between your daughter and her rightful inheritance. Every chance you get, you beat the little boy and deny him any happiness you can, so he knows no peace or comfort.
One day, after you climb the stairs to a small room, your daughter, Marjory, follows and asks for a bright red apple. You pull open the very heavy lid to a great chest, fetch out an apple, give it to Marjory, close the lid, and secure the fearsome iron lock.
“’Mother, shall not my brother have one too?’”(Grimm and Grimm).
You respond:
[[“’Yes, when he comes back from school’”(Grimm and Grimm)]]
[[“No, never shall I permit your brother to enjoy a piece of fruit from his father’s orchard!”]]
You look out the window, and spy the boy coming up the path towards the house. You are seized with a cruel and despicable thought.
Do you:
[[Put the thought away and vow penitence]]
[[Put your plan into action]]
You say this to Marjory, and as her lip trembles, you assure her that you are joking and that her brother [[may have an apple when he returns from school.->“’Yes, when he comes back from school’”(Grimm and Grimm)]] This moment of piety lasts for all of a moment, and you toss it away in favor of [[putting your plan into action.->Put your plan into action]] You grab the apple out of Marjory’s hand, and put it back into the chest, telling the child that she may not enjoy an apple until her brother may enjoy one too. You shoo her away.
The boy enters the room, and you say, “’My son, will you have an apple?'”(Grimm and Grimm)
The look of evil is plain on your face, for the boy exclaims, “’Mother … how terrible you look! Yes, give me an apple!'”(Grimm and Grimm)
You hold up the heavy lid of the chest and gesture for the boy to come forward. “’Come here and take out one for yourself,'” you say. He approaches and bends forward to look at the many apples at the bottom of the chest (Grimm and Grimm).
Do you:
[[Allow the chest to slam shut with a sickening clank]]
[[Allow the boy to retrieve an apple]]
Realizing that there is no way you can hide your sinful murder, and that you will surely be punished severely, you attempt to rectify the situation. You fish the boy’s head out of the chest, and, using a white handkerchief, you affix the boy’s head to his neck and secure the fit. You sit the boy in a chair, and place one red apple in his hand.
You slink out of the upstairs room and repair to the kitchen, where you stir a pot of hot water simmering over a fire.
Little Marjory enters, and says, “’Mother … my brother is sitting before the door and he has an apple in his hand, and looks very pale; I asked him to give me the apple, but he did not answer me; it seems very strange’" (Grimm and Grimm).
You:
[[Confess your crime and beg her forgiveness]]
[[Tell her to approach her brother again, ask for the apple, and if he refuses, smack him about the head]]
You allow the boy to lean over, to inspect the apples, but your hatred and jealousy get the better of you and you [[end his life.->Allow the chest to slam shut with a sickening clank]] Just as you open your mouth, you think better of it. Your love for Marjory is less than your love of yourself. You [[tell her to approach her brother again.->Tell her to approach her brother again, ask for the apple, and if he refuses, smack him about the head]] Marjory runs back into the kitchen, screaming and crying. “Mother, mother, I asked him for the apple, and when he did not answer, I tried to give him a box on the ear, but his entire head came off! I have killed him!”
You decide to:
[[Console your daughter, confess your crime, and beg her forgiveness]]
[[Blame Marjory for her brother’s hideous death]]
Just as you begin to do so, you [[rethink your attempt at honesty and you blame Marjory for her brother's hideous death.->Blame Marjory for her brother’s hideous death]] “What have you done?” you cry, and shake her to quiet her screams. You tell her that the only way to fix the situation is to say nothing and hide her brother’s body.
Your wealthy husband, the widower and father of the young boy, returns home and immediately asks to see his son.
You stall by filling up a dish full of broth as black as night. You bring the dish to your husband, who is seated at the table next to a sobbing, inconsolable Marjory. Your husband again asks, “’Where is my son?’” (Grimm and Grimm).
You decide to:
[[Console your daughter, confess your crime, and beg forgiveness from your husband and Marjory]]
[[Spin a false tale]]
This is just a fleeting thought in your corroded mind, and you instead [[spin a false tale->Spin a false tale]] “Oh,” you start, with as much nonchalance as you can muster, “your son set out for the countryside, to visit his great-uncle.”
Your husband looks conflicted. “Why would he set off for the countryside? And why would he journey without saying goodbye to me?”
You respond with more lies: “He was just so excited to visit his great-uncle, so I gave him permission to take his leave and stay there for six weeks or so. He will be looked after and well loved.”
