7
Finally, I was reunited with my brother Arnie. Sam was our guide to the Medicine Pig. Light was beginning to shine on our mission.
"I almost did not make it this far," said Arnie. "It's almost impossible to escape the Wolf."
"You haven't escaped the Wolf yet," I said. "We are still in his territory. We are still vulnerable."
"That's true," he said. "I barely got to this point. He was chasing me and I fell down. But I managed to get one good swing with the baseball bat, hitting him in the eye. That was enough to get away."
"Yeah, well me and Sam had our own share of adventure," I said. "The Wolf came to my safe house."
"He did?" asked Arnie. "What happened?"
"Well, first he tried blowing it down," I told him. "That is how he got Timmy's house to fall down. He has a mighty blow. Timmy's house fell very easily. But I built my house with bricks. The Wolf wasn't able to do anything to my house. Then he started ramming himself into it. He was slowly weakening the house, but I guess he wanted to try something else. So the Wolf came through a fireplace we built, but we burned him. He's probably still alive, though.
"Do you think he could blow down my house?" asked Arnie.
"I don't know," I said.
"Most stick houses fall," said Sam. "But some manage to stay up. "I'm not sure with this one."
"I think we should leave now," I said.
"Wait," said Arnie. "Isn't it better to stay here overnight? We'll be able to see better and travel better in the daytime."
"That is true," said Sam. "But the more time we wait, the more time the Wolf will have to find us. And your house may not be able to withstand his power. We must leave before the Wolf discovers where we are."
Bang, bang, bang! Went a powerful knock on the door.
"Too late," I said. "I think he's already found us."
Bang, bang!
"Is that the Wolf?" asked Arnie.
"Of course it is," I said. "And I'm sure he's angry. Grab your bat, Arnie. We may have to fight."
I clenched my ax and Arnie grabbed his baseball bat. Sam held a flashlight.
Bang, bang! Dust was falling off the door with each hit. My heart started beating faster. Arnie and I on the opposite wall of the door just in case the Wolf decided to ram himself inside. We waited for the Wolf to act.
Bang!
"OPEN THE DOOR!!!" roared the Wolf. "I have no time for foolishness."
"You'll have to knock it down, Wolf!" I yelled. "And if you get in, you will have to deal with two furious pigs!"
"Do you know who you are talking to?!" said the Wolf. "I will crush you! You don't have a chance against me. You are a fool to challenge me!"
"Then fools we will be," Arnie said.
"It will only take three seconds to knock down this house and kill you both," the Wolf said. "If you open the door now, I will let one of you live. If not, I will kill you both by ripping you apart with my teeth. Now, let me in!!"
"Sorry, Wolf," Arnie said. "Not by the hair on my chinny chin chin. I won't let you in."
The Wolf gave a terrifying roar. "You've razed the little patience I had left, little pigs. If you won't open this door, then I'll huff and I'll puff and I'll blow your stick house in!"
"Do it then!" I told him.'
Seconds later the powerful blow came. Sticks began to fly in all directions, hitting and scratching us. The wind stopped. The house was in a very weak condition. There were many hours in the walls and ceiling. Then the wind started again. The sticks fell on us, burying us. The house was destroyed.
I struggled and struggled to get out of the sticks, but could not do it. It was as if I was pinned down somehow.
"Aaaaaaahhhh!" Arnie screamed from somewhere above the sticks. What was happening? Was the Wolf attacking Arnie? I had to get out of the sticks. I pushed with all my strength, slowly emerging from the abundance of sticks.
I saw that Arnie was still alive. He was throwing sticks at the Wolf. The Wolf growled, attempting to dodge the sticks. Arnie was keeping the Wolf at a distance. The Wolf tried moving closer, but he would just get hit more and more. Some sticks would pierce his skin and stay in. The Wolf would pull them out
The Wolf oddly did not have any evidence of being burned. Did he reach the pond that quickly? He was almost completely unscathed. The only injuries were the few wounds the sticks created. It was like he healed himself from the burns.
I ran next to Arnie to help. Sam came up running behind me. I began picking up sticks and throwing them at the Wolf also. Sam just watched. "I would help," he said. "But it's obvious I couldn't pick up one of these big sticks if I tried."
Although we were keeping the Wolf away, we knew it would not last long. The Wolf was growing impatient and more angry. He started swatting at the sticks being thrown at him. Some sticks were hit back at us and we had to dodge them. The Wolf could no longer be restrained.
We stopped throwing sticks. The three of us slowly walked backwards as the Wolf neared us.
"Run!!!" I screamed. We all spun around and began running.
Surprisingly, I was in the lead, jetting across the ground at high speed. The others ran rather fast also; they were running for their lives. Despite our speed, the Wolf was still gaining on us.
"What's wrong?!" boomed the Wolf. "I thought I would have to deal with two furious pigs!"
I decided to be brave and use the ax, but then I realized that I did not have it. I dropped it when I was trapped under sticks. But Arnie still had his bat.
"Arnie, give my your bat!" I yelled.
He threw the bat at me and I caught it. I stopped, turned around, and swung. Bam! The bat crashed into the Wolf's right, front leg. The Wolf plunged to the ground. I jumped out of the way just in time. But the Wolf was not down for long. It was only seconds before he was up again.
