And then they lived happily ever after. That's what you hear at the end of each story. What they don't tell you is the stories that happen after that signature goodbye. Where the villains you think perished because of the hero continued to live and continue to cause havoc. Where the prince and the princess don't stay together. Fairytales don't always end the way you think they do. For Red Riding Hood this couldn't have been more true. After the wolf she stayed in the woods. She provided for herself and wanted to become stronger than the best that almost killed her. What she wasn't expecting was the strength she'd need to forgive the beast...
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It was a cold night but the fire kept her warm. Her home was small and kept the heat in perfectly. The last few weeks for her have been...interesting. People flooded to her and asked if she were okay. If she feared that the Big Bad Wolf would come back and eat her in her sleep.
In reality she was more angry than afraid. She had let herself almost be devoured by a beast and she couldn't fight back at all. She would have died and she couldn't do a damn thing about it. But she didn't. She lived and she took that as a sign to grow stronger. She moved into the forest and hunted for her own food, she didn't have to worry about other people.
If anything that wolf was sort of a blessing, a sign. She hated it, despised it even, but she was thankful in an odd twisted way. She didn't expect her strength to be tested on that unwelcoming night. She didn't hear it at first. The sound of twigs snapping and branches breaking. When she did she stood up.
Thinking it was just another man or woman coming to her door and asking if she was alright. Then she heard the footsteps get heavier, and heavier. She could hear an animal sniffing and making a low growling noise. He was here. He was going to finish his meal. She thought.
She could feel her finger tips go numb. She shook her head. She wasn't going to let fear get the best of her. Not again. If the wolf wanted to finish her off he'd have one hell of fight. Slowly, trying not to make a sound, Red made her way into her small kitchen and grabbed one of her knives. Compared to the wolf it was a toothpick but it was the best option she had.
She took a deep breath and tried to calm down. She'd grown stronger since she had last encountered it yet the fear was still there. She walked to her front door, it felt like she was walking to her death. She could smell the wolf just behind the door. It was a foul smell almost like rotten meat. She took one more look around her home before grabbing her bright red cape and opened the door.
Red thought she would feel teeth around her neck and her blood run down her body. She thought she would have a change to fight...but there wasn't. Instead she saw the wolf that had tried to kill her bloody and shivering in the cold. It was a rather pathetic sight. She was confused. It clearly wasn't strong enough to attack her so why come here? To gloat at her? Try and kill her? Tell her that he's going to kill her? As for him to forgive her? She held up the knife so even if he did attack she'd be ready. "What do you want?" She asked quietly.
The wolf didn't respond. Red shifted her weight from leg to leg, trying to distract herself. She pointed the knife at the wolf. "I...I'm armed...I'm not gonna go down without a fight this time." Her voice had a subtle shake to it. The wolf could clearly hear it. The wolf had limped towards her, Red didn't move.
Her grip of the knife tightened. "What do you want?" She asked louder, though it sounded more like a demand. The wolf motioned towards his wounds. She remembered the woodsman had almost killed the wolf, she had let him go only because she didn't think she could stand the sight of more blood, she didn't think the wounds would take this long to heal. Some had looked infected.
"You...want me to help..." she said. The wolf nodded. Red had lowered the knife slightly, but her guard was still up. She looked at him right in his bright yellow eyes and roared "Why should I help you? You killed my grandmother- you almost killed me!" The wolf looked down also as if it were ashamed.
For a moment she thought the wolf would limp away but then he lifted his head and said "protection..." she looked around as if something would jump out right as he said that. "Protection...from what...?" She asked him. He motioned towards the woods. She knew what he meant. There were more dangers in the woods than just wolves and angry men. There were beasts and monsters that hadn't yet made their way towards her door. "...How do I know I can trust you?" She asked. "You can't..." he said. She thought about it. She looked from the inside of her home to the wolf. "...alright wolf...I'll help," she said.
