Birthright

The tragic tale of Lilith goes like this: Lilith was a young woman of just 20 years old, around 2,100 BCE. She was truly lovely, and wanted by many suitors. Unfortunately for many of those suitors, Lilith had her heart set on only one man. Their relationship was quite simple- they met, they fell in love, they made love, at least that is what Lilith thought. Unbeknownst to Lilith, her love was not reciprocated, and the man she loved so dearly was in love with another and manipulating Lilith for s*x. In a sick twist of fate, Lilith happened upon the man she loved and the woman he loved while they were sharing a passionate moment. Lilith had come to tell him that she was pregnant with his child, thinking that he would be overjoyed. With her heart shattering, and tears streaming from her eyes, she ran away from him and the heartbreak. She ran into the forest, branches scratching all over her body. When she had no energy left to run any farther, she broke down and sobbed on the forest floor, blood seeping from her cuts. Lying there, under the light of the full moon, Lilith sobbed and cried and screamed until she had no more tears and her throat was raw and her voice was gone. Lilith prayed to the gods to give her strength, to give her a chance to start a new life away from those who hurt her. With all her heart, Lilith hoped and prayed for a life where she could raise her unborn baby by herself. Lilith knew that it would be difficult to provide for her child, because she had no hunting skills, no experience making any kind of shelter, but she could not go back to the man she loved. His heart did not belong to her, and Lilith knew she had to protect her child, possibly even from him. Suddenly, a pain unlike any other ripped through her body, white hot and unrelenting. All she could do was whimper and writhe on the ground as tears streamed down her cheeks. She could hear sounds of popping and snapping, as the pain got worse. Lilith’s body contorted in agony, her face scrunched up and her eyes tightly shut. She felt as if her body was changing somehow, and she tried to open her eyes to look at her hands and arms but she could not see through the tears. Eventually, the pain subsided, and Lilith picked herself up off the forest floor. She felt changed. She opened her eyes, and she immediately noticed her vision was clearer and brighter, and she could see much better and farther than before. There was a lake a short distance from her, and she realized she had run into a clearing in the forest. The light from the full moon was glittering off the surface of the water, and the water was so beautiful and clear, Lilith felt compelled to go to it. Lilith moved her feet to walk forward, and she realized she was on all fours. Looking down, Lilith saw that her feet were now paws and covered in hair, and she stumbled to the forest floor once more. She tried to speak, but all that came out were whines, like those of a scared puppy. Lilith started to panic, breathing heavily and trembling. Doing her best to put one paw in front of the other, Lilith made her way to the lake and looked at her reflection. With a startled gasp, Lilith realized that her entire body had changed. Her face, her skin, her feet and hands, her hair, all of it replaced with this wolf staring back at her from the water. It dawned on her that this may be the gods’ way of blessing her and her child. She looked up into the full moon, feeling confused and heartbroken and hopeful and grateful all at the same time, and a loud howl escaped from her body. Lilith hoped this was what she would need to care for and protect her unborn baby.