Çìåé Ãîðûíû÷, Âàíÿ è Áàáóñÿ ßãóñÿ â ëåñó íà àíãë

Vanya, DragonGorynych and GrannieYagusya, the Forest Witch


Chapter 1. Meeting in the Forest
Summer! Oh, summer! Finally, it had come here – the long awaited time of forest flowers, mushrooms and berries! How nice it is to stroll across the fairy-tale forest full of wonders, and with a basket in one’s hand.Of course, if aforest were not far from your home and your mom would let you go there alone...Vanya dreamt about that momentall winter long. Andnow…
‘Hi there, DragonGorynych! How are you doing?’Vanyashouted to the Dragon, who was soaring low over the forest. The boy was so much afraid that Dragon would not notice himandwavingwith his white summer cap in such excitement that he barely managed not to scatter all the wild strawberries from his basket that he had picked before.
‘Oh, I’m quite all right!’ the voice said from above. The Dragon reduced his altitude; he carefully flew around the meadowand gently landed near Vanya so that not to touch the boywith his wings or tail.
The morning dew was still there, while the grasshoppers had already begun their crisp crick-crack chatter, a cuckoo was singing its usual cuckoo song, and wild strawberries were playing hide-and-seek in the grass swinging in a gentle wind. The forest meadow was environed with slender fir-trees, and birch-trees could be found here and there.The air smelled like pine trees.Little birch-trees were making such a wonderful noise with their tender leaves that one could listen and listen… and it was even better with one’s eyes closed. Because when you are listening to the forest music with your eyes closed, the fairy-tale scenes easier come up in your mind. And, Vanya was fond of fantasizing...Another fantasy you would say?! Not at all.There he was, DragonGorynych, safe and sound, in all his glory,right next to the boy again. They had not seen each other for ages! Vanya dreamt of thatmeeting all winter long. The boy liked the Dragon’s tales of the distant countries so much. Andthe Dragon missed his old friend Vanya. How many times the Dragon wanted to fly to Vanya’s balcony, but he never dared to do so: he was afraid of cars – there were a lot of them in the city, their engines would rattle, exhaust pipes would produce ugly smoke, and the Dragon did not like that at all.While the forest was quite another thing – pure nature, fresh air, and the long awaited meeting with his friend Vanya.
‘I got so much old, if it had not been for your white summer cap, I would not have noticed you without my glasses,’ Gorynych said.
‘How are your things going? Does the Wolf bully you? Any news about your flights?’ Vanya asked the Dragon.
‘I’m quite all right now. The Wolf does not bully me anymore,’ Gorynych was speaking slowly. ‘There is no more Wolf in our forest. Oh, he caused me lots of trouble, the grey bully. As soon as I lied down to have a nap for half an hour in the forest meadow, here he came and did his best to bite and drag my tail. The forest hunters have caught him. Now, he howls in the zoo. It serves him right. Now, I can sleep peacefully in any meadow as long as I want. No one bullies me anymore. Oh, I have grown so old, dear Vanya. I will be 100 years old soon. I do not fly much around the world now, and I do not know what tales to tell you. I spend most of my time on the Earth. Yet, I still have some news. I work for Granny Yagusya; I serve her as a fireplace now. She does not need to fire her furnace any more. I am the furnace now. Should she cook some porridge or potion, I breathe with the fire onto the pot – and the stuff instantly boils up in it. This is the way we live – I work as a furnace for Granny Yagusya, and she feeds me with porridge. Oh, I die for semolina with wild strawberries. Oh, and semolina with honey…!’ and each of the three heads of Dragon Gorynych leaked his lips with its separate tongue in a sweet and dreamy way.
As it had to happen, a wasp was flying by just in that very moment – and it bumped into the three long tongues in its way. Being greatly scared, the wasp stung its sting right into the middle head’s tongue.

