Mary and the girl in green continued their journey in silence. The forest had now plunged completely into darkness, making it nearly impossible to see the path ahead. Only a faint light passed through the branches.
Mary hesitantly said, "Walking is really hard now... I wish we hadn't come."
The Girl in Green replied calmly, "Do you still want to let go of my hand?"
Mary looked at her in surprise, "Of course not. If it weren't for you, I couldn't even take a step."
The Girl in Green smiled, "Then trust me. It's not over yet. We have to keep going."
They carefully made their way through the bushes. Mary occasionally glanced behind her anxiously, worried that the black wolf might be following them again. The Girl in Green noticed.
The Girl in Green: "Why don't you look ahead, Mary?"
Mary: "Nothing... I'm just worried. I'm afraid it might come after us again."
The Girl in Green: "Don't worry. As long as you're brave, it won't come near you."
Several hours passed, and Mary, exhausted and weak, said, "Can we rest for a while? Just a few minutes."
The Girl in Green hesitated, "Okay. But we can't stay here long. We need to get through this forest."
They sat down. The forest had fallen silent. Suddenly, a strange sound filled the air. Mary and The Girl in Green looked around in horror. From the darkness ahead, a pair of red eyes glowed.
Mary said in a trembling voice, "It's that thing again... the wolf! I told you it's coming after us!"
The Girl in Green said, "No... this time it's coming from the front. It's not the wolf... it's something else."
Something slowly emerged from the darkness: a large black snake, with venomous and glowing eyes. The snake slithered toward them, and every movement radiated something threatening and terrifying.
Mary jumped up, "We have to run!"
The Girl in Green said calmly, "It's too late. If we run, it will follow us and never let go."
Mary: "So what do we do? Should we fight?"
The Girl in Green fixed her gaze on the snake and said, "No. Sometimes, when we face things like this, the best thing to do is show no reaction. When you give attention to these poisonous creatures, they see themselves as more powerful. But when you ignore them, they realize they have no effect on your life."
The snake approached, paused for a moment, studied them, and without attacking, continued on its way and vanished into the darkness.
Mary took a deep breath, "I can't believe it... you were right. When we ignored it, it left."
The Girl in Green softly said, "Poisonous things only harm you when you pay attention to them."
Mary thoughtfully said, "You're right... now let's get out of here."
They stood up and continued on their way.