The Alarming Scent of Cinnamon

VI

It was around afternoon when Hansel and Gretel stumbled into the outskirts of the village of Kustef. Hansel sighed in relief. It had taken a couple hours of wandering to make it there, and the day seemed to keep getting hotter and hotter.

"Water," Gretel said, purposely making her voice scratchy.

"I need...water," she groaned.

"I'm just as thirsty as you are, but you don't see me shoving it in everyone's faces," Hansel said.

"Act like you're dying," Gretel said. "People will give us free food,"

"Why would I lie to people to get food?" Hansel asked.

"How else are we going to get it?" Gretel asked. "If we tell anyone what happened, they'll think we're crazy and put us in the madhouse,"

"But we can show them our magic!' Hansel said. 

"Oh, yeah!" Gretel said with mock enthusiasm. "Then they can call me a witch and burn me up!"

Hansel sighed.

"Ok," he said glumly.

Gretel elbowed him in a friendly way. 

"Buck up!" she said. "We're gonna make it out of here in no time. Right after we get our food, we'll find someone to read the magic book to us, and we go back home! Easy as pie. Now let's make a scene,"  

"Water," Gretel said hoarsely but loudly as they walked into the town square.

"I need water," she groaned, walking up to a young woman with a fancy bustle.

"Please.." Hansel whispered. "I'm so hungry,"

People in the square stopped and glanced at them, but hurried off, whispering to each other.

"Sell it!" Gretel hissed at Hansel.

Hansel let his arms droop, and made his legs go limp. He collapsed to the ground. It hurt a bit.

"Hansel!" Gretel cried, keeping her voice hoarse. "Someone help!"

This caused more of a commotion. People crowded around them, and someone picked Hansel up and carried him into a nearby shop. A middle-aged woman ushered Gretel inside. 

"It's going to be alright," she said. "We're going to go get you and your brother some food and water now, and we'll find your parents soon,"

Sure you will, Gretel thought grimly. Tears welled up in her eyes. She wished so badly that everything would go back to the way it was before Pa married that horrible woman, Carolina. Gretel started sobbing. 

"Oh, poor sweetie," the woman said, escorting Gretel to a bed. "You go and get some rest now,"

Gretel made no effort to protest. It felt good, having someone tell her everything was going to be ok, even if it wasn't. She curled up under the covers and cried until she couldn't cry any more. Exhausted, she fell asleep.

Hansel kept his eyes closed as someone picked him up and carried him into a building. They set him on a bed. He heard Gretel start crying.

Man, he thought. She's really selling it.

Hansel let himself fall asleep there. Soon there would be food and water. Soon he and Gretel would learn the magic book's secrets and go back home. Soon...

He awoke to the sound of footsteps. Heavy footsteps. A man walked in with a jug of water and three plates of food. 

Three? Hansel thought vaguely, barely awake. Who's the third one for?

The man pulled a chair across the room. It made a screeching noise, which woke Gretel up. He poured three glasses of water and handed Hansel and Gretel each a glass. Gretel gulped her water down greedily, while Hansel constantly sipped at his. The man kept the third plate of food and water for himself.

"So, can you tell me anything about your parents?" the man asked. "We've been having trouble finding them,"

Hansel and Gretel exchanged sad, tired glances.

"They died," Gretel said. "We were walking in the woods when it happened," She let her voice trail off, trying to tell Hansel she needed some help.

"And then this bear came out of nowhere and attacked them. We ran out of the woods and found our way here," Hansel finished. He was disconcertingly good at lying. Hansel thought about his real parents while taking a long drink of water. Where were they? When were he and Gretel? How were they going to make it back? Everything was so maddeningly insane and confusing.

Hansel started to quietly cry. For once in his life, Gretel didn't have a plan, and he was utterly lost.

The man awkwardly shifted in his chair. 

"That must've been terribly upsetting," he said. Hansel buried his head in a pillow. 

"We can take care of you for now," the man said. "The townsfolk here in Kustef are real kind." He handed Gretel a plate and set Hansel's food on the bedside table.

"Thank you for everything, sir," Gretel said, trying to eat politely but quickly, as she hadn't eaten for about a day and a half.

Hansel's stomach grumbled. He wiped his tears off with his sleeve and started to eat. 

"Is there anything else you need?" them man asked.

Hansel and Gretel gave each other a discreet glance. Gretel nodded ever so slightly.

"Well, there's this book we found in the woods," Gretel said. "We need someone to read it for us," she said, blushing.

"That's strange," he said. "Found a book in the woods, huh? Well, I'll ask the schoolmaster next time I see him." the man got up and left, a little abruptly.

Hansel and Gretel waited until he was out of earshot, then began talking quietly to each other.

"So our parents were eaten by a bear?" Gretel whispered. "The townspeople are going to be terrified once they hear there's a man-eating bear nearby!"

"Hey, actually it would be a man-and-woman-eating bear," Hansel said dryly.

"No, no, no: A man-and-witch-eating bear," Gretel said, holding back a laugh.

Hansel giggled, which made Gretel burst out laughing. They laughed until their stomachs hurt.

"How long has it been since we actually laughed?" Hansel asked.

"I dunno," Gretel said. "How long were we in the witch's house?"

"We counted the days," Hansel said, "Remember? It was 32 days. Then on the 33rd day we escaped and went back-" Hansel cut himself off before he said home. It wasn't their home anymore. Home was with Pa.

"...Back to the house," he finished somberly. The room filled with silence as he and Gretel reflected on their visit to the house.

"Well, hopefully we can talk to the schoolmaster soon," Hansel said, trying to dry the dripping wet cotton silence that hung over them. He might as well have tried to dry the ocean with a sponge.