The Lonely She-Wolf

Inspired by the 80s film "Company of Wolves"

 

            Long, long, long ago when the age of Man was young and the Earth old, it was a bitter winter night where the sky let fall her tears, in which turned to ice and showered the land in a blanket of snow. Her icy tears brought great discomfort to the trees that were bundled in their cold embrace, and their leaves had fallen like the petals of a weeping rose. The rivers were still on the surface, the life inside held prisoner from the outside world. The once cascading fall of ongoing tears of running waters had also become deprived of freedom, and the interior of its freezing stronghold was still, yet weakly running smoothly. Amongst the frozen trees danced a warm and merry melody playing deep within their woods. Its tune would’ve melted the frost off their trembling limbs and brought comfort, but to the trees’ displeasure the melody could only play its soft and warming tune to draw attention of the beasts and folk who moved along as dark silhouettes searching for a place to rest.
            If one could venture further into the woods to find the source of the merry music, they’d stay there throughout the entire night dancing and singing. For within these woods, deep at the center, fire flickered and cast great shadows of dancing fauns and satyrs. Beautiful centaurs played their harps whose chords were made from their fine strands of hair. Dwarves lounged around the fire and dined on drums of red meat and sweet ale to wash it down their parched throats. A few Elves danced around the fire with the fauns and satyrs, playing sweet music with their flutes and clay-made ocarinas, while the rest accompanied the dwarves. Everyone seemed to be having a grand time!
            However, there was a lone silhouette lurking in the shadows with eyes illuminated by the moon overhead and watched from a distance the merry sight of the singing and dancing folk. The silhouette sadly turned from the warming sight and made way through the dark and towering trees. This peculiar silhouette was none other than a she-wolf, a lonely creature residing in the shadows of others. Not of this world, she came elsewhere; another plain of existence unknown to many.
            On this night the she-wolf had come to investigate this new and bizarre world. Because of her curiosity, the she-wolf made a discovery of this place when she had crawled out of a well. It was a well at the center of a sleeping town—a well that was the source to entering this world from hers. She lived in the Underworld where she had no sky, no moon, no sun nor light. A place of complete darkness and isolated from the social world. A lonely world that she unfortunately had to inhabit and only to herself. This curious foreigner was naturally a wolf, but once she entered this new world her form changed into a nude woman with dark red hair hanging in long curls below her knees, and long black nails scratching the soft earth. Her honey-colored eyes showed fear, excitement, and great curiosity as she wandered around, for this place was so new to her and she was so new to it.
            She did not stand up straight normally when she walked, preferring to slouch and crawl when moving swiftly with caution, and her eyes wide and alert with her head sharply turning from here to there at her new surroundings. When she walked it was mostly on her feet with her knees bent as if sneaking about and trying not to be seen. Her hands would glide across the ground frequently to balance herself when she moved, and then stop abruptly when slightly shifting her crouched position up to peer over something to get a glimpse or view. She had a shy image about herself by the way she moved, which bewitched the trees and the small creatures peering out from burrows to see her wandering and sprinting figure, for she was a lovely creature.
            The moon overhead glowed brightly than the stars that twinkled and winked now and then as the music from within the woods soon waned. Total silence surrounded the she-wolf, and when emerging from the woods, she was overwhelmed at the glorious sight of the moon with wild eyes marveling his ethereal beauty and pale image as she sank low to the ground and flailed her arms in front of herself in attempt to defend herself helplessly of the moon’s majestic presence. She, from being kept in darkness, had never seen such beauty and light that seemed queer and subtle for her to comprehend. She then focused her gaze on the worn path that was bare of grass from being trotted on many years, the soil worn out and no longer useful to grow any green life. It was now covered in a thin sheet of snow.
            Through the pale light of the moon, the she-wolf made her way down the path, leaving the frosty woods, for she could find no welcome. Though the folk dancing and singing at the center of the woods she had left would’ve probably welcomed her, she feared rejection and shied away from them instead, not wanting to risk the chance. She moved along to continue her investigation until it was time to retreat back to the well and into her world.
            The she-wolf had stumbled through a small town during her traveling and sought out for hospitality. She searched for welcome and a haven to retreat from the bitter cold when it became too much for her, but none could she find. She’d scratch and whimper at the wooden doors, usually no answer to her callings, and moved on to the next home in the town. When finally she was answered, but in a savage manner, the she-wolf was shunned by the townspeople and chased out by a group of men waving flaming torches and swinging pitchforks.
            So the she-wolf, running back into the frozen woods, wept in her sorrow and rejection, understanding of the townspeople conceiving her image unnatural. For who could welcome a creature that mimicked their image? When she wiped her tears away, she knew she didn’t belong here and moved quickly to the sleeping town that had the well from whence she came.

