"Stunning, absolutely marvelous," Red admired, holding up one of Gretel's photos. Gretel moved about the room, trying to organize her photos and perhaps clean up a little. The whole suite was a mess seeing how she turned it into a makeshift darkroom. Photos hung everywhere all over the room from thin, white strings, some dry and some still wet. Two tables had been set up with various trays of chemicals, making an assembly line for developing photos. A hint of the fumes was still in the air, though practically unnoticeable after a few minutes of acclimation.
"The stench was worse when I first poured the trays," Gretel had assured them.
"I'll take your word," Goldy stated, casually looking at the photos strung up all over the place.
"Never have I seen the forest documented so beautifully," Red stated, looking at photos one after the other.
"That is because this is not documentation," Gretel stated, holding up one of her photos to them, "This is artistic interpretation." She put the photo down and searched for the rest of her equipment.
"Fancy that, a real artist in our midst," Red smiled.
"If that is the case, then I would love to hear the rest of your story's interpretation," Goldy said, picking a photo from its hanging place and studying it intently.
Gretel found her satchel and propped it up on the bed. "I suppose I can do two things at once," she said, filling her bag with new exposure plates. "Where had I left off? Oh yes, I remember..."
"Hansel would visit me at night anytime father had one of his mad frenzies. Those nights, laying next to him in bed, I would think of the future and what was to become of me. My days of childhood were coming to a close and I had little idea of what that meant. I thought of Hansel, too. I never realized it at the time, but I was growing more substantial feelings for him. We were never caught in our nighttime meetings. Hansel would silently leave before the sun rose every morning, walking with such light steps that I rarely woke from the sounds of his rustling. I would awaken to find him gone and wonder if it was all just a dream.
When I was eighteen, father desperately wanted to marry me off. I suppose he and my step-mother had grown so tired of looking at me that any suitor would do. Boys and men alike began to show up at our house. Step-mother would paint me up as some powdered floozy and sit me on the couch for each courting. I felt disgusting as each man stood before me making his offers. Some tried to bribe me with money. Some tried their hardest to court me with shallow, poetic nonsense of flowers and beauty. I felt like an item up for auction. The highest bidder would take me home and make me his trophy. I suppose that is why I rejected them all. My dignity was the very last thing I could call my own. But my independence infuriated my father. So many times he raised his hand to strike me, but he never did. He knew Hansel was nearby and would come to my rescue, at least that was what I liked to believe.
The real trouble all started as the latest of my suitors was leaving one day. Father was excessively enraged that afternoon. He broke anything he could get his hands on, making as much noise as he could. He grabbed a handful of my hair and dragged me across the house, a whiskey bottle in his hand. I remember the first strike. It was a hard blow to the head. After that, the next seven or eight just seemed fuzzy. I could still feel the pain, but I did not know where I was or what was happening.
Apparently I was screaming, because Hansel heard and rushed in. He pulled my father off of me and threw him to the side. He picked me up in his arms and carried me outside to the shed he lived in. I regained my senses about that time because I distinctly remember Hansel holding me in his arms and asking me if I was okay. My nose was bleeding profusely and my eye was already starting to swell shut. But for the five minutes of peace we had in that darkened shed, I felt better than I had in a long time.
My father finally came around, pounding on the shed's door. He said he was sorry, begging for me to return to the house so we could be a family again. What a liar he was. Hansel did not believe it, but something in me wanted to. After a few minutes of tears and apologies, Hansel and I walked out of the shed together. Father tried to hug me, but I walked past him and went straight to my room. I spent the next few hours crying to myself and dressing my wounds. I wanted to fly away, flee and never come back. I wanted to take Hansel and just get lost in the woods. Little did I know, I was about to get my wish.
At around midnight, Hansel climbed up to my window and knocked on it with added desperation. We sat on the bed and he told me what he had heard. Father and my step-mother were planning to take me into the woods in the morning. We were going to travel farther into the forest than I had ever gone before, and they were going to leave me there, undoubtably to die. I buried my face in my hands, crying as I had never cried before. Hansel held me tenderly, my tears soaking his shirt. But after a few minutes, he pulled away from me and looked me directly in the eyes.
'Gretel, I know you are sad. But right now, I need you to be strong,' he said to me, holding my face in his hands and brushing away my tears with his thumbs. 'Can you do that for me?'
I nodded my head, even though I was not sure I could keep that promise. He hugged me again, hushing my tears. 'I'll think of something,' he promised me, '... I'll think of something.'
He left earlier than usual that night. My chest ached with fear and pain when he was gone. I felt more alone than ever. I could not sleep even for a moment, I was so terrified. The morning sun creeping in through my window felt like an executioner coming towards me with an axe. I sat on the bed with my knees up under my chin, waiting for my step-mother's knock on the door. My heart began to race when I heard her footsteps approaching. And even though I was expecting it, the knock on the door made me jump and turn white as a ghost.
'Gretel, get up. We have plans this morning,' she said.
'Yes, ma'am,' I answered in a mousey tone. Looking into my closet, it felt as though I were choosing the outfit I would take to the grave. I picked my favorite dress, a beautiful frock of lilac, and found my best petticoat and corset to wear underneath. I even put a purple ribbon in my hair, crying as I looked at myself in the mirror. The only article of questionable elegance I chose to wear were my high, black work boots. If I must walk to my death, I did not want my feet to hurt.
