There once lived a great lord, who was blessed with the birth of a daughter, whom he named Talia, and he sent for the sages and astrologers in his estates, to foretell him what lot and fortune would befall her; and they met, and counselled together, and cast the horoscope over her, and at length they came to the conclusion that she would incur great danger from a chip of flax. Her father therefore forbade that any flax, or hemp, or any other matter of the kind should be brought within his house, so that she should escape the predestined danger.

One day of the days, when Talia had grown into a young and beauteous damsel, she was looking out of a window, when she beheld passing that way an ancient dame, who was spinning, and Talia, never having seen a distaff or a spindle, was pleased to see the twistings of the spindle, and she felt so much curiosity as to what thing it was, that she bade the old dame come to her, and taking the distaff from her hand, she began to stretch the flax. Unfortunately one of the chips of the flax entered her nail, and Talia fell dead upon the ground. When the affrighted old woman beheld this, she hastened down the stairs, and is hastening still.

As soon as the wretched father heard of the disaster which had taken place, he bade them, after having paid for this tub full of sour wine with casks full of tears, lay her out in the palace (it was one of his country mansions), and put her seated on a velvet throne under a dais of brocade; and closing the doors, being desirous to forget all and to drive from his memory his great misfortune, he abandoned for ever the house wherein he had suffered so great a loss. Such was his case.

After a time, a king went forth to the chase, and by decree of the Decreer he passed that way, and one of his falcons, escaping from his hand, flew within that house by way of one of the windows, and not returning at the call, the king bade one of his suite knock at the door, believing the palace to be inhabited; but though he knocked for a length of time, nobody came to answer the summons, so the king bade them bring a vintager’s ladder, for be himself would clamber up and search the house, to discover what was within it. Thereupon he mounted and entered, and sought in all the chambers, and nooks, and corners, and marvelled with exceeding marvel to find no living person within it. At last he came to the saloon, and when the king beheld Talia, who seemed as one ensorcelled, he believed that she slept, and he called her, but she remained insensible, and crying aloud, he felt his blood course hotly through his veins in contemplation of so many charms; and he lifted her in his arms, and carried her to a bed, whereon he gathered the first fruits of love, and leaving her upon the bed, returned to his own kingdom, where, in the pressing business of his realm, he for a time thought no more of this incident. Now Talia was delivered after nine months of a couple of beautiful creatures, one a boy and the other a girl; in them could be seen two rare jewels; and they were attended by two fairies, who came to that palace, and put them at their mother’s breasts; and once they sought the nipple, and not finding it, they began to suck at the fingers, and they sucked so much that the chip of the flax came forth; and Talia awoke as if from a long sleep, and beholding beside her the two priceless gems, she held them to her breast, and gave them the nipple to suck, and the babes were dearer to her than her own life. Finding herself alone in that palace with two children by her side, she knew not what had happened to her; but she noticed that the table was laid, and refreshments and viands brought in to her, without seeing any attendants.

In the meanwhile the king remembered Talia, and saying that he would go a-birding and a-hunting, he fared to the palace, and found her awake, and with two cupids of beauty, and he was glad with exceeding gladness, and he related to Talia who he was, and how he had seen her, and what had taken place; and when she heard this, their friendship was knitted with tighter bonds, and he remained with her for a few days. After that time he bade her farewell, and promised to return soon, and take her with him to his kingdom. And he fared to his realm, but he could not find any rest, and at all hours he had in his mouth the names of Talia, and of Sun and Moon (thus were the two children hight), and when he took his rest, he called either one or other of them. Now the king’s wife began to suspect that something was wrong from the delay of her husband in the chase, and hearing him name continually Talia, Sun, and Moon, she waxed hot with another kind of heat than the sun’s, and therefore sending for the secretary, she said to him, ‘Hearken to me, O my son, thou art abiding between two rocks, between the post and the door, between the poker and the grate. An thou wilt tell me with whom the king thy master, and my husband, is in love, I will gift thee and largesse thee with treasures untold; and an thou hidest from me the truth, I will not let them find thee neither dead nor alive.’ Our gossip was frightened with sore affright, and his greed of gain being strong above fear, blinding his eyes to all honour, and to all sense of justice, a pointless sword of faith he related to her all things, like bread and bread, and wine and wine. And the queen, hearing how matters stood, despatched the secretary to Talia, in the name of the king, bidding her send the children, for he wished to see them; and Talia with great joy did as she was commanded. Then the queen (that heart of Medea) told the cook to slay them, and prepare several tasteful dishes for her wretched husband; but the cook, who was tender-hearted, seeing these two beautiful golden apples, felt pity and compassion of them, and he carried them home to his wife, and bade her hide them; and he made ready two lambs in their stead in a thousand different ways, and when the king came, the queen, with great pleasure, bade the viands be served up, and whilst the king ate with delight, saying, ‘O how good is this priest of Lanfusa, O how tasteful is this other dish, by the soul of mine ancestors;’ she ever replied, ‘Eat, eat, that of thine own thou eatest.’ The king heeded not for twice or three times this repetition; but at last seeing that the music continued, answered, ‘I know perfectly well that I am eating of mine own, because thou hast brought naught into this house;’ and waxing wroth with exceeding wrath, he arose and went forth to a villa at some distance of his palace, to solace his soul and alleviate his anger.

