As if disobeying some unspoken promise of obscurity, the brilliant moonlight momentarily broke through the shroud of fog. The silver light shone down on the two sweethearts, illuminating them as if they were lone performers on an empty stage. Her unbound blond hair glimmered in that light; the regal golden circlet settled over her forehead shone like a band of fire. His brown shoulder-length hair was tipped by silver light, his green eyes lit only by the deep emotion he felt for the woman in his arms. Neither paid notice of the play of light being fashioned by the moon. Too intent were they on each other and the gift he had just pressed into her hands.
As the moonlight did its magic, the gift glowed and throbbed in the light as if it was a living, breathing thing. She caught the glimmer of this large heart-shaped object, recognizing it to be the beautiful diamond. What else could throw out colors of the rainbow even in the dim light of the moon? As she held the diamond by its golden setting, the moonlight caught each facet and flung out reddish blaze like either the glowing embers of a well-stoked fire or the glowing pits of Hades—where some had insisted it sprung. Surrounding the diamond heart, almost too heavy for its blood-red glow, were circlets of gold. The three golden circles had been set by cunning hands as the creator of the piece had unconsciously pictured something far in the future and smiled as the fire forged the metal. The heart hung from a heavy golden chain that would soon be placed once again around her fair neck.
Shaking her head, she tried to press the gift back into her sweetheart’s hands. “I can’t wear that! It’s too precious. Too many are looking for it.”
But he was insistent. “You must wear it. Think of this gift as my heart that you already possess,” he pleaded. “You must remember me until I can properly come back for you.”
“I don’t need jewels to remember you. You’re already etched in my heart.” Her blue eyes flashed the truth of her words.
Smiling at her response, he kissed her fair neck as the moon slid into obscurity once more. “Take my gift. You know it’s a powerful heart.” Even in the darkness he could see her frowning, dubious look. ”It’s true!” You remember what Merlin himself said.”
“King Arthur…,” she started to say.
He put a finger softly against her lips, holding it there. “Shh…Yes, that Merlin. We mustn’t say it out loud.” With a grin on his face, he leaned back to watch as she brought the precious gemstone up by its chain, feeling extremely proud of himself that he was finally able to give it to her once more.
“Do you remember what it does?” She looked at the object in her hand with a wary scrutiny, its fiery radiance now subdued into a mere blush of red by the gloomy fog.
“It shows you things. Are you sure you want to see them again? It frightened you last time.” He refrained from adding that what he had seen in his mind’s eye was likewise frightening—and the fact that half of his vision had already come true.
Her lips smiled and created a little dimple in her cheek. ‘’You mean my future? Then it all must be true because you are my future.” She had seen him in the depths of the pendant’s vision, plus a fire-breathing dragon.
Noticing the dimple, he ran a finger down it. “We know I can’t stay much longer. Your brothers will kill me unless I can prove myself to them.”
She gave an unladylike grunt. “My brothers can go….”
Her sharp retort was cut off by the approaching sound of muffled footsteps crunching on the sandy beach in front of them. His fingers again went to her lips to silence her. However, this time the gesture was unnecessarily as she was aware of the footsteps and the clink of armor moving closer and closer to their location. Momentarily using the imminent danger as a distraction, he slipped the golden chain over her head. Since their situation was perilous, not taking the time to argue, she carefully tucked the diamond into the blue bodice of her dress. The pair pressed further back into the sheltering darkness of the boulders, the shallow niche providing temporary concealment. She slipped the hood of her black cloak over her head with a silent hope that she hadn’t been too late in hiding her radiant blond hair.
The intruders were as silent in their approach as they could be on the sand. There was no talking amongst them. They knew where they were going, and they knew who was hiding there. It had been easy to follow their quarry’s tell-tale footsteps in the sand. Two pair of side-by-side depressions that appeared from a path in the dense foliage had betrayed the pair’s direction just as clearly as any signpost could have done. Beyond the footprints across the beach, just as they had emerged from the forest, the hunters had seen a flash of movement deep within the natural jetty of boulders running from the land out to the sea. Swords already drawn, it was now just a matter of steps. Like a pack of wolves that had trapped their prey, the men picked up their pace, triumphant smiles already on their unshaven faces.
