###&%§†--. .--†§%&###
&%§§--.... ....--§§%&
#&%††--... ...--††%&#
###&%§†--. .--†§%&###
##%†-..... .....-†%##
###&%§†--. . . . .--†§%&###
###&%§†--. . . . . . . .--†§%&###
###&%§†--. - - - - - - - - .--†§%&###
&%§--..... - - - - - - - - - - - .....--§%&
###&%§†--. †††††††††††††††††††††††††††††††††††††††† .--†§%&###
###&%§†--. .--†§%&###
###&%§†--. just off the coast to the baltic sea .--†§%&###
####%§†--. there's a freshwater pond, secluded .--†§%####
&§†-...... among ashen and juniper. a cleft in the ......-†§&
#%%§-----. limestone bedrock, sharp-cut from the .-----§%%#
#&%††††--. surrounding plains, a ninety degree .--††††%&#
###&%§†--. drop down, down, to the midnight-black .--†§%&###
#&§-...... water. ......-§&#
###&%§†--. .--†§%&###
###&%§†--. ----§§§§§§§§---- .--†§%&###
###&%§†--. --§§ §§-- .--†§%&###
##%%††--.. -----§§ fairies live here. §§----- ..--††%%##
###&%§†--. --§§ §§-- .--†§%&###
###&%§†--. ----§§§§§§§§---- .--†§%&###
#&§-...... ......-§&#
###&%§†--. they speak to the sloane, caress it, .--†§%&###
##&§††--.. urge it to grow thicker, tangled, with ..--††§&##
###&%§†--. longer and sharper thorns. they tell it .--†§%&###
###&%§†--. to stay just below the grass, so that .--†§%&###
###&%§†--. the animals what come to drink the .--†§%&###
#&%§††-... water cannot see it before it draws ...-††§%&#
&§†--..... their blood. closer to the pond, the .....--†§&
###&%§†--. sloane can grow taller, being able to .--†§%&###
&§†--..... hide also in the juniper. .....--†§&
#&§†-..... .....-†§&#
###&%§†--. the fairies will beckon the animals to .--†§%&###
###&%§†--. push forward, tell them that they're .--†§%&###
####&§†--. almost at the water, that they may .--†§&####
##&%%§†--. drink soon. and they will tug on the .--†§%%&##
&&%§§†-... sloane to make sure that the thorns cut ...-†§§%&&
##%§†--... deep. when they finally find the path ...--†§%##
###&%§†--. down between the rocks, away from the .--†§%&###
###&%§†--. bushwork and into the cleft, they are .--†§%&###
&&§---.... bleeding from a thousand wounds. as ....---§&&
#&&§§††--. they drink from the dark water, it is .--††§§&&#
###&%§†--. in turn drinking the animals blood. .--†§%&###
###&%§†--. .--†§%&###
###&%§†--. the circle is complete, the contract .--†§%&###
###&%§†--. carried out; the animal is abandoned to .--†§%&###
###&%§†--. find its own way back. the bushes roots .--†§%&###
&&%%†††--. drink the nutrutious water. the fairies .--†††%%&&
#%§§--.... dance in the sunbeams. ....--§§%#
###&%§†--. .--†§%&###
#&&%%§†--. †††††††††††††††††††††††††††††††††††††††† .--†§%%&&#
##&%††-... - - - - - - - - - - - ...-††%&##
###&%§†--. - - - - - - - - .--†§%&###
###&%§†--. . . . . . . .--†§%&###
##%††-.... . . . ....-††%##
&§†-...... ......-†§&
###&%§†--. .--†§%&###
###&%§†--. .--†§%&###
###&%§†--. .--†§%&###
###&%§†--. .--†§%&###