The Boy and the Hermit Hag

An eighteen year old boy, named Sorrel, went adventuring into an old castle that he was never supposed to enter. In the process, he disturbed a hideous female creature who lived there. She captured him and demanded that he give her a kiss to break her curse.

Now of course Sorrel won’t do it cause she is a hideous demon horned woman with a big nose, zits, and a body like a stuffed sausage. So she left him in her dungeons.

Every day when she brought him breakfast, He would ask to be set free and she would ask him to give her a kiss. And every day he would say no. She would shrug at him, give him breakfast, and then leave him.

One day, she brought him breakfast.

“Good Morning, boy. How did you sleep?” The old woman asked.

“What do you care hag?” Sorrel asked, angrily. “Why won’t you let me go?”

“Why won’t you just give me one kiss?” She asked him.

“You must be joking. What, you don’t have mirrors in here?”

The old woman just raised an eyebrow at him.

“No of course you don’t.” Sorrel joked. “Please let me go home. My mother…”

“Has been dead for three years.” The old woman told him.

“How did you know?” Sorrel looked her over. “Are you a witch?”

“No. I told you that I was cursed by one. Hence, that’s why I need you to kiss me.” The old woman explained again.

“Yeah, good luck with that.”

“Here’s your breakfast. See you tomorrow.” The old woman sighed.

“Hey wait.”

“What?”

“I’ll make you a deal.”

“OK, let’s hear it.”

“My brother is visiting home right now.”

“So what?”

“So, his name is Jamar.”

“Jamar?” The old woman thinks a bit. “Oh yes, I’ve heard of him. He’s a troublemaker.” She frowned at Sorrel.

“He’s also a lush and a ladies man. You want a kiss and he’d be the one to do it.” Sorrel informed her. “Let me go and I’ll bring him here. I swear I will.”

“Hmm.” The hag thought about it.

“All the ladies claim he’s the best in bed too.” Sorrel added, as he gave her a wink.

The old woman balked. “I don’t need at that. I just need to break this spell.”

“Fine. Let me go and I’ll bring him here.”

“Give me your word.” She extends her wizened old hand towards him. Sorrel recoils at the boils on her hands. “Give me your solemn word or hope to die.”

Sorrel just looks at her. She’s serious about this. But this is his only hope of being released.

“Uh, sure.”

She grabs his hand and shakes it. “done. It’s a deal.”

Suddenly, the boy screams as a black mark in the shape of the letter P shows up on his hand.

“What the hell?!” He screamed. “Did you curse me?”

“No, that is the promise that you made to me. Brake it and you will die.” She opened the prison door and let him out.

Trapped by his own promise, Sorrel walks out and sets off to find his big brother.

“Jamar! Hey Jamar, you home?” Sorrel asked.

“Quite yelling little bro.” Jamar smiled. “I’m right here.”

Sorrel finds his brother on the couch with two girls by his side.

“What are you doing?”

“Playing Monopoly.” Jamar answered. “What did you think we were doing?”

“I’d rather not answer that. Listen, I need you to do me a really really big favor.”

“Sure what.” Jamar laughs at him.

So, Sorrel explains his situation to him.

“So, will you do this for me please.” Sorrel begs.

“No.”

“What? Why not?!” Sorrel yells at his brother. “You’ve done everything in a skirt.”

The girls just look at Jamar and Jamar just smiles at them. Then he gets up, grabs his brother by the arm, and pushed his brother into the kitchen.

“What is wrong with you?” Jamar slapped him.

“Dude, I’m cursed.” Sorrel showed Jamar his hand. “I need you to come back with me or I’ll die!”

“Dude, just put a bag over her head and take one for the team.” Jamar laughed at him.

“How do you kiss a girl with a bag over her head?!”

“Cut a hole in it, you dummy.” Jamar slapped him again.

“Come on Jamar, please do this for me.” Sorrel begged his brother. “We could be rich men. You could have any girl you want.”

Jamar just smiled. “I already have every girl I want.”

“You suck.” Sorrel growled at him.

“Your problem, not mine.” Jamar turned on him and prepared to go back to his guests. “Be a man and solve your own problems.”

