Chapter 2 Hunter

The trees loomed thicker and higher. The cat was nowhere to be seen. Elena felt more and more foolish. Had not Fedor warned her not to go into the woods? She was certainly doomed. She had followed the noises of the cat which at several points had changed direction. The way out was lost. If only she could find the shrine keepers path. Of course she only traveled that rarely with her mother and that had been straight from the village. A cat was not likely to follow a path anyhow. More time passed, just when she was about to cry once more she heard someone else start. The sobbing was that of a small child.

“Hallo? Where are you? Are you hurt?!” Elena shouted.

“We are over here!” A young boy’s voice called.

“We?” thought Elena.

When she finally crashed clumsily through the brush and came upon them they sat beneath a big fur tree. They were terribly strange looking, beautiful but strange. They were dressed like little woodsmen, covered in a variety of grey pelts and brown furs. Their hair was so blonde it was white. One boy and the other was a girl. The boy stood up, on his shoulder was a white dove. In the girls hand was a piece of bread. They had no boots on their feet. Neither one of them looked older than eight.

“Are you going to eat us?” The girl said frightened.

“Am I what?” Elena gasped horrified.

The boy quickly interrupted. “She thinks you are Lueda Yedka because of the hood you wear. Witches like to roam the woods and eat children.”

“Oh,” Elena sighed, though the conversation was terrible it was nice to know they were as scared as she. “No yearlings I am from a nearby village, Vashko. I have lost my way. Where are you from?”

They looked at each other as if they were not sure what to say or if they should say it.

“We were left here. Our guardians ran out of food so they went to go get some. They told us to stay here and wait.” The male shrugged as if this were a normal occurrence.

“Running out of food is very common this winter.” Elena said sadly.

“Not until recently, we have had plenty of food, it has just been hard to catch.” The little girl smiled, not sweetly. The boy nudged her.

Elena smiled at the little girl’s tenacity. Obviously she had no comprehension of the struggle her parents were going through. “What are your names?”

“I am Hansel; this is Gretel.” He stroked the dove on his shoulder and it coed.

“That is amazing. How did you train it to behave so well? And why does it stay with you during Winter?”

“Hansel is always showing off with birds. He likes them you know.” Gretel rolled her eyes.

“It is better than you showing off for boys. You are such a flirt.” The boy stuck out his tongue.

“Only fat boys, I like to see them jiggle when they laugh.” Gretel did a quick imitation.

“Truly you are so young. You should not be flirting with boys.” Elena scolded.

Both of the children seemed to think she had said something funny. They laughed and giggled. Suddenly Elena recognized something.

“Where did you get that bread? It looks just like the kind my Mother baked for the shrine offering.”

“Does it?” Hansel quickly grabbed it from Gretel’s hands and crushed it to crumbs.

“It is just something I feed the birds with.”

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Elena was beginning to feel more than eerie. The white blonde hair of the children reminded her of Fedor’s blue silvered streaks. “Well I think I shall be going. If you are sure your guardians are returning.”

“Stay for dinner.” entreated Hansel.

“Yes, your hood is so lovely and you smell so nice.” Gretel latched on to the white hood of the shrine. It was then somehow that Elena knew that she would not be willing to let it go. Terror struck her as she realized how hungrily the children looked at her. Not as a starving child would to its mother more to the plate.

A great white bear burst into the clearing with an ear splitting roar. The dove flew off as Hansel was knocked aside like a rag doll. Elena was unable to fathom the mysterious transformation of Gretel before her eyes. One moment she was screaming, then biting the white bear’s leg with sharp fangs and glowing eyes. The bear picked her up and threw her against the tree in the middle of that throw a child became an animal. She rebounded off the tree and doubled back onto the bear. Another cream colored wolf, her brother reformed, attacking the bear’s back.

Elena turned and ran. She did not need to see the ending. Either victor was not going to be kind. She raced through the wood and though a few brambles caught at her legs here and there the rest of the wood seemed to make way for her. Heavy snow made bows lower for her. Breezes swayed trees aside and she could see the smoke of the village. She stopped to catch her breath relieved she was going to make it after all. A hot air touched the back of her neck. She turned around and faced a horror untold even by the likes of her people.

This creature was not the little wolves she had seen before. Though, wolf was the only thing that could come close to describing it. Its head was bigger than that of the bears. Poor Elena had not noticed it as she passed by for it had cleverly matted itself with leaves and grass. Its ruddy rustic fur was a patch work of browns that blended in perfectly with the trees. It stood upright like a man and had claws resembling hands as it balanced on tall haunches. Its maw was open in a canine grin and it salivated.

“Move woman!” There came a shout to her left. An arrow struck the muzzle of the animal. Elena screamed a blood curdling scream that caused the creature to grip its ears. Again another shot to its shoulder and to its chest. Soon afterward came the butt of a silver axe into the creature’s back. A man clad in tan furs with a fawn and gold beard stood before her defensively. His hood was dark black and his eyes, nearly hollow. His face was dead pan, except for the shifting they did to follow the creature’s deft movements. Truly this beast was fast. The hunter stood sure footed. They battled one animal man the other a man acting as an animal.

“I am Ivan slaughterer of lions and lambs!” bellowed the hunter. “And you beast are felled!”

Elena began to swoon. Was this what real courage looked like? She had forgotten, nay perhaps never seen it before. Her jaw dropped when she realized it was the monster that was trying to retreat. Ivan’s axe burrowed into its back and it collapsed, it flinched than lay still. Without even pausing to check the creature he turned to her. Dark inquiring eyes looked her up and down. “Thank-you lass your scream…distracted him.” This compliment was not heartfelt perhaps even mocking by the tone. She found his attempt at humor amusing. His face refused to relent it’s stillness to any emotion. Her own face was shifting from being pale to blushing.

“There are others, young wolves…” Elena’s hand shook as she tried to point.

“I saw their bodies being eaten by a bear.” His answer was so abrupt she did not know at first what to say.

“You-you, destroyed the monster?” She finally stammered. He could have nodded. He did not, the answer was obvious. So here he was; Fedor’s prediction. It must be the man she was destined to marry. The man destined to be headman. She teetered and tried to lean on the tree. He wouldn’t have any of it. He scooped her up and carried her gently. Sadko came running into the wood. Several men came running up behind him.

“What goes on here? Who are you?!” Sadko drew his bow upon the man. Elena was startled to see it was silver tipped. So he really had believed her.

“Do not shoot him, he has saved my life! See there the beast!” She pointed and as she thought most of the men stepped back. Only Sadko surprisingly stepped forward.

“You did this?” He asked suspiciously of the man holding Elena.

Ivan drew himself up to full height which was formidable. Virtually a small giant compared to the rest of the men. “I was about to take her to my mother who is a healer.”

“A healer, since when does a healer live in these woods?” Another man muttered and then shrunk as Ivan’s gaze shifted. Ivan’s voice was deep and bellowing.

“My mother is a healer of everything, beasts, earth and men! She heard your little village was mistakenly worshiping elemental demons at a false shrine. That the land was sick with cold and famine! I came ahead of our party, to build her hata near herbs and clear the area of monsters.”

“So it is as our maiden prophesied we have ourselves a new headman!” One villager cried and the rest cheered. Soon laughter, claps on the back and the tugging of shirt sleeves caused Ivan to be heralded out of the woods and down the hill to the village. One villager did not celebrate or join in exclamations of: “To the wedding!” Sadko turned and looked back at the wood with hatred and shot a silver arrow. Back where the Beast had laid yet mysteriously was gone Fedor caught the shaft. As it froze in his hand he mouthed with distaste “Mortals.”