Rats and Revenge

Yesterday, I was passing a parent in the school. She smiled and said, "Peter, you're like the Pied Piper around here."

I smiled back. "How's that?"

She said, "You know the Pied Piper, don't you?"

I said, "I know the reference. I don't really know what he's all about."

She said, "Check it out."

I nodded. "Okay, I will."

So I checked it out on Wikipedia.

Apparently, the story goes as follows: A man is given the job to rid a town of a rat infestation. He plays his pipe, which lures the rats out of their hiding places, and lures them into the river, where all the rats drowned. For some reason, the people of the town refuse to pay him for the extermination, and the Piper vows to get his revenge.

He does so by playing his pipe for the children in the town, and one hundred and thirty youngin's follow him out of town and to a cave, never to be heard of again. A crippled child comes back and tells the people about the happenings within the cave. Adaptations include the Piper murdering each child, strewing dismembered body parts all over the nearby forest; not doing anything to the children, just holding them ransom, until he gets his money.

Theories point to the Pied Piper being a symbol for Death. Others point to him being a psychopathic pedophile.

After I read this I burst out laughing. I understand that the mom was most likely referring to children following me around based on my games and storytelling.

At the same time, she inadvertently called me a pedophile.

Blitzen Trapper -- "Black River Killer"