"Claire and the Wolf (Illustration by the Author)" by Frances Monro

Claire and the Wolf

by

Frances Monro


For Claire


Claire was a werewolf. Someone had hurt her badly when she was young and her mind had broken into many pieces. One of those pieces was the Wolf.

The people of Claire"s village whispered about her behind her back. She could hear their voices talking about her at night in her bed. They said she was a monster, that she was possessed by evil spirits. They ganged up against her and taunted her. One day after the Wolf hit a girl and bloodied her nose the villagers threw stones at Claire  and hit her with sticks and drove her out into the forest.

Claire wandered through the forest for days. There wasn"t very much to eat and she got thin and hungry. Occasionally she came across people in the woods – a gypsy encampment or a lonely charcoal burner"s hut. Although she tried to approach them her legs would not move, and she trembled like a leaf and had to stop. She was so hungry and lonely, but she didn"t want to be hit any more.

One day Claire came to a clearing where someone had built a little shack out of bark and thatch. Fresh bread had been put out to cool on the window-sill. The smell was delicious and Claire's hunger was overwhelming. There was nobody in sight. Claire snuck up to the window, grabbed the bread and bolted back into the sheltering forest where she devoured it. She ate the crusts and the crumbs and licked her fingers. Then she crept into a hollow tree and slept.

Claire lived in the hollow tree for a while. The woman who lived in the shack was called Bamika. She was a witch. Bamika worked outside in the garden most of the time. She lived alone. She talked to herself, and to the forest creatures.

Claire overheard her talking about the kindness of the Mother Goddess, recipes for making healing potions, the uses of herbs and flowers that grew in the forest, and her desire to live in peace and harmony with everyone in the entire world. It sounded nice.

Claire had a feeling that the witch knew she was being watched. She left food out for Claire and the other forest animals. She would turn her back as she worked in her garden, and she would sing. Claire liked the singing. She wanted to tell Bamika not to turn her back on the Wolf, that the Wolf was dangerous and violent, a killer, but she was still too scared to come out of the forest and talk to the woman. She was afraid Bamika would be angry and attack her and drive her back into the forest.

Claire waited in the forest, living in the hollow tree, watching and listening. She ate the food the witch left out and raided her garden at night. Bamika didn"t even seem to notice or care, she continued to tend and weed her garden as if nothing was missing. Claire watched people come to Bamika"s shack and trade for love potions and healing. Bamika would lay hands on people and pray to the Mother Goddess. Sometimes they got better, sometimes not. There was no magic involved that Claire could see.

Claire and Bamika were not the only people who lived in the forest. Bandits and robbers sheltered there too. Sometimes a man or woman would commit a crime and flee into the forest. Mostly they left the witch alone. One day a bad man came out of the forest. He attacked Bamika. He hit her and threw her to the ground, for no reason that Claire could see. Then he drew his knife and yelled that he was going to kill the witch.

The Wolf came out and the world went red. The Wolf sneaked up behind the bad man. She took the axe from the chopping block and hit him with it. The wolf hit him again and again.

When it was over Claire stood there holding the bloody axe and shivering. Bamika stood up and took the axe from her and held her. Claire cried for a long time. Then they cleaned the blood from Claire"s hands and clothes with water from the well. They buried the bad man in a shallow grave in the forest and hid his money belt and knife under the thatch of Bamika"s shack.

After that Claire lived with Bamika. She worked with the witch in her garden and helped her to cook her food and make her potions. Bamika was a vegetarian, but Claire still liked to eat meat sometimes. They were happy living together.

When the people of the village heard that the witch was living with another woman tongues began to wag. They heard Bamika call Claire “love” and concluded they must be lovers, which was taboo. They said mean, spiteful things about them both – and improbable stories about what they did together – it was just as well the Wolf could not hear them. For about a week it was the only thing anyone talked about. Everyone agreed that it was shameless and scandalous. But what can you expect from a witch and a werewolf?

The End