Well, I should tell you, it turned out to be quite a big commotion.
I bet you have never seen such a sight!
Bitterly stung, Gorynych began spinning like Vanya’s spinning top, and poor dragon went like ‘ou-ou-ou-ou…’
‘Hey, Gorynych, stop twisting around. Stop firebreathing. Do not be angry at the wasp. It did not do that on purpose. It just happened. It was you, who stuck all your tongues out. Stop! Look, there is a spring over there. I will get some clay from it and pour some living water from it onto your stung tongue, and your pain will pass soon.’
Dragon Gorynych stuck out his stung tongue. Vanya put some clay to the stung spot, and poured some water from the spring onto it. Gorynych felt well: the pain passed off. The Dragon calmed down finally.

‘You have saved me, Vanya! Clever head you are! How did you know what to do in such cases?’ Gorynych asked the boy.
‘Oh, my dear Gorynych, I like to listen not only to your tales about distant countries. I am also interested in my Grandpa’s knowledge about Folk Wisdom. That is him, who taught me how to soothe the pain if a bee or a wasp stings.’

‘What does ‘Folk Wisdom’ mean?’ the Dragon asked.
‘It is what people learn from their own life experience. For instance, how to treat the illnesses.’
‘Well, if it goes that way, then, Vanyusha, Granny Yagusya will like you definitely. The old fellow set her mind on treating the forest beasts with herbs. She says there is no one to help them. Dr.Powderpill has left for Africa to heal monkeysthere, while there is no vet to treat our animals here. Thus, Granny Yagusya set about the work! She had announced it to every one: she is now the Chief Veterinarian of the Forest!’

‘Well,’ Vanya said. ‘I suppose, she is a ripe-aged woman, and she must be quite aware of Folk Wisdom!’
‘She can teach you many things’ Gorynych said. ‘Maybe, when you grow older, you will become a vet, just like Dr.Powderpill.
Vanya bestrode the Dragon, grabbed tightly his middle neck, and … they went off.
‘Oh, it’s a pity you haven’t got a tie, Gorynych. I have nothing to hold onto.’
‘What’s a tie?’ the Dragon turned one of his aisle heads.
‘Don’t budge, Gorynych. I will explain you a bit later. Try not to get into the air holes because I can fall down.’
The Dragon nodded with all his three heads and soared smoothly up into the sky.
What a splendid view Vanya saw! He had never seen such a breath-taking beauty. The Dragon flew low above the forest, and the boy could see every detail very well: forest meadows with bright flowers scattered all around, lakes and rivers, and the forest. From time to time, they came across different birds. Vanya waved to greet them. The birds swung their wings or nodded their heads. And, the wind whistled in their ears.

‘What’s the thing shining over there?’ Vanya shouted.
‘Where?’ Gorynych asked.
‘Right over there, under the fir-tree in the forest meadow. Let’s have a look.’
‘You’re all eyes, you know. You can notice everything. And, me… I would not notice it without my glasses. It’s an empty glass bottle,’ the Dragon replied when turning around the forest meadow and flying towards the shining spot.
‘No way, they scattered the bottles around everywhere, yet again,’ Gorynych was grumbling while taking the mesh bags out of his pockets. ‘Have a look, Vanya; there are a lot of cans here! Dear friend of mine, help me to gather all these things’.

‘Who did that, Gorynych?’ Vanya wondered.
‘Oh, who? Hikers, those who come for a picnic time; they are those who have done it! Those who destroy nature: they are very silly people, you know, Vanya. However, they are grown-ups, yet those silly people do not know that not only unextinguished fires, cigarettes or matches but also glass bottles left behind can cause all the forest to burn to the ground.

‘How does it happen?’ Vanya seemed to be quite puzzled.
‘Let me explain,’ Gorynych said. ‘The glass bottle acts like a lens on a sunny day!’
‘Just like you act like a furnace?’
‘Almost. Yet, I act while using my mind, I am well aware of a possible fire. While a bottle has no mind. It collects, in other words concentrates, all the sunrays at one spot on a hot sunny day with its round shiny sides. And, as the bottle lays still, a sunray may be directed into the spot: a dry leaf or a dry branch, for instance. In addition, those kindle up with fire because of the high temperature the sunray produced. To make it more clearly for you, I could say that an empty glass bottle acts like a magnifying glass in the sunrays. Do you know what a ‘lens’ is?’


