Jon cursed when his phone rang. He pressed the answer call slowing down the car a bit. Better safe than sorry.

"Honey, where are you?" his wife, Janet asked right away.

"I have no idea. This damn country is the size of Maine and I am freaking lost."

Janet chuckled at the other end.

"It's not funny. I rented this fiat mini car four hours ago and the tank wasn't even full."

"Have you stopped and asked for directions?" his wife asked in a tone that said that she was sure he didn't do any such thing.

"I ... did?" he said slowly.

"Sure you did. That is why you are lost now."

"Hold up honey. There is a gas station up ahead. See you in a few hours. I hope." he said turning his blinker on and slowly getting off the road.

"Sure babe. I'll try not to worry too much. Love you."

"Love you too."

Connection ended and Jon drove his little car next to a fueling station. It was chilly winter and the night came early but the sky was clear. Until he exited the car that is. The fog slowly started rising and in a minute it took him to walk to the little shop it surrounded the gas station and woodlands around it.

"Right, that is not creepy at all," he mumbled pushing the door in.

Inside was warm and cozy. There were all kinds of American brands he was used too, and a bunch more he never saw. He picked up a bag of chips that conveniently were called Chipsy. Noticing a basket he took one and dropped the bag in. He moved through an isle picking soda, water, snickers bar and pack of gums. He brought it to the register and sleepy looking woman run the items for him and said the price in Serbian. He didn't know what she said but he saw the numbers so he just nodded and gave few banknotes.

"Keep the change. I need fuel too. Is this self-service type of thing or ...?" he asked, almost forgetting why he stopped.

"Yes, can do self," she answered in broken English "Just come pay before go."

He managed not the laugh at her pronunciation and exited back into the cold air. He put the things he bought in the car, then he fueled up. While he waited for the tank to fill he looked around. The fog got thicker. So much that he barely saw the road now.

"Great, just what I needed," he mumbled moving back to pay.

"Be careful out there," the cashier woman said, "Fairies walk in the fog."

"Sure I will. I'll keep a watchful eye for ... fairies," he responded with a smirk.

"You no believe? Fine," the woman said shrugging "My brother didn't either. He speaks gibberish now and drools as the old man does."

He nodded politely and run to the car. Turning the fog lamps didn't help much with visibility. Sighing he turned the engine on leaving it to idle for a minute or two. He grabbed the bag of chips and called his wife. She answered after few seconds.

"Are you close?" she asked before he could say anything.

"No. I just refueled. And had a weird conversion with a cashier at a gas station," he said munching on the potato chip.

"What kind of strange? Strange like giving you 'do me' eyes or 'get lost foreigner' look?" she asked.

"Who said it was a woman?" he said with a giggle. "But more like she warned me about fairies that leave in the fog," he added more seriously.

"Oh. Well, here fairies and elves are the same thing," she explained.

"That doesn't make it look scarier at all. What are the elves going to do to me? Give me a Christmas gift or stab me with their pointy ears?" he responded with a jovial tone.

"I know that you don't care about my work but your ignorance of mythology is frightening considering that you are married to world-leading experts on them," Janet said with resignation. Jon could see her saying that with a smirk and head shaking slowly.

"Sorry babe. I'll be careful of ... horror elves," he said throwing a bag of chips on the other sit.

"They are not like elves ... more like creepy ghost ladies dressed in white nightgowns. They called them omayas or something similar. I can't pronounce it right," she said a bit annoyed at his tone.

"Oh, ladies. Are they sexy?" he said teasingly.

"Well according to legends they are so alluring that men would run after them until morning or until they fall off a cliff or run into bears cave," she said surprisingly serious. That sobered him up.

"Ok. Have to get back on the road. Love ya'."

"Love you too. And don't take any hitchhikers!" Janet said and closed the line.