Your husband is crestfallen, and morose that his son should have left without saying farewell. As he finishes his soup, he asks Marjory why she is crying. He assures her, just as you have assured him, that her brother is well and will return. Your husband compliments your soup, tossing the bones he picks out of the dish under the table and asks for more.
You choose to:
[[Give your husband more soup]]
[[Finally admit that you’ve murdered his son and that he might not love that soup very much if he had a copy of the recipe]]
You watch your husband continue to enjoy his soup, which is made from his son's dead body, and you manage to avoid the crippling guilt that would compel you to admit your crime.
You watch as your daughter Marjory gathers the bones from the soup your husband has consumed - she places them in a white handkerchief and takes them outside.
Do you:
[[Follow her outside]]
[[Wash the dishes and dream of what you and Marjory will do with your husband's wealth when he passes away ... sooner than later...]]
Before you speak, you remember how much you have to lose, and instead you [[give your husband more soup.->Give your husband more soup]] You begin to follow, but Marjory's weeping begins to challenge your tenuous grasp on your sanity.
You return to the kitchen and focus on washing [[dishes->Wash the dishes and dream of what you and Marjory will do with your husband's wealth when he passes away ... sooner than later...]]. You are sitting in the parlour with your wealthy husband and your daughter, Marjory. Your husband says, "'How light-hearted and cheerful I feel" (Grimm and Grimm).
You respond, "'Nay," said the mother, "I feel very low, just as if a great storm were coming'" (Grimm and Grimm).
Marjory continues to weep.
Your husband continues, saying, "'I feel so joyful, and the sun is shining so bright; it is as if I were going to meet with an old friend'" (Grimm and Grimm).
Ever sour as befitting your role as murderer, you reply, "'Nay ... I am terrified, my teeth chatter, and there is fire in my veins," and proceed to tear open your dress to get some relief -- but none is to be found (Grimm and Grimm).
You hear a bird singing a mournful song of murder outside of the house. You cover your ears and hide your eyes, but to no avail.
Your husband is excited to go outside to listen to the bird, but you are full of fear. You warn him not to go outside, but he does not heed you.
He returns with a gold chain, and you fling yourself to the floor.
The bird continues to sing of murder, and you moan, "'Oh ... that I were a thousand fathoms under ground, so as not to be obliged to hear it'" (Grimm and Grimm).
Your daughter Marjory ventures outside, only to return with brilliant red shoes and a skip in her step.
You feel as though you are about to catch on fire (could it be the all-consuming guilt?) and finally decide to go outside to get some air.
You can barely register the briefly cool breeze before you see a millstone very close up as it flies into your body.
[[Fin, or is it? You should consider getting the whole story by following another character. ->Once upon a time ...]] The almond really does not hold your attention, so you choose to [[scurry down the tree to get a better look and eavesdrop.->Scurry down the tree to get a better look and eavesdrop]] The beautiful and pious woman is standing below you, paring an apple with a sharp knife, and she slices her finger open.
She lets the blood drip on the virginal white snow and prays:
"Ah ... if only I could have a child as red as blood, and as white as snow!"
She smiles with a look of serenity: you too have felt that emotion after storing a horde of nuts in a particularly ingenious location.
She returns to the house, while you:
[[Return to playing with your nut]]
[[Watching the snow fall]]
Your nut is endlessly entertaining, but even you lose interest and take to [[watching the snow fall->Watching the snow fall]]!Many months go by, the seasons change, and you see the wealthy man carry the body of his beautiful and pious wife out of the house. He digs a large hole beneath your almond tree and buries his wife there.
You watch the wealthy man mourn in his own time.
You watch the small child, the son born of the beautiful and pious wife, grow and play beneath your almond tree.
You see a new woman join the home.
You watch her grow with child, and soon you see a new baby -- a little girl -- join the boy in playing beneath your almond tree.
One day, you watch the boy trot off to school, and you hear the woman and her daughter Marjory talking in an upstairs room.
Do you:
[[Abandon your tree in favor of eavesdropping]]
[[Resume your mid-day nut scrounging]]
You leap from branch to branch, and finally scurry into the second floor window where you may observe Marjory and her mother unnoticed.
The woman is standing next to a large, ornate chest. Marjory asks her mother for one of the bright red apples contained in it, and is permitted to fetch one. She asks, “’Mother, shall not my brother have one too?’” (Grimm and Grimm).
The woman says, “’Yes, when he comes back from school’”(Grimm and Grimm).
You are suspect of this entire plot.