‘Of course, I do, Gorynych. It is a glass with belly-like bumps on both sides. I saw as my friend, Marat, burnt out different pictures on wooden plates while sitting on his balcony on a bright sunny day. Do come to visit me some day and he will show you how to do that.’
The lens bottles were shining here and there. Meanwhile, the forest was standing still, murmuring quietly with its leaves, and it did not have a slightest idea what horrible trouble Dragon Gorynych and Vanya were saving it from. The mash bag of Gorynych was full. The dreadful glass bottles were sitting there like beasts in a cage, yet they were no longer dangerous to the forest.
‘We are going to give the cans to the Bear,’ Gorynych contemplated. ‘He has started up his own business: a tooth paste tube workshop. He makes those out of cans,’ Gorynych explained and hung up his mesh bags full of glass bottles and cans onto his tail.
- ‘What does the Bear make his tooth paste of?’ Vanya asked.
‘Out of birch ash mixed with honey. Now, all the animals in the forest brush their teeth with the Bear’s yummy toothpaste in the morning and in the evening. And, none of them has any tooth ache anymore!’ Gorynych noticed. ‘Well, as for the empty glass bottles, we’re going to exchange those for lemonade in our local shop,’ Gorynych kept on his wise reasoning. ‘You see, I’m quite fond of lemonade!’ Gorynych said in a dreamy way. And, each of his three heads almost got ready to leak its lips with its tongue, yet he timely recollected the stuff with the wasp, and changed his mind.
‘Let’s hurry up. Lunchtime is coming! Yagusya has been waiting for me for quite a while. It’s time to cook some porridge,’ the Dragon got a bit nervous. And, they flew off…


Chapter 2. Lunch at Granny Yagusya

‘Here he is! At last! What did you fly to get for so long?’ Granny Yagusya started to grump right from the door porch.
‘Well, Yagusya, let me introduce my friend. He came to visit us. His name is Vanya. He is fond of Nature a great deal. And, by the way, he is interested in Folk Wisdom. He helped me when a wasp stung me.’
Vanya bowed to Yagusya in his best polite manner.
‘How do you do? This is for you,’ and Vanya gave Yagusya a basket full of wild strawberries.

‘Thank you, my dear boy, that’s very kind of you. I am quite an old woman, you see, so it is difficult for me to bow down to pick up some berries. Well, I am going to treat you with the most delicious porridge topped with wild strawberries then. Gorynych, would you breathe some fire to the pot, please. Here you are! Ready and yummy! Lunch is served! You washed your hands before a meal, didn’t you? Hey, you, my hut standing on chicken legs, turn your back to the forest and your front to the spring!’

The hut started to waddle heavily so the Cat had almost fallen from the bench, while the Crow sitting in the corner flapped its wings trying to keep his balance on the branch nailed to the wall. The hut clucked and turned around. There was a spring just at the doorstep of it. Vanya washed his hands and face with a clear cool water. He immediately felt refreshed. And, he has never tasted food more delicious than the meal that Granny Yagusya had served. Yagusya treated Vanya with wonderful rolled pancakes. Some of them were stuffed with honey, nuts, berries or even with fried mushrooms.
‘My house specialty,’ Yagusya said. ‘Rolled pancakes’. Help yourself and enjoy, my dear boy!’
Meanwhile, Dragon Gorynych was eating his favourite porridge topped with wild strawberries with all his zest, actually all his three heads were eating from their three dishes.
‘Yagusya, this young lad, Vanya, would like you to teach him some ofFolk Wisdom. He would like to become a Dr.Powderpill, a vet, actually, when he grows up,’ the Dragon said.
‘It would be more than great, as I grew quite old, and it is hard for me to heal all the animals. My forest hospital receives patients tomorrow, and many animals are going to come for treatment. Thus, you’ll have a chance to pick up some useful things,’ Yagusya said.
‘What am I supposed to do there?’ Vanya was eager to know.
‘You will do what I say. You’ll be my assistant’ Granny Yagusya promised.
‘All right,’ Vanya was happy about that. ‘But, if I do not come back home by night, my Mom will be very worried.’