Sorrel cursed at his brother as he left him standing there alone. All of a sudden, as if it knows that he has failed, his letter P starts pulsing red.

“Aw, damn it.”

Sorrel had no choice, but to return to the old woman just as he promised.

“I’m back.” He groaned.

“What happened?” asked the old woman.

“He won’t do it.” Sorrel grumbled. “He’s only into pretty girls.”

The old woman laughed at him. “Aren’t all men?”

“I…” Sorrel was going to say something, but thought better of it.

“Well, come on, time for a lifetime of solitary confinement.” The old woman started to pull him toward the prison.

“No, wait.” Sorrel objected.

“Why?”

“Because…” Sorrel swallowed the lump in his throat. “I’ll do it.” Sorrel also shuddered as the idea entered his head.

“Are you serious?” the old woman asked him.

“Yes…but under one condition.” Sorrel told her.

“OK. What?”

“Put a bag on your head.” Sorrel’s voice trailed off.

“What?”

“Put a bag on your head.” Sorrel’s shoulders drops more and more as he explained. “And cut out the mouth hole.”

“You must be kidding.” The old woman eyeballed him.

Sorrel shuddered again. “Do you want a kiss or not?”

“Fine. Stay put. I’ll be right back.” And the old woman walked off.

“If I had any brains, I’d run and keep running.” Sorrel told himself. Then he looked down at the letter P pulsing on his hand. “But If I do, I’ll die.” How do you know that kissing her won’t kill you. His own conscience laughed at him.

The old woman returned with a bag with one hole where the mouth should be cut out. She put it on her head and then stood before Sorrel.

“Let’s get this over with.” She growled at him.

Sorrel scoffed at her. “Isn’t that my line.”

Sorrel took a deep breath and leaned forward to kiss her. The old woman kissed him back and gave him a deep kiss. Sorrel tried to imagine that this ugly old woman was a movie star, but his curiosity to see if this kiss worked caused him to pull away.

All of a sudden, and right before his eyes. The ugly old woman changed form. She literally aged backwards, becoming younger and more beautiful as the years melt away. Sorrel could only stare as the woman’s hips become fuller. The wrinkles, age spots, and boils disappeared from her hands. The sunken eyes and wrinkled old face become fuller and more beautiful. She now has soft brown eyes, rich red hair, and very kissable lips. Sorrel subconsciously touches his lips as he realizes…Yeah, I just kissed that.

“Holy…”

The woman smiled at him. “There was that so hard.”

“Yes, I am.” Sorrel breathed absentmindedly.

“What?”

“I mean, who are you?” Sorrel asked her.

“My name is Isleen.” Isleen told him.

“Isleen the Irresistible?” Sorrel couldn’t believe his eyes. “I’ve heard of you. You’re beautiful, rich, smart. The whole damn package. Men used to line up at your door until…”

“Until one guy thought that he was all that, but I turned him down anyway, and then he had the nerve to curse me.”

“If I can’t have you no one will?” surmised Sorrel.

“That’s about it, kid.” Isleen smirked at him. “Thank you for finally freeing me. Well, chow.” Isleen turned to leave.

“Wait a minute…” Sorrel reached out to her.

“Oh, that’s right.” Isleen reached into her pocket and threw him the keys. “Here, the place is yours. Have fun.”

“But isn’t this your home?”

“Not anymore.” Isleen put on her coat.

“What? But you said…”

“My fortune is yours now remember.” She winked at him. “I always keep my word.” Then she turned to leave.

Sorrel grabbed her arm, knelt before her, and…

“Will you marry me?” He asked point blank.

“No.”

“Why not?” Then Sorrel remembered. “Of course, you can’t marry a man that you just met. But we can date first.”

“Sorry hun, You’re still too young.” Isleen removed his hand from her arm. “Because I’ve got better things to do.” Sorrel hung his head in rejection. She shook her head at him. Then she cracked her knuckles and made a fist. “I’ve got me an evil wizard go to and kill.” She gave him a kiss on his cheek and waved goodbye to him. “Have fun being king.”

Leave a Comment

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Shopping Cart