THE MONSTER, PART IV

The monster stopped at the entrance to the black lake, and turned to face the man.

   "Listen, man," The monster said, "this is a place for monsters. Men do not come here, you will be the first allowed to step foot beyond this point."

The man tried to step forward, but the monster put its arm up to stop him.

   "You will not be welcome here, and the monsters will not be kind to me for having brought you. But I am a cleverer monster than these, as I was not born of the black lake, but of a man." The monster said, "I will give you my face, to wear instead of your own, and I will take your face, to wear instead of mine. The monsters will not stop you then, and you may pass through unharmed."

   "What will happen to you, monster, when they see you step through after me in the face of a man?"

   "I am a monster," The monster replied, "I will make them know that I may wear any face, and still they may not stop me entering a place for monsters."

   "Okay," Said the man, "we will exchange faces, and I will cross into the black lake to await you."

The monster grinned a fiendish grin, and exchanged faces with the man.

In the face of a monster, the man crossed into the black lake.

   "I am a monster." Said the man, to make certain any monsters listening were not wise to their cleverness, "Do not be alarmed, as I have the right like all monsters to be here."

The man turned to call to the monster who wore his face…

But the door had closed behind him...

And so the monster walked back through the doors of mankind with the hearts of the wise, the hearts of the youth, the hearts of the innocent, and the face of a man.