For one reason or another, I did not think to fill my dress to the brim with breakfast rolls. The shock of the situation was very overbearing, like a giant weight on my shoulders. I barely had enough courage to look my parents in the eyes. We left shortly after breakfast. I walked behind my father and step-mother. His pocket bulged out with the shape of a pistol. My eyes watered as soon as I saw it. I let the tears fall, but I made no noise. I just watched the path and periodically looked over my shoulder. Where was Hansel?
We walked until my legs felt like jelly. I was so relieved to stop and rest that I almost forgot this was probably where they were going to leave me. After all, we were easily miles and miles away from home in a part of the woods we had never seen before. Step-mother pulled a small luncheon from her basket and we ate. Being surrounded by the woods, the reality of the situation had finally caught up with me, so I stuffed my entire luncheon in my dress for later.
Father said he was tired and required a nap before we left for home. Step-mother agreed, as if it were her line in a play. They told me I should rest, too, so I would not faint on the trail. With grim composure, I nodded and laid my head down on the ground. I closed my eyes but dared not fall asleep. For a good fifteen minutes, I could only think of Hansel. Where was he? Had he given up hope on me as I had myself? I assumed he did. Why else would I be so close to my end with no help in sight?
I heard my parents gather their things behind me. They tried to be quiet, but every sound they made would have set off an avalanche on a mountain. I listened to them, my eyes red and puffy from my endless crying. Their sounds disappeared slowly into the woods. After I was sure they were gone, I sat up on my hands and looked around. The woods had not changed. The birds continued to sing and the trees still waved their branches with each gust of wind. And yet, they seemed so much scarier.
A rustling in the woods startled me, and I scrambled to my feet to face whatever the threat would be.
'Gretel? Is that you?' a voice asked.
Emerging from the woods was a familiar bushel of radiant red hair. I did not hesitate to rush into Hansel's arms. He held me as tight as a long lost lover.
'You didn't forget me,' I gasped, still clinging to him.
'How could I forget you," he said, placing a sweet kiss on my head.
The statement practically made my heart skip a beat. But I wiped away the tears in my eyes and asked him how we were going to get home. He pulled a small bit of bread from his pocket. He saw us leaving the house and could only think to grab a few uneaten breakfast rolls from the kitchen and leave breadcrumbs along the path. The trail of breadcrumbs would lead us home.
I smiled and threw my arms around him happily. He wasted no time in taking my hand and leading back through the forest. The breadcrumbs remained just as he had planned, and he watched the trail closely as we walked. But after a few minutes, he stopped.
'What's the matter,' I asked.
He was looking straight ahead where the crumbs should have led. He put a hand to his head in exasperation, running his fingers through his thick bangs. 'The birds have eaten the breadcrumbs,' he said.
I followed his gaze and noticed a small gathering of birds picking at the ground. The trail was indeed gone.
Hansel was clearly upset. I suppose he felt as though he failed me. But I just put my hand on his shoulder and told him it was alright. We would be strong together and find a way out of the forest. Besides, being lost in the woods with him was so much better than being back with my father and step-mother."
"Oh my," Goldy suddenly said.
Gretel and Red were sitting on the bed, the camera equipment ready to go. They turned to look at Goldy and noticed she was holding a very particular photo.
"Where... how... Did you take this photo?" Goldy struggled.
Gretel finally realized which photo Goldy had found. "Oh dear!" She exclaimed loudly, jumping to her feet. She reached out a hand to snatch the photo away from Goldy, but the blonde evaded her action and continued to look at it.
"Goldy! I'm so sorry, I should have told you," she apologized profusely.
"What's all this now?" Red got up from the bed and looked over Goldy's shoulder. Her eyes immediately grew wide with surprise. "Oh... wow," she stated, visibly thrown off balance by the sensual photo but trying to control her reaction.
"I... it was... I saw you and your gentleman friend in the woods. It was so beautiful that I just had to..." Gretel tried as hard as she could to explain.
Goldy's eyes could not be torn away from it. "It... it is beautiful," she said softly.
Red was surprised by her admiration. She looked at the photo once more. The couple was outlined with a heavenly glow through the trees. The moment was perfect. The arch of Goldy's back accentuated the curves of her naked breasts. Jonathan held her so sweetly and her expression of pure bliss sent shivers up Red's spine. She could barely speak over the raw beauty of the photo.
"Gretel... you made me look so beautiful," Goldy almost whispered.
The raven haired photographer was stunned. Her two companions practically drooled over the still. It seemed they appreciated the beauty and splendor of the shot just as much as she had.
"Gretel, may I have this," Goldy asked eagerly.
"I... I can make duplicates. You can both have one if you like," Gretel said.
Red looked as though she had a mischievous thought come to her mind. "I love the idea of that. But if you will excuse me ladies, I must retrieve something from my room before we set off into the woods. I'll meet you in the garden in ten minutes."
My apologies for the length of this chapter. I really needed to get this huge chunk of Gretel's story out of the way.