Ivan was a naughty kid. A very naughty kid. He never did what he was told and was constantly getting into trouble. Naturally, his parents were not pleased with him, and he was frequently sent to his room. One day, Ivan had enough of this and decided to run away. He snuck out from behind the house and ran into the nearby woods.

After some running, Ivan started to get tired. He considered turning back, but then saw something up ahead. He walked closer and saw a strange little hut. He began to walk away, but then felt a rush of wind, beckoning him to get closer. He creeped up and knocked on the door, and to his surprise, a strange-looking old woman thrust it open. She greeted him, seemingly in jubilation, and told him to come inside. Ivan was gleeful at the warm reception, a contrast to the cold reception he received around the house, and eagerly ran inside. The woman, looking at him, smiled, her eyes glowing yellow.

Inside the house were tons of toys, and Ivan was thrilled. As he played in the house, he stated that this house was so much better than his own. The woman asked what his home life was like. Ivan started to complain about his home life and how mean and boring his family was. The woman listened attentively. She reassured him that at this house, he could have all the fun he ever wanted. Afterwards, Ivan continued playing with the toys, to the point where he tuned out everything else.

A few hours later, Ivan’s stomach started to grumble. He didn’t get dinner, courtesy of his grounding earlier in the night. He ran up to the woman, who was looking a little messy, and told her he wanted to eat. The woman just smiled and directed him to the dining room, with a plate of delicious meat in front of it. He took a bite, and it was the best-tasting meat he had ever had. He eagerly shouted that he wanted more, and the woman was more than happy to oblige. After several more plates, Ivan began to feel tired. He wanted to eat more, but the carbohydrates were getting to him, and he fell asleep right in his chair. The woman looked at him as this was happening and smiled gleefully.

The next day, Ivan woke up in a king-sized bed, and an extremely comfortable one at that. He felt like he could sleep in it forever, and he probably would have done so if the woman hadn’t come in. She told him that he needed to get back home. Ivan didn’t want to, but the woman told him he could come back whenever he wanted. Ivan reluctantly obliged.

As Ivan left the house, he was confused. He did not know which way his house was. The woman pointed forward, telling him to go straight until he reached the village. And Ivan did so, though slowly because of all the meat he ate. He thought he could hear the woman laugh as he was leaving, but he decided to ignore this.

Eventually, Ivan reached his house, hoping his parents would be worried about him. He snuck into the back and called out for his parents, but was only met with silence. He ran to his parents’ room, but they were gone, with the bed left in a mess. As he walked downstairs, he found the front door thrust wide open. He walked outside and saw footprints leading to the woods. Ivan then heard a faint, cackling laugh. He then put his hands to his stomach as he realized what—or who—he ate last night.