It was a hot day in a very cold country. In a country where everyone wore coats constantly, you could even consider it sweltering. Sunlight streaked down through the leafy canopy of the forest I was in, making me shield my eyes as I walked on under the midday sun.

I was hungry. I was never in the best moods when I was hungry. The weather was not helping one bit either. I became more sleepy with every step. It was so hot. Too hot. I began to hear a little jingle in my head, the only lyrics being  "a few more steps, a few more steps,"  over and over again.

I needed to go to the village to look for food. I didn’t live too far from the village but when I ran out of food it was always a hassle to have to go. I took a few more steps and came to a shaded part of the path. It was so much cooler in the shade. The path seemed never ending. It was probably not as hot within the thick of the forest instead of the path where the sunlight didn’t bleed down through the trees as much. But there was a song the children sang about the woods that made me think too much.  

for if you returned not, it would be a waste.
There is danger in the woods.
A monster lives within.
He would eat you if he could.
But beware, beware,
he could take on any form he wishes too.
He could even look like you.

It was easy to get lost in there. Hardly any people went into the forest. No one scavenged for food there. There were no hunters around, although it seemed that the animals were aplenty. Going through the forests was a shortcut though, from one town to another, so eons ago someone cut out this path. Everyone knew it was safe on the path, as long as no one left it.

I walked a few more steps then decided I had to stop to take a breather. It was so cool where I was at. I decided to rest in the middle of the path. No one would be around walking in this weather anyway, and the ground looked cool and inviting. I could just put my head down and everything would be alright.

The birds above me were chirping madly, like they usually do when there was trouble afoot. Was it me that they were chirping at? I chuckled. It’s not like I would hurt them. There were not even any rocks around to throw if I wanted to.

I crouched, then sat, then fell on my back. The sun shone directly on my face. The noise of the birds began to ascend in volume, velocity and verbosity. I blocked all sound with my hands to my ears. I shut my eyes. I wanted to eat. I was son hungry. But at this point, all I wanted to do was go to sleep.

I might have been asleep for about twenty minutes when I heard a rustling in the trees. I could not register what was happening at first. Who could it be? Everyone took the path. Well, most everyone. I thought as I heard more rustling within the woods. The birds once again began to stir. I wanted to sit up but I did not have the energy. The rustling grew louder and louder.

“He… hello?” I said to the rustling. The rustling stopped. Then suddenly a voice, sweet and mellow flooded through. “Oh thank goodness, thank goodness! I was stuck in the woods for so long!” It was the voice of a little girl, stuck somewhere behind the brambles. There were thick walls of brambles and trees walling the side of the path, making it hard to escape from within, or to go through to the woods. That was why everyone used the path. Even though the cooler shade within the woods seemed tempting. Though there was also danger within the woods.

“I wanted to walk in the cooler side for once, and then I got lost,” the voice said. “Could you please tell me if where you are is the path?”

I was silent for a moment. Then I replied “yeah it is."

“Oh thank you, thank you, I’ll make my way there! Oh, I simply can’t stand being in these woods any longer. Please, if you will would, could you please keep talking to me so I know where you are? It’s hard to tell any direction with all these brambles around” the voice said. I could imagine her, a little girl smiling at the thought of being able to come out of the woods.  

Out of the woods.  

“How did you get in?” I asked. "Into the woods I mean?" 

“Oh, there was a little gap in the trees at the beginning of this path! Just when you enter the path from town. I saw it when I was thinking how hot it all was. There it was, a little tunnel, underneath all the brambles. I thought that it would be much cooler than walking on the path. It is a ridiculously hot day after all,” she smoothly replied. I heard a noise as she began to hack her way out of the woods. Twigs and brambles falling fast. What little girl carries around with her a sharp weapon?

What little girl does not get so completely out of breath while cutting down things with her sharp weapon?

“Oh, my mother gave me a little axe,” the girl said. Was she reading my mind? I don’t think I said the question out loud. Hack, hack. “You are probably wondering what I’m doing! I’ve got this axe always with me you see… To protect me…” hack hack. “From the monster. You know about the stories right?”

I nodded but she didn’t see of course. “Yeah, there’s a monster that lives in these woods,” she continued on, as though she did see my nodding. The hacking was closer. “They say that it eats people who venture too deeply into its forest. That it can change however it wants to. It could be a bear, it could be a rabbit, it could even disguise itself as a human. And once in a while it goes down to the village and takes whatever it can find, be it livestock or people.”

“Or people? I don’t know if it eats people,” I said.

“Yeah, no… I’m not from the town either. I was just going to visit… a distant relative,” she said. “But I’m sure I heard correctly… livestock or people, it is a monster,” said she "after all". The sound of her hacking was getting very close.

I could hear ragged breathing. My heart raced. 

“I’m almost to the other side.”

I sat up and watched as the girl hacked the rest of the way through. 

Hack, hack, hack. 

Then finally she crashed through. 

She walked to me dusting of her clothing and looked up smiling. “Thank you so much for the conversation and the guidance, I could not have gone out without you…”

Then her face fell as she saw me. She screamed a high pitched scream, turned and ran. She dropped her basket as she did, its contents spilling all over the floor.

Why? I wondered. Oh... ah that’s right. I let my claws out. 

I am the monster.

And I was a tad hungry.

I got to my feet and began to move faster.

Looks like I won't have to go into town after all.