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Freyja's Necklace · Asgard Stories: Tales from Norse Mythology

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  Speaker 1: Chapter four of Asgard's stories. This is a LibriVox recording.
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  Speaker 1: All libervox recordings are in the public domain. For more
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  Speaker 1: information or to volunteer, please visit liberfox dot org. Read
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  Speaker 1: by Julie Yu Asgard stories by Mary H. Foster and
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  Speaker 1: Mabel H. Cummings. Friar's neckness, Yes, I really must have
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  Speaker 1: some flowers to wear to the feast to night, said
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  Speaker 1: Friar to her husband Order. Fryar was the goddess of
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  Speaker 1: love and beauty. She was the most beautiful of all
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  Speaker 1: the Esha, and everyone loved to look at her charming
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  Speaker 1: face and to hear her sweet voice. I think you
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  Speaker 1: look quite beautiful enough as you are without flowers, Odo replied,
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  Speaker 1: But Friar was not satisfied. She thought she would go
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  Speaker 1: and find her brother Fry, the god of Summer, for
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  Speaker 1: he would give her a garden of flowers. So she
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  Speaker 1: wandered forth from Asgard, on the way to Fry's bright
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  Speaker 1: home in Alfheim, where he lived among his happy, busy
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  Speaker 1: little elves. As Friar walked along, she was thinking of
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  Speaker 1: the feast to be given that night in Asgard, and
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  Speaker 1: knowing that all the gods and goddesses would be there.
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  Speaker 1: She wished to look her very best on a on
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  Speaker 1: she wandered, not thinking how fast she was getting away
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  Speaker 1: from home. Finally, the light began to grow fainter and fainter,
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  Speaker 1: and Fryer found herself in a strange place. The sunlight
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  Speaker 1: had faded away, but there was still a little light
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  Speaker 1: that came from lanterns carried by funny little dwarfs who
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  Speaker 1: were busily working. Some were digging gold and gems. Others
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  Speaker 1: were cleaning off the dirt from the precious stones and
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  Speaker 1: polishing them to make them bright, while four little fellows
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  Speaker 1: were sitting in one corner putting the sparkling stones together
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  Speaker 1: into a wonderful neckness. What can the beautiful thing be,
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  Speaker 1: thought Friar. If only I had that, it would surely
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  Speaker 1: make me look more beautiful than anyone else at the
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  Speaker 1: face tonight. And the more she thought about it, the
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  Speaker 1: more she longed to get it. Oh, I really must
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  Speaker 1: have it, she said to herself, And with these words
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  Speaker 1: she stepped nearer to the four little men. For what
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  Speaker 1: price will you sell me your neckness? She asked. The
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  Speaker 1: dwarfs looked up from the work, and when they saw
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  Speaker 1: Fry's lovely face and heard her sweet voice said, Oh,
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  Speaker 1: if you will only look kindly upon them us and
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  Speaker 1: be our friend, you may have the necknes. Then a
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  Speaker 1: mocking laugh echoed again and again through the dark cavern,
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  Speaker 1: seeming to say, how foolish you are to wish for
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  Speaker 1: these bright diamonds. They will not make you happy. But
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  Speaker 1: Friar snatched the neckness and ran out of the cavern.
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  Speaker 1: It did not please her to hear the teasing laugh
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  Speaker 1: of the dwarfs, and she wanted to get away from
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  Speaker 1: them as soon as possible. At last, she was once
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  Speaker 1: more out in the open air. She tried to be
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  Speaker 1: free and happy again, but a strange feeling of dread
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  Speaker 1: came over her, as if something were going to happen soon.
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  Speaker 1: She came to a steel pool of water, and putting
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  Speaker 1: on the necklace, she bent over to look at her
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  Speaker 1: picture in the clear water. How beautiful the diamonds were,
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  Speaker 1: and how they sparkled in the sunshine. She must hasten
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  Speaker 1: home to show them the Older. The fair goddess soon
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  Speaker 1: reached the ask God and hurried to the palace to
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  Speaker 1: find her husband, but Older was not there. Over and
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  Speaker 1: over again she searched through all the rooms in vain.
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  Speaker 1: He had gone, and although Friar had her beautiful neckness,
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  Speaker 1: she cared little for it without her dear husband. Soon
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  Speaker 1: it was time to go to the feast, but Friar
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  Speaker 1: would not go without Older. She sat down and wept
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  Speaker 1: bitter tears. She felt no joy now for having the neckness,
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  Speaker 1: and no sorrow because she could not feast with the asher.
