Welcome to another adventure from the Thousand Acre Woods deep within Trollheim of the NJ Pine Belt! Tales Chronicled by Jonathan Hulton. That's me. In our tale, Angrboða is shunned at school for trying to put a bully in his place and Helgi needs to lead her to find her own way.

"No, I don't want to talk to dad!" Angrboda declared.

"What's the matter?" Helgi asked as she took a break from drying some herbs.

"Everyone thinks I'm a sneak at school."

"Hmmm?"

"Well, my friend was being bullied and I arranged it so the girl whom he liked would see what he was doing to others and told her he would eventually do the same to her."

"OK, so far I'm proud of you."

"Well…it backfired on me and the person I initially was helping even turned on me."

"How so?"

"The bully accused me of sneaking up on him and of being a stalker; now everyone is looking over their shoulder at me. "It is true I have concealed myself in the past while seeking retribution for myself and others, but I have never been malicious. Now everyone I have helped is calling me the mouse."

"Do you know the story of the mouse and baby elephant?"

"Oh is this one of Dad's long winded tall tales…"

"Well let me make you your favorite lamb stew."

So Helgi went to the kitchen and Angrboda just sulked at the table.

When it was done Helgi brought her a bowl. She spit out her first taste and said, "Mom this terrible…what did you put into it."

"Lamb, potatoes, carrots, some stout, a little flour, salt, beef stock.."

"It sounds right, what's different."

"I put lamb in it."

"Doesn't it always call for lamb…"

"I have followed my mother's recipe forever and she used beef. Who was I to tell her she was to use lamb when it was my favorite dish.

"If it works, it works. Why change the recipe just to be correct."

"OK, tell me the story of the mouse."

"One day a person shouted 'a mouse' and pointed at a baby elephant who didn't see the mouse scurry into its hole at her foot.

"From that day on, the little elephant told everyone she was a mouse and nobody could tell her different. She was so adamant, that all the other baby elephants grew up believing they were mice too. Now because of one mistaken word, the strongest willed sage could never tell that village different, nor would he try to the detriment of them all."

"Know thyself." Angrboda said hanging her head.

"Yes."

"So do you want to go to school with a bunch of mice or Trolls? You are magical my dear." Helgi said as she pulled her close and kissed the top of her head. Angrboda loved the smell of amber and sandalwood in her mother's hair which she first remembered when she was swaddled up in her arms knowing that everything was right and safe in the world.

Then Bjorn walked in, "What's for dinner, it smells great,"

"Lamb stew, but Mom put lamb in it."

"I always was waiting for her to get the recipe right."

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