Storytelling Week 11: The Twins of Trast Forest

Ivy ran through the field. Her sister, Lily, followed closely behind. They often ran through these woods. They played tag and raced one another. Sometimes they would play with the animals who resided in the forest as well. But today was different. Today they weren't running for fun. They were running because they had to. They had to run in order to escape. Their feet flew over the ground as fast as they could. Behind them a voice shouted. Hearing how close it was only urged them to go faster.

Ivy reached out and took her sister's hand as they ran. No matter what, they would stay together. They had always been together.

They came upon a large oak tree. The trunk was large enough to hide both of their small frames. They pressed their backs to the trunk and quieted their breathing. They listened for the sounds of the person following them. For a moment they didn't hear anything. The forest was filled with a strange silence. They started to believe they had escaped. However soon enough noise reached their ears.

It wasn't hard to hear. Their pursuer tramped around the forest with complete disregard for his surroundings. Ivy dared to peek around the tree. She saw him stumble past a bush. She quickly pulled back, squeezing Lily's hand. The man stopped and looked around.

"You don't have to be afraid," he called out. "I'm not here to hurt you."

"Then how about you leave us alone like we asked," Lily hissed under her breath.

"Quiet," Ivy hushed her sister. "If, we don't respond maybe he will go away."

"There you are," said a voice beside them. They turned, screamed and jumped back. The man had made his way around the tree while they were talking.

"Wait! It's alright, I'm not here to hurt you. I just want to help. " He extended his arms towards them and crouched down a bit.

"Help? Why would you want to help us?" Ivy asked, taking a step back.

"You two shouldn't be out here alone. Where are your parents? Why don't you let me help you find them?"

"We're perfectly capable of taking care of ourselves," Lily stated.

The man gave his best reassuring smile. "I have no doubt of that. But it can still be dangerous out here for two young girls all alone. How old are you two?"

Ivy and Lily looked at each other and then around at the forest around them. "It's hard to say. It's been a while," Ivy said, almost to herself.

The man furrowed his brow at that. Definitely not a normal response from what appeared to be a six-year-old child. "Well, what are your names?"

"We weren't given names. The birds took to calling us Ivy and Lily. They were some of the plants near where they found us."

"Found you?"

"Yes. Found us," Lily repeated.

"You said you wanted to help us," Ivy continued. "How do you expect to do that?"

"I want to help you return to your home. That's all. I'm sure your family must be worried about you."

"But this is our home," Lily protested.

"You live here? In the forest?"

The girls giggled. "No," they said together as if he had missed something important.

"I don't understand."

"How can you expect to help anyone if you don't understand something as simple as that?" Lily asked.

"You're right. Perhaps you should explain it to me."

Ivy rolled her eyes. "We were brought here when we were very small. We don't know by who. They left us here nameless and alone. The days turned to night, no one came for us. No one ever came for us. It turned cold and quiet. Then we heard the birds singing. They brought flowers to cover us. This forest is our home, our resting place. But we don't live here. We can't live here."

The man stood up slowly as Ivy spoke and took a few steps back. The girls vanished before his eyes. He only turned around when he heard the one called Ivy speak again from behind him. "We can't live here, you see, because we're already dead."

(Personal photo from a trip to Sulphur, OK)

Author Note: This story is based on the nursery rhyme Babes in the Wood. The nursery rhyme describes a tale in which two nameless children are taken and left in the woods. Over time they were left alone and they died. After they have died, the robins covered them in strawberry leaves and sing a song to remember them. I set my story after they have already died. Their spirits remain in the forest, happy and isolated from the world. They befriend the animals around them and take the names Lily and Ivy because those are some of the plants around where they were left. Their presence in the forest leads to some stories and legends cropping up about the forest; local tales that makes people want to investigate.  This story is about one of those encounters.

Bibliography: The Nursery Rhyme Book, edited by Andrew Lang and illustrated by L. Leslie Brooke (1897).