William was doing his favorite thing on a rare free afternoon, walking through the forest by his village. His father had warned him several times not to venture too far into the dark and foreboding woods. But William could not help himself. He loved to explore and the woods offered many things to a young boy with a vivid imagination. His father realized, after catching his son too many times to count in the forbidden forest, that it was better to give William boundaries than forbidding outright. "Stick to the paths and head back when the sun begins to set", his father warned.
William tried his best to follow the rules but it was very difficult to stay on the path. Today was no exception and William found himself off the path chasing the flying bugs that flitted about.
The last bug darted into a tree and William searched for a new quarry. As his eyes searched around, he realized he was in a part of the woods he had never been before.
The trees all looked the same however there was a small clearing with a wooden house in the middle. Smoke puffed out of the chimney a bit otherwise there was no movement.
William was cautious about the house but his desire to explore outweighed his fear. Besides, they might be kind enough to offer him something to eat.
He approached the house in relative silence and before long he was standing in front of the door. The desire to explore the unknown seemingly disappeared from him and was replaced by an uneasy feeling in the pit of his stomach. His outstretched hand, ready to knock politely on the door, retracted to his side slowly and he turned around.
William was greeted by the sight of a woman. He stepped back in shock and his back pressed against the wooden door. They stared at each other for only a moment before the woman spoke, "Well, well. What do we have here? Are you lost, little boy?"
William shook his head. "Lost your voice then?", She said with a sly smile.
"No ma'am", he managed to stutter out.
"Well thank goodness for that", she said, "A mute trespasser is too much trouble for me to handle". She grinned at her own remark.
William shuffled his feet nervously and looked at the ground. "Go on then", she said, "What are you doing in my woods and at my house no less".
"I didn't mean to trespass", William blurted out, "And I didn't know these were your woods. Honest. I…" He trailed off.
"Now now", the woman chided, "I can understand you not knowing where my woods are but you certainly knew there was a house that isn't yours and here you stand".
William shuffled again, "I… I saw the house and wanted to eat".
"Oh I think I understand now", she said and clicked her tongue, "You thought you could knock on my door and I'd feed you, no questions asked and poor me get nothing in return".
"I didn't think about that", William said slightly ashamed, "But I'm not hungry anymore and need to be going home". He hoped she would cut the conversation short and let him leave.
"Is that so?", She said with a raised eyebrow. "I may not have any boys of my own but I do know that they are almost always hungry. Now…", She stooped getting eye level with William, "You wouldn't lie to me, would you?"
William had no time to answer before his stomach responded with a loud rumble.
"That's what I thought", that woman said smiling. She reached behind William and opened the door to her house. An aroma of cooked meat and sweet pastries wafted out of the house and into Williams nostrils.
"I can fix you a plate of food. But you'll work for it", she said sternly.
William nodded his head before thinking. "You can start by fetching me some water", she handed him a bucket that was just inside the house. She pointed off behind her hut, "There's a stream just ten minutes that way. And don't dally"
He grabbed the bucket and took off following her directions. Before long he arrived at the stream and began filling the bucket. A loud howl echoed throughout the woods as he lifted the bucket out of the stream. William instantly thought of wolves but was not sure he had ever heard one that loud in his life. He suddenly became aware that there was no other sound aside from the gently babbling of the stream. No birds. No chirping insects. No rustling of the small forest critters that would have greeted his ears.
William held the bucket with both hands and backed away from the water and then turned and headed back towards the house as quickly as he could.
The woman saw William running towards her house and called out, "Careful not to spill any else I'll have to send you back". William looked down and saw that his pants were wet from the water splashing out of the bucket but that there was still plenty left. He nonetheless slowed his pace and walked the rest of the way back.
"There was a loud howl near the stream", he said upon arriving, "I didn't know wolves got this close to you". The woman stared at William intently and asked, "Was it one howl or several?"
"One howl that I heard, I'm sure of it. There was no other sound around either as if all the other animals had left. He must have been close".
The woman looked away from him and off towards the stream, "Put the bucket in the house and come back out. Be quick about it too".
William did as he was told and saw the table was full of delicious looking foods, roasted pork, crispy bread, fresh cut carrots and potatoes, at least five different pies, and a pot of tea. He was tempted to grab a bite of any of the dishes before him but refrained and went outside to the woman.
He saw her casting her hands in an odd fashion and his eyes caught a glimpse of what looked like a charm dangling from a chain around her wrist. Her eyes met his and she placed her arms at her side and said, "This is my wood. But there are many dangerous things that exist outside of my realm. You are a very lucky boy, it almost caught you".
"The wolf almost caught me? I didn't even hear him".
The woman shook her head, "No child, it was not a wolf. But nevermind what it is. It can not cross into my realm. You and I are safe here."
Despite her confidence she glanced away from the house as if to verify what she just said. Satisfied she looked at William, "Now… fetch some wood and gather the eggs from the coop. Once you finish that, see me and I'll have another task for you".
William did everything the woman asked. He gathered the wood and placed it in a pile outside her door. He got the eggs, along with several pecks on his hands. He also gathered some herbs that she requested although he had to keep asking her questions about what they looked like as he was not used to any of the plants she wanted.
Once he gathered the last plant he went back to the house and stepped inside. The house was much smokier than when he was last there and the woman was muttering to herself while waving around a smoking bundle of herbs. "Umm..", he started before realizing he did not know her name, "Ma'am?".
She stopped and looked at him, "Yes child?"
"I finished my chores. What else do you need me to do?"
"I believe that about does it", she said with a sigh, "Now… I need to finish this and then you can eat".
