Hensel and Gretel
Part-I
Hensel… Forgotten
Once upon a time...
Once upon a time there was a village, surrounded by a thick dark forest so old that no one really knew what its name was. The village was founded by two brothers known only as The Grimm Brothers, though if they were alive now they would tell you they are actually The Brothers Grimm. The settlers in the village were all brave souls who had once upon a time went through dark times to finally find their happily ever afters. That's why the village was named Everafter and everyone lived happily in Everafter.
But that was long ago. There was a severe drought and food was hard to come by. No one dared venture into the forest. It was believed that in the forest dwelled the dark soul of every evil stepmother and witch and wolves that they had vanquished at one time or another. Some said in the forest lived a great red dragon, others believed it to be a demon from hell while most believed it was just an evil witch. No one knew for sure and none in the village were as brave as the fairy tales made them out to be, except for two. Hensel and Gretel.
Hensel was the son of the woodcutter. The woodcutter was the only one who dared venture into the woods, though even he went only as far as from where he could still see the white cat perched on the roof of his house. Gretel was the daughter of... no one really knew. She was found in the forest and brought up by the last surviving of the seven dwarves. Hensel and Gretel had something in them that all others had long forgotten, an innocence that knows no fear. It was that innocent fearlessness that made them an outcast amongst other kids, and brought them together.
But this is not story about how they found each other, but how they lost.
Gretel, The Goddess
"Hensel, I am scared."
Hensel looked at her, there were tears in her eyes. She was really scared.
"Don't be. I'll be there with you. There is nothing to be afraid of. I'll never let you go." With these words he took Gretel's hand in his and gave them a tight squeeze. Final drops of tears left her eyes and they were wet no more. She felt a reassuring calm surround her in its protection. It was first time ever she had felt need for such a calm and it had overwhelmed her to find it in him. She slept peacefully that night, not worrying about the perils that lay ahead.
Gretel had been chosen as the Goddess for a ritual to reverse fortunes of the village. The sacrifice required someone pure enough to be worthy of being called a goddess. Gretel was that, but mainly she got selected because she was the only girl who had no elder to speak for her. Cinderella, Rapunzel and Snow White all ensured that their daughters didn't get selected. The fact that Gretel was a couple of years too young was also conveniently overlooked.
That evening Gretel was dressed like a Goddess and taken to the heart of the forest in a sombre procession. Once they reached the Marshes of Forgetfulness she was stripped of all her jewels, made to sit in a small boat and the boat was pushed away. At that very moment the Mist of Lost Memories begin to form on the surface of the marshes. Many screamed with fear as they swore they saw a claw reaching out for them through the mist. The sun was setting and the forest took on an eerie red hue. The entire forest seemed to bleed. A shrill scream rang through the forest and all ran as fast as their legs would carry them.
A Walk in the Woods
Gretel looked around at the mist, it seemed to say something to her, something she couldn't decipher. The boat was drifting aimlessly in the marshes. She was careful enough to not touch the water. Suddenly she heard a shrill scream, it had a familiar ring to it.
"Hensel!"
She suddenly stood up to look for him and the boat begin to rock. She sat down again, her heart beating wildly as she frantically looked around. Suddenly she felt the boat jerk. It started to move in a particular direction, the direction where the mist was much more dense. The thought of a monster in the marshes reeling her in ran through her mind. She wondered if it would be a good idea to jump into the marshes. The mist grew heavy and she found it even more difficult to breathe. The boat begin to move faster and faster and then...
THUD!
It suddenly stopped. Gretel closed her eyes tight, afraid to see.
"Gretel. Gretel"
She thought she heard someone call her name. The voice seemed familiar. She opened her eyes.
"Hensel..." she jumped in joy the moment she saw him, almost falling into the marshes. In fact would have if Hensel hadn't caught her arm.
"Be careful girl. If you fall in there you won't remember anything, not even me."
"I was so afraid, I thought you'd never come"
"I had to, promised you I would, didn't I?"
Gretel smiled at those words. Hensel wound the rope he had tied to the boat when no one was looking.
"Now, how do we go back?" asked Gretel.
"Easy. When we were coming to the forest, I made a trail of silver coins so that we could find our way back." He noticed the questioning look on her face and said, "Silver shines brightly in moonlight, that’s why."
So they started to walk around the marshes. Every now and then some wolf howled in the distance. Every now and then Gretel held on to Hensel's arm, nails digging deep. The marshes and the mist and the dark forest suddenly seemed very beautiful in the moonlight. The mist shone like silver and looked as if the marshes held a silver moon within them, was beautiful. They found a spot under the trees, decked up a bed of leaves and lay on their backs, staring at the sky. Soon they fell asleep. A pair of eyes watched them.
Hensel, The Forgotten
"Hensel. HENSEL!"
Hensel slowly opened his eyes. A scared Gretel stared back at her, fear all over her face.
"We must leave now, there is... something."
Hensel got up on his elbows, ears straining to hear. A faint rustle of the leaves, a cold rush of the wind and then...
"What was that? Rustle of wings? What is it? Some beast?"
A pair of glowing red eyes shone in the distance, then another and another.
"Wolves. RUN!"
They both started to run. The wolves followed them. Gretel turned to... "DONT LOOK BACK. Keep running." screamed Hensel. He stopped and turned around to face the wolves. A couple of them ran past him. The rest stopped. He reached for the ground and picked up a thick branch. The wolves started to circle him. The silver mist went back to the depths of marshes as the moon covered its eyes with a dark cloud. Another pair of eyes watched from above, silently.
Meanwhile Gretel kept running till she couldn't hear the wolves follow her. She stopped to catch her breath. Sun was about to rise. Gretel looked towards the horizon and could see Hensel's house and a pigeon perched on the roof.
"Somebody help." She ran towards the house. First rays of sun swept through Everafter, first rays of a new beginning.
The woodcutter came out the moment he heard Gretel's voice. Soon others also came running.
"Somebody help. He's in there, wolves are after him. Somebody has to save him."
"Save who?" asked the woodcutter.
"Save He.." Gretel felt a severe pain in her head as she tried to say his name. "Your son."
"Gretel, I have no son." the woodcutter laughed, so did others.
"No you do, his name is..." No matter how hard she tried, she couldn't remember his name. Her head throbbed with a severe pain everytime she tried to remember. Everything around her seemed to go dark, last thing she heard in her head was a distant echo of someone calling out her name, a voice that once sounded so familiar.
Gretel slept through the whole day and night. Villagers kept coming to check on her, she was always everyone's favourite. Cinderella brought pumpkin pudding, Rapunzel a scarf woven from her own silver hair and Snow White brought the magic mirror for her. All others also brought gifts for her.
Next morning when first rays of sun shone on her window, Gretel woke up. She had a vague memory of a dream she had last night. It was of a boy she couldn't recall name or even face of, though he had a very familiar ring to him. And when she tried to remember, she felt severe pain in her head.
From that day onwards prosperity returned to Everafter and all lived very happily. All but one. Gretel. From that day onwards she started to have dreams that won't let her rest. Every time she stared towards the forest she felt a voice call out to her. A voice that gnawed at her mind, a memory she couldn't place, that won't let her rest and be happy.
And she was lonely in Everafter.
*****
I wish I could tell you more, but this is where the story pauses for now. I know you have many questions, but only Gretel can find the answers. So we will have to wait, till she finds the courage to walk into the forest and search for them. Am waiting for the day she would find the courage and come to me. The day she does, you too would know. Till then, I wait and hope. And that's all you can do...
Wait and hope, and pray. Pray that she may find her Hensel, and live with him happily in Everafter.
[to be concluded in - Gretel... Remembers]
