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- Story Listed as: Fiction For Teens
- Theme: Fairy Tales & Fantasy
- Subject: Revenge / Poetic Justice / Karma
- Published: 07/17/2011
Forbidden Attic
Born 1950, M, from Cathedral City, CA, United StatesTom was thirteen. He lived in a big, old house on the edge of town. Like many old houses, this one had a large attic at the top of the stairs. The attic was off limits to Tom and his little sister, but the boy was so fascinated with the forbidden place that he became obsessed with the idea of exploring it. The question was, how and when could he do it without getting caught. One Sunday morning, he woke up with the answer. Tom’s parents always took a nap on Sunday afternoons. He would tell them at lunchtime that he had loads of homework, and he would be in his room working on it for the rest of the day. For effect he added, “I probably won’t be done by dinnertime, but I think I will be finished by bedtime.” The truth was that he didn’t have any homework; he had finished it the night before.
Tom’s mother said, “Just be sure to keep an eye on your sister, and you two be quiet. Dad and I are going to take a nap.”
“Okay, Mom, don’t worry about us; we’ll be fine.” Tom waited in his room until he was sure that his parents were asleep. Then he began his assent to the attic.
When he was about halfway up, he heard his sister’s bedroom door open. He looked back and saw the little blond girl in her yellow play dress looking at him. “Daddy said we are not to go into the attic.”
Tom scrunched up his freckled face, squinted his dark brown eyes, and gave his sister his meanest look. “You go back into your room, and stay there. If you tell mom or dad that I went into the attic, I am going to make you sorry.”
The little six-year-old had tears welling up in her blue eyes as she stepped back into her room and quietly closed her door. He was free now to spend as much time as he needed to explore the attic without interference.
It was a good thing that he remembered to step over the third step from the top because it creaked, and it might have caused his dad to wake. When he reached the attic door, Tom felt a thrill of excitement. He knew that there would be lots of interesting things in the attic. Otherwise, why would he not be allowed to enter it?
With a slightly trembling hand, the boy opened the door and switched on the light. The first things he saw were lots of cardboard boxes, racks of old cloths, broken chairs, and lampposts. He found boxes of old stuffed toys, a broken bicycle, some tools, and jars of screws and bolts.
As Tom moved farther in, he noticed that a light was out in the back. He pondered whether he should go any farther. Then, he heard a noise coming from the dark section. It scared Tom, but he was curious. He called out, “Is anyone back there?” When there was no response, he decided that he had seen enough. He was disappointed that the attic was not more interesting. When he heard another noise coming from the dark area, he decided to check it out. He moved carefully, wishing that he had brought a flashlight. He was about to go back downstairs to get one when he saw a dull glow ahead, and with it, he felt a cool breeze that smelled like fresh night air. Tom continued walking toward the strange glow, not realizing that he was moving into an otherworldly dimension. He discovered that the strange glow was coming from a moon. It was a moon that did not look at all like the one from his world. There was enough light now to see that he was walking on a dirt road, and he could see outlines of trees and boulders along the road.
Behind him, he heard a wolf howl. He turned, and a young woman stepped out from behind a rock. She was pretty, but she didn’t look quite human. She was taller than any woman Tom had ever seen. She had fangs, and her eyes looked like the eyes of a wolf. “Welcome to your new home. This is the land of the long night. It is always dark; dark things live here. You are here because you have done an evil act.”
Terrified, the boy stammered, “I… um… got lost. That’s all. I was in my attic, and I heard a noise….”
“You would not be here if you did not belong here. This is where you will stay. I do not have time to bother with you further; I must go.”
“But you don’t understand. I cannot stay here. My parents will worry and be sad if I do not return home.”
The woman’s expression seemed to reveal a moment of compassion for the boy, and then a look of anger took its place. “Leave me!” she growled. Then she howled like a wolf.
Tom was so scared that he just ran off. He called for his mother and father, but of course, they could not hear him. Eventually he tired and sat down under a tree. He rested his back against the trunk. What now? He wondered. Then he started talking to himself. “What am I going to do? I have nowhere to go and no one to take care of me. I have no food or water. I’ll just sit here until I die.” Tom hugged his knees and cried. Every so often he would call out, “Daddy, Daddy I’m sorry. I am lost.”
