A Tale Dedicated to Rosalind
By William Ager
Christmas 2007
Ana lived in a cottage with her father deep within the forest near the rugged misty mountains. The surrounding countryside had cold rushing rivers that brought pure sparkling water into the valleys and forest below. The tall forest timbers were parted in places by grassy meadows and wild flower glades. Ana’s small thatched cottage was in the midst of these dark and deep woods. She was always told by her father to stay close to her home because of the fierce wolves and other strange beasts that wandered the foothills and mountains nearby. Ana’s mother had died when Ana was small. Death had come to her and took her away during childbirth with twins. Ana remembered very little about her mother or anything of the twins. What happened on that fateful day was very much a mystery for Ana because she was only 3 years old at the time. So Father was left to attend to the young girl’s upbringing in the best manner that was possible. It was a difficult life for the two of them. They lived far from the nearest town and they had to depend on their little farm in the woods for food. Ana saw so little of other children that she wished she had other brothers and sisters to play with. Her father would always say, “Ana, you do not need brothers and sisters, they would eat up all our food and take all your things. I had older brothers and they were not very nice to me.” Still she persisted. She wanted brothers and sisters so bad that she imagined herself playing with them often. She had two dolls she pretended were her brother and sister. One was a yellow haired boy, named Peter. Peter was often getting into trouble, he was the mischievous one. The other doll was named Clara and she was very sweet. After the chores were done, Clara loved to have tea parties. She was always the prim and proper one in her manners. Clara and Peter traveled wherever Ana went and at night the two dolls were tucked into their own beds. Peter enjoyed a good story before bed and Clara liked a sweet lullaby. Part of their nightly routine was to wish the dolls a good night by father and Ana. Once the lights were turned out all was quiet in the cottage but in Ana’s heart she was sad because she missed her mother and the twins.
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One early morning, before the sun appeared over the horizon, Ana woke up to feed the farm animals. Clara and Peter were dressed and with the dolls tucked under Ana’s shoulders they all went out into the autumn morning to give the chickens their grain and the goats their hay. Ana scooped hay into the goat pen and cupful after cupful of grain into the chicken’s tin as the twins looked on. Finished, they stood there and watched as the goats and chickens enjoyed their morning meal. As the goats chewed and the hens pecked, Ana began to hear the most mournful cry that she had ever heard. At first it started out soft but grew louder and louder. The noise sounded a lot like the whimpers and whines a lost dog would make when it was searching for its home. The cries came on and on, but Ana could not see who or what was making that noise. After a few minutes the sun peaked over the horizon and it started to grow more and more light. Ana could indeed start to see into the woods but still could not see much beyond the fence that lined the forest. Was there something hurt? Was there something that needed help? Ana could only guess and hope that she could be the one who could save an animal in pain. So Ana cautiously crept over the fence and into the woods to see if she could help the dog or whatever it was that was making that noise. |
Tucked safely under each arm, Clara and Peter came with her and so Ana felt she was not alone. The noise continued deeper into the forest echoing further and further. Ana thought she must have misjudged the distance of the sound and continued to follow it in earnest. At one point the mournful bays had stopped and turned into quick short little barks. Now Ana was sure that it was a stray dog that had lost its way. She was determined to help it. After a little while, there was a pause before and the dog began to whimper again. This time however it sounded more distant than before, so Ana followed the whining on and on, deeper and deeper. Each time when she thought she was getting closer, all would go silent but the dog would begin again further and further up ahead. This went on for what seemed like hours until Ana came to realize that she was deep in the forest and lost! She had no idea from what direction she had come and which direction lead back to her home. She sat down and began to cry. She apologized to her bother and sister that she had gotten them lost. It was slowly getting dark and the night sounds replaced the whines from the dog. In the distance an owl hooted and Ana knew she would have to be brave if she would get through the night. Fearful, tired, and hungry, she cried herself to sleep that night, right there in the middle of the woods next to the trees.
