KRITH

Krith the Dwarf was the first to travel to other worlds. It was an accident actually. His sister Kardri was trying to find a quicker route to the Elf and Gnome lands, and he found himself on another world entirely. Unfortunately, he had no way of telling his sister where he was and couldn't get back by himself.

Krith discovered he was on a world called Earth and it was populated by Humans; no Dwarves, Elves or Gnomes. He struggled at first to fit in, but he soon found his niche. His magical abilities allowed him to manipulate materials into other things. A sheet of tin could be easily formed into a whistle. A block of wood was soon a toy boat. Krith became a toymaker. His customers were children. The parents would often give him something for the toys, but he never asked for anything. It was enough for him to see them happy. He traveled all over Europe making and giving away toys.

The children of Europe loved Krith and whenever he entered a town they greeted him warmly. Over time those children grew up and, as adults, they treated him with fondness and gave him whatever he needed, clothes, food, a place to sleep, etc. Krith, even though he had no home, lived quite well.

Meanwhile, his sister Kardi was in a desperate state trying to find out what happened to her brother. Some accused her of killing her brother. Others encouraged her to keep trying, and others said Krith would find his way back on his own. Kardri never stopped trying.

Finally, Kardri was able to duplicate the same magic that lost Krith. She opened a portal to Earth. She was nervous about stepping through to our world, but she was not about to ignore the chance to reunite with her brother.

Krith traveled by sleigh in the winters. the smooth runners slid across the white snow and dark mud with ease, no matter how heavy his load was. He had originally used horses to pull it, but he discover that deer were much faster. They became as much his trademark as his toys.

Bells jingling, his deer drawn sleigh pulled into a town in Germany. All the people there came out to greet him. He gave away his toys and laughed jollily with the children. Mothers brought their babies and toddlers to meet him and sit on his lap. The men in the village made any repairs needed on his sleigh, and fed watered and groomed his deer and took them to the inn's stable.

Krith carrying his large bag of toys went to the inn with the children following close behind. Upon entering, he sat in a chair by the fire, reserved just for him, and the children gathered all around him. Krith always began with telling the children what he had done and the places he had seen since he last came to their town. Then each of the children told him of their own adventures. He listened very closely to what each of them said and found a toy in his sac just for them.

This took most of the day, but Krith was in no hurry and the children lingered as long as he did, listening and watching everything that happened. No one went home for dinner. Dinner was brought to them by the parents. It was always a special occasion when Krith came to town.

As the sun went down, he was still there, with most of the townspeople, listening to the children and giving away toys. A weary traveler entered the inn, and sat at an empty table in the far corner of the room. The innkeeper's daughter was telling Krith about her experiences, and was too engrossed in listening to her to notice. The traveler began to sob.

Krith held a finger to the mouth of the young girl on his lap, and motioned for the others in the room to be silent. This was such an odd thing for him to do that they all obeyed immediately. Krith set the girl down and followed the sound of the quiet sobbing that now everyone could hear.

He placed a comforting hand on the traveler's shoulder. "What can I do to alleviate your sorrow?"

The traveler raised her head just enough to whisper, "I lost my brother, and I don't know where to look for him."

Krith smiled. "I know many people throughout Europe. What is your brother's name?"

"Krith."

Krith froze. The only person he knew with that name was himself. "Kardri?"

Kardri's head snapped up and she looked at her brother. "Krith!" She hugged him fiercely, laughed with joy and hugged him again. "I thought I would never see you again. I almost gave up hope. I'm so sorry I lost you."

Krith held on to her, too happy to say anything. It had been over fifty years since he had last seen his sister.

The Humans, at first stunned by this reunion, soon began to laugh with the siblings and showed Kardri as much hospitality as they had shown Krith. Everyone was happy and filled with joy, as always happened when Krith came to town, but now with his great joy of finding his sister, their joy was tenfold.

Later that night after the others had left Krith and Kardri talked of their lives since they had been apart, and what they planned to do next. Krith was hesitant to leave Earth. He loved bringing toys to the children and listening to them. Kardri wanted to go back to Orean, but not without her brother.

After long discussion, it was decided that they would both go back to Orean. Kardri would perfect her magic of creating portals, and Krith could come back to Earth whenever he wanted.

As time went by and Krith became busy with marriage and his own children, his visits to Earth became less and less frequent. He asked the children to write him letters. A Postman asked him where he lived so he could delivered the letters, and Krith laughed and said everywhere but the north pole. It became a joke and the children addressed their letters to him to The North Pole.

Kardri set up mini-portals in the post offices for his mail. The mailmen simply had to drop Krith's mail in the hole and it was delivered instantly to him. Krith would read each letter and set aside a toy for each child. Once a year shortly after the winter solstice Krith, with the portals his sister made, would deliver the toys. As his children got older, they too helped with the deliveries all over Earth.

Krith never achieved great wealth on Orean, much to the embarrassment of the other Dwarves, but he and his family were happy. They found the greatest joy in giving joy to others.


Elizabeth Williamson Copyright © 2009