Once upon a time, a girl was born into a family. Now, this girl had a special gift because, when she bled, her blood, in contact with the air, would turn into stones, but not just any kind of stones. They were precious stones, rubies actually. So, every time this girl grazed her knees and bled, or cut herself involuntarily, hurt herself, she would drip rubies all over the place.

People saw this and, greedy as they were, they craved for those precious possessions. And they all hunted her down, to hurt her and make her drip her jewels, so they could steel them away and become filthy rich.

The girl grew up, mostly hidden in her own chamber, fearful of the world, lonely and sad. When she was of age and could already make do on her own, she left her family and travelled into the world, to find her own way.

One day, while she was going into town, she tripped and fell, and her knees were grazed by the pebbles on the road. She started bleeding so heavily that she could barely walk. A young man had seen her from afar and approached her. At the sight of the little shiny red pebbles that were dripping from her wounded knees, he kneeled and took them into his hands to study them carefully. And, to his astonishment, they were very precious gems! Rubies!

Of course, thought this cunning young man, if the girl was dripping jewels from her body, that meant her own heart had to be most precious! Possessed by an evil spirit, he grabbed the girl forcefully and hit her hard on the head. She fell unconscious and the young man cut her chest and ripped her heart out. And he was right, indeed! Her heart, so tender and warm, in contact with the air, turned into the most beautiful ruby stone ever seen. It was the most precious of jewels he had seen in all his life.

The young man stole the heart and left the girl there to die. But the girl eventually woke up, dizzy and distressed. She would certainly survive, so it seemed, yet her life would change for good. She stood up and went on.

For many days she roamed the streets of towns and the roads of the country in search of her heart, yelling: “Where is my heart? Give me my heart back! Who shall give me my heart back?” The town´s people all knew the heart-less girl that searched for her heart, wandering endlessly, day and night, to seek solace for her empty chest.

One day, upon seeing her roaming aimlessly on the streets, a blacksmith took pity on her and made her a heart of metal and put it inside her chest. The girl finally had a heart and she was glad about it. It seemed she would live on. Yet, the heart was of a very heavy metal she could not handle. She felt sick all the time and fell gravely ill. For many years she had to suffer from ailments caused by this heavy heart she had to wear in her body.

One morning she drew all of her courage and paid a visit to the town´s watchmaker. “I beg of you, Sir, take my heart out and replace it with something else, something lighter, so I can lead a normal life!” The watchmaker also took pity on her and he cut her chest, took her heavy metal heart out and replaced it with a small clock. It was the only thing he had in his store.

The girl, grateful for the exchange, went back to her life. Yet, this time, too, she felt that her chest was not filled with the right organ. It was ticking like a bomb, day and night, and she could not sleep because of the noise it produced.

After many sleepless nights, the girl, anxious to have her heart taken out once again, decided to go to a jeweler. The jeweler also took pity on her and, in exchange for the watch she had inside her chest, he gave her a heart of diamond. It was the most precious stone the jeweler had in his store. Yet, diamonds are rough, and the jeweler had a tough time working to polish and refine it. So, he decided to get rid of it and transplant it into the girl´s chest.

Happily, the girl returned home, only to find that her chest was aching day and night because of the rough edges of the diamond she had received as a heart. Oh, the horrors! What could she do now? She was desperate. Crying, she started roaming the streets in town, aimlessly yelling from the top of her lungs: “Give me my heart back! I want my heart back! Who is going to give me my heart back?”

It was unbearable to hear her screams night and day, so the town´s people chased her away. For many months she wandered on the roads of this earth until she reached the shop of a glass blower. Once again, the girl traded her own precious heart of diamond for another, this time of glass. But, alas, the first time she fell on the ground, her heart broke into millions of shards inside her chest and nothing remained of it.

The girl was empty inside once again. What should she do?

“Perhaps, if I beg for a human heart, I might find mercy among people”, she thought. How wrong she was to place her trust in humans, for no human being gives away his heart just like that, in return for nothing, for emptiness.