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In the morning Ana awoke to the mournful cries of the dog again and she began to wander groggy-eyed in the direction of the cries when she stumbled on a path in the forest. She looked into the woods and saw that the path stretched on and on in a straight line deep down into the darkness of the forest. Then she looked up the path and saw the same thing. Far up ahead, Ana could finally see the dog standing in the middle of the path. It was the largest dog she had ever seen. Clearly at the shoulders the dog must have stood just above her head. It looked very much like a wolf with a silver mane and big bright yellow eyes. One of its legs seemed to be lame and it whimpered as it walked along. “Here Girl!” Ana called out to the stray as she ran up ahead after it. “Let me help you!” she cried. The dog ran away up the path leading Ana deeper yet into the forest. The dog managed to stay just ahead of Ana until they came to a river. The river was wide with rapids and it looked dangerous to cross. Ana’s father always said to cross a river with a stick and to plant the stick firmly up stream as you make your way across. So she found a nice straight stick near the shore and started on her way with both Peter and Clara tucked under one arm. The dog had crossed and had gone out of sight by this time. About ten steps into the river, Ana thought to herself, “This isn’t so bad”. She then cupped her hand and scooped up some of the clean cold water to take a drink. This gave her added strength to continue the pursuit. Slowly, step by step, she crossed the river. The current was swift in places but not above her head. As she got into the middle of the river, she lost her footing on a submerged stone and fell face first into the turbulent rapids. Ana was quickly swallowed up by the raging river and was swept underneath the waves. The world went dark around her. Ana’s mother stood there smiling. She was so proud of her three children. She opened up her arms and embraced all three of them with giant hugs that felt warm and loving. The twins were there too, with rosy cheeks and amusing laughter. The four of them hugged. It was as if they had never left and they were all a family again. Ana was overjoyed to see her mother and she wept with the feelings the welled up inside her. |
Immediately however, the joy turned into violent tugs and pulls that yanked the three children from their mother’s tight embrace. Ana looked at the twins as they were being yanked in opposite directions, she could see their distressed faces. She didn’t want to leave her mother’s side and fought with all her might what was happening. All three children were struggling, but none could break free. Ana lost her mother again. Cold water splashed Ana’s face as she started to wake up. She opened up one eye and saw the dog standing over her for a brief moment. She looked again but the dog was nowhere in sight. She began to sense the world around her and all that was happening, the rushing of the river, her soaking clothes and a forest filled with sounds. She coughed furiously face down on the bank of the river and looked around. Then she thought of Clara and Peter. A little further down the river Ana found only Peter laying there, washed up on the shore. Clara was no where in sight. So she stood up still coughing and looked up and down the river. Clara was lost. Ana began to cry once again. She cried for hours next to the river for her beautiful little sister was gone forever. Then Ana heard the dog whimpering once again deep within the forest. Something inside her urged her on and ever more determined, Ana scooped up Peter and they pressed on together after the dog. Continuing down the same path this time, Ana and Peter were always just within sight of the large dog.
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Days passed by. Ana found wild berries at the side of the path to fill her hunger and she found fresh springs to drink from to fill her thirst. The path finally came to an opening that broke free of the forest upon the side of one of the mountains. The dog was still up ahead and the path wound up the rocky slope. She could see the dog plainly now and Ana so wished it would stop and let her look at it. She was getting tired and Peter wasn’t looking too good either from the long journey. His clothes were torn and his face was dirty and smudged. He looked as though he had had enough. Farther up ahead, a giant tree grew out of the side of the hill. As Ana drew closer she could see it was full of delicious golden apples. Her tummy rumbled at the sight of the apples. The nearest of them were out of reach so Ana began to climb the tree with Peter in tow. |
After much effort she got up to where the apples were and grabbed the first one she could reach. It was so shiny that Ana could see her own reflection in it. The image was different from what she remembered of herself. It was as if it showed her as she was going to be in the future, grown up and more like her mother than anything else. It surprised her but it made her feel good about herself. As Ana brought the apple to her mouth she slipped on the branch on which she was standing and tumbled off the tree and began to roll down the slope. She kept rolling faster and faster. Peter was in one hand and with the other she tried to grab desperately onto any scraggy brush or firm rock to stop her descent. She finally stopped just short of falling off a steep cliff. Rocks that were dislodged by Ana’s fall kept on rolling and they dropped off the cliff before her. She could not hear their arrival at the bottom and so she knew she was very fortunate to have stopped her roll. Near the edge Ana held on for dear life using her one free hand, with her legs dangling just over the cliff. In the other hand she still gripped poor ragged Peter. Ana was afraid. Hours when by, but she wouldn’t let go. She could either lose Peter and save herself or stay there forever and try to hang onto Peter. Ana began to grow tired until she could bear it no longer. The strain on the young girl’s arm was more than she could take and Peter slowly slipped from Ana’s hand and dropped into the chasm below. She wanted to follow Peter and somehow rescue him from the fall but she knew that that would be impossible. She pulled herself up with both hands and saved herself. Then Ana began to cry for she missed her family. Now she had no one.
