One - A Bittersweet Beginning

Long ago, in a little Italian village, there lived a beautiful woman named Arabella Romano. She had fair skin, black hair, and amber brown eyes, but crowning feature was her golden voice. Arabella would usually earn money by singing songs for villagers in the streets, and on occasion, at the local theater. Everyone in the village adored her, especially Marco Casteluccio, a poor shoe cobbler. Every day, while he worked on repairing shoes, Marco would open his shop window just to hear Arabella singing; her voice always put the young man in a cheerful mood, making him enjoy his job. But Marco wanted more than just to repair shoes – he wanted to carve wooden puppets to perform alongside Arabella's singing.

Marco knew where Arabella lived, so every night, he would stand outside her bedroom window and sing love songs for her. Arabella giggled and sighed with content whenever she opened her window and saw the young man trying to impress her. Eventually, the time came when Marco started courting with the young woman, and then all the villagers would look in awe at their favorite star going out with a humble cobbler. But neither the cobbler nor the singer would mind – for their love was stronger than any force on Earth.

One night, Marco wished upon the brightest star in the sky; he wished for Arabella to join her hand with his in marriage. Up in the sky, a magical woman known as the Blue Fairy heard Marco's wish and said, "Dearest Marco Casteluccio, you have done acts of kindness and love for the likes of other people – especially Miss Romano – and so, I will help you grant your wish. Tomorrow night, I shall bring Arabella to you, and then, I will watch you propose to her."

So the next evening, Arabella was at her home folding clothes when she noticed a glowing blue orb, floating in the sky outside her bedroom window. "Is it another one of Marco's tricks?" she asked herself with a sly grin. So she stopped what she was doing, went downstairs, and then walked out the door. When she got outside, Arabella saw the orb float away to west side of town, so she followed it. After a few minutes, Arabella found herself in front of Marco's house, and the orb disappeared!

Marco, who saw his love, ran outside and got on his bended knee. "Arabella," he said, "I have loved you for a long time – not only do I adore your singing, but I also enjoy the pleasure of your company – so I ask, will you do the honor of becoming my wife?" He then pulled a ring out from his coat pocket and gave it to her.

Arabella gasped and said with delight, "Of course, Marco! Together, we shall live in happiness, and maybe we will start a family of our own?" Marco agreed with her response, and the two hugged each other tightly.

A few months later, Marco and Arabella got married, and settled into a humble cottage just outside the village. As time went by, though, Arabella began coughing more than usual. At first, she thought nothing of it, and would say, "Oh, it's probably just something in the air." Marco tried to keep a smiling face, but he couldn't help but worry about his wife's health. But his worries were forgotten when one day Marco's wife told him she was expecting their first child. He knew that he would have to find a good job, in order to pay off expenses for the new family member; so when he heard word of a new village wood carver looking for an apprentice, Marco immediately took the opportunity to apply for that job. And it was a success! Marco found work with a friendly old fellow named Gepetto, who took pride in carving cuckoo clocks, music boxes, figurines, pipes, and many other handy items.

"So what brings you here to work for me?" Gepetto asked with a smile to Marco on the first day.

Marco responded, "My wife is with child, and I need to pay off expenses for our baby."

Gepetto thought and said, "Well, all I can offer are a few pieces of silver at the end of each week, but I also give you my blessing for a beautiful and healthy child!"

"Oh, grazie, signore!" said Marco with a smile. And with that, Gepetto began teaching his new apprentice the basics of woodcarving.

The days grew into weeks, and the weeks became months, and Marco was becoming more intermediate at woodcarving. Eventually, the time came when Arabella was about to have her baby. However, she became sick with what appeared to be a common cold shortly before she went into labor. "Do not worry, my dear," said Marco as he held his wife's hand while she lay in her bed, "Fate should let us go through with having our precious child come to us – and I will make sure you feel well again!"

As the doctor and midwife came into the bedroom, Arabella looked at her husband with a weak smile and said, "But no matter what happens, I will always be here for you and our child."