The boy jumped up in shock as he heard a mocking voice say, “Daddy, Daddy I am lost… waa, waa.” A hideous laugh followed.
“Who’s that? Who’s there?” In response, an ugly, old elf with a long, gray beard, wrinkled face, evil eyes, wearing a pointed, black hat and carrying a knarled walking stick, stepped out from behind the tree. “Who are you?” Tom asked nervously.
The old elf was almost as tall as the boy. He stuck his ugly face right into Tom’s face and said, “I am your new daddy.” The elf’s breath stank so bad that the boy had to hold his breath. “You are going to be my slave and do all the dirty work I do not want to do.”
Tom took a step back and breathed. “No, you can’t do that. That’s not right! You will get in trouble.”
“Look who’s talking. I know why you are here. You lied to your parents and disobeyed them by going into the attic. You did not stay home to watch your sister. In fact, you threatened her and made her cry. Who are you to tell me what is not right? You do what you want to do. Why can’t I?”
What could the boy say? The elf was right. He was guilty, and he knew it. Tom just hung his head and shrugged.
“That’s better.” The elf snorted arrogantly. “Come with me, and I will take you to my forest, your new home. The miserable boy walked, with head bowed, behind the elf. Eventually they came to a forest of mushrooms. Never before had Tom seen a mushroom as big as a house. There were thousands of them all different sizes and colors. “Get some sleep, boy. Tomorrow you will be working until you can no longer stand.”
“I’m hungry. May I please have something to eat?” Tom asked pitifully.
“You can eat the mushrooms; they are not poisonous. In fact, that is all there is to eat around here. Now, I am going to be close by. Do not even think of running away. There are wolves in this land, hungry wolves that would kill you in a flash if it were not for me to protect you. They do not eat mushrooms.” The elf laughed his nasty laugh.
Tom picked some of the little mushrooms that were scattered around. They were rubbery and bitter. He gagged when he tried to swallow them, so he gave up trying to eat, curled up under a large mushroom, and sniffed as he cried.
“Stop your blubbering. You got what you wanted didn’t you? You got to explore the attic. Aren’t you enjoying your reward for all your planning and scheming to get what you wanted? Now go to sleep. You have lots to do tomorrow.” The elf walked into the forest and disappeared.
Just as Tom was falling asleep, he thought he saw a wolf standing near him. He sat up with a gasp. The tall woman with the fangs that he met earlier was standing by him. “Be quiet, or the elf will hear you. Come with me, and I will save you from this wicked creature.”
“I think you are a wolf. If I go with you, you will eat me as soon as we are alone,” Tom whispered.
“Do not be silly, boy. If I wanted, I could have eaten you when we first met. Now let’s go.”
“No. You have fangs!”
“So, you have teeth. Are you going to bite me?”
“No!” Tom said.
“Okay then, let’s get you out of here, and be quiet.”
But it was too late. The elf caught them before they got very far. “And where do you think you are going with my slave, wolf? He is mine now. You had your chance to eat him when he first came into our world. Leave us, and do not come back unless you want to feel the power of my staff.” The elf pointed his walking stick at the wolf.
The woman bent down and whispered in the boy’s ear. “When I attack the elf, you run until you come to the dirt road. Turn right, and follow it back the way you came.”
“Enough, wolf! Leave, or you will die!” the elf shouted.
“Don’t get your beard in a twist. I’m going.” The woman took two steps heading away from the elf.
The elf put his staff back at his side and said, “Come, boy. It is time to work on my--” Before the elf finished his sentence, the woman turned and transformed so fast that when she leapt, she was fully changed into the form of a wolf. The elf did not have time to raise his staff.
Tom ran as fast as he could. He heard vicious growls from the wolf and screams from the elf. The scared boy kept running until he thought his racing heart would burst. When he arrived at the end of the dirt road, he expected to see the tunnel that led back to his attic, but all he saw was a wall of rock.