And the girl went on, aimlessly roaming the lands of this earth, in search of her own heart. From above, the weavers of destiny saw her endless quest and watched her in dismay. How could a human be so stubborn in her quest, not giving up after so many failed attempts? And they all looked at her with great amazement. Because of their admiration for the girl, they started spinning the girl´s life thread the other way around, in the attempt to help her out.

At this point, the girl, wandering for many months, ended up on the threshold of a hut that was hidden in the heart of a big dark forest. And this humble hut was dwelled by an old but good-hearted hag, a soothsayer.

Seeing the young girl in such a disarray, she took her in and took care of her. She taught her many things, like how to recognize healing herbs and use them for various ails of the body and soul, she showed her how to survive and defend herself in this treacherous world. And then the old hag taught her the science of the stars, how to read their movements and interpret them, and how to grasp the meaning of her own dreams.

By this time, the young girl had stayed with the old hag for almost two years. She learned to live with the emptiness in her chest, yet still yearning to one day find her own heart again and live normally.

One day, while the girl was daydreaming, sadly thinking of her heart that might still be out there, in the wide world, the hag called for her.

“Child”, said the old hag, “I give you these three things, a hammer, a small delicate watch, and a book. They are yours now to use them as you see fit. Go to the Ides of February and trade these for what you are yearning for. And you shall find your peace again.”

And the girl started her journey to the past, in the foggy land of old, where the three Ides of February had been living for as long as time itself. When she arrived at their palace, the three Ides of February received her in an audience.

“What are you here for, human?” they asked her.

“I came to receive a heart. Mine was stolen a long time ago.” The girl answered.

“That is impossible”, said one of the Ides, “for yours is one of a kind and cannot be replaced.”

“I will not leave this place, before I receive my heart”, replied the girl with strength.

“And what will you trade us for a heart?” asked the mighty Ides.

“I have only this hammer, a filigree watch and a book on me. I bid you these gladly.”

“And what shall we do with these mortal possessions, fool? We have no need of them”, laughed the Ides at her.

“I will not leave until I have my heart back”, yelled the girl.

“You defy us, foolish mortal”, boastfully answered the Ides.

“I will defy you until I have my heart back”, said the girl.

The Ides had never seen such stubbornness and strength in a human before. Thus they decided to trade the girl a heart in exchange for her three simple objects.

“Choose one of these here exposed”, said one of the Ides to the girl, showing her a variety of precious gems and crystals. They were all one of a kind, colorful and of great value.

“No diamond, no pearl, no emerald, no sapphire, no crystal will do. I wish to have my own heart back.”

“Your heart is no more. Yours was a heart of ruby, a special gift from heaven, for it was flesh and blood inside of you, but, when taken out it turned into a precious stone. It was dripping rubies. Such hearts are not to be found in this collection”, said the Ides.

“Then you shall have to make me one that is similar to my old heart. For I will not leave this place and go back to my life without a heart.” Commanded the girl.

After spinning their threads, the Ides said:

“What you trade in exchange for that ruby heart is too little compared to the value of that stone and the meaning of it. You must know that those precious ruby stones can be found somewhere in this world, in a faraway land no man has ever dared enter before. The stones lie on the bottom of a dark lake, in the land of swamps and moors. It is where these stones grow in the bosom of the earth. They become so precious properly because of the filth they grow in. If you are able to dig them out, you shall have your wish fulfilled.

However, you must know that you were born to always give your heart away to someone. Your heart was never meant to be purely human, simply because no human being gives his heart away. When you were born, a heart of ruby was given to you, so you could give it to someone and that person would delight in it. It was a mishap that yours was taken away cunningly by someone, a thief of hearts, and you´ve never fulfilled your destiny. It is not your fault, child, none of that was your doing!”