After a couple hours of labor, Arabella was able to give birth to a healthy baby girl. As the doctor and midwife left the house, Marco held his new daughter in a blanket and gave a big smile. He reached into a nearby drawer and pulled out Arabella's most prized possession – a golden necklace – and held it over his baby's head. The baby looked at the golden object, and gave a coo of content. She was a beautiful girl who had fair skin, a patch of black hair on her head, and sapphire blue eyes. "We'll name her Maria," said Marco as he handed the child to her mother's arms, "Because she is just as beautiful as the Holy Mother herself."

Arabella coughed into her elbow before holding Maria and said, "Oh, Marco, what a beautiful name! My little Maria – someday you will do good deeds for others, and you will be a rising star. I know it!" Arabella then handed Maria back to Marco before he gently placed her into a nearby wooden cradle and rocked her to sleep.

The next morning, Arabella's cold went from bad to worse. She coughed harshly and more frequent, and she felt sharp pains in her chest. Marco went to fetch a doctor, who then told him that his wife had a severe case of pneumonia, and may not live the next day. Marco gave a shocked look and held his baby close to him when he heard the dreadful news.

Throughout the rest of the day, Arabella's breathing turned into wheezing, and eventually that evening, she called her husband to her side. "Marco," she breathed, "I… I want you to… take care of our little Maria."

"But dearest!" Marco pleaded with moist eyes, "I can't do this alone!"

"You shall not be alone," Arabella coughed, "For… I… will be all around you and our child… at all times. Fate shall be… kind. I can see… in my heart… that Maria shall grow into a lovable, caring… girl. I… love… you." And with those last words, Arabella breathed her last breath, closed her eyes, and died peacefully. Maria began to cry as Marco shed many tears and sobbed for his lost love.

While grieving, Marco managed to raise Maria on his own, even though it was a very difficult task. But as the weeks became months, and months became years, Maria began to grow into a fine young girl. Even though she had no memory of her mother, Maria's father would always tell his daughter wonderful tales about Arabella – her beautiful appearance, her kind nature, and her golden singing voice. Sometimes, Maria and her father would sing songs before bedtime or while they worked on household chores. Although the girl was very close with her father and had big dreams, she had very few people in terms of friends. She had trouble socializing with other children, because Maria was very shy, especially when it came to singing in public. Her teacher would ask, "Maria, your father tells me that you inherit your mother's beautiful voice, but why do you not sing for us?"

The young girl would only hang her head and mumble, "I don't know. I've never done it in front of a crowd before." Her teacher told her that Maria would eventually grow out of being shy, and that she should try to fit in by working with others. When her father heard this, he decided to take Maria to meet Gepetto one day when she was around nine. When Gepetto saw the little girl, he saw a beautiful splitting image of Arabella, only with blue eyes instead of light brown.

Maria shyly smiled and said to Marco, "I like Signore Gepetto."

"I knew you would," answered Marco as he playfully rubbed his daughter's head.

After that first meeting, Marco began to allow Maria to visit Gepetto's workshop every day after school. Maria loved it there; she liked looking at all the funny cuckoo clocks, listening to the happy melodies from the music boxes, and watching little marionettes being made – if Gepetto was in the mood for a project like that. Sometimes the old man would let the little girl paint his dolls and figurines with bright and warm colors.

One Saturday when Maria was eleven years old, Marco had to sell a few of his hand-carved figures in the countryside, so he let his daughter stay with Gepetto. "I will be back within a week, my darling," said Marco to his daughter, "In the meantime, you shall have a wonderful time with Signore Gepetto, and I will let you have something to remember me in case you are lonely." He reached into his coat pocket and pulled out the golden necklace he showed her when she was a baby before he continued, "This was your mama's most prized possession, and I kept it with me at all times ever since she passed away. I was saving it for your twelfth birthday, but I will give it to you now, and let it be yours."

Maria beamed and said, "Oh, thank you, Papa! It's beautiful!"

"Even though I will be gone for a while, I want you to look at it and think of me whenever you are lonely," said Marco as he began to leave, "Now do as I bid and be a good girl for me and Signore Gepetto. I love you!"

"I love you, too, Papa," said Maria, waving goodbye to her father. So Marco mounted a brown horse, and then trotted off.