He sighed, put the car into gear and slowly drove to the road. There stood a teenager holding on to the bike looking around. He stopped since she was in the middle of the crossing and he couldn't avoid her. She moved her head towards the car headlamps and for a second the light reflected from her eyes was pure white.

He pulled the handbrake and left the engine running while he exited the vehicle.

"Can you move a bit miss? I am in a hurry," he said walking towards her.

She squinted at him trying to see him better. But she said nothing.

"Do you speak English?" he continued "I am sorry I don't speak Serbian."

The girl let the bike fall down with a clatter.

"I speak many languages," she finally answered. Her accent was the same as his. Mid-western American.

"Are you lost or something?"

"You could say that. I am on a hunting trip with my student friends. But I lost them ... or maybe I lost myself," she said with melodic laughter.

"Oh," he said surprised. He looked better at her and he suddenly felt a longing. He wanted to touch her. It wasn't even sexual desire. He just wanted to touch her hair and move the fingers through the strands. He totally missed what she said next.

"What? I am sorry, what did you say?"

"Can you give me a lift?" she asked looking at his hand that was raised a bit. He was four steps closer to her than he remembered.

"Where are you heading?" he asked eagerly. It was like a fog around them entered his mind as well. It was hard to think.

"A hotel named Apart. It shouldn't be far from here," she said her voice becoming more gentle, more feminine, more sultry.

Apart, isn't that where I was heading? He shook his head trying to remove images that popped up in his mind. Moans of pleasure and breast heaving in front of his face. Droplets of sweat dripping from the perky nipples. Gentle fingers caressing his cheeks while hips rhythmically grind upon his groin. He let a groan escape his mouth.

"So, give me a ride?" she asked again.

"Yeah, giving a ride," he answered, voice breaking.

He didn't remember entering the car. Or the drive itself. He snapped out of it when he realized the door was open and faint smell of honeysuckle flowers assaulted his nostrils. He got out of the car and looked around. He was in the parking lot in front of his hotel. The morning sun was rising above the Kopaonik mountain. Jon shivered.

Later that day when night came again he was sitting in front of the fireplace. His ground-floor suite was decked in wood and it looked quite comfy and rustic. Janet was working on her laptop. Something about research on Slavic mythology. Jon wasn't listing when she was explaining but he was nodding quite a lot.

What was that last night? He wondered looking through a window. The wind was slowly growing stronger and snow swirls were made a pretty picture outside. But he just couldn't enjoy the view. Snowstorm started picking up and paradoxically so did fog. How is that possible, wouldn't wind blow the fog away? He asked himself getting up from his chair.

"I am going to take a walk, honey," he said grabbing his coat. The smell of honeysuckle started tickling his nose.

"Don't be out for too long. It looks like snowstorm will be raging soon," she said not looking away from her computer.

Jon didn't hear her. He walked without even thighing his boot laces. Cold air hardly touched his cheeks. That overpowering smell of honeysuckle called him. Soon he heard singing. Mournful singing, soul-wrenching melody bored through him and touched his very core. Snow swirling around him while wind caught up his coat and flapped it behind him.

To Jon, it looked like he was threading in knee-high milk. He wasn't cold, he was quite warm and comfortable. The voice continued to call for him and fog started to dance around his figure. Step by step he was closing to something and his joy was rising but never reaching the peak. Just one more step. One more step.

Two giant eyes, milky white. He saw them now. The more he walked the more normal they looked. They were not the size of the head anymore. But set in the face of a young girl. She wore a thin white shirt that covered her up to her knees.

He felt ecstatic, he felt arousal, he felt joy. The girl smiled and Jon almost reached his peak.

"Since the dawn of time,

Since the time forgotten.

Men sought away from the grime

Away from all that is rotten"

The voice sang and Jon smiled. He was finally home.

"Only way away

Is final destination

Honeysuckle bouquet

End of men's damnation."

Jon closed his eyes never to open them again. His face frozen in a grimace of peace and pleasure. His journey has ended.