Armed only with the sword pulled silently from its leather sheath, the young man stood resolutely in front of his love. His heart pounded with anticipation. Fear never once entered his mind. He would take down as many of them as he could before…. Unable to finish the thought, he would take them all. He had to.
The insulation of fog became their enemy now. They couldn’t tell how many were coming or how far away they actually were. He felt her hand on his shoulder, squeezing, encouraging, reassuring, and then, suddenly, the intruders were upon him.
His sword flashed and bit, plunged and parried. The clanging of metal against metal echoed along the rocks. The sounds of the battle were fierce and loud. The sounds from the men, however, were eerily quiet with only a grunt or a moan issuing from their determined mouths. Glints of sparks flashed as blade collided on blade and recoiled. A muted blow of one blade evaded another and found flesh, to sink deep; one attacker fell back bleeding at the hip. Another was eager to take his place in the confines of the boulders. Try as he might, there were too many for him. His sword was straight and true, but it was no match for their many longswords. The woman watched in dread as one skilled attacker, his sword circling in an elaborate flanking move, caught her sweetheart’s hand at an awkward angle. His sword was flung to the ground to clang against the rocks and then be silenced by the sand. Disarmed now, the point of an enemy blade aimed at the hollow in his neck, he could only watch in mute fury as she was roughly pulled out of the shadow of the boulders behind him. The moon once again betrayed them and came out of hiding as her hood was yanked off of her head. The golden chain, just so recently bestowed on her, glowed and shimmered around her neck, its heavy links parading down the front of her dress. And, at its end, the beautiful diamond heart radiated its red glow like a crimson beacon. Rough hands followed the chain down the bodice of her dress. With an outraged cry, she bit the hand that dared to touch her. Her assailant ignored her outburst and the bleeding gash on his hand as he brought out the prize—the gold-encircled red diamond—into the light. He tried to yank it off her neck, but the chain was surprisingly strong. He tried again, but she held her head high and gave no indication of the pain it had caused her.
Sensing his confusion, her quick mind took a chance. “Beware. It was enchanted by Merlin. He told me himself,” she loudly whispered, her eyes narrow. “You cannot harm us.”
Within the moonlight, at the sides of her vision, she noticed the point of the blade that was aimed at her sweetheart’s neck began to waver with superstition. She could see a sliver of light dance along the blade in its slight tremor. Her man wisely said nothing, and moved a step away from her, lest his captor decided to test the theory. Another man standing beyond the group, his bloody hand pressed against his injured hip, forgot his pain as he listened in fear and began slowly, silently, to back away.
The leader of the assailants looked from the fire of the gemstone to the fire that flashed from her blue eyes. There was no fear in those eyes—only hatred and unwavering faith that what she had said was true. When she had first whispered the words, he had felt his heart suddenly start to pound. Now it was threatening to burst out of his chest as
the implication echoed around in his mind. He had heard the rumors, of course, the whispered talk in the village. Everyone had heard the rumors, but he had scoffed at their words of warning and had wanted the gem for himself—regardless of who it was that had hired him to find it. It had only been a matter of time for the man now at the wrong end of the sword to give her the fabled stone. They had been told it was in his possession. The leader of this group of marauders had heard of the legend and the power that this stone was said to possess. In his mind, such mystery was a myth. He had only been interested in the wealth the gemstone would bring and the power such wealth would ensure once he was far away from this part of the country. Now he wasn’t so positive and silently cursed the one who had sent him.
In those few moments of hesitation, another sound came to their ears, one that instantly struck terror in all of them. It was a low sound, one they usually heard in the dead of night when they were safely in their beds, covers pulled high to their chins. It filled their ears and rumbled around deep inside their chests causing their hands to shake of their own accord. The growl came again, louder this time, closer, but, closer to which one of them? Who would be its first victim? One by one the assailants slowly turned in full circles where they stood in the sand, swords drawn and ready, aimed low. Another snarl sounded. Coming from nowhere and everywhere all at once, it seemed to echo in the swirling fog.
