The Lute Player

Once upon a time there was a king and queen who ruled a land by the sea with wisdom and joy. They were very fond of each other and had nothing to worry them, but at last the king grew restless. He yearned for adventure, to test his strength in battle, and to win glory in distant lands.

One day, he gathered his army together and gave orders to start for a distant country where a brutal king was known to torment everyone he could lay his hands on. The king took a tender leave of his wife, saying, “I am leaving the kingdom in your able hands, as you have always shared my rule with your wisdom.” Then he set off with his army across the sea.

His army landed and approached the land of the tyrant king.  The king and his soldiers defeated all those who threatened them. But this did not last long, for in time they came to a passage between two mountains.  Behind the rise of one mountain, the tyrant’s vast army lay in wait.  

Behind the rise of one mountain, the tyrant’s vast army lay in wait.  

The battle was fierce.  When it was clear the tyrant’s army would prevail, the king shouted to his soldiers to scatter, to save their lives. The king himself was captured, and he was thrown into a dark prison.

Now our poor king had a very bad time indeed. All night long the prisoners were chained up.  In the morning they were yoked together like oxen and had to plough the land till it grew dark.

Days turned to weeks, weeks to months, and months to years.  Three long years passed.

Days turned to weeks, weeks to months, and months to years.  Three long years passed.

At last the poor prisoner found a way to send a message to his dear queen.  In his letter, he urged her to do the one thing he believed would gain his release: “My dear wife, this greedy king understands nothing but gold and power.  Sell our castles, our jewels – everything – and bring the treasure here.  When he sees the wealth you have brought in exchange for my freedom, I have no doubt he will release me.”

At first, the queen received the letter with joy – her husband lived!  But as she read on, worry filled her heart.  So much could go wrong with her husband’s plan!  

She paced her chamber all night. “If this king is so evil and I were to arrive with that much gold,” she thought, “how easy it would be for him to steal it and throw me in prison.  Or worse, take me as one of his wives! On the other hand, if I brought a court attendant to help me with the gold and accompany me for safety, how could I be sure that he, too, wouldn’t steal the treasure or even kill me to rid of any trace of how he came upon the wealth? 

“Even if my husband’s plan were to work and he came back home safely,” the queen worried, “if I had stripped the kingdom of its wealth, we would no longer be able to protect our people from invaders.”

Then, as the first light of dawn touched the sky, an idea bloomed.

Then, as the first light of dawn touched the sky, an idea bloomed.

She took a pair of sharp scissors and cut her long, chestnut hair short.  She disguised herself in a boy’s traveling outfit – boots, trousers, a loose shirt, a simple cap.  She took her precious lute, wrapped it in cloth, and slipped out the palace gate before anyone was awake..

For weeks she traveled – by ship across stormy waters, by foot along dusty road. She slept under bridges and in hay barns. But finally, she arrived at the tyrant’s kingdom.

It was a grim place. The buildings were tall and dark, and soldiers patrolled every corner. At the center rose the tyrant’s palace, black as a storm cloud, and behind it the prison where her husband suffered.

In the palace square, the disguised queen sat down on the cobblestones, took out her lute, and began to play.

The music floated like sunlight through the air – so rich with emotion that the air seemed to shimmer with its power. The music drifted up through the palace windows to where the tyrant king sat on his throne.  For the first time in his life, something stirred his cold heart.

“Bring me that musician!” he commanded. “At once!”

Soon the disguised queen stood before him. She bowed low, her cap hiding her face.

“Who are you, boy?” the tyrant demanded. “Where did you learn to play like that?”

“I am but a wandering musician, Your Majesty,” she said, keeping her voice low and steady. “I come from far across the sea. I travel the world, earning my bread through song.”

“You will stay here and play for me,” the tyrant declared. It was not a request. “I will reward you with gold.”

The lute player bowed again.  “I am honored to stay, Your Majesty.  But when the time comes for me to leave, I must follow my heart.”

“But when the time comes for me to leave, I must follow my heart.”

And so the lute player sang and played for the king, who could never tire of listening and almost forgot to eat or drink or to torment people.

After three days, the lute player announced that she must depart.

