There is something living in the bottom of the well
If you drop in just the right gift, it will offer a spell
Teeth, coins, oddities and various bric-a-brac
Once a gift is dropped it is well-paid back

A girl dropped in her doll, a gift from mother to daughter
Her childhood favourite now sunken underwater
She asked for beauty, something for which she had prayed
Each morning she awakes, shining hair in a perfect braid

One lad dropped the blanket his grandma had knitted
Long outgrown but still beloved, his tears admitted
He asked for his muscles to swell without effort
He often wakes sore, like his limbs were subject to violent sport

Most people wish for fortune and small blessings
Careful to offer enough and to be polite in addressing
But some call for darker acts to be committed
But with the right payment, this is also permitted

Enemies disappear quietly into the dark
Nail scratches on floorboards their only remaining mark
But those who ask for this and offer less than their best
Will find themselves facing their own request

There is something living in the bottom of the well
And if not paid its fees, it will take you there as well
But its greatest gift is that it lets everyone believe
That it lives only in the well, and does not leave

Children, now be quiet and still
Do not wake what lies atop the hill
You are safe and warm and home
Do not go up the hill alone


What lies atop the hill does not sleep
Hungrily watching, counting sheep
If one less stands in the field today
Be glad he did not look your way

Children, do not make a sound
Do not wake what waits within the clouds
Stay under covers with curtains closed
Do not draw eyes down to below

Children, hide from the sound of rain
Lest you never see home again
Do not let anyone in from the downpour
It is not your loved ones knocking at the door

Children, now be quiet and still
Do not wake what lies atop the hill
You are safe and warm and home
Do not go up the hill alone