Once upon a time, in a far away land, there lived a pretty little powny. Always willing to grace others with a bright smile or kind word, she was well loved by everyone who knew her. She always tried to be a good girl, but her love of mischief often led her to wander away from home, returning late for supper and frightfully dirty.



Hoping to teach her daughter a lesson, the powny's mother tied a charm to the girl's hair which was attached to three white feathers.



Her mother said, "Go out now and play. But be well behaved, and don't snoop about in the woods or ditches, less you dirty these feathers. If you come back tonight and they are not white as snow, then you'll not have a bite to eat!"



It took a fair time for her mother's trick to work, but soon enough the young powny was coming home clean and dry, without mud on her face or cockleburs on her dress or twigs in her tail. By that time the white feathers became her so well that she could not stand to be without them. Since she would always wear them in her hair, people soon gave her the nickname "Little White Mane."



The years passed, and by and by Little White Mane grew into a beautiful lady. Yet she never lost her bright smile nor mischievous manners, and the white feathers still dangled from her hair. One day her father returned from chopping wood only to find that he had left his axe in the forest.



"Ah, damn the luck! It will rust with the morning dew for certain, but I am far too weary to retrieve it!"



Eager to help, White Mane leapt up and boasted that she would find the axe and be back before supper. But her father said, "Take care you stay upon the road, and do not tarry long in the woods else the fog rises up and you lose your way."



White Mane said, "I will be quick and careful papa, you need not worry."



But her father's axe had been lost far out into the forest, more than an hour's walk from the village. By the time White Mane had found the axe and set off for home, the fog had settled over the ground. The poor powny soon lost her way, and try as she might she only wandered further and further into the woods.



On the next step she stumbled, felt her hoof slide on wet dirt, and soon she was tumbling down a steep slope to the bottom of a ravine. Her dress was torn, her body bruised, and she was trapped with no hope of climbing out.



Cold, alone, and afraid, White Mane began to call out for help. She screamed and cried into the fog, but nobody came. But then, just when she felt she could scream no more, a hulking shape appeared through the fog, and two bright blue eyes peered down at her.



"Good evening, White Mane!" A deep and growling voice said.



"Good eve and god bless!" She replied, overjoyed to be found.



"Why have you been calling out?"



"I tripped in the fog and was trapped down here. Oh please, can you pull me out?"



The eyes loomed closer, and through the fog she could finally see the wolf's huge and powerful body, his claws digging fast into the dirt as he climbed down towards her. Others may have shrank back in fear, but she was too pleased at his company to be afraid.



At last he climbed down into the ravine to stand before her, and White Mane felt herself amazed by his size.



"Goodness! What big eyes you have!" She gasped, staring with curiosity at his face.



"The better to see through this fog." He said with a chuckle.



Her eyes moved up to the top of his head.



"Goodness! What big ears you have!" She reached up and gently stroked their tips.



"The better to hear young maidens in distress." He growled, enjoying her touch. Showing his teeth in a smile, he bent down to all fours and bid the mare climb onto his back.



White Mane climbed onto the wolf and held tight. The wolf turned to the slope and began to climb, using his claws to pull them up bit by bit. "Take care you hold tight, Little White Mane. Unless you wish to fall again" Said he.



Soon they reached the top of the hill, and White Mane climbed down from the wolf's back. "Thank you sir for rescuing me! But oh! The fog is still so thick, how can I find my way home?"



He stood beside her to take her hand. "Let my eyes guide you. They see can see both far and true."



"Do you mean it, sir? Will you see me all the way?"



"You have my word. I will not leave you until you are home and safe." Said he.



For a time they two walked side by side through the woods, until a bright light appeared through the fog. White Mane could hear her father's voice calling her.



"Here papa! Here I am!" The light drew near, and her father appeared. But his relief became fright when his torch showed the large wolf beside her.



"Little White Mane! Come away from there!" Said he. He waved the torch at the wolf's face, making him snarl and snap at the fire.



"Papa no!" White Mane cried. "He was helping me!"



