The Pond – Part 5

Very little changed for Izolda, save that now her free time was spent slipping away down to the caves by the river. If it was discovered what she was doing, it would not go well for either of them. Varnya was not part of the family and as such Izolda had no business in her company.

As for Varnya . . . Izolda’s family had little tolerance for outsiders. It was one thing for sons to learn the art of magic, but such a thing was not to be tolerated in daughters. Especially learning from outsiders who practiced what they considered the dark arts.

So Izolda went about her daily tasks as though nothing untoward was happening during her free time. She still did the tasks set her, no matter how menial, and she still spent time with her brother, Matyei, although he was developing his own interests. Around the fire at night she kept her silence, listening intently to the aunts and grannies as they gossiped and told their stories.

One night at the end of summer, when the leaves were just starting to turn, Izolda’s Aunt Anya, who rarely spoke, had news to share. “Svetlana from the village Bakal had news to share when I took her herbs from the garden,” she said.

While the some of the women looked at her expectantly, Izolda kept her attention on the stitching she was doing.

“They believe a Rusalka has infested the caves near the river.”

There were gasps from several women,

“What’s a Rusalka?” Izolda asked.

“It is an ancient evil,” Polina, another aunt, answered.

“They say she has already lured Dimitri, Sasha’s son, to his death. His body was found washed up on the riverbank – it could not have been an accident, he was a strong swimmer.”

Anya waited for the murmurs to die down before she continued. “Luka and Yuri swear they have seen a woman with long, dark, unbound hair near the river, where no woman should be.”

Izolda’s needle slipped, and pierced her thumb. With a gasp, she put her thumb in her mouth to suck the blood. Varnya had long, dark hair, and she never wore it bound up as most women did. But she was not this evil spirit, it was just an ugly coincidence.

“We must warn our men to stay away from the river,” Olga stated firmly. “Until this spirit has been dealt with.”

“But where did this Rusalka come from?” Izolda dared to ask.

Polina shrugged. “She could not have come from Bakla, they would have known if a woman killed herself or was drowned. It would have been easy for them to put her unclean spirit to rest. For her to be able to leave the place where she began means she must be very powerful.”

“Banishing a Rusalka is a difficult thing,” Ulyana, Izolda’s grandmother, said gravely.

“Yes,” Anya agreed. “It has been a long time since there has been need of a banishing ritual, but their babki is quite powerful.”

“They say if you can find her comb of fish bones and break it, you can break the curse she’s under,” said Yana.

“But first you would have to discover the cave where she lives,” pointed out Polina.

“It matters not where she came from or who she was,” Ulyana stated firmed. “She needs to be dealt with.”

Izolda wanted to ask more questions about the Rusalka, but held back. Speaking out would only draw attention to herself. But she could ask Varnya about it. Varnya who wore her long dark hair unbound, and lived in the caves near the river. Varnya who had a beautiful comb made of bone.