Once upon a time, in a land not of our own, there lived a little girl wearing a white hood. She lived in a small cottage near a river by the woods, and lived there happily with her mother.

  One day, the girl’s mother asked her to deliver a basket of bread to her sickly grandmother. The girl accepted, but did so fearfully, for she knew that the road to her grandma’s house was one of forested evil.

  The forest was dark, and the girl could hear whispered words of cruel intentions in the brush. The girl’s blood would chill every time she ventured into the forest. She could feel a pair of eyes watching her every move. This time was no different. She refused to look for her stalker. She knew that it would soon make its move against her, and that it did.

  The beast was large and walked on all fours. It’s bright, yellow eyes seemed to pierce the girl’s mind as if it fed off of her thoughts of fear. It’s fur resembled spikes, and was the color of blood and dirt. It’s lips curled back into a fanged smile, and it’s voice came in a low guttural growl.

  “Good day to you, Little Treat.” The girl shivered at the nickname, and responded in a shaky voice.

  “G-G-Good day to you as well, M-Mr. W-W-Wolf.”

  The wolf bared it’s fangs in another smile before starting to circle the girl, it’s nostrils flaring as it took in the smell of the bread. “What have you got there, Little Treat?” ,it said with it’s eyes locked on the basket in the girl’s hands.

  “A bit of bread, Mr. Wolf. It’s for my grandma.” The girl pointed in the direction of her grandmother’s house. “It’s just down the road there.”

  The wolf let a barking laugh escape between it’s teeth. “Well, now isn’t that just sweet. Perhaps you should pick her some flowers as well. I could show you the way, and i’m sure she’d like them.” It’s voice was filled with deceit and yet, the girl felt compelled to do as the wolf suggested.

  Almost without her knowing, the girl found herself following the wolf off the path and deep into the forest. The wolf weaved behind trees and bushes as it led the girl off the trail. Finally, the wolf turned to the girl with a toothy smile, and walked behind a thin tree, disappearing as it passed behind it. Alone and lost, the girl wandered frantically in an attempt to get back to the path. Then the voices came.

  First were the whispers, offering promises of pain, and venom filled insults. Slowly the voices got louder and louder, and with the increase in volume came the threats of assault and more. The girl ran through the forest now, trying to escape the voices, but they only grew louder and more violent.

  The girl fell to her knees, closing her eyes, and covering her ears to block out the voices. This only seemed to anger the voices. No matter how much she tried, they only got louder and angrier until finally they fell silent. Slowly, she opened her eyes and found herself alone on the path to her grandmother’s house.

She stood now and completed her journey to grandmother’s house. She stepped up to the door of the small house, and took a deep breathe to gather herself before knocking. The answer was immediate and soon enough a frail, old woman stood in the doorway before her.

“Hello there, my dear! I’m so glad you came. Please, do come in!”

The girl entered with a warm smile that almost instantly turned to an expression of terror at what she saw. Laying on the ground, asleep, was the large mass of blood and dirt fur. The beast awoke and turned on the girl with the same fanged smile as it spoke to her.

“Hello again, Little Treat.”

The girl couldn’t help but scream as the voices returned and began pounding in her ears. In a panic she took hold of her grandma’s hand and pulled her into the closet to hide, the wolf’s eyes following her as she fled from it.

The girl sat inside the closet with her grandmother in the fetal position as the beast slammed against the door in an attempt to break in. The girl flinched as her grandmother wrapped her arms around the girl to comfort her. Her eyes widened in fear as her grandma spoke in a familiar, low, guttural growl.

“There there, Little Treat. Everything will be okay.”

The girl froze, recognizing the unfriendly nickname. SHe turned to her grandma, currently hard to see due to lack of light.

“Grandma, what a deep voice you have.”

“All the better to greet you with, my dear.”

The girl looked up into her grandma’s now bright yellow eyes. “What big eyes you have.”

“All the better to see you with.”

The girl’s gaze fell to her grandma’s hands that were wrapped around her. “What big hands you have.”

“All the better the hug you with, of course.”

The girl finally looked up to see her grandma’s fanged smile. “My goodness, Grandma! What a big mouth you have!”

The low barking laugh filled the small closet as the lights came on to reveal the beast sitting next to the girl. “All the better to eat you with, Little Treat!”

The girl screamed, and struck the beast with an open palm, relieved as it crumpled to the ground. The girl didn’t waste this chance, and quickly left the closet, locking it behind her. She slid down to her knees, a triumphant smile on her face as she rejoiced in her defeat of the beast. Of course it was short lived.

The girl looked up to see the beast standing before her, snarling and snapping its jaws at her. “You cannot escape me, Little Treat!” The wolf approached menacingly and lowered itself, preparing to leap at her. “Now you’re mine!”

The girl squeezed her eyes shut as the wolf leaped at her, and she tensed up, waiting for the attack to hit. But it never did. There came a loud yelp and the girl heard the sound of metal tearing flesh, accompanied by the splattering of a thick liquid all over her hood and face. She heard the thud of a body hit the ground and opened her eyes to see what had happened.

Before her stood a man in a green cloak, brandishing a wood cutter’s ax. The blade of the axe was coated in the same red liquid that covered the girl’s hood. The man stepped toward her, wordlessly, and handed her the axe before walking behind her. The girl turned to watch him leave but was surprised to find herself alone. the man seemed to have vanished, leaving the girl alone with the dead beast.

The girl turned now to stand over the beast in victory. Instead, she couldn’t stop the tears from falling as the body of her grandmother’s dog laid motionless on the ground, and a long gash on it’s side.

She couldn’t help but stare at the red liquid that stuck in the dog’s fur. The same red liquid that coated the man’s axe, still in the girl’s hands. The same liquid that stained the girl’s once white hood red.