in a dream.

Something woke her up. Natalya sat down and looked around: the ball rolled around in a circle in one place a few steps away. Natalya got up and approached: it was the place where the prince kindled a fire, and then slept. She touched her hands, the heat was not felt. Natalia quickly dressed and went to the wake of the ball. The faster she walked, the faster the ball rolled and, finally, they reached the nest.

The ball rolled around the nest and Natalia, coming up, immediately saw that the nest was damaged. She frowned. The fact that the ball rolled around, meant that the prince stayed here. But something was alarming her. Natalya got on her knees and lay down in the nest, and as soon as her head touched the wall of the nest, the scenes of violence committed by the prince over the unhappy girl, strangulation and ... Natalia cried out and jumped out of the nest before the inner sight. What she saw shook her — Prince — whispered white lips whispered — who are you?

But there was no going back and gradually, calming down, she reconciled with the terrible metamorphosis that changed her prince to unrecognizability - I only have the way forward, behind him and maybe when I meet him I find out why he became such - and she again went after the ball, which she thought was rolling not so fast.

She kept going and going and for all the time she only came to the water twice to rinse her face and get drunk. And by the end of the day she reached the place where the prince swam across Maru again, fleeing from the legionaries. She saw the traces of warriors, traces of the bare feet of the fugitives, traces of the hoofs of horses.

The tangle stood at the water's edge. Stopped and Natalia.

...

When the clothes dried up, I got dressed and moved on, not daring to return to the other side again. I was already not thinking about anything: indifference and apathy seized me and did not immediately hear it ... I froze: again, as then, before meeting with Natasha, someone spoke about me ...

- I think enough with him. Or even try it? Suddenly, feelings will stir up memory, and he will not cope.

I heard the Voice, but did not see the speaker.

- If we are talking about me - now I didn’t care, they would attack me to gobble up, or vice versa, they would save me from wanting to feast on me - I’m ready. Just what?

And the word that had been haunting me all this time, as if nature had exhaled from her chest — Missionaaa — and it had been hanging in the air for a long time until it melted.

- Where I am? - I turned to the Voice - where is the fairy-tale world in which I was so good? Even in spite of the fact that in the 30th they wanted to execute me. And what kind of river is this Mara?

- Every time, crossing the river from one bank to another, you went into the past, farther and farther away, so you didn’t see and couldn’t see the fairytale world on the other bank when you swam it for the first time, because there was another time is past.

- So my path is not over yet?

- Your Mission has not started yet, but you are in one step ...

I had a strange feeling that we are talking about the same thing, but somehow we go too far.

- But how is it possible? - I continued to bend my own - If I am here, then I am not there - an emptiness arises, and the emptiness must be filled.

- Your knowledge of the environment is too insignificant, but you are right, the void must be filled

"It seems our thoughts converge"

An image appeared right in front of me, and I saw myself, in tights and sneakers, digging potatoes and, if I, before Natasha appeared, just started digging, then that I, there - already dug it!

I looked at myself digging potatoes, he was very close, “And what if ...” - and I stepped in there, but nothing happened, it just disappeared and that's all. Sighing, I turned and saw myself again. I just walked through the virtual image.

- You can, of course, and so, but then forever remain a mystery, what you wanted to know and why you turned out to be here.

- But this is impossible! I'm there and I'm here! Or maybe ...

- And there is not you. There is another one from this world, but he looks like you.

“But if he is from this time, he should not dig, but should stare around and be surprised at everything he sees for the first time, except for the sky and the sun.”

- This is true, but all your words, deeds and thoughts do not dissolve without a trace on the air and it is not difficult to copy your ego "I speak in terminology understandable to you" (like voice-over) in his brain, and immerse his ego in suspended animation.

“But I, too, have little, or even know nothing about this world and time.”

- You still have, though scant and scanty knowledge of the past, but this was enough for you to get comfortable here. Your ego didn't have to put to sleep. And your secret left behind you ... And those that were before you, also had their secret, but not one could leave the Tentieth.

The voice fell silent, but then continued - We provide such as you, to check whether it is really possible, returning to the past and changing something in it: eliminating someone or changing the course of events - changing, thus, the present, in his an era?

I was silent, not knowing what else to say

- There is a dark spot in your ego that is not scanned and it discourages. Even us. What kind of person are you? And a man?

The voice fell silent.

I waited, but nothing broke the silence, and only the same phrase “opening the bed of sleep” twirled in the language - somewhere I heard it ...

It was getting dark, and I looked around, but what is it? The river and the forest disappeared, I stood on the cobblestone road, the full white moon illuminated the dull hilly landscape around.

- Where to go? - I asked myself, but no one answered, and I went in the direction of the look.

...

Natasha took a step and stopped. Tangle did not stir, and she realized: the prince on the other side and very close. She sighed, walked into the river on the chest and, pushing away, swam.

Having gone ashore, she took off her clothes and squeezed them off, dressed again. She suddenly felt thirsty and took a step ... there was no river, the forest disappeared, she was standing on the cobblestone road, and the white full moon lit up the dull hilly landscape around.

Natalya went on the road, towards the moon, but after a few steps she turned and walked in the opposite direction.