A Wise Wolf

Chapter 1

Chapter 1

The hut in the forest was larger than Lile had expected. In her mind, she had pictured a small one-room cottage lost under moss and creeping vines. But Old Maeve’s home looked only recently built, with a young garden, not a stem out of place. It did not fit the depictions in stories of a wise women’s house. Perhaps Lile should not have been surprised as Old Maeve herself did not match the stories. Rather than a hunched, babbling hag in torn robes, she was a true lady of poise and spoke eloquently. She did wear robes, deep green in colour, but they were always clean. Even now, after their several days on the road and long tramp into the forest, her clothes were without blemish while the hem of Lile’s dress was covered in mud and her shoes, not designed for rough terrain, were wearing away at the soles. It must be magic, Lile thought, that’s how she keeps herself so presentable. 

     “Not magic, my dear, but grace,” Old Maeve said with a wink. Lile jumped, startled once again by Old Maeve’s strange ability to sense the thoughts of others. 

    “But that was definitely magic, right?” 

    “That was definitely magic.” Old Maeve chuckled to herself as she walked ahead of Lile crossing the forest clearing to the hut. When she arrived at its door she knocked three times as though it was not her own home. The door swung open for her. Before entering she turned to Lile, “Welcome home,” she said with a warm smile. Then she disappeared inside. 

Lile quickly followed behind her, she stopped at the doorway to remove her dirty shoes before stepping in. Inside the furnishings were modest. She took in a table with three chairs, a couple of stools by a fireplace which held a large cauldron. To her right, the wall was lined with windows and a bench for preparing food which contained a range of draws and cupboards. On the far side of the room were two doors, confirming that the hut was indeed more than just one room. Lile noted that there was no bed present. 

Old Maeve had swung her rucksack off her back and was unpacking it on the table. Lile followed suit, releasing her mush smaller sack from her shoulders. She began to untie it but was stopped by her companion.  

    “No, no,” Old Maeve said, “you can take your things into the bedroom.” She pointed to the one door, of the two, that was closest to the windowed wall. Lile did as she was told. Through the door, she found a small bedroom containing two low beds, one for the wise women and one for her apprentice. As with the living area, there was a row of windows on the right-hand wall. A set of draws with a pile of books and wooden jewellery box by the bed nearest the windows indicated to Lile that this bed was Old Maeve’s. She walked to the other bed, which was closest to her, and began unpacking her few possessions into the empty chest that sat next to it.

She considered how little she had brought with her, and how simply furnished Old Maeve’s home was. Though Lile had grown up the daughter of tribesman turned peasant farmers with little wealth to their name, their house was somehow always cluttered. They were fortunate to belong to a generous community. Those on the farm often gifted each other the crafty things they had created. Surely, every home in the village had at least one or two woollen hats knitted by Lile’s mother. Likewise, Lile’s home was filled with clay ornaments, wooden furniture, iron tools, and woollen blankets and clothing. There was no finery. It was all so crude, but if were gifted, it was never wasted. The sparseness of Old Maeve’s house caused Lile to think that the woman must be so lonely out here in the forest. No wonder she had wanted an apprentice. It did occur to her all the stranger that Old Maeve never took any gift or payment for her services of healing and blessing. 

It did not take long for Lile to empty the contents of her sack into the chest. She had just a few items of clothing, a couple of balls of yarn and her set of knitting needles. She would run out of that thread very quickly. She wondered how else she would entertain herself when she did. With that thought, she walked over to the window and took in the outdoor landscape. They were surrounded by tall bone-white trees for which Geal Forest was famous for. It was the largest known forest in the land and it was clouded in superstition. For the monarchy in Marion, it was a forest of horrors. The reputation was perhaps well deserved. Four autumns ago, Marion’s eldest prince and heir to the throne, Prince Evander, led a small, but elite army into the forest. He never left. The entire army simply disappeared. The King sent further troops to find them, many of whom died on the journey as casualties to one of the harshest winters that anyone in Eilland could remember. They never found any bodies nor any traces of human activity. It was as though Prince Evander had not come this way, to begin with. But he had, and his demise had come too late for Lile and her people whose tribes had been conquered and forced into servitude. They were the last of the Marion conquests. For them, this eerie forest was a bastion of defiance and hope. 

The memories and thoughts of home stung her. It had only been a few days, she couldn’t feel sad already. She closed her eyes and prayed a prayer to the Lady of the Forest. She asked her for protection and for guidance in her studies so that she could become an accomplished wise woman herself. Help me become the woman my village needs me to be, she begged silently. She felt peace, believing that the Lady of the Forest had heard her. This was the right decision, she thought. Becoming the village wise woman was a great honour. Her peace was quickly replaced by alarm, however, once she opened her eyes. Standing at the edge of the clearing, stark against the white tree trunks was a large black wolf. She yelped. She had never seen a living wolf, but she had heard enough to know they were dangerous.

    “Maeve, Maeve!” She cried. The wolf must have heard her, because it quickly turned and ran back into the forest, disappearing out of sight in mere seconds. 

    “Whats is the matter?” Old Maeve asked behind her. Lile jumped and yelped again. 

    “Oh goodness, sorry,” Lile said. She rubbed her chest trying to calm herself. She could feel her heart racing. “There was a wolf,” she explained, pointing out the window.

    “Oh,” Old Maeve said. She let out a chuckle of relief. “Oh, I wouldn’t worry about the animals. I’ve blessed the area around this home. No creature of ill-intent may come near.”

    “So the wolf can’t enter the clearing?”

    “Oh, it can enter, but only if it means us no harm. Come, I’ll make us some tea.” Old Maeve took Lile’s hand and led her out of the bedroom. Lile allowed herself one more glance out the window as she was lead away. She wasn’t sure how much courage she could take from Old Maeve’s words.