The boy returns home and repairs to the upstairs room. The woman offers him an apple, and as he goes to retrieve one out of the heavy chest, the woman cruelly allows the chest lid to fall onto the boy, snapping his head clean off.
You are horrified and scurry away.
Hours later, you see sweet Marjory exit the house and come to stand underneath your tree. She opens a handkerchief and sprinkles bones on the ground. She sighs, looks up to the sky (just past you, in fact), and wipes away the last of her tears.
Your almond tree begins to sway, as if a strong breeze is at work, but you feel nothing. You hold onto a branch for dear life and the tree shudders and a cloud bursts upward. Inside the cloud a fire burns, and from the fire is born a beautiful little bird.
Marjory seems passified and returns to the house.
You:
[[Check your nuts for the presence of poisons or hallucinogens]]
[[Follow the beautiful little bird]]
You quickly lose interest in your nut scrounging expedition, and decide to [[abandon your tree in favor of eavesdropping!->Abandon your tree in favor of eavesdropping]] Your food seems untainted, so you decide to throw caution to the wind and [[follow the beautiful little bird.->Follow the beautiful little bird]] The beautiful little bird flies to the goldsmith's house, and you scamper to keep up. Once there, the bird sings a mournful song:
"'It was my mother who murdered me;
It was my father who ate of me;
It was my sister Marjory
Who all my bones in pieces found;
Them in a handkerchief she bound,
And laid them under the almond tree.
Kywitt, kywitt, kywitt, I cry,
Oh what a beautiful bird am I!'" (Grimm and Grimm)
The goldsmith stumbles outside and asks the beautiful bird to sing again. The bird replies that he will not sing again without a gift: in this case, a gold chain. The goldsmith gives over the prize and the bird sings again.
Off you go to follow the bird to the shoemaker's, where the bird sings the same mournful song and coerces the shoemaker to hand over a pair of red shoes.
Off you go to follow the bird (who now holds the gold chain with one claw and the shoes with the other) to the mill, where you both encounter the millers-men at work. The beautiful bird perches on a linden tree in front of the mill and sings his mournful song. One by one, each millers-man comes to stand below the linden tree to listen to the bird's song.
You are roundly ignored. You wisely choose to let it go.
The bird hustles the millers-men to give him a solid millstone in exchange for singing his song once more. Sticking his head through the hole in the middle of the millstone, the bird flies away.
Will you:
[[Follow the beautiful bird for a fourth time]]
[[Give up and go to the tavern]]The beautiful bird, with his brilliant red and green feathers, flies to the wealthy man's house, where he, his cruel wife, and his daughter Marjory live.
The bird perches on a branch of the almond tree, and sings his mournful song of murder.
The wealthy man emerges from the home and listens to the bird's song. The bird drops the gold chain from his claw onto the man's neck. The man runs inside, and out comes Marjory. The bird sings his song again, and drops down the pair of beautiful red shoes. Marjory's heart is lightened, and she dances joyfully in her new shoes.
The woman finally emerges from the home, and the beautiful bird hurls the millstone at her. She is crushed.
You feel nothing and question your moral code.
The man and Marjory rush outside, just as the beautiful little bird bursts into flames and smoke. When the air clears, the little brother is standing there. He takes his father and Marjory by the hand, and he leads them back into the house, passed the crushed body of his step-mother.
[[Fin, or is it? You should consider getting the whole story by following another character. ->Once upon a time ...]]
You start to fly off to the tavern, but change your mind at the last minute and [[follow the beautiful bird for a fourth time.->Follow the beautiful bird for a fourth time]] Your beautiful and pious wife says, “"If I die, bury me under the almond tree.”
You choose to:
[[Hush her]]
[[Comfort her]]
You go to your parlour to engage in some light reading, and suddenly feel guilty for ignoring your wife's communication efforts.
You choose to go back to [[her->Yes]]. You love your wife, and you do not want to think of her demise!
You realize, however, that you must also listen to her request and fulfill it if at all [[possible->Comfort her]].Your beautiful and pious wife goes into labor, delivers a beautiful baby boy, “as red as blood and as white as snow,” yet tragically dies in childbirth from a swell of joy.
You honor your wife’s last wish and bury her under the almond tree.
You go into a period of mourning.
How long will you mourn?
[[One week]]
[[One month]]
[[One year]]
Too [[soon->One year]]!Too [[soon->One year]]!You and your son are lonely, and you decide to marry again.
You meet and marry a woman from the village, who is named Kale.