‘We will deal with that. Magpie, sweetheart, where are you?’ Yagusya called.
‘Here I am, Granny, sitting on a birch-tree,’ and the Magpie flew into the open window of the hut.

‘Listen, my dear feathered friend, you’re to fly to Vanya’s Mom, to the city, and tell her that Vanya is going to stay at my place as a guest till tomorrow. Let her not worry the slightest bit. I will take care of him. He will be like a grandson to me.’
And, the magpie was gone in a flash.

‘Why don’t you, Yagusya, show Vanya the way we live here? Our everyday life and the stuff, so to say,’ Dragon Gorynych smiled.
‘The way we live, the way things are here,’ Just listen to him. Nature is amazing here. There are some magic stuff too: the broomstick and the mortar, the flying carpet, the seven-league boots, and the magic pipe: it can play tunes all on its own.’
‘Dear Granny Yagusya, have you got a telly?’ Vanya was curious.
‘Since, you’re like a grandson to me, you can call me Yagusya. It’s more delightful to my ears,’ Yaga told him.
‘Yagusya, have you got a telly?’ Vanya asked again.
‘Nope, I have no telly here. But, I’ve got a miraculous mirror. It shows everything I demand.’
‘How is that?’ Vanya got surprised.
‘Well, it is quite simple,’ Gorynych interfered. ‘Yagusya, show him those barbarian hikers that leave empty glass bottles and cans in the forest. Well, despite of the fact that Vanya is rather a smart lad, he does not know who those are.’ Yagusya took the magic miracle, turned it around three times and said:
‘Mirror, Mirror, in my hands
Show us now who scatters cans,
Bottles, litter and the like,
Those who leave mess when they hike.’

Vanya glanced into the mirror and there – just like on a display of a telly or a tablet, he saw the very same forest meadow where Gorynych and he had collected all the garbage and empty glass bottles earlier that day. Next to a fir-tree, there was a jolly group of hikers: they were playing the guitars, drinking lemonade, eating canned food, and scattering those empty bottles and cans everywhere around the forest.
‘Well, we are going to make it hot for them!’ Yagusya and Gorynych shouted in one voice.
Granny Yagusya jumped into her flying mortar and grabbed her broomstick.
Dragon Gorynych got ready to be off.
‘Hey, guys! Take me with you!’ Vanya cried aloud.
‘Oh, you, dear boy! Well, should I give you the seven-leagued boots? Nope, I do not think you are going to cope with those; you have not yet studied the manual. And, it is quite dangerous to fly on Gorynych. He gets hot in a battle, and he can simply drop you down by accident. Oh, get into my flying mortar, quick!’ Yagusya ordered him.
Vanya jumped into Yagusya’s mortar. And, they went at a top speed to the place of incident.

It was an evening and it was getting dark quite quick. Granny Yagusya and Dragon Gorynych bumped into the bullies. Oh, what an awesome commotion began! Granny Yagusya was making storm with her broomstick. Dragon Gorynych was making thunder and lightning. On their way here, Yagusya and Gorynych had managed to grab a stormy cloud – now, it started to rain the messy hikers. And, Granny was sweeping each bully with her broom repeatedly.

‘You will never again drop a single piece of litter in the forest, never!’ she was telling them.
The messy hikers grabbed their belongings and jumped into their bus. They drove off as fast as they could. Yet, only empty bottles and cans were left behind, here and there.
‘Oh, so much garbage!’ Vanya was furious.
‘Cheer up! We will collect all that in no time,’ Gorynych said, and took out his mesh bags again. ‘We have been protecting our forest from messy guys like those. Otherwise, they would have turned it into a rubbish heap a long time ago.’
Soon, there were three mesh bags filled with bottles, cans and the like garbage on Dragon’s tail. Vanya bestrode the Dragon, and held him tightly around the middle neck.

