DOG JOE, she called out, still running frantically. This maze of weeping willows and hugging oaks quickly swallowed her. The grass ended at a rocky cliff. Below she could see a pond that reflected as a mirror does. In it, the boy swam,his brown and gold streaks of hair glistening under the viola sky.
"Megan!Jump Megan, Jump," he yelled up from the water.
"I can't. I'll find my way down. I'll go around."
"Megan,jump." He splashed and urged her.
The woman took her purple scarf off, then she placed her phone in the grass; she pulled off the ribbon tied around her hair and stepped back. Into the hollow space, she jumped, flying over jagged rocks below. The cold water bit her all over. She came to the surface, and threw her hair back.
"You did it, Megan. You jumped."
"You are one crazy little boy."
He swam up to her and wrapped his arms around her shoulders, resting his head on her bosom. She kissed him on the forehead, and he looked up with a smile and swam off.
"C'mon, Megan. C'mon,"he beckoned.
Soaked and cold, a chill set in, icing the flats and giving her a chatter.Breathing in the dusk's air, she followed the boy, trying to keep pace.
"How far is your home?"
He stopped and pointed at a hill off in the distance,and broke back into a wild stride.Running after him, the water in her boots became a nuisance, so she slipped them off and ran faster. All the air around was rich now and the cold only said that she was alive. They had reached the hill, and the boy got on all fours and climbed with agility, amazing the woman.
"How do you do that Dog?"
"Run free. You can run free."
She dropped her jacket while running, then lifted her sweater over her head. Joining him in a caboille stride up the hill;his speed made him hard to catch up to. He reached the top and cheered her on, jumping and cheering with the hush of an aquamarine sky behind him. Between her toes and fingers the grass ripped from the earth. With each stride her body stretched and surged, galloping her forward. She finally reached him, at the hilltop. Panting, she pushed her head at his shoulder, laughed and fell over.
"Megan",he shook her arm. "There."
She sat up and looked over to where the boy pointed. A herd of deer grazed and played in front of a little wood dwelling.
"Is that your home, Dog?"
He nodded, then laid flat on his back.
"Joe,Megan."And he rolled down the hill.
Earrings,a necklace, a nose ring, a bracelet—she took it all off and threw it to the ground, crossed arms against her chest and rolled down the hill behind the boy.
At the bottom of the hill, she raised to find the boy, before a majestic stag. Motionless, she stared at the brown coat and regal antlers worn by the buck, watching it get closer and closer. It turned its head so that it could see her with one large eye. So close that her breath moved hairs on its face. She saw herself in that eye, reflected clearly, with every freckle and the arches of her eyebrows. The creature blinked a few times, then its mouth opened wide. And it nodded twice, as if to say,something. The boy walked over and placed his hands on the beast's head. A tear fell from the stags eye, then it turned away. Running around for a moment, his frolic slowed and he looked again towards the woman, this time much further away.
Then his eyes closed, the other deer romped around in chaos. She discovered behind her a beast, a great wolf, making its way toward them. Her body strung with fear, the thought to run came too late.The wolf's speed was incredible; as it was upon them in an instance.She squeezed her eyes and face hard; the boy did not change. Over them the beast jumped. A massive gray body with great muscles and claws, it sunk white blades and sharp teeth deep into the majestic stag. The slaughtered animal lay under those powerful paws, and the red eyes of the canine fixed to the woman. Unable to move, all she could do was watch the monster approach. Shifting and powerful—his shoulder blades rose in an alternating fashion. She reached for his arm and pulled him, but the boy began to walk in the direction of the beast.