After a time, she becomes pregnant, and soon, you welcome a beautiful little girl into your family. You name her Marjory, and your little boy loves her very much. Your happiness is complete!
One day, you return home from trading in the village center, and you sit at the table in anticipation of your dinner.
You ask to see your son.
You notice your daughter, Marjory, is openly weeping.
You ask again, “’Where is my son?’”
Kale says, “Oh, your son set out for the countryside, to visit his great-uncle.”
You:
[[Call her a dirty liar]]
[[Ask her, “Why would he set off for the countryside? And why would he journey without saying goodbye to me?”]]Before you let breath escape from your mouth, you rethink the wisdom of calling your wife such a thing and you amend your [[strategy.->Ask her, “Why would he set off for the countryside? And why would he journey without saying goodbye to me?”]]Kale says, “He was just so excited to visit his great-uncle, so I gave him permission to take his leave and stay there for six weeks or so. He will be looked after and well loved.”
You are saddened and find it troubling that your son would leave without saying goodbye. You finish eating your soup, picking out bones as you sip and slurp.
You decide to finally deal with the ever-sobbing Marjory, and ask her gently why she is distraught.
You assure her, saying, "Your brother will return soon, have no fear!"
You compliment your wife's cooking, and ask for more. Your collection of bones from the soup grows, which seems to make Marjory cry even harder.
It occurs to you that women are hard to understand.
Do you:
[[Retreat to the parlour and catch up on some light reading]]
[[Sit down with quill and parchment and consider your next submission to the leading textile industry periodical]]You grow so inspired by the material you are consuming, that you [[decide to sit down with quill and parchment and consider your next submission to the leading textile industry periodical->Sit down with quill and parchment and consider your next submission to the leading textile industry periodical]].You write on the difficulty of accessing raw materials, and, once satisfied with the product, you ready the manuscript for submission.
This project helps take your mind off your son and his hasty departure.
One day, you find yourself enjoying a spot of relaxation time in the parlour with Kale and Marjory. Marjory continues to weep, unabated, and Kale seems quite unhinged. You try to tell them about your manuscript, but you find them disappointingly unreceptive.
You say, "'"How light-hearted and cheerful I feel'" (Grimm and Grimm).
Kale responds, "'Nay ... I feel very low, just as if a great storm were coming'" (Grimm and Grimm).
"'Oh,'" you cry, "'I feel so joyful, and the sun is shining so bright; it is as if I were going to meet with an old friend'" (Grimm and Grimm).
"'Nay,'" says Kale, "'I am terrified, my teeth chatter, and there is fire in my veins'" and you watch with a measure of shock as she rips open her dress (Grimm and Grimm).
Suddenly, you hear a beautiful birdsong emanating from the almond tree just outside your home.
Do you:
[[Rush outside]]
[[Focus on your half-naked wife]]
You find the beautiful red and green bird outside in the almond tree, singing passionately. After the song, the bird drops a gold chain around your neck, and you are amazed that it fits perfectly.
You rush into the house and share your excitement with Kale and Marjory.
Kale flings herself to the ground; Marjory is enchanted and ventures outside.
Momentarily, Marjory returns with a pair of vibrant red shoes, and she dances around joyously. You are quite bemused by her happiness, and hope that the whole "weeping thing" is in the past.
You watch as your wife Kale rushes outside, gown still askew.
You choose to:
[[Follow her outside, as she is obviously in distress]]
[[Watch Marjory's dance]]
Her state of disarray cannot hold your interest, and as the bird continues to sing, you are compelled to [[rush outside->Rush outside]].You emerge from the house just in time to see your wife's body being crushed by a giant millstone.
Before you can even begin to react, you see your son, heretofore missing, emerge from a cloud of smoke and fire.
Nonplussed, he takes you and Marjory each by the hand and leads you back into the house.
[[Fin, or is it? You should consider getting the whole story by following another character. ->Once upon a time ...]] You start to watch Marjory, but your concern regarding your wife's odd behavior gets the better of you.
You emerge from the house just in time to see your wife's body being crushed by a giant millstone.
Before you can even begin to react, you see your son, heretofore missing, emerge from a cloud of smoke and fire.
Nonplussed, he takes you and Marjory each by the hand and leads you back into the house.
[[Fin, or is it? You should consider getting the whole story by following another character. ->Once upon a time ...]] You are willing to risk losing the love of your beautiful and pious wife?
[[No, I love my wife and I know I can find great fortune in textiles...->Textiles]]
A wise choice. You have a knack for [[textiles...->Textiles]]