Chapter Four
The sound of the ax biting into the base of the tree echoed across the clearing. Today Winter had ordered them to collect wood to build a stronger fortress. Katyusha and Ivan were given one ax each and a length of rope to chop down the tall pines that were south of their home.
"Enemies can attack you at any moment," the General explained while taking a swig from his flask. "How do you suppose you can defend yourselves in a thrown together pile of shambles like this one?"
One, two, three... One, two, three... Ivan found some sort of comfort in the motions of hacking at the trunk. There was a release in the sound of the ax head making contact with its target that he could not quite understand. When the tree was weak enough, he pulled hard on the rope he had tied a little higher up on the tree's trunk until he heard a loud crack. He ran away as the tree came crashing down.
Ivan laughed as he too fell into the soft, powdery snow both sending up small waves of frosty white. Laying on his back -staring up at the sky- he smiled hardily. The sky almost looked blue today. Until a dark cloud appeared above him.
He jolted up onto his feet and stared absolutely terrified into the eyes of an enraged Winter. Ivan flinched as the man tightly grabbed his shoulder with unnecessary force. with his finger digging into Ivan's flesh, he asked with a snarl, "Tell me boy... Where is the girl?"
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It's not like that was the first time my sister had disappeared. She sometimes left me alone with... a concerned guardian. Katyusha always came back though. Always.
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Ivan sat alone in front of their home with a handful of snow pressed against his eye. Winter was inside their house drinking and waiting for when Katyusha would return. Even though he iced his eye early, Ivan could feel a shiner beginning to form as the lids started to swell shut.
The sound of crunching snow caused him to look up and see his timid sister waling toward him. She stopped a foot away and stood in front of the door. Quietly, before she walked into the shack in a voice that was hardly audible, she whispered, "I'm sorry, Ivan."
He cried. Nothing could drown out the sound coming from inside, so he cried. His sister was screaming. He screamed. Winter was cursing. He screamed louder. Boards were creaking. He begged it to stop. The wind died down. Snow fell. Beautifully cruel snow fell mocking them with its unchallenged purity. He cried.
Finally, Winter exited pulling the squirming girl out with him by her short blonde hair. He pulled Ivan up by his jacket. "You two are to stay together. If you are not fighting together, you fight each other."
Both of them looked at each other frantically. Neither knew what they were supposed to do. Fear seized a hold of Ivan's heart. Was his fears from a few nights prior going to come true?
In a deep guttural voice, General Winter barked his order, " Fight, you worthless pond scum!"