Wandering backup to the tree, Ana found the golden apple she had dropped before her tumble down the mountain. She shined the apple off on her torn dress and then ate it. After awhile she sat down and began to feel very drowsy. She then put her head down and fell fast asleep there under the tree. Winter began early that year. The blowing snow came down from the mountains and blanketed the forest below with a fresh white powder. Ana woke up in an ice shelter not far from where the apple tree was. How she came to be in the shelter or how long she had been there, Ana had no idea. Inside there were many golden apples scattered about. She ate them all up and began to feel her strength returning. The shelter’s entrance was a small crack in the snow that let in some light from the outside. The light glowed with an aura that made Ana want to peer outside. She crawled up to the crack and pushed away some of the snow. Her eyes were immediately blinded by the brightness of the winter landscape. It took a little time before she could adjusted to the glare of the noon sun but soon she could make out that there were animal tracks leading out from the shelter and up the slope to a rocky cave at the side of the mountain. She could see that there was smoke rising from the cave. Wondering who could be living this far up the mountain, she thought for awhile and decided to walk up there to find out.
The cold air bit into her ankles as she trudged through knee-deep snow and ice. After hours of walking, Ana started smelling the smoke coming from the entrance of the cave as it fouled the air. The noxious stink stung her nostrils and bit into her lungs. She wondered where in the bowels of the earth such a smell like no other could have arisen. The entrance was loosely covered by a giant goat hair blanket. At the corner of the blanket she pushed aside the thick fur just enough to peek inside. Near the entrance in a side pocket of the cave was a pen that contained a half dozen goats. Ana stopped and shuddered to think what might live in the cave. Just then she heard some crying that she could barely make out, coming from the back of the cave. Ana pushed aside the goat hair blanket and crawled in. The cave felt warm to the cold and bitter outside and she could see everything much more clearly now. The mouth of the cavern opened up into two separate caves that were both lit by torches along the walls. In the left cavern there stood the goats in their corral made of cut timber. To the right, which was a much bigger space, there was a space for the resident’s living quarters. There was a fireplace crackling, rugs on the floor, and a giant size hewn wooden table and chairs. She could see large bones strewn about the floor and she reeled in disgust at the untidiness of the area. Just then Ana heard a rumble of a voice coming from behind her in the bleakness of the snow outside. The hair on the back of her neck stood on end and she could feel that something terrible was coming. Ana ran with fright towards the goat pen and crawled over the fence and scrambled into the mound of hay in the back. Soon great hands parted the blanket and in an instant a great hulk emerged at the entrance covered in snow. Ana peeked from under the straw and saw the owner of the cave. It was an Ogre of huge size! He was dragging two large dead deer behind him. Ana knew that ogres were a horrible race of giant monsters that lived under ground and that they came up to wreak havoc on people. The Ogre sniffed the air of the cavern and let out a snort, “Grissle, smell stinkin’ humans around.” He came over to the goat pen and his vile face appeared to sneer. Satisfied, he swung the deer over his back as easily as a hunter would rabbits and then lumbered into the living chamber. Ana laid there petrified under the hay and then the weeping started once again. It came from the very back of the cavern. The first sad little noise was joined by a second, and then Ana knew it must be two little children being held by the terrible Ogre.
