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Beyond a valley near a mountain that was covered in the most gorgeous wildflowers,

they lived a girl named Ella. Her mother worked as a seamstress in a nearby village,

creating beautiful clothing by hand. Ella would stay home and make thread from cotton for her mother

to use in her work. She would carefully process it and die it of a riot of colours, from blue to grey,

to the brightest reds and the sunniest yellows. Ella especially loved this task and made a game of

finding rainbows in the threads she spun. She was a creative child by nature and the villagers

would flock to her home to buy the delicate threads she made. Every day, while her mother was at

work in the neighbouring village, Ella would walk to a small field a few miles from home,

where she would pick the cotton she needed to make her thread.

She liked to choose the very best clumps herself and could always imagine what each fluffy ball would

become. This routine suited them both just fine. They were happy and content and wanted for nothing.

One such day, Ella was returning home from the field, carrying her little basket of cotton in her hand.

All of a sudden, her ears were filled with the most melodious sound she'd ever heard.

It rang through the air like a magical chime. She was overcome with joy at the enchanting way it

filled her senses. She knew she had to find the source of this string and beautiful tune.

Perhaps once she found it, she'd sit down and listen for a long, long time.

Ella turned in the direction of the music. Its luteing quality made her think of ripples on the

surface of a lake. She began to walk and as she did, she could sense the melody growing clearer

...