In the meanwhile the queen, not being satisfied of the evil already done, sent for the secretary and bade him fare to the palace and bring Talia thither, saying that the king longed for her presence and was expecting her. As soon as she heard these words, Talia forthwith departed, believing that she obeyed the commands of her lord, for she longed with excessive longing to behold her light and joy, knowing not what was preparing for her. And she arrived in the presence of the queen, whose face changed by the fierce fire which burned within, and looked like the face of Nero; and she addressed her thus, saying, ‘Well come, and fair welcome, O thou Madam Rattle, thou art a fine piece of goods, thou ill weed, who art enjoying my husband; is it thou who art the lump of filth, the cruel bitch, that hath caused me such a turning of head? Wend thy ways, for in sooth thou art welcome in purgatory, where I will compensate thee for all the damage thou hast done to me.’ Talia, hearing these words, began to excuse herself, saying that it was not her fault, because the king her husband had taken possession of her territory when she was drowned in sleep; but the queen would not listen to her excuses, and bade a large fire to be lit in the courtyard of the palace, and commanded that Talia should be cast therein. The damsel, perceiving that matters had taken a bad turn, knelt before the queen, and besought her to allow her at least to doff the garments she wore. And the queen, not for pity of the unhappy damsel, but to gain also those robes, which were purflewed with gold and pearls, bade her undress, saying, ‘Thou canst doff thy raiment, I am satisfied;’ and Talia began to take them off, and at every piece of garment she drew off she uttered a loud scream, and having doffed the robe, the skirt, the body, and the under-bodice, she was on the point of withdrawing her last garment, when she uttered a last scream louder than the rest; and they dragged her towards the pile, to make cinders of her to warm Carontes’ breeches; but the king suddenly appeared, and finding this spectacle, wished to know the matter, and asking for his children, heard that the wife who reproached him for his treachery had caused them to be slaughtered and served as meat for him. Now when the wretched king heard this, he gave himself up to despair, and said ‘Alas! then I, myself, am the wolf of my own sweet lambs; alas! and why did these my veins know not the fountains of their own blood; ah, thou renegade bitch, what evil deed is this which thou hast done? Begone, thou shalt get thy desert as the stumps and I will not send that tyrant-faced one to the Coloseum to do her penance;’ and thus saying, he commanded that the queen should be cast into the fire which she had prepared for Talia, and the secretary with her, because he had been the handle for this bitter play, and weaver of this wicked plot, and he was going to do the same with the cook, whom he believed to be the slaughterer of his children, when the man cast himself at his feet, saying, ‘In very sooth, O my lord, for the service I have done to thee, there should be naught else than a pile of living fire, and no other help than a pole from behind, and no other entertainment than stretching and shrinking within the blazing fire would be needful, and no other advantage should I seek than to have my ashes, the ashes of a cook, mixed up with the queen’s. But this is not the reward that I expect for having saved thy children, in spite of the gall of that bitch, who desired to slay them, to return within thy body that part which was thine own body.’ The king hearing these words, his senses forsook him, and his wits were bewildered, and he seemed to be dreaming, and he could not believe what his own ears had heard; therefore turning to the cook, he said, ‘If it be true that thou hast saved my children, be sure that I will take thee away from turning the spit, and I will put thee in the kitchen of this breast, to turn and twist as thou likest all my desires, giving thee such a reward as shall enable thee to call thyself a happy man in this world.’ Whilst the king spake these words, the wife of the cook, seeing her husband’s need, brought forth the two children, Sun and Moon before their sire. And he never tired at playing the game of three with his wife and children, making a mill-wheel of kisses, now with one and then with other; and giving a rich gift and largesse to the cook, he made him a gentleman of his chamber, and took Talia to wife; and she enjoyed a long life with her husband and her children, thus knowing full well that at all times:

‘He whom fortune favoureth
Even in sleep good raineth for him.’