‘Let’s fly to Yagusya. She will let you watch some cartoons in her magic mirror before bedtime. And, I am going to get you home by myself, right to the balcony tomorrow’ Gorynych said. And, they flew off.
It was the first time Vanya had seen such an amazing forest: washed by rain and lit by the rays of a setting sun. No words would describe his delight. On a telly, one would never see colours similar to those of a forest in the evening light.

Chapter 3. Learning from Yagusya

Vanya spent a wonderful evening at Granny’s porch! Gorynych and Yagusya brewed some herb tea the boy had never tasted before.
‘Yagusya, what did you put into the teapot?’ Vanya was eager to know.
‘John’s-wort, marjoram, mint, there is a bit of everything there, and several leaves of garden currant and flowers of wild rose. ‘A bit’ means one teaspoon. Do you know how these herbs look like?’ Yagusya asked.
‘I think so, but I think I can mix those up.’
‘Cat, would you get my Herbarium from the Russian stove?’ Yagusya requested.
Cat got a big box full of cards with dried herbs and plants diligently sewed onto those.

‘Here, take a careful look to remember them well,’ and Yagusya showed Vanya dried plants: marjoram, mint, John’s-wort, flowers of wild rose, currant leaf and many other medicinal herbs.

Yaga told Vanya how one has to carefully cut the top of a plant not to hurt it when provisioning it for tea.


Meanwhile, a chorus of frogs was getting louder. And, it grew darker as well.
‘It’s beyond my patience to listen to those froggies. They remind me of a modern pop-group – they sing one and the same phrase over and over again,’ Yagusya said and stopped her ears.
‘Don’t use to be grumpy, Granny Yagusya. You should better play a cartoon for Vanya in your magic mirror,’ Gorynychinterfered. He was reading some forest newspapers peacefully while sitting in the rocking chair.
‘Show him something about the forest everyday life’ Gorynych suggested.
‘Show me a video about ants, please, Granny Yagusya,’ Vanya asked. ‘I like to watch ant hills a lot. I believe ants to be very clever as they can build such big dwellings’.

‘Here you are, have a look, my dear inquisitive friend!’
And, Yagusya played five cartoon series in a row about ant kingdom for Vanya. A wonderful and unknown world opened its gates for the boy.
‘I hope you got that one has to protect ant hills as well,’ Yaga said.
‘Yes, I did,’ Vanya said and recollected horrible scenes when, in series two, ants died when a cow accidentally got into an anthill in the forest. Yet, he observed quite often when some boys would come across an anthill in the forest; they would take a stick to dig into it. After that, Vanya would definitely stop a bully from doing such a thing.

‘All the anthills in the forest are to be fenced, and a notice should be placed saying, ‘Caution! Anthill!’ Vanya said. ‘Ant do lots of good stuff for the forest. They protect it from different pests. If it were not for ants, those hungry caterpillars and bugs would eat up all the leaves in the forest!’
Vanya closed his eyes for a moment to imagine a forest without a single leaf.
‘You are right, darling. You are a clever lad, I should admit,’ Yagusya praised him a little.
‘Granny, could I, please, watch just one more cartoon?’ Vanya smiled.
‘Sorry, my star boy, but that is all for today! Look, there is the moon over the hut. It is time to sleep. Tomorrow we are going to have lots of work to do. We need to have a good sleep.’
Granny Yagusya slept in the hut. Dragon Gorynych made himself comfortable in the attic, andVanya got a hammock for bed at the porch. There is nothing like a sound sleep in the open air!