"What are we going to do?" asked Arnie.
Although it was dark and we could probably hide from the Wolf, he would still find us with his excellent sense of smell. The only thing we could do now was run.
"We can't beat him," I said. "So we'll just have to run. Run!"
We started running again. Running seemed to be all we were able to do since we came into the woods. And usually one of us dies anyway.
Then I heard my brother scream.
I spun around. Arnie was on his back, the Wolf on top of him. The Wolf was bending down, his mouth wide open. I knew there was nothing I could do to save Arnie. I closed my eyes tightly. Seeing another brother get was something I could not bare.
I waited to hear the violent slashing and eating, but it never came. I hesitated to open my eyes, but I had to see what was going on. My eyelids slowly rose to see the Wolf's jaws around Arnie's body. I expected him any second to snap his mouth shut, killing Arnie and spilling blood everywhere. But that did not happen.
I stepped toward the Wolf. He still seemed very angry, but he was not killing at the moment. Did that mean he was calming down? Perhaps I could get Arnie back.
I was wrong. Suddenly he spun around and ran off with Arnie in his mouth. I ran after him.
"Charlie!!" screamed Arnie. "Help me!!"
The Wolf was way too fast for me. There was no way I was going to catch up with the swift beast. I watched as they disappeared in the trees.
The Wolf kidnapped Arnie! How was I going to get him back? Where were they going? Why did the Wolf not eat Arnie? How long will it be before he does?
Sam came beside me.
"Where do you think they're going?" I asked.
"To the Wolf's house," Sam said. "He's taking Arnie back to his house."
"Do you mean we have to go into the Wolf's house to get Arnie back?"
"Yes. That's the horrible truth."
The Wolf's house was the last place I wanted to go. We were already in serious danger out here. But now, we would go into the Wolf's home? This was not going to be easy.
"Do you know where the Wolf's house is?" I asked.
"Yes," said Sam. "We aren't far from it. It should only take about ten minutes to get there."
"Do you know where the Wolf's house is?" I askes.
"Yes," said Sam. "We aren't far from it. It should only take about ten minutes to get there."
"Do you know anything about the Wolf's house?" I asked. "Do you know what's in there or what it looks like?"
"I don't know," said Sam. "But there have been many legends that told about what was in the Wolf's house. Some say that all the bones of the Wolf's past victims are in there, hanging on the walls. Some say that the Wolf keeps some pigs as slaves in his home, doing everything the Wolf tells them to just to stay alive. Then there's the one about there being another Wolf in his house. They say it's his mother and he brings her food when she's hungry."
"Do you think any of that is true?" I asked.
"No. But I do know that no one has ever been within twenty feet of that house in years. All the animals are too afraid. We are all curious, but not curious enough to die for it. One time, a young bird flew through one of the windows of the house. The parents never went to save it. They were too scared of the Wolf. We never saw that bird again."
"The Wolf will not like us trespassing either," I said. "He will probably want to kill us both."
"Then I guess we can't go," Sam said. "Too bad."
"What are you talking about?" I said. "My brother is with that Wolf. I'm not going anywhere else until I get him back."
"Okay," said Sam. "You're the boss."
"So are you going to take me to the Wolf's house or not?"
"Yes, Charlie. I'll take you to the Wolf's house. I'm here to help pigs survive the Wolf and finally get what they came for. If you think you'll be able to go into the Wolf's house, save your brother, and come back out in one piece, then I guess I'll support you."
"Thank you," I said. "I'm sure Arnie has a very limited time to live. I don't think the Wolf is one to put a pig in a refrigerator and save him for later. So lead the way, squirrel."
"Wait," said Sam. He walked a few steps and picked up a flashlight among the rubble. It was Arnie's. "You'd better get yours. We need the light."
I did as he told me. Soon, we were on our way, heading toward the house that no one has ever been in and lived except for the Wolf. I began to have thoughts about what it looked like. I imagined a gigantic mansion, very dark and spooky. I pictured a dark sky over the house with many clouds. Lightning flashed and rain fell. The thunder roared with great intensity. But of course, that was just my imagination. I did not know anything about the house.
"We are getting close to the Wolf's house," said Sam. "In a minute or two, you will be able to see it. It's rather big. You'll know it's the Wolf's house when you see it. It's awfully daunting."
"It's only a house," I said. "What's the big deal? We just go in, get Arnie, and come back out."
"The Wolf is too smart. Nothing is simple with him. If it were that simple, someone would have lived to tell about it. As you know already, no one has."
Sam suddenly stopped walking. There were large bushes blocking our path. "You must part these to get through," Sam said. "After this, you will have a good view of the house. You must be quiet, though."
I slowly parted the bushes and Sam walked through. I followed behind and finally saw the house we were looking for. At first glance, I was stricken with a heavy dose of panic. I dropped my jaw uncontrollably. My eyes froze open and my hands shook frantically. My legs grew weak and I knew I was going to fall. I fell backwards to the ground. The flashlight fell out of my hand and landed in the dirt. The house could be no one's but the Wolf's.