Tristan is Transformed: A Tale of Unexpected Magic

Tristan found himself walking in a lush forest. The sounds of the birds and animals filled his ears with a soothing melody as sunlight shone through the leaves, casting shadows on the ground in front of him. He was eager to get out of that castle. It was not just that he needed to find a new home, but also that Ravenna’s presence there was oppressive. Everything about her seemed to be trying to control him and for some reason, she had chosen him out of all the men in the kingdom.

His eyes were drawn to his surroundings. He never traveled much so everything was unfamiliar to him, but it was quite beautiful nonetheless. What caught his attention was an old woman sitting on a rock by the side of the path, staring at him with interest.

“Hello, good sir! I have not seen you around here before” she said with a warm smile.

“Hello” Tristan replied politely, “My name is Tristan and I am looking for an inn where I can stay for the night”

The old lady smiled even more broadly, “Well then Tristan, you are welcome to my place! It has been lonely since my husband passed away and having a guest would be nice”

As she got up from the rock, Tristan noticed that she walked with a slight limp and used her walking stick to support herself. She led Tristan into her cottage where she made them both tea. As they sat down together at her table, Tristan couldn’t help but notice how attractive she looked despite being in her late fifties or early sixties by appearances alone. Her face radiated kindness and warmth and he felt comfortable talking to her while they drank their tea. He found himself telling her all about Ravenna and how he ended up in that castle in the first place. It felt good to talk about it.

When he finished talking, he discretely looked at her face to see how she reacted to his story but her expression remained unchanged. She placed her teacup on the table and gave him an encouraging smile “You know, I think there is something special about you Tristan” she said calmly “But there are many of us who do not see you for who you really are. There are too many people who try to control you or make you change into what they want you to be when all you need is someone who will accept you for who you are now”

She took his hand gently in hers and continued “If it is not this Ravenna woman then there must be someone else like that in your life right? Someone whose love turned sour and now they only see what they want to see instead of truly seeing you? Maybe someone who thinks they know what is best for you? If so then I hope they treat themselves better than they treat you”

Tristan knew exactly what she meant by that because he knew very well what it felt like when people tried to manipulate him into doing things against his will just because they wanted him to change into something he wasn’t meant to be or because they saw what they wanted to see instead of really seeing him for who he really was. His mind wandered back in time back when he lived with his parents as a child…