In a cozy little village, nestled beside a sparkling river, lived a miller. He had a daughter who was very clever, but the miller sometimes said silly things. One day, he was talking to the King and, trying to sound important, he blurted out, "My daughter is so amazing, she can spin straw into gold!"

The King, who loved gold more than anything, raised an eyebrow. "Really?" he said. "Bring her to my castle tomorrow. If she can do this, I'll be very pleased. If not... well, let's just say it won't be good."

The poor girl was brought to a room piled high with straw. The King locked the door. "Spin this into gold by morning," he ordered, "or else!"

The miller's daughter sat down and cried. How could she spin straw into gold? Suddenly, a tiny little man popped into the room! "Why are you crying?" he squeaked.
"I have to spin this straw into gold, and I don't know how!" she sobbed.
"What will you give me if I do it for you?" asked the little man.
"My necklace," she offered. The little man took it, sat at the spinning wheel, and whirr, whirr, whirr! All the straw turned into shiny gold.

The next morning, the King was amazed and very greedy. He took the girl to an even bigger room full of straw. "Spin this into gold by morning," he commanded.
Again, the girl cried, and again the little man appeared. "What will you give me this time?" he asked.
"My ring," she said. The little man took the ring, and whirr, whirr, whirr, all the straw became gold.

On the third day, the King led her to the largest room yet, overflowing with straw. "If you succeed this time," he declared, "you will be my Queen!"
When the little man came, the girl had nothing left to give.
"Promise me your first baby when you are Queen," said the little man. She was so scared, she promised. And just like before, all the straw turned to gold.

The King was overjoyed. He married the miller's daughter, and she became the Queen. A year later, a beautiful baby was born. The Queen was so happy, she had almost forgotten her promise.
But one day, the little man appeared. "I've come for what you promised me," he said.
The Queen was terrified. "Oh no! Please, take all my jewels, anything, but not my baby!"
The little man shook his head. "A promise is a promise. But... I'll give you a chance. If you can guess my name in three days, you can keep your baby."

The Queen thought all night of every name she had ever heard.
The next day, when the little man came, she asked, "Is your name Caspar?"
"No!" he cackled.
"Is it Melchior?"
"No!"
"Perhaps Balthazar?"
"No, no, no!" he sang, and disappeared.

The second day, she guessed all the funny names she could think of: "Is it Shortribs? Or Sheepshanks? Or Spindleshanks?"
Each time, the little man gleefully shouted, "Nope, that's not my name!"

The Queen was desperate. She sent a messenger all over the kingdom to find unusual names. On the third day, the messenger returned. "Your Majesty," he said, "I didn't find many new names, but deep in the woods, I saw a little man dancing around a fire, singing a funny song:
'Today I bake, tomorrow I brew,
The day after that, the Queen's child is due.
And I'm so glad that nobody knew,
That Rumpelstiltskin is my name, it's true!'"

The Queen's heart leaped with joy! When the little man arrived, he asked, "Well, Queen, what's my name today?"
She pretended to think. "Is it... Conrad?"
"No!"
"Is it... Heinrich?"
"No!" he chuckled.
"Then perhaps," she said slowly, "your name is... Rumpelstiltskin?"

The little man shrieked, "The devil told you that! The devil told you that!"
He stomped his right foot so hard it went right through the floor! Then he grabbed his left foot with both hands and, in a rage, he pulled himself in two! And that was the end of the strange little man.

The Queen hugged her baby tight, and they lived happily, never forgetting the little man with the very peculiar name.

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