Chapter 4. Forest Hospital

Early in the morning, when the first sunrays appeared, Gorynych woke Vanya up.
‘Wake up, Vanya, I have already boiled some milk and picked up a bit of raspberry for you. Do, get up! There is no time for sleeping. Forest animals will come for treatment very soon. We are going to assist Granny Yagusya.’
‘Oh, I don’t know how to actually assist her. When I was appointed as a kind of nurse in my school class, I was to check whether all the guys had clean ears and necks,’ Vanya shared.
‘You did everything correctly,’ the Dragon replied while washing all his three necks in the spring. ‘Hygiene is two thirds of health,’ he murmured. ‘No need to worry, I will train you how to assist a vet.
They sipped boiled milk and ate some raspberry while sitting on the flying carpet spread on the grass outside the hut. Granny Yagusya told the carpet to lie down still and not to budge. Then, Yagusya put a special medical hat with a red cross on it on and started to pestle dry herbs and roots in a small mortar, and then she cooked some healing potions in her pots. Gorynych helped her. He was wearing a medical hat with a red cross on it; actually, there were three hats on three heads. He would either pass the root she needed, or heat a pot with his fire. Vanyawas given a special medical band with a red cross as well. Yagusya told him to meet the patients.
And, the forest hospital was open.
Bob the Bear was the first patient. He had cut his paw with a can. The very same can messy hikers had left in the forest. The Bear had stepped on it with his front paw by accident – and he got his paw injured. Granny Yagusya put some yellow powder from her mortar onto the wound.
‘Bedstraw is a herb, that is also called bristle-stem hemp nettle, and it smells like honey,’ Yagusya explained. ‘It has got tiny flowers producing honey scent. Here, have a look,’ Yagusya showed Vanya a dried flower from her Herbarium, which Puss passed courteously.
‘Puss is not just a cat,’ Yagusya gently stroke her pet. ‘He is the Keeper of Herbarium.’ And Puss took the Herbarium back to its place.
‘Now, we are going to make a bandage out of burdock’sleaves and tie it up with some loach,’ Yagusya said and tore a long lace of blue loach liana winding up all over around her porch.
What a pretty bandage it was! And, treated wound was not painful any more. The Bear was so happy and so grateful that he presented toothpaste tubes from his bag to all. Everyone got a present – Yagusya, Gorynych, Vanya, and even Puss.
‘It will help you to keep your teeth white and healthy. I made this tooth paste especially for you, all by myself!’ he told them quite proudly.
Then, hedgehogs came to a place. They carried the Squirrel. She had eaten a dogberry; she had taken it for redcurrantberries. Oh, even dogs or wolves should not eat dogberries – they are very poisonous.
Granny Yagusya gave her a warm potion from her clay pot to drink while saying, ‘Vanya, listen. In the forest, it feels good and nice, yet, one has to be aware of what is what. For instance, there are herbs, berries and mushrooms that are good for people, yet, at the same time, there are poisonous plants for people too. You have to know what is what.’
‘Flybane and toadstool are not good because they are poisonous mushrooms,’ the Squirrel said. Apparently, she felt better.
‘Here they are,’ the Squirrel took some cards with pictures of poisonous mushrooms out of her pocket – fly bane, toadstool and other mushrooms dangerous for people.
 ‘Toadstool is red with small white spots on its cap, just like peas,’ the Squirrel kept on. ‘While fly bane has got a kind of small skirt on its stipe. I am good with mushrooms, yet I got berries wrong.’
‘One has to be very careful in the forest,’ Yagusya said.
‘Yagusya, are there any poisonous herbs?’ Vanya asked.
‘Yes, there are, my dear boy. I will gradually teach you how to distinguish which is good, and which is poisonous. One cannot get everything at once. For now, while you are still here, in the forest, do not pick up flowers or herbs you are not familiar with. There are some that can burn you like fire, though they do not look dangerous at all, and they bloom nicely too. Puss, would you get me the Herbarium? Have a look, for instance, at this very flower,’ Yagusya took out a card with a beautiful red dried flower neatly sewed to it. ‘This one has got lots of names. People may call it burning bush, gas plant, while in other countries it has other names. Vanya, do try to remember these two names of the herb.’