But it did no good. Her father took her by the hand without listening and ran back the way he came. As they ran, White Mane could see the blue eyes of the wolf behind them. A wolf of his word, he was not leaving her.



Soon they came to the village, and her father ran through the streets as he cried, "A wolf! A wolf!"



Soon the villagers were out of their houses, holding torches and axes. They yelled and swung at the wolf to drive him away. Though he roared and gnashed, the wolf made no attack. And seeing that White Mane was safe in her village he turned and slunk back into the woods.



But with the wolf gone the villagers were still afraid.



"What will we do? The wolf knows of our village!"



"He may return and sneak into our homes to eat us up!"



"Such foolishness, that you lead the monster straight to us!" Said they to her father.



White Mane would not hear of such talk towards her rescuer. "Foolishness indeed! To so badly treat the one who saved my life! It was you who behaved like monsters!"



To hear this, the villagers grew still angrier, blaming White Mane for the wolf's appearance. Afraid for their lives they chose to cast her out of the village and make her an offering to the wolf that he might swallow her up and leave them in peace.



White Mane's parents begged and pleaded but could not sway the crowd as their daughter was taken from the village. At the very edge of the forest they tied her between two poles in the ground and left her there to her fate.



She stayed there long into the night, crying and feeling sorry for herself. But then she heard footsteps in the fog and two bright blue eyes came from the trees.



"Are you in trouble again, Little White Mane?"



She dried her eyes and looked to see the wolf standing before her. "I have been forced out of my home. They are afraid you will come and gobble them up, and so they gave me to you as an offering."



"Then why are you crying?" Said he. "Do you believe that I will truly eat you up?"



"No sir. But now I have no home to go to. What will happen to me?"



The wolf walked around her slowly and she could feel him breathing on her neck. "You said you were given to me. Perhaps I will take you after all."



"Then you do plan to eat me?" White Mane cried as she tried to meet his gaze.



"Of course not, my dear. But if they would be so unkind to turn you out, then more is the pity for them. If you would like, you would be most welcome to stay with me."



"Oh, do you mean it sir? I would be very grateful."



"Then you will live with me from now on."



The wolf was behind White Mane now, and he put his hands around her shoulders.



"Goodness! What big hands you have!" White Mane shivered from his warm touch.



"The better to hold you with." Said he. He tightened his embrace and opened his mouth to gently lick her ear.



"Goodness! What a big tongue you have!" White Mane moaned, her cheeks turning red and hot.



He pressed his body against her, and White Mane felt something firm against her back.



"Goodness! What a big-"



Elanore slammed the book shut with a loud bang, startling the half-dozen children that were seated around her.



"Hey, how come you did you that," one of the boys asked the red-faced gecko girl.



"W-well... because that's the end! Yeah, it stopped right there," Elanore said with a wide and fake grin.



A girl on the right folded her arms. "Are you sure? There's still some pages left!"



Elanore put the book up on a shelf beside her where it was fully out of reach. "Don't worry about that! Just the usual stuff. Blah blah blah true love, first kiss, they lived happily ever after!"



The kids weren't buying it. She could see every one of them staring up at the book, her reaction only making them more and more curious. Desperate, she went for the surefire distraction.



"Anyway, that's enough storytime for now! How about a snack? All the ice cream you guys want!"



That did the trick. Forgetting all about the story, the children whooped and hollered, scrambling to their feet and making a beeline for the kitchen. Their haggard babysitter trudged after them, looking back over her shoulder to give the book one last glare, still barely believing it had suddenly taken such a raunchy turn.



"Sheesh... I know they say some fairy tales are more mature than others... but that version is ridiculous!"

---

So when it came time to post this one, Amber asked me to write a little story to go with it. Essentially she wanted a Red Riding Hood take on the picture, and she specifically wanted some kind of kinky implication with the the whole "What big eyes you have" part of the dialogue. Hopefully it turned out alright, I tried to keep it to a brief, fairy-tale kind of narrative style.

Thanks for reading and hope you enjoyed!

Art by  spiderweber

Crysalia (rocking a gorgeous Elvira dress) belongs to  Crysalia

Werewolf Cro belongs to myself