As all fairytales start, this one starts with once upon a time. The carved wooden toys creaked as if weeping, for they had been worn and left on that particular playground for years to come, and therefore had rotted.

Once a boy passed and saw the toys in such shape; raising a golden eyebrow, he gently lifted the wooden soldier and examined it with interest. The face was carved with such detail that he thought to himself:

I shall keep this and play with it!

And so he did, leaving the other wooden toys to rot perched on that very spot.

The small wooden horse blinked and stood up, her colors worn out to nothing but brown and black.

“Oh look at us, we have become such poor wooden toys!” She cried, just as the wooden elephant and fish started moving with the white cars.

“Do not be alarmed, rosemary. We shall be found and used once more, just as the soldier has.” Whether that was true or just to comfort their crumbled spirits, this gave the wooden toys a bit of hope as they sat and looked at each other with sorrow.

Suddenly there came a set of footsteps, and the toys fell silent and unblinking. Two other boys had found their way to the abandoned playground, and had seen the wooden toys.

The first boy went ahead and picked up the elephant, who looked distressed for a second, making the other toys uneasy slightly.

The boy threw the elephant at the pavement beside the playground, breaking him into pieces.

At that single moment, the wooden toys felt like it was the very end. Just as the other boy stalked towards them, a voice came as if from far away; and then the sky grew clouded and the wind picked up.

“Do not weep, my withered spirits. You shall never be harmed again.” The wooden toys looked up at the sky, glad that their prayers had been answered.

A tingle went through the toys, warming them and making them feel like all their worries were gone. The voice came again:

“Any with an impure heart who shall grasp you will turn into wood; only will the curse be broken from you when a child with a pure heart holds you in their hands.” The wooden toys glanced at another with hesitation, for they did not want any harm to come to children.

But before they could protest, the sky was clear again and the wind was as silent as ever. Though what disturbed the toys the most wasn’t the sky or the wind, it was something right in front of them.

The two boys who had attempted to break them were laying on the ground, now nothing but wooden puppets.

Centuries passed and no one dared to go near the wooden toys in fear of getting cursed. The toys felt so heartbroken and lonely that they growled at anyone who had dared to come near them.

It just so happened that a girl had just moved into that small town, and did not know about the wooden toys.

She one day, while walking to school, came across the toys and saw how withered and rotten they had become. Feeling disheartened, the girl reached towards a toy and gripped it.

Another child passed by and saw this, therefore naming her a sorcerer.

“Monster! Demon! No one can touch those wooden toys without turning into wood!”

The girl sighed and glanced at the toy in her hand, stroking the detailed surface delicately.

“You must have been beautiful one day.” The toy, as if feeling sorrow again, started glowing a steady golden color.

The child felt a gentle warmth in her heart, therefore put the toy to her lips and kissed the smooth surface.

As if enchanted, the toys started to glow one by one until the whole park was illuminated by their warmth and light.

When the light had subsided, the toy in her hand was gone and so were the ones on the ground.

It took her a moment to notice there were colorful shapes in the air, circling her and whispering. The girl had to lean in close and stay absolutely silent to hear the hushed words:

“Thank you! You set us free and we shall be you aid in times of sorrow.” When she heard it, they had gone with the wind, with nothing left behind but the echo of their whispers.