Rose

Five

"What's going on here? What's all the noise for?" The voice sounded ancient and dry, as if paper, kept for centuries in an old locked box, had suddenly found a way to speak.

Adam and Sarah spun and began to babble together, talking over each other in a rapid stream of words which threatened to drown them both. The hands which had held them went up, telling them to stop. A woman stepped into the light from the open door. She was tall, impossibly thin, impossibly old and yet still stunningly beautiful. The children stopped abruptly. The woman crouched down to speak to them, and they still found they had to look up to make eye contact.

"What's going on? Who are you children? Why are you here?"

At first they couldn't answer. Relief had seemed to dry up their mouths and exhaustion had swept the words away. The woman raised an eyebrow quizzically and the words began to flow again, this time calmer. Still, both children were speaking and a hand was raised once more.

"One at a time, please. I can't be doing with all this noise. You, boy. What's your name?"

Adam took a deep breath and told her.

"Adam. That's a good name. Strong. I like it. Now, girl. Who are you?"

"I'm Sarah," she said. "But, you've got to close the door! There's a wolf out there! It killed our brother! It ate him!"

The tears and sobs she'd held at bay during the remainder of their flight pushed their way to the surface, and she struggled to keep them from bursting forth.

"Woah, now. Slow down. Sarah. Another good name." The woman took their hands and held them tight. It made them feel strangely safe, as if they were now protected and no savage beast could hurt them. "What's all this about a wolf? And your brother?"

It was Sarah's turn to take a deep breath. She couldn't help the tears from falling, but did her best to ignore them.

"Tom, our brother. We were playing. A wolf attacked us. It ate Tom and we ran away. We left our brother."

"Child, what could you do?" The woman put her long arm around Sarah and pulled her close. She smelled of fresh cut grass. "If you'd stayed, that horrid beast could have taken you too. You did what you had to."

Sarah buried her head in the woman's embrace and let the pain flow. The woman held her tightly without speaking. She looked at Adam who could only stare at his sister. He wanted to be in there, wrapped in the woman's arms, letting his hurt and loss out. He stayed where he was and returned her gaze. She nodded to him and held out her free arm. He hesitated, then joined Sarah.

It seemed long moments before the woman let them go and stood again. The children felt lighter, as if she had taken their pain from them, leaving them with a sense of loss but not one of hurt.

"Now," she said, finally. "What of this wolf?"

Adam and Sarah glanced at each other. They had almost forgotten about the animal which had torn their brother apart.

"Don't worry," said the woman. "It can't get you in here. You're perfectly safe.

"But your door?" said Adam. "I could have broken it with my fist! If it's hunting us, it can easily get in here and... and kill us! And you too!"

"Don't underestimate an old woman." Her parchment voice crackled in the dim light. The children fancied they could see sparkles in the air with each word. "I've lived here for a long time. I'm still here, now. So, tell me."

"It was a wolf," said Adam, "but it seemed bigger, angrier. Well, I don't know how angry wolves are but this one seemed to be just vicious. But it's size... It was like three wolves in one!"

"And where is it now?"

As one, the children pointed towards the door.

"We ran, but it followed us," said Sarah. "I think it's still out there now."

The woman sighed and ran her hands through her silvering hair.

"So, it's trespassing on my property? We'll see about that." She stooped down so she was at eye level with the children. "Stay in here, you hear? And don't look out. I don't want it to see you're in here. Got it?"

The children nodded.

"Good. I'll be back before you know it."

The woman turned her back on them and pulled a long coat from a stand by the door. It was black and looked dusty. She wrapped it close around her and walked out of the door, closing it behind her.

Adamand Sarah moved closer together and held each other tightly. It didn't seem as comforting as it had whenthe woman held them, but it was all they had. Unconsciously, they stepped away from the door, taking refuge in thetwilight within the room. They remainedsilent, thinking the slightest noise could alert the animal to theirpresence. They could feel each othershaking and pulled themselves closer together.