Red: A Modern Fairytale Retellingby Jessi McPhersonGenre:YA FantasyEveryone has read the tale of Little Red Riding Hood... Such a carefree, naïve girl who fell victim to the wolf and had to be saved by the Huntsman. I’d like to set that story straight. It all began with a girl, a curse, and wolf. We all have a hero inside. All it takes is to believe. Cara knew the legends of her village but she never thought she'd become one.
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“Please help me,” a weak voice said in the distance. Cara ran toward the faintsound, and on the ground found a young man, no older than she, lying covered inblood and wounds.“Oh, god. Are you okay?” He was silent. She knelt beside him to check hispulse. It was there, but it was weak. “Well, hang on. Hopefully Gran hassomething to help.” Carefully she lifted him, but it took everything she had tobring him to the trail. She knew there was no way that she would be able to carryhim all the way there. “Please stay alive until I get back,” she whispered to himand took off running. It only took a few minutes to make it the rest of the way tothe cottage. “Gran, Gran, please come quick!” she yelled as she headed for thedoor.“Dear child, what has you all worked up?”“I need your cart. There was a young man in the woods, and he’s injured.”Her Gran looked up at the moon. “Come, child. Show me where.” Theyhitched her horse to the cart and Cara led her Gran to where she had left him.“Was he alone?” Gran asked.“Yes, and gravely injured.” As they rounded the bend, they could see that hewas still lying on the side of the road.“Oh dear. He’s been attacked. Come, let’s get him to the cottage and tend tohis wounds. We don’t have much time,” her Grandmother urged.“He’s coming,” he groaned. Her Gran knelt beside him and whisperedsomething. He seemed to relax.“What did you say to him?”“Only that he was safe and being treated,” she replied. They walked quietlyback to her cottage. “Place him on the cot, dear. Do you have the elixirs yourmother sent?”“Yes, here in my bag.”“Good. I need those− also, some wolfbane and jasmine from my shelf.” Caragrabbed the plants that she had been asked to get and sat beside herGrandmother, watching her work.“I don’t recognize him from the village,” Cara said, placing the plants in themortar for her Gran.“No, I don’t suppose he is a villager.”“Where do you think he came from?”“I think we will find out, either when he wakes or when the sun rises,” herGrandmother said.“What do you mean?”“You’ll see, child, and it’s about time.”Cara didn’t understand what she meant. She watched as her Grandmotherpulverized the herbs and noticed she spoke quietly as she did. “What are yousaying?”“Just a little spell to help with the healing. He is in a lot of pain and won’t healuntil he calms.”“So it’s true. You are a witch.”“That’s a strong word, but yes. You are, as well. You come from a long line ofthem. We are here to help protect the Hylands. That is why your mother sent youtonight.”“What do you mean?” Cara asked, wonderment evident on her face.“She noticed you’ve been changing and slowly coming into your gifts overthe last few months. There’s a lot you are going to learn about, but now we mustattend to this man.”Cara was in shock. Her Grandmother was, in fact, a witch, and apparently, sowas she. She started to shake.“It’s okay, sweet child.”“Why didn’t you or Mother tell me sooner?”“We weren’t sure if you would inherit any gifts. Not every child that is borninto our line has the power. We had to wait.”She couldn’t believe it. Their attention was drawn to the young man as hestarted groaning and speaking frantically. “Lily, Lily run!” he yelled, thrashingabout.“Come, hold him down while I work, dear.” Grandmother mixed herbs andcovered his wounds. Cara still hadn’t moved. “Cara, snap out of it. Yes, I knowit’s a lot to process− and not how we intended to tell you− but right now I needyou to focus, or he will die.”Cara blinked a few times and moved to do what she had been asked. His facecalmed slightly as she laid her hands on him, but the anguish was still evident.She finally took a moment to look him over. She didn’t know why, but she feltcompelled to gaze at his perfect figure. Even covered in wounds, dirt, and blood,his beauty was evident− from the sculpt of his chest to the contours of his face.She slid the blood-matted hair from his face, and he slightly opened the mostbeautiful green eyes she had ever seen. As he gazed into hers, he said, “Pleasefind Lily.” Then he closed his eyes again.“Who is Lily?” she asked. He didn’t answer. Instead, he started thrashing again.
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