INTRODUCTIONS

Long ago, a little girl went with her mother to pick berries for her father who was hard at work. But the forest greeted them with a dark cold silence, the bushes empty. Yet too determined to find berries, the rascal broke free from Mother's grasp and vanished into the trees. Mother's worried cries faded fast as the girl ran on; over vine, and under branch and into the forest deep. Feeling strange eyes upon her, the girl recalled Mother's scary bedtime tales and her throat became bone dry. Then the Bat Lord appeared! He greeted her warmly and bit his own wing. "Come, child. Quench your thirst," he said. So she drank the thick, dark blood and smiled with joy. Passing through a graveyard, menacing storm clouds loomed and the air turned bitingly cold. The girl was shivering in her thin clothes. Then a Dark Weaver appeared, and with a click of his fingers, crafted mist into a beautiful dress. "Come, child, warm yourself," he coaxed. So she clothed herself and smiled with joy. Across waters deep and ominous she went, hoping a boat she found would carry her home. But hunger's grip tightened and her heart grew heavy. Then the Fish King appeared and offered one of his many fins. "Come, child. Eat your fill." So the girl ate and smiled with joy once more. Continuing on, she soon entered the forest's dark heart. Then an Iron Steed appeared, bearing a beautiful golden gear. The creature said nothing as the girl approached and snatched what she thought was another gift. The horse grew angry and summoned the other monsters. Terror filled the girl's heart as a wild wind rose about the beasts. Suddenly, a witch appeared—dark, yet regal. "Gifts we gave, but more you took," she snarled. "So more, in turn, is due." In a blink the girl was trapped inside a mirror. Her parents, though, had searched all day and, at last, arrived. With rampant rage, Father fought the Witch while Mother's loving touch shattered the dark enchantment. But the Witch was strong and Father yelled, "Save our daughter!" So Mother bore their child to safety as the forest was consumed. Even now, the burnt forest is a grim reminder of Father's sacrifice. To this day, any child who stares into the charred wasteland will be haunted by nightmares of getting lost while picking berries.

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