Wolf
The Wolf Who Saw
Authors Note: This story is a retelling of The Indian Who Wrestled With a Ghost from the perspective of a wolf who saw the events in this story take place.
The wolf often roamed the forest in search of rabbits or squirrels to quiet his stomach. He often grew weary of the easy hunt. These small feble prey were enough to appease his appetite but never enough to appease his instinct to hunt. The wolf always dreamt of larger prey, something challenging for him to slay. Sometimes he would stumble upon a doe or a wounded boar whose fight was not yet faded. The wolf was grateful for these rare occurrences, these hunts were more formidable than the mundane jog towards a hare. Still, he longed for that great and mighty foe, someone who would put him to the test, someone who would make him question his own safety and well being. The wolf had an idea of what this foe would look like, he had seen traces of it before. These traces were different from any animal he had ever seen, elongated paw prints, unique scents, and scorched logs wherever it had gone. The wolf longed for the day he would meet this preditor, unknowing that it would be so soon.
While the wolf was on his lonely stroll through the forest he noticed a dim glow on the horizon. It was orange and flickering and strangely welcoming. Upon further investigation, he noticed something tucked under a large covering, maybe a large boar or something of that type. As soon as he started to move further to investigate a large figure revealed itself from outside the glow. This figure was tall, nearly hairless, and covered in the skin of other beasts. At this point, the wolf knew that this was the foe he had been waiting for, the hunt was on.
The wolf began to prowl towards the preditor while studying its every move. He noticed the preditor fiddling with the figure under the cover. A few moments later a second preditor sprang out from under the cover to confront the initial beast. As soon as he did so the preditor wrapped in beast skin ran back into the forest, emitting an ear-piercing cry. Confused about the confrontation he just witnessed, the wolf was still determined to find his initial prey. He thought to himself, this is the best opportunity, now it has run back into the woods and I will be shrouded by darkness so it won't see me coming. At that thought, he bolted in the preditors direction, away from the glow and the second figure. He had it in his sights, it was still running but the wolf was faster. The wolf was gaining on the preditor, soon to be his prey. He was within leaping distance. He lunged towards the beast, paws almost on its flesh. Then, he hit the ground.
What happened, what is going on, was the wolf having a hallucination? Was it dreaming? whatever happened it ended with a thud on the ground and a log to the head. The blow was enough to make the wolf too weary to stay awake. As he lay there confused and wounded he saw the dim glow on the horizon fade to black.
The next morning he awoke with anger in his heart. Not knowing exactly what conspired the night before he was determined to avenge his blunder. He set off in search of the preditor by following the faint scent of the figure he saw by the fire the night before. After a day of steadfast pursuit, he came upon a sight that he would never forget. He saw the figure by the fire sitting next to what looked like his own skeleton. The wolf knew that bones of any animal meant death, but the strange thing was the skeleton was acting as if it were alive. Suddenly the wolf knew there was something far greater than he ahead. Confused and scared the wolf was petrified, he couldn't remove his eyes from the living skeleton. He watched it take in smoke through its mouth and then escape through his torso. This was the strangest thing the wolf had ever seen, then all of a sudden the two started to brawl. They were rolling in the dirt and clawing at each other with all of their might. The wold knew he wanted no part in whatever dark, evil, and twisted things were happening so he turned his tail and ran.
From that day on the wolf never complained about the small prey, he was more than content with rabbits and squirels.
The use of an original character for a retelling is something that I am hesitant to do. I worry whether my character is engaging and if it contributes to the story. You did not have either of these problems. The way you wrote the wolf's perspective was fascinating in looking from another angle at what we would perceive without it being confusing. The wolf's attempts to hunt the first ghost
ReplyDeleteYour wolf wasn't one-dimension. He had the motivation and character that allowed growth from witnessing the events of The Indian Who Wrestled with a Ghost.
I enjoyed how you placed the wolf's story to happen alongside and not interfering with the original story. I enjoyed how you made the Wolf hunt the first ghost and begins to understand that he is trying to bite off more than he can chew. His lesson of safety over thrills felt well-woven into the story, and I imagine your creative set-up could be expanded more to produce a classic tale.
Hi Ryan!
ReplyDeleteInstead of having a young man as the main character of the story, a wolf was the main character. The story was told in the wolf's perspective as well. I found it interesting how you were able to use this twist to showcase another theme: be grateful for what you have. The details were amazing as well! It added more support to your story!
Hi Ryan,
ReplyDeleteI love the new perspective you gave to the story! The story flowed very well and introduced the characters from the original story in a good way. I liked the aspect of the wolf trying to complete his quest to find worthy prey set the tone of the story. As well as the wolf understanding that there was something off when seeing the skeleton moving was a good touch!
Hey Ryan!
ReplyDeleteYour story was so interesting, I love how you made a similar story to Aesop by using animals and humans within a story. The overall lesson that you gave, with never complaining about what you are given is such strong advice, even by today's standards.
Overall, I'm very excited to keep reading what you have to offer this class!
Hi Ryan!
ReplyDeleteI really liked how you told the story from the wolf's perspective! It made a very interesting and unique story. Additionally, I thought that this story was well written. It flowed together very nicely and I was the perfect length. The story felt very complete. I was very impressed with how you used details in this story! I loved how you described the human from the wolf's perspective. You gave just enough details that it did not give it away, yet it engaged the reader to figure out what the wolf was actually looking at.