The Wolf's Den

Path 1: Adrieve: Chapter 2

        After running towards the entrance, she tugged fiercely on the door and grunted with frustration. The hallway was pitch black, and the doors wouldn't open. Her back was to the hallway, it was dangerous to be alone with her back to the hallway. Turning around, her back was now to the door and handles pressed into her back. With her metaphorical sisters gone, she was safe to leave, right? After all, no one was there, and she was safe to be undetected. The doors held no handles, and in no way would she knock on that door with the thorns. With careful detection, based upon survival instincts, she moved away from the door and moved so her back was to the wall to her right, the hallway straight as she'd seen earlier.

        When she stepped into the hallway, she moved back near the door, spying a secret corridor and running towards it, slipping into the narrow space and knocking loudly on the first door she saw, which, due to the darkness of her surroundings, was only seen with bright, white outlines of birds. Upon knocking loudly on the door, and when it opened, the birds were replaced with the outline to a loaf of bread. Quietly, a child opened the door, but two stood in the open doorway. One, a girl, had long braids and the other, a boy, had a boyish cut involving bangs, but both were blonds.

        "Yes?" The girl asked. "What do you want?"

         "You need to let me in," Adrieve demanded.

          "Why?" The girl retorted.

           "Don't let her in," the boy told what Adrieve guessed was his sister.

            However, as Adrieve burst in, she slammed the door loudly behind her and sat in the nearest chair, staring directly at the children.

           "That was rude, say you're sorry," the girl said.

            "Make yourself at home why don't you," the boy retorted.

             "You stop being rude, too, Hansel," the girl sneered.

             Now studying the room at a quick glance, Adrieve frowned at her surrounds, simple as her own room but more clean and less damaged. Their beds were bunk beds, neatly made and pillows carefully fluffed. There was a nice, slightly worn rug, and a similar area for clothing with two nooks as her room, extra clothing hanging on the hooks, Pictures, crudely drawn of candy homes and forest trails of bread crumbs, stones, and other materials were above the top bunk of the bed. A hairbrush, used well and knotted with blonde strands, sat on a crude wooden table, low to the ground and pushed against a wall, and tiny shoes sitting against the wall closest to the clothing nooks. And, finally, a small set of chairs and another crude wooden table was in the center of the room, while she herself sat in a large chair, oddly placed but fitting for its environment.

              "Who are you?" The girl finally asked.

               "We would hate to ask you to leave, but you need to leave," her companion added.

                "I am Adrieve, and I look for my companions, of whom are like sisters to me. If you've seen them, tell me now and I'll leave you in peace, if you're so hell bent on me leaving."

                "We don't know them, lady," said the girl.

                 "Go home, you're not welcome here," the boy finished.

                 Patience growing thin, if she'd had any patience at all, finally snapped, saying, "Then tell me who you are, because I'm going to be here for a while and I dislike children."

                "What's it to you?" the girl asked.

                "Why do you care?" The boy added.

               "If you want me not to hurt you, you'll tell me."

               "Fine," the boy said. "Since it's dire to know, I am Hansel, and this is my sister, Gretel." To which, he indicated to the braided girl beside him.

               "And if you go near my brother or me, we'll call for the Wolfe," Gretel retorted.

              "And he bites."

              "Hansel, don't even bother with her, she's clearly a lost sheep who needs to get just punishment."

              "And you don't?"

               "Will you two please shut up? I just need to know if you've seen my companions, a braided girl and redhead."

               "We haven't," Gretel replied.

                "So go away. The door's over there," Hansel hummed, pointing to a section of blank wall with disinterest.

                "That is, if you want to use it."

                Huffing, Adrieve stood, shoved the chair to block the door, and stormed through the passage, and, as she noticed, into a grand entryway.