Story told by the Wolf
"I have one," said the Wolf.
"What kind of story does a wolf have to tell?" asked the hunter sitting on the opposite side of the campfire.
"You run in the forest, howl at the moon, or hunt," mockingly said the hunter. "Do you really have a good story to tell?"
"I am sure he has," the Shepherd tried to calm the situation. "Let's hear him."
"About the Moon, I might have another story to tell," said the Wolf, ignoring the mocking tone of the hunter's voice. "But this one is called 'The Old Direwolf'."
The Old Dire wolf
When you hear the word "alpha wolf" people usually imagine that it is the strongest, most agile, and dominant wolf in the pack, but that is not true. Wolves share a lot of human characteristics when it comes down to social behavior in their pack. Surprisingly, the Old Alpha will switch the role from being a dominant leader of strength to a spiritual leader. The hunting and taking down large prey will be left to the younger wolves from the pack, but he will pass down the hunting strategies and wisdom to them. In other words, the younger wolves will still follow his lead and wisdom.
The story I am about to tell is about a wolf that got old. He could not hunt very well anymore; his legs were heavy, so he could not run fast after his prey. His vision failed, so he could not see well on the run, and his smelling was not what it used to be. Very often, his tracking led to a dead-end. The only thing left for him to rely on were his wits and tricks, but that is the only thing he needed.
In the forest, it was already well known that he is old, so he spread the rumor that he is also sick and laid down in his den, howling painful sounds.
The mocking rabbit was the first one to fall into his trap. When he heard the news, he went to see it with his own eyes.
"Good evening, old friend. How are you feeling?" the rabbit mockingly sent his greeting to the wolf.
"Not well," replied the old wolf.
"I heard you are not well, so I wanted to bring you some carrots for you to get well," said the rabbit, fully well knowing that carrots and plants are not what wolves eat. All his life he was running from wolves to escape for his life, and he was confident that he could outrun any old wolf, let alone a sick one.
Normally, the proud old wolf would have shown his teeth to remind him that he is only food for him, but in this case, he had to stick with the plan.
"Thank you, kind rabbit. Carrots sound delicious, but I cannot even move my legs, let alone come outside to get them," said the Old wolf, crouching his legs to get ready for a surprise dash to the rabbit.
Growing confident from the wolf's submissive statement, the rabbit went closer to the den to better see his old enemy suffering.
"No worries, old friend. I will bring them to you. After all, what are friends for?" the rabbit continued his mocking.
He was hoping to pull the old wolf's tail or ears so that he later on could share the stories about the powerless old wolf. Not realizing that every step he takes to the den is carefully measured and calculated from the old wolf who knew the exact distance the rabbit needs to be to end up as his dinner.
As planned, on the third step, the rabbit took; the old wolf pounced and had his dinner for that day.
Second to come was the kind-hearted deer.
"Good evening," greeted the deer respectfully.
"Not too good, I'm afraid. But if you say so, I wish you a good one also," cunningly said the wolf.
"Why wouldn't it be good?" suspiciously asked the deer. He knew that the wolf was sick, but like the rabbit, he was chased by the wolf too many times to just trust the rumors.
The wolf, knowing the deer is kind-hearted but very careful and smart, was not sure how to lure him closer. Suddenly, an idea shined in his mind.
"Are you here to mock me as well?" growled the old wolf. "You heard that I am sick and can't move like I used to, so you decided to come and mock me in my trouble. I have not eaten in days; my legs don't allow me to stand up, let alone run, and I can only see you as a shape behind that tree you stand. Until you spoke, I was not sure who you are," said the wolf with an angry, helpless growl.
The deer, hearing this, still cautiously stepped out into the open from behind the tree.
"I have no intention to mock you, Great Wolf. I have been hunted by you many times, and many times I narrowly escaped my death. I have come just to check if the rumors are true, and I no longer need to run," the deer calmly explained why he is here. "I will be leaving now, but I wish your end to be fast and without suffering. After all, you gave a fast death to many of my brothers and sisters; you don't deserve torturing death," said the deer, taking the first steps to leave.
"If you speak this from your heart, then please, I beg of you, bring me some water from the river down the hill. The hunger and the pain I learned to handle, but the thirst for simple water is unbearable," the wolf changed his tone and started begging.
