The Skull: A Tyrolean Folktale

After fleeing danger and becoming lost in a dark forest, Otilla finds a mansion occupied by a talking skull. The skull welcomes her, and the two share tea, pears from the garden, masks, and a ballroom dance. Their friendship is threatened when the skull reveals that a headless skeleton searches for him every night. When the skeleton arrives, Otilla protects them both and later works to destroy its bones. The story is a retelling shaped by a Tyrolean folktale.