“There you are,” said the lady/wolf who had saved him.
“Where is the passage back to my house?”
“I told you when we first met that this is where you belong now.”
“But I don’t understand. You said you would save me.” Tom looked as if he were about to cry again.
“I have saved you. The elf is dead, and you are no longer his slave. Now you are going to save me.”
Tom looked confused. “What do you mean?” The woman smiled, and the smile looked like a wolf bearing its teeth to its prey. It filled the boy with terror. In a voice shaky with fear he said, “You lied to me. You are going to eat me after all, aren’t you? Why didn‘t you just eat me when we first met?”
“I wasn’t hungry then. Now I am famished. We will be doing each other a favor. I saved you from a life of wretched slavery, and you will save me from starvation. There isn’t much to eat around here, and I do not eat mushrooms.”
“What about the elf? Didn’t you eat him?”
“Of course not; I hate elf meat. It is tough and putrid tasting. But little boys are juicy and sweet.”
Tom was on the verge of sheer panic. The only thing left for him to do was beg for his life. “Please do not eat me. I’m sorry for what I did.”
“I’m curious,” said the wolf. “Have you learned anything from this experience?”
“Why should I tell you? You are just going to eat me, and the only revenge I have is leaving you curious with an unanswered question.”
“Answering my question will buy a few more seconds of life. Is not life more precious than a rather weak attempt at revenge?”
Tom thought about it for a minute and then said, “I have learned that getting what you want isn’t all it’s cracked up to be if you have to betray and hurt others to get it.” As soon as the boy finished his statement, he heard a grinding sound coming from the rock wall behind him. He turned to see an opening appear.
“That’s it, Tom; it is over,” the wolf/woman said. “You no longer belong in the land of the long night, and I have lost my meal. A spark of wisdom has ignited in your soul. Go back to your family.”
Tom did not question his change of fortune. He hurried back to his house as quickly as he could. Tom did not tell anyone of his adventures, but he did confess his wrongdoings to his parents and apologized to his sister. Tom’s parents punished him, but he did not resent it one bit. There was nothing his loving parents would do to him that was anywhere close to what he almost suffered.
Forbidden Attic(Steve Groll)
Tom was thirteen. He lived in a big, old house on the edge of town. Like many old houses, this one had a large attic at the top of the stairs. The attic was off limits to Tom and his little sister, but the boy was so fascinated with the forbidden place that he became obsessed with the idea of exploring it. The question was, how and when could he do it without getting caught. One Sunday morning, he woke up with the answer. Tom’s parents always took a nap on Sunday afternoons. He would tell them at lunchtime that he had loads of homework, and he would be in his room working on it for the rest of the day. For effect he added, “I probably won’t be done by dinnertime, but I think I will be finished by bedtime.” The truth was that he didn’t have any homework; he had finished it the night before.
Tom’s mother said, “Just be sure to keep an eye on your sister, and you two be quiet. Dad and I are going to take a nap.”
“Okay, Mom, don’t worry about us; we’ll be fine.” Tom waited in his room until he was sure that his parents were asleep. Then he began his assent to the attic.
When he was about halfway up, he heard his sister’s bedroom door open. He looked back and saw the little blond girl in her yellow play dress looking at him. “Daddy said we are not to go into the attic.”
Tom scrunched up his freckled face, squinted his dark brown eyes, and gave his sister his meanest look. “You go back into your room, and stay there. If you tell mom or dad that I went into the attic, I am going to make you sorry.”
The little six-year-old had tears welling up in her blue eyes as she stepped back into her room and quietly closed her door. He was free now to spend as much time as he needed to explore the attic without interference.
It was a good thing that he remembered to step over the third step from the top because it creaked, and it might have caused his dad to wake. When he reached the attic door, Tom felt a thrill of excitement. He knew that there would be lots of interesting things in the attic. Otherwise, why would he not be allowed to enter it?
With a slightly trembling hand, the boy opened the door and switched on the light. The first things he saw were lots of cardboard boxes, racks of old cloths, broken chairs, and lampposts. He found boxes of old stuffed toys, a broken bicycle, some tools, and jars of screws and bolts.