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“Be still my feed” said the Ogre. Ana could barely see from underneath the haystack who the Ogre was talking to. One was a small little boy only about 4 years old and the other was a brave little girl about the same age. The girl stood up to the Ogre and threw an old bone at him when he sat down next to the fire. The bone bounced off the Ogre as harmlessly as a fly bumping into a human. The Ogre hardly noticed and sat down near the fire and began to skin the deer. Ana thought she must rescue the children because the Ogre would surely eat them if she did not act quickly, so she came up with a plan. As soon as the Ogre fell asleep, she would sneak over and unlatch the cage to let the children out. Then they would all quietly sneak out together. After having his dinner of venison, the Ogre lumbered into his bed chamber, laid down, and started to snore. The snoring was so great that it even rattled the cage that the children were in and it startled the goats in their pen. After some time Ana felt that the Ogre was thoroughly asleep. She then slowly crept out of the hay stack and over into the cavern where the children were kept. The embers in the hearth fire glowed brighter every so often and then would dim. During the brightest glows, the fire would cast an eerie orange light throughout the cavern. Ana concluded that the snores from the Ogre must be acting like bellows that fanned the flames during the giant’s exhales. With slow and carefully placed steps Ana made her way to the cage. She was extra cautious not to disturb the countless bones, burned sticks, and unknown globs of sticky goo strewn about the floor, so as not to make any noise. |
Reaching the cage, Ana spoke to the children in the cage very softly, “Hello…My name is Ana and I’m here to rescue you from this terrible Ogre. Please come with me.” Both children rushed over to the bars where Ana was standing and whispered, “Please, help us.” The children’s eyes gazed at her in amazement. Their chubby round faces looked familiar. With all her might, Ana slowly lifted the rusted old latch and then slowly brought it down to the other side of the door hinge. Then as she opened the door, to let the children out, the hinges gave a loud creek, “creeeek”. Unbeknownst to the three of them, the Ogre had opened one eye and sniffed the air quietly. He had heard the creek and knew what it meant, that the children were trying to escape. The young girl told Ana, “We must be quiet. He is a light sleeper and gets very angry easy.” Together the three children walked as swiftly as possible to the cavern doorway, being very careful not to make another sound. Half way across the cavern, the children had to cross near the feet of the sleeping Ogre. They tiptoed very carefully past him. Just as Ana was about to cross near the Ogre’s feet, the great hulk jumped up and snatched the children’s arms pulling them all to the ground. “What’s do wes ave ere?”, said the Ogre. “Wes ave a biggin tryin to round my feed, but yous will become my feedin my belly.” Then the Ogre laughed a monstrous laugh that bellowed throughout the cave and frightened all the children to tears.
The Ogre grinned wide and licked his chops. All is lost, Ana thought for sure. She would be fattened to the Ogre’s liking and then roasted over his fire and then eaten along with the little boy and girl she tried to rescue. All three children cried out loud at their predicament. This brought another strange noise to the entrance of the cave. It sounded like the growl of a dog. The dog that Ana had been pursuing throughout the wilderness appeared suddenly at the doorway. It appeared growling and snarling with its hackles raised high. Its anger made it look twice as big and four times as vicious as before. The dog then leapt toward the Ogre’s neck and wrestled the giant to the ground. The three children then had a chance to run out the door. They were frightened and could not bear to look back to see the terrible fight that ensued as the dog fought the Ogre. They ran down the mountain in the deep snow all the while thunderous rumbles of yells and howls came forth from the mouth of the cave. Ana, the little boy, and the little girl ran on and on. They ran past the tree with the golden apples and into the snow covered forest below. They ran for what seemed like hours when they came upon the forest path and followed the river where Ana almost drowned. “We must rest here,” said Ana, as they all sat down to take a break from running. “What are your names?” she asked. “My name is Peter,” said the little boy. “And my name is Clara,” said the little girl. “We are twins.” They both explained together. Ana was amazed because those were the names of her brother and sister who were also twins! Soon it was getting dark and the moon was coming up. The three of them huddled near each other and fell asleep in the forest surrounded by a blanket of tall trees.
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Ana was the first to awake in the morning. She could hear a soft lullaby in her ear. It was the same sweet lullaby her mother used to sing at night when she was small. Ana yawned, stretched out, and opened her eyes and there to her surprise was her mother just as she had remembered her, with warm eyes, a sweet smile, and a voice as soft and pure as the driven snow. Ana’s Mother was holding all three children in her arms and singing the sweet lullaby Ana remembered. “Mommy, you came back!” Ana exclaimed. “Yes dear one, the Ogre had cast an evil spell on our family and changed me into a she-wolf. He had taken our twins soon after they were born. I could not rescue them myself so I needed your help when you were older. Now the Ogre is dead and his spell is broken. You helped to defeat the Ogre and free all of us. Your bravery is beyond your age my dear one.” The twins started to wake up and once they laid eyes upon her they immediately knew who their mother was. All three of them hugged their mother and broke into tears. Ana had gained her family back.
Mother, Ana, Peter and Clara walked back to the house and found Father in the house worried sick for Ana. When he saw his wife and three children at the door, he rushed outside and scooped the four of them in his arms and gave them a hug that was as strong as an Ogre’s. They would never be separated again and the family lived happily ever after. |
The End