A black blur wove between them faster than their eyes could follow. Ankles were suddenly bleeding; feet were knocked out from under them. Ignoring the weaker minions, it leaped, the huge paws landing in the middle of the leader’s chest, pushing him; the force knocked him away from the woman and onto his back in the sand. The golden chain finally broke from around her neck and his fingers tightened around the prize as he fell. Once the chain broke, he thought he heard a muttered curse come from the wolf that now stood on top of him, teeth bared, mere inches away from his unprotected neck. His sword had dropped in the suddenness of the attack and was out of his reach. As his fingers touched the fiery red surface of the diamond, he forgot the animal that had pinned him and the fact that he was now unarmed. His eyes rolled away from the wolf as his mind clouded and whirled, and he could see himself in a different place, inside an opulent castle. The man in front of him was a king who held a raised sword in his hands. The sword was held in the position for knighthood. Pride swelled in his chest as his head bowed before the king. Then the vision changed, and he saw everything in the castle growing larger and larger before his startled eyes.
When the huge black beast had immobilized their leader, unaware of the vision he was now witnessing, his men broke from their defensive positions and ran toward their frightened horses. In a frenzy of screaming horses, cursing men and blinding sand, they threw themselves onto the backs of their mounts and plunged away into the gray fog.
Now that the assailants were gone, the princess was safe. The man had his sword in hand once more, so the wolf inexplicably stepped off the leader. His head remained down, teeth bared, front feet wide apart in the attack position.
As the confusing vision continued to assail the leader, his hand involuntarily jerked and the pendant fell into the sand, the gold links of the chain still entwined in his fingers. Once the gemstone broke contact with his hand, his mind instantly cleared and he remembered the black wolf. Shaking his head back and forth, he tried to understand what had just happened to him, what he had just seen. Not sure why the animal had let him go, he slowly backed away, the chain still clutched in his white knuckles. He never dropped his eye contact with the wolf. Forgetting his lost sword, he didn’t stop moving until he was at his frightened horse. With a curse, he came to realize he had been abandoned by his men. Vaulting into his saddle, he viciously spurred his rearing, snorting charger. Unarmed and knowing how far a wolf that size could jump, he galloped away into the swirling mist. Only when he was far enough away did his mind begin to function normally again, and he was able to remember those startling blue eyes. They had been on the golden-haired girl…and they were on the black wolf. He tucked the cursed heart into his shirt and rode after his men, all the while his mind still spun.
Asthe sound of the assailant’s departure grew more distant and his horse’s hoof beats faded into the night, the defensive posture of the wolf relaxed. He sat and listened, ears forward, able to hear the horse far longer than the two people left behind were able. Assured the men would not be back, that they had gotten what they had come after, the black wolf turned and faced the couple. Panting after his exertion, he seemed to be waiting.
“Thank you, Wolf.” Wals own heartbeat had finally returned to normal. He hadn’t even noticed his arm had been ripped open and that the blood had stained his arm red. “I can’t tell you how glad I was to see you. I couldn’t have held them off much longer.”
Knowing he wouldn’t speak to them, Rose crouched down, her gown bunched onto the sand. “You saved me yet again, Wolf.” With a grateful sigh, she tightly hugged his neck. “Thank you seems so little to say.”
The wolf leaned into her caress, his eyes momentarily closed in pleasure. He decided to take a chance and spoke in a short whisper. “We’re still being watched. I have to go.”
Pulling away from the princess, he tilted his head to the sky and let out a piercing, lingering howl. This was a different call than the one he had used before. There was no menace, no warning threat to this sound. It was a haunting, lingering call. Rose was overcome by an inexplicable sadness as her eyes filled with tears. As the wolf looked pointedly toward the unseen ocean, they turned to look as well. Suddenly a streak of lightning blazed across the sky. Knowing what was coming, they stepped far away from the wolf. Their senses alert, they could now hear the sound of the roaring sea; no longer was it muffled by the thick fog. The ocean sounded angry. The waves rose higher and higher, and then there was a breathless pause before they thundered down against the shoreline.
