Teodoro and Violante
- Storyteller: Lauretta
- Teodoro is a good-looking youth who was captured by Genoese pirates (the brigata's on a pirate kick, it seems) along the Armenian coast and sold to Messer Amerigo Abate in Sicily to care for his large family and estates.
- Though Teodoro's a servant, Messer Amerigo likes the look of him and is charmed by his noble behavior, so he's brought up among the gentleman's children.
- Amerigo likes him so much that he has the boy baptized (Amerigo believes him to be Muslim) and re-named Pietro. He also puts him in charge of his business concerns when Pietro's old enough.
- Now Amerigo has a beautiful (natch) daughter called Violante. She falls in love with Pietro and he loves her back.
- As so often happens (at least in myth and folktales), a terrible storm in the countryside gives the two young lovers the opportunity to consummate their love in an abandoned cottage.
- Pietro and Violante find various ways to "meet" in the days that follow, and pretty soon Violante's pregnant.
- To save Pietro's life (to say nothing of Violante's), she agrees not to reveal that he's the father. Violante waits until she can no longer conceal her condition and throws herself on Mom's mercy.
- Her mother sends Violante off to a secluded property of theirs to have the baby. She doesn't tell Amerigo.
- But Amerigo happens to be passing this secluded spot on the very day that Violante goes into labor. He hears the ruckus she's making and figures out what's going on.
- Amerigo threatens Violante with death if she doesn't reveal the name of the father. She caves.
- Amerigo makes arrangements for the lovers and their child to be killed on the same day: Pietro by hanging, Violante by poison or dagger (her choice), and the child will have its brains knocked out and be fed to dogs.
- Be glad Amerigo's not your father.
- As it happened (Fortune again), three Armenian ambassadors were being entertained by Amerigo at a place on Pietro's route to the gallows. One of them recognizes a birthmark on Pietro and is convinced that he's the son he lost 15 years ago to pirates. Small world.
- The ambassador calls out to Pietro in Armenian and addresses him by his real name (Theodor). Pietro reveals that his father was called Phineas and that he was, indeed, captured by pirates.
- Phineas pleads with Amerigo: let the two children be married and enough with the revenge business.
- Amerigo worries that Violante has already killed herself, so he sends a speedy messenger to tell her he's changed his mind.
- Happily, Violante was stalling in her choice of death, so instead of occupying a grave, she soon becomes Theodor's wife.
- In the end, Phineas regains his son, adds a daughter-in-law and grandson to the family and returns to Armenia with them, where they all live happily ever after.