Austin from Austin

The veggie tacos the group scarfed down for lunch really hit the spot, and everyone was relaxing while they coasted along the highway. The guy with the round blue sunglasses had been pretty quiet through the trip, but he sat up against the side of the bus and cleared his throat. "So, um, I have a story. But I'm not a very good storyteller. Um, it's about my friend who was in this band. So here it goes, I guess," said the shaggy haired hipster. "My parents sort of name their kids after the place they were...well, you get the idea. My name is Austin and I'm from Austin."

Back in Austin, there was a local band that had gained a pretty good following. They were selling out shows in every joint they booked. The band was made up of four totally radical guys, but it was led by their frontman, Marko. He was admired by his bandmates, but he remained without a foxy lady to share his spotlight. All of the other guys in the band had groovy girlfriends and they were eager to get Marko one too, so he would have inspiration to write some heavy love songs. The group  begged Marko to hook up with a cool chick. Marko was appreciative of their concern and agreed to get a girlfriend and introduce her to the band.  "I'm cool with this plan, but I have one condition," Marko told his bandmates. "You have to be cool with whatever lady I choose, no matter if you think she isn't groovy enough for our scene." The guys were alright with that condition and Marko went off to find himself a woman to be with.

Image Information: Vintage Vinyl Records Web Source: Needles and Arms

Marko already knew who he wanted. He was all about the clerk at his favorite record shop. She wasn't in the same circle as the band and their ladies were, but he didn't care. Marko approached her and asked if she would be his girl, under one condition. The clerk, who went by Grizzy, was a huge fan of the band so she agreed immediately. "Dude, I would agree to anything to be your old lady! You are a stone fox," she exclaimed. "Alright, you just have to promise me that you'll never say no to me, even if you don't like the decision," explained Marko. Grizzy knew that Marko was a righteous guy and wouldn't do anything mean, so she agreed, left her job, and entered his rock and roll lifestyle.

The band couldn't have been happier about Marko's choice. They totally adored Grizzy and her peace-loving attitudes. She and Marko never fought and lived very happily. They even had a baby girl together. During this time, the band signed a record deal and exploded on the scene. They were known all over the country, and the popularity started to go to Marko's head. He decided to test Grizzy's loyalty. "Grizzy, remember what you promised when you became my woman? About never saying no? Well, the new kid is cramping my style. Babies don't fit in on the road. I want you to give her to the manager and let him take care of the problem. Alright?" Marko asked, curious what Grizzy's reaction would be.  She looked at him without shedding a tear and said, "I promised you when we got together that I would never say no, and I love you enough to keep that promise. Let me kiss our baby and you can bring her to the manager." With that, she kissed her daughter's forehead and left the room. She never spoke about his decision, keeping her word.  A while later, Grizzy and Marko had a son and were a happy family. As time passed, Marko once again wanted to test his girlfriend's loyalty. "Listen, baby, I've had fun with the kid but he needs to go. My fans don't want a father as their idol. Give him over to the manager," he told her. Once again, Grizzy was obedient and did not protest. The child was taken by the manager. Grizzy might have been quiet, but the rest of the band wasn't. They thought Marko was being horrible and cruel to his woman. Shockingly, he didn't care and wanted to give her the ultimate test.  "Hey, Grizzy, you're foxy and all, but my fans want to see me available. They want to think they can have me. Everyone agrees. Can you just get this place clean and go back to Austin?" he asked her coldly. Grizzy agreed and tidied up the apartment, making sure to give back the things that Marko had bought her. Once the place was ready, she packed her stuff and was about to head back to Austin on the next bus. While she was cleaning up, Marko called his manager and asked him to bring back the kids, who had been put under the care of a nanny. Marko asked Grizzy to stay an extra few minutes to meet his new roadies and she agreed, not eager to go back home in shame. Suddenly, two adorable kids entered the room and Grizzy immediately recognized them as her own. Marko felt horrible for separating a mother from her kids and vowed to never test Grizzy again and treat her like a princess if she would have him. Grizzy was so overjoyed with her children that she took him back. When Marko and Grizzy's son was grown and ready to settle down, he vowed to never treat a woman like his father treated his mother. He married his sweetheart and they never challenged each other's love for each other.

The crowd in the van loved the story and everyone gave him high fives. "Hey guys, you know what's totally far out? That band is playing at Woodstock!" Austin told everyone. Soon the group was buzzing about who they would groove with at the big concert in New York.

Author's Note This is a retelling of "The Clerk's Tale" from The Canterbury Tales. In the original, a popular Marquis was asked by his loyal subjects to take a wife so that he may produce an heir. He agreed as long as the subjects promised to accept whoever he chose. He decided on Griselda, a poor girl who lived with her father in the country. The Marquis would only marry her if she promised to never say no to him, which she did. They married and eventually had a daughter. To test his wife's vow, he told her the Pope ordered the child to be killed. She did not protest and gave up her daughter, who was actually sent to the Marquis' sister to be raised. Later, they had a son, and once again he tested his wife by pretending to take the child away. Again, she didn't protest. Finally, he tested her by saying his subjects wanted him to get a new wife. He made her prepare the palace and greet his new wife. In reality, the Marquis sent for his children and pretended he was going to marry his daughter. His wife was kind and begged the Marquis to treat the maiden better than he treated her, and he revealed that it was actually her daughter,  accompanied by her son. Griselda was overjoyed and went back with her husband, who vowed to never test her again. Her son also vowed to never treat a woman like his father treated his mother.  In my story, the Marquis was Marko, who was the leader of a band instead of a land. His subjects were his bandmates and Griselda was Grizzy. Instead of pretending to marry his daughter, he just revealed his children who had been raised by a nanny.

Bibliography "The Franklin's Tale" by Geoffrey Chaucer, from The Canterbury Tales (1478). Web Source: The Baldwin Project

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