THE GROAC'H OF LOK ISLAND
The korandon
Source
This summit of the rock was occupied by a nest made of potter's clay and lined with dried moss on which crouched a small korandon, all black and all wrinkled, which began to cry out when he saw Bellah:
"Here is the pretty girl who has come to save me."
"Save you! said Bellah, who are you, my little man?"
"I am Jeannik, the husband of the Groac’h of the island of Lok; it was she who sent me here."
"But what are you doing in this nest?"
"I'm incubating six stone eggs, and I won't have my freedom until they hatch."
Bellah couldn't help but laugh.
"Poor dear little rooster, she said, and how can I free you?"
"By delivering Houarn, who is in the power of Groac’h."
—Ah! Tell me what is needed for this. cried the orphan, and if I had to go on my knees around four bishoprics of Brittany, I would start right away."
“Well then, you need two things, said the korandon: first, present yourself to the Groac’h as a young man; then remove the steel net she wears on her belt and lock her there until the judgment."
"And where would I find a boy's outfit in my size, my darling korandon?
“You're going to know, my pretty girl."
At these words, the little dwarf tore off four of his red hairs, he blew them in the wind, muttering something under his breath, and the four hairs became four tailors, the first of which held a cabbage, the second scissors, the third a needle, and the last one an iron.
The four of them sat around the nest, legs in the shape of an X, and began to prepare a complete costume for Bellah.
With the first cabbage leaf, they made a beautiful coat stitched on all the seams; another sheet was used for the vest; but it took two for the large fashionable breeches from Léon. Finally, the heart of the cabbage was cut into a hat, and the trunk was used to make shoes.
When Bellah had put on this costume, she looked like a gentleman dressed in green velvet lined with white satin.
She thanked the korandon, who gave her some more instructions; then her big bird transported her, all in one flock, to the island of Lok. There, she ordered him to become an apple tree again and entered the boat in the shape of a swan which took her to the palace of Groac'h.
At the sight of the young Léonard, dressed in velvet, the fairy seemed delighted.
"By Satan, my cousin, she said to herself, here is the most beautiful boy who ever came to see me, and I think I will love him for three times three days."
So she began to be very friendly to Bellah, calling her my sweetheart or my little heart. She served her a snack, and the young girl found on the table the knife of Saint Corentin, which had been left by Houarn. She took it to use occasionally, then she followed the Groac’h into the garden.
The Groac'h showed her the lawns flowered with diamonds, the jets of water scented with lavender, and especially the fishpond where fish of a thousand colors swam.
Bellah seemed so delighted with them that she sat down at the edge of the pond to get a better look at them.
La Groac'h took advantage of her delight to ask her if she wouldn't be happy to stay in her company forever. Bellah replied that she wouldn't ask for anything better.
“So you would agree to marry me immediately?” asked the fairy.
“Yes,” replied Bellah, “on the condition that I could catch one of these beautiful fish with the steel net that you have on your belt."
The Groac'h, who suspected nothing, took this for a young boy's whim, and she handed over the net.
Source: La Groac’h de l’Île du Lok from the French book Contes et légendes de Basse-Bretagne published in 1891.
Part 1 - Part 2 - Part 3 - Part 4 - Part 5
Hello, my name is Vincent Celier.
I am writing translations of folk tales that I found in public domain French books, so that people who do not understand French may enjoy them too.
Bellah meets the korandon, a gnome from Brittany, who is the husband of the Groac'h.
He gives her good advice so that she could save Houarn, and probably save him too.
Disguised as a boy wearing a suit made from cabbage, she starts to seduce the Groac'h, while the Groac'h thinks she is seducing this handsome boy.
Yesterday, I showed you the art on the walls of our bedroom; today I'll show you the art in our living room.
This painting is above the gas-powered fireplace (that we are no longer using because of climate change).
This is a strange landscape. It seems that the ground is made of big rocks. The trees in the foreground are obviously dead. Did they burn? The trees in the background are not dead.
And these two paintings are on the opposite wall.
There are trees and snow on the ground in both pictures.
I bought these paintings in 2007 through the Internet because I liked them.
Kati likes them too, otherwise, they would be in my house in Harrison Hot Springs.
-- Vincent Celier