‘Burning bush – I got it, because it can kind of burn you,’ Vanya tried to memorize it. ‘Yagusya, why do they call it ‘gas plant’?’ Vanya was eager to know.
 ‘My dear boy, the thing is that, on a hot day, the herb produces a flammable gas around its flower. And, if Gorynych breathes, some fire at the flower, the gas burns up while the flower will stay intact, as if it had bathed in fire. That is why people used to call it ‘gas plant’ a long time ago.’

‘I know the flower quite well,’ the Bear said.
‘Me either,’ the Squirrel echoed.
‘We try to stay away from it,’ other animals confirmed.
‘The same concerns you, Vanya,’ Yagusya tutored the boy.
Aha, another patient came by! Mother Rabbit brought her baby boy. He was holding his mom’s paw with one his paw, while the other one was on his tummy.
‘I have told him nearly one hundred times not to go to the nearby field and not to eat big cabbage-heads; but he ran away and ate it to his heart content. In spite of the fact that those cabbage-heads are really big, they are full of nitrates.’
‘Sorry to interrupt,’ Vanya still interfered. ‘What do ‘NITRATES’ mean?’
‘Those are kind of powder fertilizers people spread over their fields for their harvest to grow really big. Just like, for instance, about those big cabbage heads growing on the field next to the forest – nitrates from soil get into plants, and those substances are very harmful for health, they cause tummy ache,’ Mother Rabbit explained. ‘The other thing is woodsorrel growing in the forest. Though it is small, yet it is harmless. And, it is safe to eat it. But my baby boy did not listen to my words, and ate some of big cabbage-heads. What are we going to do, Yagusya?’ Mother Rabbit asked.
‘What to do, what to do?! Put your little rabbit into the hammock. Let him lie down quietly, while I am going to make some medicinal tea. Come and learn, Vanya! We are going to take a tea spoon of chamomile, sage and blooming sally.’
‘The last one sounds funny to me,’ Vanya was excited.
‘That’s the name of the herb. It grows next to the hut on the forest meadow. Chamomile and sage grow nearby too,’ Granny Yagusya showed herbs to the boy. ‘Do remember them; it will be of service to you.’
Granny put some other powder from a small mortar. Vanya was late to ask what that was as Yagusya poured some water into the pot and asked,
‘Ahoy, Gorynych, breathe some fire onto the pot. Here you go – the water and herbs in it have boiled. Let the pot stay for a while for the tea to brew up, and then we are going to give it to the little rabbit. Pain will vanish in an instance, as if a hand will take it away.’
‘Yagusya, why did you say ‘as if a hand will take it away?’Vanya asked.
‘That is because, my young and inquisitive friend, in ancient times, there were people with kind hearts and kind hands. Hands of such a person would produce incredible warmth. As soon as such a person touched a sore place, the pain would simply vanish. That is why people used to say ‘it vanished as if a hand took it away’.Am I clear, my dear boy?’
‘Got it, Yagusya. Are there any of such people now?’
‘Yap, there are some of them. Sometimes, they are called EXTRASENSORY EXPERTS.’ Then she turned to the little rabbit and gave him some of the herb potion.
‘Come on, drink it, my fast little rabbit,’Yagawas persuading the rabbit to drink some herb potion.
‘It’s bitter,’ the little patient squeaked.
‘Bitter it is, yet it will do you good,’ Yagusya kept repeating. ‘Do eat a tea spoon of honey. It is sweet and good. So, are you better now?’
‘Better, Yagusya, I’m better now. I’m quite all right,’ the little rabbit answered and began to jump in the hammock.
‘Well, will you obey your Mom from now on?’ Granny asked him.
‘I will, Yagusya, I will,’ the little rabbit promised.

