The House with Chicken Legs

Marinka can’t focus throughout the ceremony. Each time Baba calls her back to attention, she asks more about the purpose of Guardians. Baba reassures her that she’ll do well at the job. She reminds her of how she learned to swim, insisting she can assume the Guardian role with the same fearlessness. Marinka is still uninterested. She even refuses to say the guiding words for the dead as they pass through The Gate. She knows she can’t resist forever but is thrilled with “taking control of [her] life” (69) for one moment.

Marinka finds Nina back in her room later that morning. Her form is fading rapidly. Marinka panics that she’ll soon fade away for good if she doesn’t go through the gate, but she still doesn’t want to let her go.

That evening, Marinka greets the dead with Baba. She is shocked when a little girl starkly resembling Nina appears. She introduces herself as Serina and explains that she was ill. Marinka listens intently, realizing she is Nina’s sister. She feels all of her emotions—the way Baba said she would if she truly listened to the dead—which makes it even harder to say goodbye. Marinka leans over the threshold of The Gate as she ushers Serina through; Baba drags her back.

After The Gate incident, Baba sits with Marinka. She feels upset and ashamed of herself. She wants something different from her life but can’t tell Baba. Finally, she dismisses herself to her room to see Nina. Privately, she convinces the house to relocate to the ocean the next day so Nina can see it before she passes through The Gate; the house agrees, on the condition that she tell Nina she is dead and let her go. The house will also keep her secret from Baba, too.

While Baba sleeps, the house races to the seaside. Nina is delighted the whole ride. That evening, Baba wakes up surprised by their relocation. She suggests that she and Marinka take the night off, go skinny dipping, and sleep on the beach. Marinka protests, insisting she wants to work instead; she swears that she now wants to guide the dead. Really, Marinka wants to spend one last night with Nina before saying goodbye.

That night, Marinka and Nina take a long walk on the beach. After wandering for some time, Marinka finally tells Nina she is dead. She also tells her “about the house, The Gate, and the guiding of the dead” (91). Marinka insists that Nina must pass through The Gate before she fades away forever. Nina is okay with the revelation, but doesn’t understand why Marinka is fading, too.

Marinka examines her hands, horrified to discover they are translucent. She reviews the events of her life and realizes she must be dead. She races back to the house and demands answers from Baba. Baba changes the topic to Nina—who is now curled up by the fire with Baba. They get into an argument about the secrets they’ve been keeping from each other.

Baba explains that Marinka died when she was a baby in the same fire that killed her parents. Baba guided them all through The Gate, but Marinka came back. Baba ended up raising her as her granddaughter in the Yaga tradition. She can feel and act like a living girl as long as she is in or near the house; the house gives her energy. Marinka realizes how trapped she is and becomes increasingly upset. Baba deflects by reminding her they have a duty to Nina. They listen to Nina tell her life story. Then Baba announces that she will have to take Nina through The Gate because she is too weak to go alone. She assures Marinka she will be fine assuming the Guardian role on her own. A desperate Marinka begs Baba not to leave as she disappears through The Gate with Nina.