After I left the cloister, I met up with a couple of fellows who had lost their way. We traveled together through the forest and came to an old, abandoned castle. We decided to make it our own kind of home. I agreed to look after the house while the other two went out to hunt and forage.
I cleaned, tidied things up, and prepared all the food for the day. My friends didn’t come home for the mid-day meal, so I put their portion in the oven to keep warm. I was just sitting down to sew when the door opened, and a little grey man came in.
“Oh, how cold I am!” he cried.
I felt sorry for him and invited him to sit by the fire. He was hungry, too, so I said, “There’s food in the oven. Help yourself.”
He didn’t need to be asked twice. He helped himself to everything and left nothing at all for my friends. I got angry and I scolded him. Well, the little demon flew into such a rage! He seized me, beat me, and threw me against one wall and then the other. He had nearly killed me by the time he walked out of the house.
When my companions came home, how do you think they greeted me? They scolded me because they had no dinner!