The White Rose

On the edge of the Enchanted Forest there stands an ancient shrine. The great stone walls are covered with ivy and a heavy iron door is rusted into place. The interior is open to the elements and suffers the ravages of time. But the builders of this place made it to last and it still stands at the edges of our dreams.

It was here that a young man came to take his final vows of knighthood. He knelt before the altar, his head bowed and his sword out and pointing tip first to the weathered stone floor. His eyes were closed in prayer, his lips moving silently as he recited the dogma of his god. With a fluid motion, he rose from the floor and turned towards the great door and the outside world. He would never return here; his duty lay elsewhere, in the Enchanted Forest.

His young warhorse awaited its master to take him on whatever adventures might await. Striding confidently, the young knight left the shrine, mounted his horse and led him deep into the unknown.

Many years passed and the young knight was not so young. But his determination to serve was as bright and hot in him as the first day he took vows. His breath came in great steaming gusts in the chilled air of winter. His warhorse trotted through the heavy snow sending sprays of snow and ice in its wake. The knight had experienced many strange adventures in his years of service to the forest. The talking animals and their needs had become his own. And it was in some haste he traveled today in search of Owl to see what troubled him.

As he cleared the trees and saw the tree where Owl dwelt he also saw much more. A ring of animals had formed about the body of a young woman. She was the first human he had seen in long years. He urged his mount ahead to where she lay in the snow unconscious.

"What goes on here," asked the knight as he approached.

"The woman was bitten by Snake," replied Hare.

"Snake?" He should be asleep this time of year!" The knight spoke as he dismounted his horse and approached the young woman.

"That normally would be the case but Snake has bartered with the Hag for a spell to give him fur in the winter time so he may hunt all year round." It was possum who spoke this time.

"What can I do to help?" asked the knight.

"You must travel up to the mountain passes and find The White Rose. It only blooms this time of year and for a short time only. If you would help her, you must find it and return it soon. She has scant time left, Sir Knight," Owl spoke in his booming voice.

The knight only nodded and moved to his horse and mounted. He turned and rode away. Near nightfall, the knight dismounted and left his steed behind.The snow was getting too deep for his friend to carry him any further. So, struggling through chest-high snow, the knight made his way farther north to find the elusive White Rose. It was near midnight by the time he located it and was ready to turn around and return. But a fierce snowstorm descended from the uppermost parts of the mountains and forced the knight to seek shelter.

The only shelter to be had was a narrow cave. It was little better than the path, but he did not complain and was quickly to sleep. He awoke in the morning chilled to the bone. He had to crawl out of the cave on hands and knees with the rose clutched in his teeth. He ran down the mountain with his prize between his teeth.The chill quickly left him as he ran. He stopped only twice to rest before he reached his destination, the clearing with the young woman still asleep.

He dropped the rose at her side and Hare took it and stared at the young knight as he broke off a petal and fed it to her. It was a few moments before the poison was driven from her. At last she awoke and looked about her.

"Who has saved me?" she spoke, still a little weak. But as he watched, the knight saw color return to her face. She would recover fully, he was sure.

"It was I, beautiful one," the knight replied.

She blinked a few times, then smiled. "Why thank you, kind wolf. I am in your debt." She reached out and scratched behind his ears. The shock hit the young knight - "wolf?" What did she mean? He turned and walked over to a nearby pool. Its surface was frozen and mirror-like. He looked down and his wolf reflection looked back at him. His fur was snow white and his eyes were his own navy blue. He looked to the animals in confusion and shock.

Owl spoke. "Your human body died on the mountain. Because of your selfless act you were given a new body. Will you continue to serve us?"

Anger and shock fought for control of the knight. But his duty was to defend no matter what, until he was released or died. It seemed he had served very well indeed.

And so comes the legend of Belanimdraug, the Great White Wolf.

an original story by Joe Renfrow