As they watched, a bolt of lightning from the sky collided with another flung up from the sea. The blaze of jagged energy then combined into a bright ball of pink fire which came hurtling toward them from the center of the collision.
The wolf stepped from the firm white sand to the spot just before the ebb of waves that pounded onto the beach. The pink shimmering light that had grown out of the sky moved through the air, over the water, and straight at them. The bright light ignited the shoreline and then suddenly burst apart to dissipate before them in a dazzling shower of twinkling pink sparks that grew outward in a widening circle.
“What about the pendant?”
Over the noise of the storm around him, the wolf heard Wals’ question. His head suddenly spun in their direction as he had forgotten the gem in the fury of the battle and in the knowledge that they weren’t alone. Ears flat, he stared at the couple who were still standing closely together. He then looked in the direction that the leader of the marauders had gone in his flight. His brilliant blue eyes closed as his head shook slowly side to side as if in disbelief.
They watched as the wolf hesitated on the edge of the hovering inferno—for it did seem to be waiting. They could see his black lips part and only they could clearly hear his disgruntled comment: “Here we go again.”
When the last of the sparks died out, the fog had vanished and the sea was again peaceful. The moon played its silver light across the calm waves and the sand. It was so lovely that it was as if the sea and the moon were apologizing for the moments of sheer terror. The couple, however, didn’t see the charming scene around them. They stared only at the quiet, lapping waters of the ocean.
The wolf was gone.
Burbank — 1956
“How about if we do a special all about villains, Walt?”
“What do you mean? A movie, a cartoon, or part of the Walt Disney Presents show?” Intrigued, the boss set aside the itinerary for his and Roy’s upcoming trip to their boyhood home of Marceline, Missouri. The town was going to dedicate a park to him and he looked forward to the train trip as well as
the chance to see the old farm once again.
“Yeah, part of the weekly show. As the main prop, I was thinking we could use something like the Magic Mirror from Snow White. You know, have it hang on the wall behind you and it can either talk to you or interrupt the show as it goes along.”
Walt quickly turned his attention to this new, interesting subject. He thought over the Mirror as it was animated in the movie. He nodded slowly, his eyes getting that familiar far-away look in them. “Yeah,” he murmured, tapping his pen on top of the forgotten train schedule. “It would be easy to build a really ornate frame. You know what I mean. Lots of gold and shiny gemstones all over it. Have some actor’s face in it, lit from the bottom to make him evil looking. Smoke and lightening can swirl around inside the glass.”
The aide was making notes on his sheet of paper, his lips pursed as he wrote. “We already have a working title.” Encouraged that the boss liked their idea so far, he brought up more that had been discussed. “We came up with Our Unsung Villains. What do you think?”
“I like it! It’s a good idea. I’ve always believed a good film needs a really good and evil antagonist. That way the stakes are high enough to make the audience care about the hero of the film. Why, all the way back in 1928’s Steamboat Willie we had Peg-Leg Pete. Without a good villain it’s just…it’s just singing and dancing!”
“Well, we have a lot of choices for the show,” the aide nodded. “We were thinking maybe you and the Mirror could get into an argument over who was the worst villain of all time and introduce them that way.”
“Who did you have in mind?” Walt already had his own ideas formulating, but wanted to hear him out.
“For the villains? Well, it’s just a one-hour show, you know, so we figure we can fit in only four or five of them. Captain Hook is really popular, Lady Tremaine or Lucifer from Cinderella, the Big Bad Wolf, Stromboli, the Evil Queen—since it is her mirror.” He broke off when he saw Walt’s attention wasn’t on what he was saying. Used to this common occurrence, he patiently waited next to the large, dark-wood desk, his eyes roaming over some of the awards and statues Walt had been presented over the years. He idly wondered if he would be allowed to pick up the Academy Award—just to see how heavy it was, of course….
Wolf! Happily Ever After? Page 9