"Sorry, I cannot do that for you. The only way for me to bring water is to bring it in my snout, and I will not risk my snout anywhere near your deadly jaws. I saw an apple tree nearby; they contain some water in them that should ease your pain," the kind deer went to get the promised fruit.
The old wolf started to prepare; the deer was not a small prey, so he knew the job needed to be done fast. The deer came back with a branch of apples in his mouth, but the den seemed empty. Wondering where the old wolf left, he turned and moved galloping back to the tree where he was previously hiding. But what awaited him there were clenched jaws on his throat and a clean death.
Almost a week and a half passed, and animals kept coming to see and talk with the old sick wolf. The wolf kept his character with all of them, but there was no hunting. The wolves understand the nature; they don't kill for fun or sport. The deer and the rabbit died so that the old wolf could live. This is why he devoured all of them out of respect for their forfeit lives. The deer meat was enough to feed him for a week, and there was no need for more killing.
After that, the hunt continued. Other animals came to see the sick wolf and fell into his trap. He found a perfect way to hunt in his old age, using the knowledge from every animal he ever hunted against them, convincing them to lower their guard in his presence and become less cautious. Small animals lasted for a meal or two, while the bigger prey lasted longer. He had to pick his targets for the bigger ones, as he did not have the strength to overcome a young strong buck or win a rumble with a hog.
One day, the old wolf was visited by someone that he knew was even more cunning than him. The fox heard the rumors that the old wolf got sick and also went to check if that is true. Early in the morning, the fox came from behind the same tree where the deer was hiding and confidently moved closer but still at a safe distance from the den of the wolf.
"Good morning, oh Great Dire wolf," said the fox, waiting for a response.
No response came from the den, but it was clear that the old wolf was there. Foxes are also predators, so they tend to smell when another animal is in their presence. Also, she could hear the sleeping growls coming from the den.
"Good morning, oh Great Direwolf!" shouted the fox even louder.
"There is nothing good about this morning," finally replied the Wolf. "One more day to suffer this terrible sickness that laid upon me," trying to set the mood for a sympathy talk with the fox.
"Or you can see it as Mother Nature giving you one more day to breathe the fresh air in your lungs and feel the heat of the newborn sun," cheerfully replied the fox.
He knew very well that the fox would not fall for the same tricks as the other animals; he would have to bring the best performance if he wants to win against this adversary. That is why the fox came in the morning so that she could see all the movement he could possibly do. Also, the position she was in was enough to taunt a reaction from any other young wolf, but his experience told him that foxes are fast and agile on the run. So, he had to keep his temper in check for now.
So sympathy won't work; let's try something else and see where that leads us. "How is the hunting going for you these days? And why are you up so early today?" continued the old wolf, turning his head in the fox's direction without other movements.
"Ah well, you know me. I do hunt in the night, but this is too beautiful a morning to be missed. Also, I got lucky with a few juicy birds on the way here. I can still feel their taste in my mouth," bringing the blood into the conversation with the wolf.
The wolf swallowed a bit; he had not eaten for a day and a half. The last two apples from the apple tree were not enough for more than a day.
"You know very well the pain of hunger; will you be kind to catch some food for me? As you can see, I can't move at all; this sickness beat me, and Mother Nature will for sure bless you for doing this kindness for me," the old wolf tried his bag of tricks again.
"We both know nature very well, Great Direwolf. She gives to the cunning and smart and punishes the ignorant. And we are not ignorant, are we?" the fox said.
"I don’t understand what you mean," the wolf was confused. "Being smart or ignorant has nothing to do with being helpless and asking for help."
The fox laughed, "But we are not talking about a helpless sick old wolf here, are we? We are talking about the great old wise Direwolf who uses his wits to be on top of the hunting chain. I admire your wisdom, Great wolf, but I see many steps of animals going to your den but not as many walking back," the fox revealed the old wolf's secret.
The wolf jumped from the lair and dashed to catch the fox, but he was still an old wolf. The fox disappeared like she was never there.
After the old wolf calmed down from his failure, he started thinking more clearly. His cunning idea was discovered, and soon the animals would stop coming to him. So, staying there would not work for him anymore.
"There are some mushrooms by the river. That should hold me until I track back the pack. As always, they will take care of me. Also, I have another story to tell the pups," the old wolf was not angry with the fox anymore; just the opposite, he is now wiser for one more experience to get her the next time.
If you are a deer, don't trust easily; if you are a fox, be sure to see through the wolf traps, but whatever you do, do not be a mocking rabbit.