“The only way to reverse this is to go into the land of the moors and find those precious stones. In the meantime, you shall fill the void in your chest with this fruit, this pomegranate. You will wear it proudly. And when you find your stone, come back so we can put into your chest, in the place of the fruit.” And the girl traded her three items for the pomegranate and continued her journey to the land of the moors.

When she reached the faraway land, she took up all of her courage and dove deep into the crevasse of that abyss and finally extracted a red stone from the filthy dark waters.

Happily, she returned to the Ides with her trophy in her hand. The Ides received her, once again astonished at how fast she had accomplished her mission.

“Indeed, child, you are as strong and steadfast as the hammer you gave us and faster than time itself. But are you as smart as your book? And as delicate as your filigree watch?”

“Yes, I am.” Replied the girl without hesitation.

“We shall see about that”, boomed the Ides. “Show us the ruby stone.”

The girl showed them what she had collected from the bottom of the swampy lake. The Ides then took the stone in their hands and smashed it with the hammer the girl had given them. The stone was broken into many pieces. Then the Ides collected each piece of that stone and introduced one into each seed of a pomegranate. They let the fruit soak into its own red juice, until it was tender and sweet.

“Now you will eat this book”, said the Ides. And the girl opened the book, ripped one leaf at a time and slowly chewed each of them, swallowing them. When she finished, the Ides cast a spell on the girl and she fell asleep. While she was asleep, the three Ides put the tender-sweet pomegranate inside the girl´s chest and stitched the skin back together tightly, so the girl´s chest could never be opened up again so easily.

When the girl awoke, she felt different. She felt she had a heart again. It was not her original heart, but her new transplant felt natural all the same, it was working properly and pumping life into her veins and limbs.

“Your destiny is to wear that heart we gave you. It is all yours now. It will never be like your original heart. However, it will be a good heart, a tender heart for those who open their eyes to see it. Be aware, this new heart cannot be given away, for it will have nothing to be replaced with. Do not give it away and stay on the watch, so that nobody takes it forcefully away from you. You must guard it as your most precious possession.

Should anyone wish to have your heart, you will dive into the dark lake you now so well know and take out the rubies and give them to the faint-hearted. Thus they will be restored and strengthened for days to come. But, remember, you will always have to dive deep into the filthy waters of that lake to get the stones. You will have to get dirty, filthy, in order to help others.”

“I can do that, as long as my heart is in place”, said the girl.

“It is no easy task. But you proved yourself to be brave and generous, noble and kind, which is why you shall inherit the land of the moors for all times. And only you will be guardian and mistress of those abysses that bring forth those sought-after jewels. Your jewels will bring joy and relief to humans. With them you will adorn their lives. Earthlings will wear them proudly at celebrations and feasts. And you shall never be forgotten, oh, girl of the warmest of hearts!”

“If, one day, someone wanted to trade his heart for yours, giving his to you, that shall be only that man´s own free choice. Yet it will remain a choice, for, as you know it, no man gives his heart away. When he does, he will eat some of your pomegranate seeds, feast upon your heart, and will delight in it. He will want to give his life for you, so you could also delight in a heart of flesh and blood. But a few droplets of his own blood streaming from his heart will be enough for you to receive life in your heart. That fruit of yours we stitched into your chest will turn into a heart of flesh once again, this time dripping no more. And the hearts of both of you will be intertwined for all eternity. So be it.” And the Ides released the girl.

And she settled down in the land of the moors, where she had been living until today. And every time a human being wants to get his hands on the precious stones, venturing into those lands to seek the precious rubies, the girl dives deep into the bosom of the dark lake and takes out the most luminous red stones that adorn the crown of kings and queens, the necklaces of young maidens, the rings of noblemen, and jewels of all kinds.

The mistress of the lands of the dark moors is still there, guarding her lands and her most precious possessions, still waiting for that one person who will choose to delight in her heart and give her the promised droplets of blood, so she could have a heart of flesh and live happily ever after.

The Beginning