            She had no life here, she thought. There was no welcome to her kind. She was labeled as the freak of nature, the abomination of Earth’s earlier creations, and a lost and rejected soul to live her life in complete isolation.
            The she-wolf trotted silently through the dark and freezing woods, her bare skin marked by burns, welts, and scratches from the men that had chased her out and managed to scar her. Her eyes burned from her stinging and unsettling tears, quickly becoming cold on her cheeks once exposed to the cold night air. She then stopped when she heard a sound, a crunching sound of someone stepping through the thick snow behind from behind. Turning around, the she-wolf saw no one and slowly turned back to continue traveling. When a moment passed, the crunching stirred again, and the she-wolf once more turned around to find no one in sight. By now she was becoming nervous and quickened her trotting feet to a steady sprint with her long and wild hair flickering in the cold breeze like an untamed flame.
            “Why do you run from me?” hollered a voice from behind her, the night’s silence broken.
            The she-wolf came to a halt and quickly spun around to behold a wondrous sight indeed. Before her was a man cloaked in all white; his icy blue eyes glowed strange warmth that comforted her in a way--as if glowing compassion--and an alluring beauty displayed on his pale features enthralled her. His ivory hair hung low to the ground and was adorned with crystal beads and white feathers. Silver braces embedded with jewels accessorized his arms, and crowned upon his head a silver crown with small chains hanging diamonds in the front. Standing out from his pale image was a golden crescent-shaped mark on his forehead.
            The she-wolf tilted her head to the side, curious of this strange man and his origins. Recognizing the moon crescent on his forehead, she glanced up at the black sky and saw that the moon appeared as if something spiritual left it and it became dull and lifeless. She then returned her gaze on the man, unable to find the strength to flee from him; unable to grasp the reason why she stood so still.
            “Do not fear me, child,” he said gently and moved slowly towards her, “do not fear me. I am Creptios.”

            She growled and whimpered, finding herself able to move back until she could go no further when pressing against a tree from behind. Seeing his hand slowly reach out, the she-wolf reacted with a timid snap not meant to really harm him but to scare away. Creptios did not recoil back at the threat; he merely smiled and caressed the side of her face. This gesture confused the she-wolf as she froze still and stared off into space. Despite how much his pale skin reminded her of the bitter snow and the coldness, the strange man’s touch was warm against her flesh. The wounds she acquired from earlier now were completely healed, and using his thumb, Creptios wiped her tears and watched as her fragile human form reverted back into a lovely ebony-colored wolf.

            “There now,” he murmured and knelt down; cupping the she-wolf’s face. “Such a pretty thing you are and all alone, aren’t you? A creature like you is not meant for this world, you must go back to the safety within the well.”

            The she-wolf yelped in protest. Although returning to the well was what she was doing, her newfound curiosity of this man made her want to stay.

            “No.” Creptios smiled, looking her amber eyes over before stroking her thick mane. “No, the world’s not ready for your kind yet. You saw how Man reacted, you know what will happen. I can’t let the cruelness and ignorance of others destroy Gaia’s fairest child.”

            The she-wolf whimpered, her tail curling between legs and her ears bent down.

            He gently tapped her on the nose. “Hush now. No one said you’d be gone forever. I promise, you can come back, however, only on the nights when the moon is full. I’ll wait for you then, but now you must go.”
            He held her for what seemed to be forever, and for once she felt welcomed and loved. For now Creptios comforted the she-wolf and wiped away all her tears and sadness, those feelings of being unwanted and hated. He then departed from her when the sun was just slowly beginning to dawn a twilight.
            The moon, however, was still clearly visible in the twilight sky, guiding the she-wolf safely to the well from whence she came. Before retreating back into the Underworld, she howled a beautiful song to the moon. It was a song filled with love, gratitude, and loyalty. Whereas she unveiled feelings for him and crept into the well, disappearing into her world’s eternal darkness and into a deep sleep. Until the next full moon when she would awake and walk among the Upperworld, Creptios would wait.

 

Author's Note

This is a pretty old piece I did--was really inspired by the tale the character Rosaleen tells the Huntsman after he turns into a wolf--and I'm still trying to fix a lot of grammar errors and whatnot. But for now... this is it :]

If you're curious, here's the whole clip of the scene that inspired me

http://www.youtube.com/user/ParanoidSchizoAngel#play/favorites/24/lTrn7sKbM0E

Anyway, if you haven't seen the "Company of Wolves" before and don't mind watching it in clips on youtube, here:

http://www.youtube.com/profile?user=FlightxOfxFantasy&view=videos

Reviews

[Pax Analog]

Vividly haunting.

One feels this creature in one's soul, and your excellent eye for naturalistic details stays focused on emotive values.

The intrigued reader wonders how much this tale would resonate to Angela Carter's original book of The Company of Wolves, if it were a chapter in a cycle accumulating more allegorical qualities.

As is, this tale may be old to you, but it stays fresh, due to the life invested in its absorptive telling.

[CLUTZ]

I like the she wolf........and I liked the image you created of what she looked like in both human and wolf form. this is a very nice story.

[Twilight]

Very interesting, and quite an original response to "The Company Of Wolves". I saw the film many years ago, and remember how surreal some of the scenes were. Also, rather dark and atmospheric, as in your story! I like the innocence of the elves, in contrast to the evil which lurks all around.

The name of your character, "Creptios", sounds slightly as if it is a Greek or Roman name? Or, intended to resemble one?

There are a few cliches, regarding the tears "turning to ice" and the "blanket of snow". However, this is not a weakness in any way, because you have used them in context. I also wondered, if some of the inspiration was from ancient myths (e.g Greek mythology)? I recognise some of the creatures which you have included, Centaurs being partly human and partly horse, for example. Obviously, there were no Elves in the classic Greek myths. But, these nymph-like beings seem to be in keeping with the fantasy scenario, which you have devised.....

Thankyou, Angel, for sharing this with us!