Page 45 of Enchanted in Time
Hannah nodded and walked close to Maximilian as they headed deeper into the woods. The forest grew darker and darker, the air became damp and musty, and the light was breaking through the branches less and less frequently.
“Frieda told us to beware of the shadows,” Hannah said.
Maximilian could clearly detect the fear in her voice. “You don’t need to be afraid. Climb up on my back again, and I’ll carry you.”
Hannah smiled to herself. How good it felt to have someone by her side. Thank goodness she didn’t have to trek through this forest alone! She quickly climbed up on his back.
All of a sudden, as he was trotting along, a loud howl rang out from afar.
Hannah huddled down close to him. “Was that another wolf?” she asked.
The bear prince tramped slowly onward. “We have to assume so,” he said.
“Are they going to attack us?”
The bear prince let out a growl that sounded like laughter. “You’re with a bear, remember? They’ll stay away from us!”
Hannah breathed a sigh of relief. She snuggled down close against his back. It felt so good to have someone who would protect her. She feared it would be hard to not have a man by her side again once she was back in her world. Even if the same threats didn’t exist in the forests there, it did her good to know that someone was by her side and looking out for her.
She’d had to do without that for such a long time! How strong she’d had to be all these years! A lone fighter on the front lines—whether in the classroom, on the playground, when dealing with the landlord, or caring for and comforting her children. Hannahhad also had to take on the role of the father at home. All this time, she’d had to provide a sense of safety for her children. She looked out for them and protected them from all the things they were frightened by. She took care of them and was the only one to provide them with a safety net.
Oh, how good it felt to be protected for once! As important as it was to be strong, it also felt good to lean on someone else for a change. Hannah gratefully stroked the bear prince’s fur.
Right at that moment, the forest floor gave way, and Maximilian’s back paw fell into a hole. He tugged and tugged, but he couldn’t free his paw.
“What’s wrong?”
“I’m stuck.”
“Wait!” Hannah slid off his back, took two steps back, and examined the ground and his paw. “You’re stuck in a hole in the ground! Try pulling hard again!”
Maximilian kept tugging, but his paw was hopelessly stuck. He couldn’t move it forward or backwards. “What kind of hole is this? Why can’t I get out of it?”
Hannah crouched down beside his paw and tried to dig it free, but it didn’t work. Maximilian had slid so deep into the hole that his paw was entangled in a dense network of roots.
“How will we manage to get you free from this?” she asked.
“Shhhh,” Maximilian whispered. Hannah quickly moved closer, and grabbing his fur with one hand, she peered past the tall trunks of the firs.
All of a sudden, the air was filled with muttering and whispering. High voices, squeaky voices. Hannah bent down. Was that something behind the thorn bushes? Or behind her? She turned around, but she couldn’t detect a thing.
“Caught him! Got him at last!” she heard from behind. She immediately turned around. There was no one in sight. Where were the voices coming from? “Who’s there?” she cried.
No answer.
“Did you hear that just now? Those voices?” Hannah leaned her head back and looked up at the firs, but she couldn’t see anyone there. “What is that?”
“Oh, no...”
“Oh, no? Why ‘oh, no’? What is it? Or who?”
Something was pressing down on the soft ground beside her as if someone were walking, but there was no one in view.
“Who’s there?” she cried.
“Forest gnomes!”
“Forest gnomes? Where are they, then?”