“Very well,” he said heavily.  “Take your gold.”

The lute player shook her head.  “No thank you, Your Majesty, I have no use for gold.  I would ask for something else – a traveling companion.  Let me choose one prisoner from your dungeon.”

 “So be it!” said the king, delighted he would get away with paying so little. “I will take you to the prison.  Choose whichever wretch you please.” 

Down to the dark dungeon they went. The queen walked slowly past each prisoner, her heart pounding – what if he wasn’t there?  Then her eyes fell on her husband, though she almost didn’t recognize him, so thin and ragged he had become.  

“That one,” she pointed, and the puzzled prisoner was released. 

As the two of them left the prison, she did not reveal her true identity – in his weakened state, she feared the shock could be too much for him, and she must get him get back to their kingdom as quickly as possible.  So the queen continued to play the role of the young lute player as they started on their journey.  

While the king was glad to be free, some concerns weighed heavily on his mind.  What if his rescuer only took him farther away from home?  And what of his wife, who surely was already on her way to rescue him with all their fortune in tow, and he wouldn’t even be there when she arrived. 

While the king was glad to be free, some concerns weighed heavily on his mind.

The first of his fears was appeased.  The lute player took a path in the very direction that led to his own country.  Even the ship they boarded, with the queen’s playing the lute for their passage, headed in the same direction as his kingdom. 

When they reached the border of his land, the prisoner said, “Kind lad, I am no common prisoner, but the king of this country. Come with me to my palace, and I will reward you richly.”

“Go in peace, Your Majesty,” said the lute player with a bow. “When the time is right, I will come to your palace.”

Then the queen slipped away by a shorter road, reaching home before him.  She dressed into her royal gown.

Then the queen slipped away by a shorter road, reaching home before him.  She dressed into her royal gown.

An hour later all the people in the palace were running to and fro and crying out: “Our king and queen are both back!”

The king greeted everyone very kindly, and of course his wife too, but mixed thoughts troubled him when he gazed upon her.

He called his council together and said:

“What kind of a wife do I have? While I was pining away in prison and sent her word how to rescue me, she did not respond.  I can see all of our treasures are in place.  She did nothing to ransom my freedom!”

His council answered with one voice, “Sire, the queen vanished the day your message arrived.  No one knew where she went. She only returned today.”

No one knew where she went.

“This is worse than I thought!” cried the king. “She simply took off and abandoned her responsibilities?   My wife must have changed greatly since I was gone, and not for the better, I fear.”

All the advisors wanted to know was how the king had been finally able to return home.  He answered, “I assure you, you would have never seen your king again if a certain lute player had not rescued me. I will remember him with fondness and gratitude as long as I live.’

While he spoke, a familiar melody floated through the palace courtyard—the same song he had heard on the long road home.

The king leapt to his feet. “That’s him! My rescuer!”

He ran outside and brought the musician into the hall.

“Name your reward!” cried the king. “Anything you desire!”

“Name your reward!” cried the king. “Anything you desire!”

“I want the very same thing I wanted when I first freed you from the dungeon,” said the lute player.  “I want YOU–yourself!”

Then she threw off her cap, and her short hair fell loose.  The hall fell silent as everyone saw with amazement that the lute player was their queen.

In a flash, the king realized the truth.  When he thought his wife had abandoned her royal duties, instead she had undertaken a long and dangerous journey in disguise to rescue him.  With only her talent and guile to protect her, she had saved him from the dungeon and delivered him safely home. 

“My queen!” he said with great fondness.  “I didn’t know what to think and thought the worse of you.  Can you forgive me?”  

“Can you forgive me?”

“Dear husband,” said she.  “I knew you could not know my plan while it was happening. But decided it was better to try to rescue you and save our kingdom, too.”

“And that you did!” cried the King with admiration.  

“Now you have returned to a prosperous land,” said his wife. “Your people welcome you with open arms.  As do I!”

That very night, the king proclaimed a great feast to celebrate the wisdom of his wife, the queen. At the feast, she played songs she had performed on the long journey home.  As her husband listened, he marveled at the intelligence and courage of his queen – the one who had been beside him all along.