THE TALE OF THE LITTLE GIRL NAMED RED

This was my idea mapped out of words that I think of the story of Red Riding Hood as a child to what it has been translated to in movies such as Hoodwink or the recent movie called Red Riding Hood with Amanda Seyfried. The words that come to me are big, red, little girl, wolf, innocent, bad, victim, child's story, and hero.

___RED______

Red Riding Hood was walking through the forest to take some food for her sick grandmother. She didn't like the woods at all and was scared walking through. She didn't like that there was no one really in the woods and that even the smallest sounds such as a hoot of an owl made her have goosebumps on her arms and sounded so much louder as if an owl was nearby. The trees in the forest were shades of autumn colours and there were red leaves scattered on the ground. She hummed a melodious tune to distract her as she travelled through the forest.

She felt a gust of a cold wind brush past her and she felt goosebumps on her arms. She saw a huge shadow appear on the ground in front of her all of a sudden. She looked up and saw a pair of red eyes staring at her. She wanted to turn back and run back home but she knew her mom would be disappointed if she didn't give the food to her grandmother. She started to turn around to head back home when she heard a voice and a grey wolf came into sight.

The wolf's appearance seemed to be mean and menacing especially with his red eyes that never took his eyes from her, but she was surprised. His voice was gentle and friendly contrary to his appearance. "What's a little girl, like you, doing in the woods all by yourself?" said the wolf. "I have to deliver some food to my grandmother to help her feel better because she's sick, " she replied in a timid voice. "Well, I was wondering if it wasn't any trouble to you, could I have some? I have been travelling and been in the woods for several days but haven't found anything to eat, " asked the wolf. Red Riding Hood thought it couldn't hurt to give some food to the wolf and he must be hungry if he hasn't ate in several days. She gave him some of the chicken that her mom packed. He wolfed it down in mere seconds and thanked her after he finished eating.
She felt good that she helped the wolf and didn't feel scared anymore. The wolf asked her, " Can I walk with you to your grandmother's house as a way to thank you for the food. The woods are not safe for a little girl all by herself." So her and the wolf made some small talk about how far and how long the walk would be to her grandmother's house. However the wolf got distracted by a red squirrel that he saw in the corner of his eyes and he wanted to chase it. So they both departed and she continued walking through the woods.

The wolf chased the squirrel for some time but he became really hungry. He thought about what he could eat in the forest but there wasn't many options. The red squirrel was too far from him to catch it and he was exhausted from chasing it already. He felt his stomach growl and his head started to ache then became a throbbing sensation. His eyes became even more red as his hunger was too much to handle. Then he rememebered that he was much closer to Red Riding Hood's grandmother's house. He thought that I will be full for days eating all that meat off her bones. He smiled widely showing his sharp teeth and his tongue rolling out.

He ran to the grandmother's house to reach there before Red Riding Hood arrived. He rang the doorbell with his paw and he heard a soft, elderly voice answer, "It's open, come in dear." He walked into the house, sniffing about to find the grandmother's scent, but it wasn't difficult to find her. He saw a door was open ajar and saw an old white-haired lady wearing flowered pattern gown propped upon her pillows. "Aww Red Riding Hood, you're such a sweetheart. Your mom just phoned me to tell me that you were coming for a visit. I like the dress that you're wearing. It's such a nice, bright shade of red, " she said while her eyes were squinting at him. She patted the bed and said, " Come here dear and sit beside me." He felt guilty and thought maybe I can find something in her kitchen to eat. He knew she was a nice lady especially since her granddaughter did help .

The grandmother petted him but something happened that changed his mind. She was touching his paws but his claws gave her a small cut on her finger and was bleeding. She cried out, "OUCH, that hurts Red Riding Hood. You should cut your fingernails since they're way too sharp. I need to get a bandage for this, I'll be back."

The scent of the blood trickled past his nose. It smelled sweet yet bitter simultaneously and he could feel a similar change come over him. He walked behind her quietly as she walked to the washroom. She was about to open the medicine cabinet when she saw that it was a wolf that came to her house and it wasn't Red Riding Hood. It was too late. The wolf leaped and bit her neck and her scream was more of a gurgling sound that was stuck in her throat.
He was himself again after a few minutes and realized the bloody mess that he had made with his attack on the grandmother. He felt miserable and was about to howl in sadness, but he was interrupted by the ring of a doorbell. "Grandma, I'm here. Can you let me in?", called out Red Riding Hood. There was nowhere to run. He leaped into the bed and covered the blankets that his red eyes were only seen above the covers.

Red Riding Hood pushed the door and saw that it was opened. She looked around and saw her grandmother's bedroom's door opened. She was alarmed by her grandmother's condition. "You must be so sick. Your eyes are so red, grandma. I'm so glad that I brought the food that mom gave me to give to you. You definitely needed it and it'll make you better much quicker than what you've been taking. " The wolf didn't answer, hoping that she would just leave the food and depart before she came to know the truth.

"Let me get a closer look," she said. She came closer but she stepped back alarmed as she recognized those red eyes. "YOU! Where's my grandmother, " she said in a shaky tone. The wolf took the covers off and replied, " It was and wasn't my fault. I didn't mean to kill her. I was just really hungry and there's this cruel and psychotic side that I have that comes out at times. It took control over me and I wasn't myself. I'm so sorry." She yelled, " I can't believe, you're just a filthy mongrel and monster. I even helped you. " She turned her back to him and weeped with her head down and shoulders heaving up and down.

"I know it's not your fault, but she won't ever believe you. You are the enemy and you're powerless. No matter how sweet you are, she'll only see you as an animal," said a menacing tone in his head. " It doesn't matter. I'll just go and not make more trouble for her," he replied. "OF COURSE IDIOT, SHE'S THE ENEMY. She will tell her mom who will tell someone else and there will be gossip. You won't be safe, the people and even Red Riding Hood will come to hunt and kill you. You have to KILL her. Then no one will know or even then you will have a chance to escape." "I can't, I can't. She's too nice, she won't hurt me and I'll disappear. I don't need to hurt her, she didn't hurt me at all," he whimpered. "KILL HER and run and never look back," said the voice in a chilled tone and repeatedly in a chant. The wolf felt a sharp pain between his eyes and his head felt that it was about to split in two.

He went to stand beside her to make one more attempt to apologize and overcome his evil side. She turned to him and started to kick him. He howled in pain as she kicked him in his stomach that made him hunch over. His eyes became bigger and his teeth were baring out with globs of saliva dripping down. He was so angry but he knew he deserved it and continued to let her hit him. She hit him again in the stomach and he growled in her face and he didn't care anymore and he wasn't sane anymore. He headbutted her and pinned her as she fell to the ground. "I'm sorry, let me go please. Please I wasn't thinking, I was just angry. Pleasseeee," she said in a pleading and scared tone. He bit her neck and she lay there dead in her own pool of blood.

He felt himself return as his heaving panting returned to normal breathing and he felt ashamed. He had lost again and it wasn't just these incidents but it was a pattern that he was used to. He could never stay in a place for a long time and even come into contact with anyone. So he lived a scavenger life and was a wanderer since there was no other choice because it always lead to someone's death.

He would do something different and at least to compensate for the loss. He buried the grandmother and Red Riding Hood than having their dead bodies in the house. He lay a bunch of red tulips on Red Riding Hood. He never forgot the little girl who helped him and called her Red in his memory whenever he remembered her. Red Riding Hood became a childhood bedtime story to warn children to not go into the woods. Otherwise they might share the fate of the little girl with the red riding hood that never came home and disappeared when she went into the woods.