The Witch And The Fingernails

Once upon a time there was a town. But not an ordinary town that you can find by walking a few kilometers from home. This town was far away. People who lived there were not happy.

For years no one even smiled. The town struggled to survive the cold nights and barely made it through the winter because it was too cold. That town was one of a kind, it was hopeless, sad, and filled with misery. But would you like to know how did all happen and how can it be fixed?

So sit back and relax. Read the story and see for yourselves.

It all started like most things begin, with happiness and joy. Everyone in that special town had no clue about what was going to happen to the town they all loved. People from all across the world came to see this town. This town was known for its happiness, but the town had a rule – one rule that they had to keep. One rule that will change it all. What rule you are asking? What rule could change a town as happy as this? The one rule that can make an abyss from a place as happy as this. 

Before I tell you the rule, I need to tell you the story behind it, and how a little kid made it all happen….

Most people say, it all started with a kid. A small kid running in the Woods Of The Dark Witch.

The stories say that everyone who crosses the border will have to pay a price, no one knew what the price was, but they knew the witch wasn’t interested in cash, she was interested in something more valuable. Something that she couldn’t get for years. Time passed and the interest became an obsession. The woods became dangerous. There were stories of people going in, but not coming back. Stories that entering it darkens your soul. Most of the stories were just about, but none of them were right on the spot.

A few years after the woods became dangerous, a little kid named Isaac started hearing the stories. He knew that they were just made up, but his curiosity got the best of him.

He decided that he is going to go and find what’s in there.

He had a plan, he was going to find what is going on in those woods. It didn’t matter what others say. He was going to do it and no one could change his mind!

A few days later the day he was going to the woods came. It started like a normal day, he woke up, brushed his teeth, he got dressed and ready to explore what was going on in those woods.

He got out of the house, ready with a bag full of supplies and water, and got into the woods.

The more he was close to the center of the woods he felt colder and more scared, but he kept reminding himself “I can’t go back now, not if I got this far”.

And there it was, the witch’s house, just standing there…..

The more Isaac got closer to the house, the more it got colder. It was like magic, something he had never seen before.

And there he was, in front of the door, he took a long breath, knocked on the door and said “Is anyone in there?”, no one answered, so he knocked again and said “please I’m cold, if anyone is in there please open”, it was silent, like no one was in there for years. Right when he was about to go back the door opened, he was shocked and surprised, “so the stories are true” he said while barely breathing, he was so shocked he even tried to close and open his eyes, he thought it was all a dream, that it was all in his head, but it wasn’t. It was actually happening!

The witch didn’t look that good, it seemed like she had a very very bad day.

She said “How dare you get into my woods!”, Isaac answered “I’m sorry I can go back if you want”.

The witch stopped for a second and then said “Wait!”

Isaac said “Why?”

The witch answered “Let’s do a deal”

“What deal?” Isaac asked.

The witch answered “Let me show you. Why don’t you step inside”

Isaac stepped into the house and sat on the chair that was right next to the dining table. The witch sat in front of him.

The witch said “I can make all your problems go away” 

“What, how?” Isaac asked

The witch answered “I still have some power left but it comes with a price”

“What price? I didn’t bring any money with me” Isaac said

“No, I don’t need money, I need something that could help me make my immortality potion, something I have searched for many years”

“What is it” Isaac asked

“Fingernails” the witch answered

“Fingernails?” Isaac asked, Isaac was confused, why would the witch need Fingernails?

The witch said “I can make a spell that could make all your towns problems go away, I can make pain go away, and I can do a lot of things that would make your town one of a kind, just tell me your problems and I would make them go away”

Isaac began to tell the witch about all the town’s problems and how she could improve it and make it happier, the witch said “I will do a magic that had never been done before, it is dangerous but could give you the things you asked for, but it comes with a price, and a rule that if you break, will break the magic but wouldn’t break the price, are you willing to do it?” asked the witch

Isaac said “yes, I am willing to pay the price”

The witch started doing movements with her hands, she whispered “spirit of the wind and spirit of the fire, bring me the power, bring me the fingernails, and give them a painless life!”

She started talking louder “give them a happy life, make this town a happy place for all creatures!”

Then she stopped, she looked down and said “All the magic has been done, there is no coming back, you can go now and see what I have done, but before you go you need to follow this rule, and never break it, if you break it, bad things are going to happen”

“What is it?” Isaac asked.

“Well, all you need to do is not say fingernails in the town” the witch answered

“Oh, that’s easy” Isaac said while he left to see what happened to his town.

He exited the woods and to his surprise, it worked!

Everyone was happy, and families were together. Isaac was happy to see all the people.

But one thing was missing, no one had fingernails.

It looked painful but pain isn’t a thing in this town.

It may look odd, but at least they are happy Isaac thought.

As time passed by, Isaac noticed that not only the fingernails were gone, people’s memories of them were gone, no one knew fingernails ever existed. 

Isaac was the only one that knew what happened.

It was all normal for them, but Isaac didn’t think it was okay.

He always remembered what the witch said, what was the rule.

Something was wrong and he had to fix it.

So he told his dad the story.

“What’s going to happen if i only say it once?” he thought

, so he explained the whole thing to his dad, and nothing happened.

The rest of the day was normal.

But the next day he woke up in the middle of the night, exactly at 12:01 AM.

But something was weird, he heard people screaming, like something that hurt them really badly.

He came out of his house to see a storm so bad that it looked like the world changed its color to gray, everything was black and white, hopeless, and painful.

The town was not the same as it was before, something went wrong.

Isaac knew it was his fault, he felt so bad he knew he had to do something. So Isaac went back into the dark woods of the witch.

Something was different, he didn’t know what it was but the woods looked different, but Isaac just couldn’t put his finger on it.

And there it was the house that the witch lived in, he knocked on the door and the witch opened it.

Without having the chance to say anything the witch said “So you have broken the rule, there is no coming back now, you have destroyed your own town, couldn’t you just keep your mouth shut and be happy with the people?” 

Isaac answered “Please I need your help and I don’t know what to do!”

“I told you the rule and you didn’t follow it, it is your fault, the people of your town are miserable”

The witch answered and shut the door in his face.

That’s it, that’s the end he thought. There is no coming back from this now, or, so he thought.

When all hope was lost, a pig with wings popped up.

He had white wings, and he was pink like the pigs you can see on TV

Isaac was shocked, he never saw a pig like that in his life.

Before Isaac had a chance to say anything, the pig started talking about how he can fix his town and explain everything to him.

The pig started telling him why he felt something was different when he walked back into the woods, it was because the witch powers the woods energy and since she did the magic that you asked her to do her power is weaker which means that the woods are less colorful and good-looking.

But most importantly, the pig explained that he could give the people fingernails and get the storm away from the town, but it had a price.

As soon as the pig said “it has a price” Isaac jumped and said “I can’t do it anymore I can’t pay those prices that everyone gives me, that’s just not me, I don’t want to disappoint everyone again, I can’t do it!”

“wait!” the pig said

“It’s not that kind of price, I just want a friend, do you even know what being lonely in those woods all the time feels like? ”

Isaac said “I can be your friend, but first we gotta save my town”.

In the end the pig did a spell that made the town happy again and the pig and Isaac were best friends forever.