As Tom moved farther in, he noticed that a light was out in the back. He pondered whether he should go any farther. Then, he heard a noise coming from the dark section. It scared Tom, but he was curious. He called out, “Is anyone back there?” When there was no response, he decided that he had seen enough. He was disappointed that the attic was not more interesting. When he heard another noise coming from the dark area, he decided to check it out. He moved carefully, wishing that he had brought a flashlight. He was about to go back downstairs to get one when he saw a dull glow ahead, and with it, he felt a cool breeze that smelled like fresh night air. Tom continued walking toward the strange glow, not realizing that he was moving into an otherworldly dimension. He discovered that the strange glow was coming from a moon. It was a moon that did not look at all like the one from his world. There was enough light now to see that he was walking on a dirt road, and he could see outlines of trees and boulders along the road.
Behind him, he heard a wolf howl. He turned, and a young woman stepped out from behind a rock. She was pretty, but she didn’t look quite human. She was taller than any woman Tom had ever seen. She had fangs, and her eyes looked like the eyes of a wolf. “Welcome to your new home. This is the land of the long night. It is always dark; dark things live here. You are here because you have done an evil act.”
Terrified, the boy stammered, “I… um… got lost. That’s all. I was in my attic, and I heard a noise….”
“You would not be here if you did not belong here. This is where you will stay. I do not have time to bother with you further; I must go.”
“But you don’t understand. I cannot stay here. My parents will worry and be sad if I do not return home.”
The woman’s expression seemed to reveal a moment of compassion for the boy, and then a look of anger took its place. “Leave me!” she growled. Then she howled like a wolf.
Tom was so scared that he just ran off. He called for his mother and father, but of course, they could not hear him. Eventually he tired and sat down under a tree. He rested his back against the trunk. What now? He wondered. Then he started talking to himself. “What am I going to do? I have nowhere to go and no one to take care of me. I have no food or water. I’ll just sit here until I die.” Tom hugged his knees and cried. Every so often he would call out, “Daddy, Daddy I’m sorry. I am lost.”
The boy jumped up in shock as he heard a mocking voice say, “Daddy, Daddy I am lost… waa, waa.” A hideous laugh followed.
“Who’s that? Who’s there?” In response, an ugly, old elf with a long, gray beard, wrinkled face, evil eyes, wearing a pointed, black hat and carrying a knarled walking stick, stepped out from behind the tree. “Who are you?” Tom asked nervously.
The old elf was almost as tall as the boy. He stuck his ugly face right into Tom’s face and said, “I am your new daddy.” The elf’s breath stank so bad that the boy had to hold his breath. “You are going to be my slave and do all the dirty work I do not want to do.”
Tom took a step back and breathed. “No, you can’t do that. That’s not right! You will get in trouble.”
“Look who’s talking. I know why you are here. You lied to your parents and disobeyed them by going into the attic. You did not stay home to watch your sister. In fact, you threatened her and made her cry. Who are you to tell me what is not right? You do what you want to do. Why can’t I?”
What could the boy say? The elf was right. He was guilty, and he knew it. Tom just hung his head and shrugged.
“That’s better.” The elf snorted arrogantly. “Come with me, and I will take you to my forest, your new home. The miserable boy walked, with head bowed, behind the elf. Eventually they came to a forest of mushrooms. Never before had Tom seen a mushroom as big as a house. There were thousands of them all different sizes and colors. “Get some sleep, boy. Tomorrow you will be working until you can no longer stand.”
“I’m hungry. May I please have something to eat?” Tom asked pitifully.
“You can eat the mushrooms; they are not poisonous. In fact, that is all there is to eat around here. Now, I am going to be close by. Do not even think of running away. There are wolves in this land, hungry wolves that would kill you in a flash if it were not for me to protect you. They do not eat mushrooms.” The elf laughed his nasty laugh.
Tom picked some of the little mushrooms that were scattered around. They were rubbery and bitter. He gagged when he tried to swallow them, so he gave up trying to eat, curled up under a large mushroom, and sniffed as he cried.