            Chapter 5. Gorynych as the Medical Tool and the Forest Party

‘Granny, can you heal with your hand?’ Vanyaasked.
‘No, I can’t, Vanya. I can only heal with herbs and roots, and with Dragon Gorynych,’ Yagusya replied.
‘How is that – ‘with Dragon Gorynych’?’ Vanya was astonished.
‘Oh, it is very simple. If someone catches a cold, then I ask Gorynych to breathe a bit of fire in order to heat the sore spot, and the illness goes away. You will soon see it.’
Indeed, Vanya saw the wonders with his own eyes too!
Lizzy the Fox had caught a cold in her back when she got in the rain. She could neither breathe, nor squeak, not even straighten her back up. She barely came dragging herself along to Yagusya’s vet hospital.
‘Gorynych, will you warm Lizzy’s back a little? But be careful, do it bit by bit not to burn the fur of the red girlie!’
And, the Dragon set himself to heat the Fox up from all his three heads at once.
‘Well, Lizzy, are you better now?’ Granny Yagusya asked.
‘Much better, Yagusya. I do feel much better, my sweet vet! I believe I could even dance right now!’
‘So, why would you not?’ Gorynych asked.
‘There is no music here, and I am not used to dance without music.’ the Fox replied.
‘No music, you say? Hey, you, pipe-to-play-on-its-own, play us the most jolly melody ever!’ Yagusya demanded.
And the pipe-to-play-on-its-own immediately arrived to the middle of the forest meadow, and began to play the jolliest tunes it knew, and not everyone could but danced – Lizzy the Fox, Dragon Gorynych, Granny Yagusya, Vanya, Bobthe Bear, hedgehogs, Mother Rabbit and her baby boy, and even Puss. When other animals from the nearby forest heard the merry tunes, they also came and joined the dancing party to have some fun.
It was a really cool hype!
Every forest beast danced to its heart content. Granny Yagusya treated all of them with her house specialty – fragrant herbal tea and rolled pancakes stuffed with honey.

Listen, who would you think was hiding over there in the bush?
Oh, that was the Wolf; he came by with his tail down. He had run away from the zoo, and got into a steel trap with his tail on his way home. So, Yagusya had to help the poor lad.
And, the Wolf promised not to hurt anyone, especially the old Dragon Gorynych.

Chapter 6. Flying Back Home to Mom on
Gorynych’s Back

While the party was going on in the forest meadow, the sun was setting down. And, the Magpie, who had been sent to Vanya’s Mom, came back.
‘Your Mom said you, Vanya, should be home by the evening or she would never let you go to the forest,’ the bird chattered with one breath.
Dragon Gorynych got ready to be off. Vanya said good-bye to all the animals and Granny Yagusya. And, she gave him a big bunch of forest flowers.
‘Listen to me, Vanya. Should you feel sick, try not to take too many medical drugs. Natural treatment, herbal tea, is always better,’ Yagusya was tutoring the boy because she liked that inquisitive and attentive boy a lot. She had even loved him as her own grandson.
 ‘Oh, please, don’t you cry, Yagusya, I promise to come and visit you. Gorynych will bring me.’
Dragon Gorynych soared high above the forest, speeded up and… soon they were back in the city!
‘Hey, it’s so smoky here,’ Gorynych said and began to sneeze with all his three noses at once so heavily that Vanya almost fell down from him. ‘What do you breathe here, people? Can’t you produce a bit less smoke?’ the Dragon was grumpy.
Soon, they saw Vanya’s street, and his balcony on the fourth floor.

‘Don’t miss me too much, Gorynych, next time we meet, I will make you a present – three real ties.’
‘What do ‘ties’ mean?’ Gorynych asked while soaring next to the balcony.
‘It is an item they wear on the neck to look more elegant.’
‘What’s ‘elegant’?’
‘It’s…’
However, the Dragon had already gone far away.
‘And, I’ve got to get him a new pair of glasses too,’ Vanya thought.
The balcony door got open,
‘Vanya, my sweet boy!’ his Mom flung her arms up.
‘That’s for you, Mommy,’ Vanya smiled and gave his mom the bunch of forest flowers.