William sat down at the table and watched as the woman walked all around the house spreading the smoke to every corner of the home. Curiosity got the best of him and he asked, "Will that keep the wolf away?"
She laughed, "No little boy. It will not keep the wolf away. But it will keep the other things in the forest away that I do not want in my home. Now hush and let me finish".
William watched her until she finished and then she sat down and poured them both some tea.
"Now… you may eat", she said.
William started with a slice of bread and some pork. The food tasted so delicious and wonderful. He was not sure if it was because of how well it was cooked or if it was because he was starving. Either way he could not have been happier. He dove into the vegetables and even some of the pastries before having a large slice of rhubarb pie.
The woman watched him eat and smiled. William noticed her and apologized for eating so much.
"Do not apologize for enjoying the bounty of my table", she said, "I am happy you found it so delicious."
He nodded and then drank his tea. Once he put the cup down he realized that the sun was close to setting. William pushed back his chair and said, "I didn't know it was so late. I need to go home or my father will be very angry with me".
The woman looked outside and her face became stern, "Child, you cannot travel right now. You are safe here but once you leave my woods, you are not. Now you can rest here until morning and set off at first light. I promise."
William looked very distraught. The thought of his father being upset with him made him forget all about the wolf and he headed towards the door, "You don't understand ma'am, I need to go home now. Thank you for the food and for offering me a bed, but I must go."
The woman nodded her head, "I cannot force you to stay, it is against my nature to force anything against their will. But I will plead with you to take this".
She held a small silver amulet in the shape of a star in her hand. William touched it and looked at her, "I cannot accept it", he said.
"You can and you will," she said firmly, still holding the star.
William, not wanting to hurt her feelings, nodded and grabbed the amulet and put it in his pocket. The woman breathed a sigh of relief and smiled at him.
William thanked her again and ran for the door. He glanced at the sun and saw it dipping faster below the horizon. He would have to be very fast to make it home in time.
In a quick manner the sun fully set and the woods were pitch black. William was heading the way he thought he had come from but he was not sure anymore. It was very dark and there was nothing to guide him home.
He was thankful that the moon was full as he had enough light to see around him. However, the shadows of the woods played tricks on his eyes as he was sure that several times he saw them move in ways they should not.
William took a short break by an old stump and sat down to rest his legs. He stopped breathing just long enough to realize how quiet everything had become. He noticed and then froze. It was just like the stream. He listened very hard for anything moving around him. He did not breathe and he did not move a muscle. Nothing. Absolute silence. He exhaled in relief and that's when he heard it. A howl. A long, ear splitting, blood curdling howl.
William took off as fast as he could. He did not care where he was going, all he knew is he wanted to get out of the woods as fast as he could.
He was running so fast and so hard he almost did not hear the fast steps closing in on him. They were behind him and faster than anything he had heard. He wanted to turn around and see what it was. It was only a brief glance but he saw a black haired beast on all four chasing him. It was too large and too deformed to be a wolf and too small to be a bear. William ran even harder to try and get away.
The beast lunged after William and its fangs snagged his pants. William and the beast fell to the ground. The beast snarled and ripped open his pants and its mouth clamped onto William's leg. William cried out in pain. No sooner had the beast grabbed him, it let go and howled in agony. William saw the glimpse of the silver amulet in its mouth and what looked like steam coming from both the star and the beast's mouth.
William started for much too long. He realized his mistake and went to stand up but quickly collapsed on the ground again, his leg was too badly injured to run. He decided to crawl away as best he could. No sooner had he moved than the beast managed to get the star out of its mouth. He stared at William and snarled.
The beast approached William slowly. Just as William was about to cry out he saw the woman from the house run towards them. She shouted something he could not understand but he was flung backwards away from the beast and her. He saw her draw a small blade and stab the beast multiple times. With each stab the beast howled in agony and finally succumbed to the attack and lay on the ground. He gave one final breath and became still.
William stared at the body and the woman unable to speak or move. She approached him and asked, "Are you hurt?"
William was only able to nod so he did. She produced a small crystal ball that glowed in the moonlight and examined his leg. She pulled a small bag from her waist and reached inside to produce a small amount of powder in her hands. She rubbed the powder on his leg. William winced in pain. "Shh…", she shushed him softly, "I know it hurts but it will pass quickly". True to her word the pain passed but almost as soon as it did a sudden burning pain took its place. William cried out, "It burns, so badly".
The woman had a concerned look on her face and drew her small blade again. She stuck it in his wound and moved around. William cried out in pain even more. She did not seem to notice the cries. Her blade stopped moving and she pulled it out with a bit of the beast's tooth stick to the tip. "There", she said, "That should fix it".
She placed more powder on the wound and this time there was no burning. It still hurt a bit but more so like a small scratch instead of a bite. William stood up and shook his leg to make sure it still worked.
William looked at her and said, "Thank you, so very much. I think that wolf… beast… would have killed me if you didn't save me".
She nodded, "It most certainly would have. But now the way home should be safe".
"Could you walk with me the rest of the way?", He asked with only the slightest of shakes in his voice
"I'm afraid I cannot", she said sadly, "But I promise you your way is safe now".
William looked at her and said, "I owe you a meal at least. I can't promise it will be as good as what you made but I have to do something to repay you. My father could pay you something at least".
The woman looked at him with sad eyes and said, "I'm afraid I would not be welcome anywhere you are going. But if you are insistent on repaying me… you are welcome at my home anytime, during the daylight hours only".
William smiled and said, "I promise I'll come do chores for you whenever I can".
The woman smiled and waved him along, "Then I will see you one day soon. William".
William looked back to ask her how she knew his name and to ask her name but she was no longer there. However, a light gust of wind tickled his ear with the name, "Danu".