A man stood sentry in the
woods, his dark gaze unwavering as he peered through the trees into a
clearing. He leaned against a tree with his right leg resting on a
boulder, a length of rope clutched in his grip. The forest tree
branches swayed in the sky above him as the fresh breeze stirred the hair
around his face. Aside from the few strands of hair lifted by the
breeze, he was absolutely still. He appeared utterly calm from a
distance. Up close you would notice his knuckles were white from the
pressure of his hold on the rope, his face was unshaven and his eyes were
bloodshot and strained. He made a formidable silhouette, his tall
and muscled form dressed in dark hunter’s leather, lurking in the shadows of
the trees. His gaze was locked on a stream that spilled over a small
waterfall before it danced around the far edge of the clearing. The
beauty of the scene before him was lost on the man. He would not
allow himself to truly see it. He would not allow himself to
remember. Desperation and determination warred with each other
through his body. He had no other choices left to him. He
stood. He waited.
The man stiffened slightly then
coiled his muscles, ready to move. The waterfall was
changing. It was as if hands reached out and parted the water as you
would a stage curtain. Through the gap in the falling water, a girl
emerged. Her bright golden hair gleamed in the sun as she peered out
from behind the water. She hesitantly stepped out onto a small rock
and the water fell back into place behind her. She was small of
build, around thirteen years old, still holding onto a cushion of baby fat in
her cheeks and on her body. Her skin was so fair it was almost
white, as if it never saw the sun. She was dressed in a peculiar
garment, a sleeveless, knee length dress of pearlescent pinks that shimmered
and reflected the sunlight. Her blue eyes scanned the clearing,
looking for potential danger. The man held his post, unseen in the
shadows of the forest.
Apparently
satisfied with her assessment, the girl carefully picked her way out of the
stream into the grass of the clearing. She let out
a huge sigh as she tipped her face to the sun, eyes closed. She opened her eyes and started wandering through the
clearing, gathering wildflowers. Her path led her closer and closer to the man’s hiding spot in the
woods. When she was only a few
yards away, the man stepped from behind the trees and moved into sight on the
very edge of the clearing. He
quietly called to the girl. She
startled, looked at him and froze. He started talking to her and she pressed her lips together and
violently shook her head back and forth as she backed away from him. He took another step towards her and she dropped her
flowers, turned back to the stream and ran. The man didn't hesitate. He started after her, pulling the coils of rope in his
hand into a lasso. After only
a few steps he raised the lasso over his head and threw it at the girl. His aim was true, but he didn't pull back on the rope
quickly enough. The circle of
rope flew over the girl’s head and fell to the ground as she tried to leap out
of its grasp. She was almost
clear of the lasso when it caught on her foot. The man jerked back on the rope and it tightened
around her right ankle. She
lunged forward on her left foot as her lassoed foot was pulled behind
her. She pivoted on her free
foot, her skirt and hair swirling around her as she waved her hands frantically
trying not to fall. The girl
froze mid turn. Not just the
girl froze, but her hair and skirt froze mid motion as well. The man was closing in on her, walking the rope hand
over hand, keeping the tension but trying not to pull so hard that the girl
would fall. It took his
agitated brain a moment to recognize the curious way the girl had suddenly
stopped moving. He was only a
couple of feet away from her when his body no longer responded to his commands
to move. His heart thumped
loudly in his chest as he watched through his paralyzed body as the girl turned
to stone in front of him, capturing the open mouthed scream on her face. He felt a pinch of regret and overwhelming defeat as
the stone transformation ran along the rope to his hands and traveled over his
body. Blackness overcame him
as his entire body was turned to stone. The sun continued to shine down on the clearing, the
stream bubbling to the side and a frolicking breeze ran between the trees and
bent the tips of the grass in the little meadow. The scene was just as it was before, only now there
was a magnificent statue in the center of the clearing, of a man lassoing the
ankle of a girl as she ran from him, frozen forever in that first moment of
capture.
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