“Stop your blubbering. You got what you wanted didn’t you? You got to explore the attic. Aren’t you enjoying your reward for all your planning and scheming to get what you wanted? Now go to sleep. You have lots to do tomorrow.” The elf walked into the forest and disappeared.
Just as Tom was falling asleep, he thought he saw a wolf standing near him. He sat up with a gasp. The tall woman with the fangs that he met earlier was standing by him. “Be quiet, or the elf will hear you. Come with me, and I will save you from this wicked creature.”
“I think you are a wolf. If I go with you, you will eat me as soon as we are alone,” Tom whispered.
“Do not be silly, boy. If I wanted, I could have eaten you when we first met. Now let’s go.”
“No. You have fangs!”
“So, you have teeth. Are you going to bite me?”
“No!” Tom said.
“Okay then, let’s get you out of here, and be quiet.”
But it was too late. The elf caught them before they got very far. “And where do you think you are going with my slave, wolf? He is mine now. You had your chance to eat him when he first came into our world. Leave us, and do not come back unless you want to feel the power of my staff.” The elf pointed his walking stick at the wolf.
The woman bent down and whispered in the boy’s ear. “When I attack the elf, you run until you come to the dirt road. Turn right, and follow it back the way you came.”
“Enough, wolf! Leave, or you will die!” the elf shouted.
“Don’t get your beard in a twist. I’m going.” The woman took two steps heading away from the elf.
The elf put his staff back at his side and said, “Come, boy. It is time to work on my--” Before the elf finished his sentence, the woman turned and transformed so fast that when she leapt, she was fully changed into the form of a wolf. The elf did not have time to raise his staff.
Tom ran as fast as he could. He heard vicious growls from the wolf and screams from the elf. The scared boy kept running until he thought his racing heart would burst. When he arrived at the end of the dirt road, he expected to see the tunnel that led back to his attic, but all he saw was a wall of rock.
“There you are,” said the lady/wolf who had saved him.
“Where is the passage back to my house?”
“I told you when we first met that this is where you belong now.”
“But I don’t understand. You said you would save me.” Tom looked as if he were about to cry again.
“I have saved you. The elf is dead, and you are no longer his slave. Now you are going to save me.”
Tom looked confused. “What do you mean?” The woman smiled, and the smile looked like a wolf bearing its teeth to its prey. It filled the boy with terror. In a voice shaky with fear he said, “You lied to me. You are going to eat me after all, aren’t you? Why didn‘t you just eat me when we first met?”
“I wasn’t hungry then. Now I am famished. We will be doing each other a favor. I saved you from a life of wretched slavery, and you will save me from starvation. There isn’t much to eat around here, and I do not eat mushrooms.”
“What about the elf? Didn’t you eat him?”
“Of course not; I hate elf meat. It is tough and putrid tasting. But little boys are juicy and sweet.”
Tom was on the verge of sheer panic. The only thing left for him to do was beg for his life. “Please do not eat me. I’m sorry for what I did.”
“I’m curious,” said the wolf. “Have you learned anything from this experience?”
“Why should I tell you? You are just going to eat me, and the only revenge I have is leaving you curious with an unanswered question.”
“Answering my question will buy a few more seconds of life. Is not life more precious than a rather weak attempt at revenge?”
Tom thought about it for a minute and then said, “I have learned that getting what you want isn’t all it’s cracked up to be if you have to betray and hurt others to get it.” As soon as the boy finished his statement, he heard a grinding sound coming from the rock wall behind him. He turned to see an opening appear.
“That’s it, Tom; it is over,” the wolf/woman said. “You no longer belong in the land of the long night, and I have lost my meal. A spark of wisdom has ignited in your soul. Go back to your family.”
Tom did not question his change of fortune. He hurried back to his house as quickly as he could. Tom did not tell anyone of his adventures, but he did confess his wrongdoings to his parents and apologized to his sister. Tom’s parents punished him, but he did not resent it one bit. There was nothing his loving parents would do to him that was anywhere close to what he almost suffered.
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