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  Speaker 1: If only Older would come back, all would be well again.
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  Speaker 1: I will go to the end of the world to
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  Speaker 1: find him, said fry and she began to make ready
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  Speaker 1: for her journey. Her chariot, drawn by twic cats, was
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  Speaker 1: soon ready. But before she could start, she must first
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  Speaker 1: ask Father Olden to allow her to go. Oh, Father,
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  Speaker 1: I beg you give me leave to go to look
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  Speaker 1: for my order in every corner of the world. The
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  Speaker 1: wise father replied, go fair, Friar, and may you find
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  Speaker 1: whom you seek. Then she started forth, first to the
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  Speaker 1: meet god world. The goddess of beauty went, but no
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  Speaker 1: one in all the world had seen or heard of Older.
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  Speaker 1: Down under the earth, to Nifflheim, and even to ygd
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  Speaker 1: the land of giants, she wondered, But still no one
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  Speaker 1: has seen or even heard of her husband. Poor Friar
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  Speaker 1: wept many tears, and wherever the tea drops fell and
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  Speaker 1: sank into the ground, they turned into glistening gold. At last,
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  Speaker 1: the said goddess returned to her own palace alone. She
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  Speaker 1: still wore the wonderful neckness, which was called Brisingamun. One night,
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  Speaker 1: when the hour was late, all the ash were asleep,
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  Speaker 1: except the ever watchful hym Down, who heard soft footsteps
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  Speaker 1: like those of a cat near Friar's palace. He listened
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  Speaker 1: and thought, that is surely some one bent on mischief.
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  Speaker 1: I must follow him. When him dawn reached the palace,
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  Speaker 1: he found it was Loki, changed into another form, creeping
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  Speaker 1: softly about him. Down quickly watched him and saw him
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  Speaker 1: glide into Friar's bed side, where the fair goddess lay
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  Speaker 1: asleep wearing her beautiful neckness. Loki had come to steal
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  Speaker 1: the neckness, but when he saw that she was lying
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  Speaker 1: on the clasps of the chain so that he could
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  Speaker 1: not undo it without waking her, he changed himself into
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  Speaker 1: a net, and, crawling along on the pillow, stuck her
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  Speaker 1: just enough to make her turn over, but not enough
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  Speaker 1: to wake her. Then he unclapped the chain and ran
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  Speaker 1: off with it as fast as he could. Behind Down
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  Speaker 1: was not going to let the thief get away. As
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  Speaker 1: soon as Loki found that he was followed, he took
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  Speaker 1: his other form, a little flame of fire him down.
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  Speaker 1: Then took his other shape and became a shower of
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  Speaker 1: rain to put out the fire. But Loki, quick and watchful,
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  Speaker 1: changed himself into a bed to catch the rain, then
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  Speaker 1: hid out too, became a bear, and a fierce fight began.
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  Speaker 1: At Last, the rain got conquered and forced wicked Loki
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  Speaker 1: to give back the neckness to Friar. The whole land
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  Speaker 1: seemed to feel sorry for poor lonely Friar. The leaves
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  Speaker 1: fell from the trees, the bright flowers faded, and the
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  Speaker 1: singing birds flew away. Once more, the fair goddess went
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  Speaker 1: forth from Asca to seek older. Away to the far
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  Speaker 1: off sunny self. She wandered, and there where the myrtle
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  Speaker 1: trees and the oranges grow, at last she found her
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  Speaker 1: long lost husband. Then, hand in hand, the two turned
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  Speaker 1: northward again to their home, And so happy were they
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  Speaker 1: together that they spread jaw and happiness around them as
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  Speaker 1: they passed along. Everywhere the eyes and snow thought before them,
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  Speaker 1: green grass and sweet flowers sprang up behind the footsteps.
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  Speaker 1: The birds sang the sweetest songs. The warm summer came
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  Speaker 1: back to the Northlands, and everyone was glad and joyful.
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  Speaker 1: For lovely, smiling Friar was at home again. White were
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  Speaker 1: the moorlands and frozen before her. Green were the moorlands,
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  Speaker 1: and blooming behind her out of the gold locks, shaking
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  Speaker 1: the spraying flowers out of her garments, shaking the south
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  Speaker 1: wind around in the birches, and waking the Throstle's beautiful
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  Speaker 1: Friar came Kingsley end of chapter four