I've had this story in my head for awhile now and thought I'd start on it. The story takes place after the one-shot 'Runt' from '1001 Nights of Snowfall'.
Disclaimer: I do not own Fables and Bigby Wolf – they rightfully belong to Bill Willingham – and I do not own 'The Wolf Among Us' game – that belongs to Telltale Games. I only own my version of Red Riding Hood (and other OC characters), this story plot, and the image cover.
Reviews and constructive criticisms are welcomed, flames are not. Enjoy the prologue!
He was blown by a powerful gust of wind that took him thousands of miles from the North Wind's Castle. He flew into a large and dense forest area and landed harshly on a clearing, creating a crater from the impact. A regular wolf would've instantly died, but he was no ordinary wolf…
He got up and shook his black fur, his bones aching but he ignored the pain. Six times he ventured to that castle and six times he was defeated. With each failure, his size grew as well as his rage and cunning but he was still no match for the zephyr. He could never exact his revenge on his sire that abandoned his beloved mother and caused her to die of a broken heart…
Upon his seventh defeat, his golden eyes glared in the north direction and growled aloud,
"From now on, I'll grieve no more of my mother and think no more of my father. I will be no one's creature but my own until the very end of time…" He vowed as he walked in the opposite direction; deep into the woods he was once familiar with, the Black Forest …
Bigby enjoyed the cool spring breeze that washed over him as he rested his large body on the grass. Normally, he could care less of those things but the breeze carried an alluring scent that possessed the essence of the woods itself, wildflowers, and a very feminine musk…
It was Red Riding Hood's scent. He'll never know why he was blown back to the Black Forest but he knew that she was the reason he'd stayed here. Her scent and gentle aura gave him a sense a peace that he hadn't had since he was cub, when his mother was still alive.
He never knew why he became so attuned to her scent and blood. He remembered that after he came up from the river from the encounter, the first thing he smelt was her and swore that she was right next to him, but she was nowhere in sight. Since then, he knew where she was and what she was feeling; he couldn't block out her scent no matter how hard he tried. He would often scoffed to himself to why he would care so much about the girl he once ate, but he just couldn't keep himself away…
Her scent was coming closer and his ears perked up when he heard her singing,
"Du, du liegst mir im Herzen~
Du, du liegst mir im Sinn~
Du, du machst mir viel Schmerzen~
Weißt nicht wie gut ich dir bin~
Ja, ja, ja, ja, weißt nicht wie gut ich dir bin~
Generally, he would stay away and basked in her peaceful scent and aura, but there were other times that he wanted to seek her out and watch her from a distance, like today. He got up and followed her scent and voice,
"So, so wie ich dich liebe~
So, so liebe auch mich~
Die, die zärtlichsten Triebe~
Fühl' ich allein nur für dich~
Ja, ja, ja, ja, fühl' ich allein nur für dich~
He saw her walking on an old, beaten path, still wearing her red, hooded cloak. He's heard her sing that song many times, but he always enjoyed hearing from her. Despite his large size, the darkened trees provided excellent coverage for him.
"Doch, doch darf ich dir trauen~
Dir, dir mit leichtem Sinn?~
Du, du kannst auf mich bauen~
Weißt ja wie gut ich dir bin!~
Ja, ja, ja, ja, weißt ja wie gut ich dir bin!~
He was impressed that she would still walk in these woods despite what happened. Many creatures, both animal and man, feared him but she didn't. Yes, she was frightened when he was going to eat her, but she seemed to overcome that. Never has she emitted any anger towards him and found himself to care for her and wanted to protect her. But despite all that, he'd feared that she would be frightened if she saw him, for he's twice the size since their last encounter, which was why he kept out of her sight.
"Und, und wenn in der Ferne,~
Mir, mir dein Bild erscheint,~
Dann, dann wünscht ich so gerne~
Daß uns die Liebe vereint~
She has gotten older since that day. He's been living in the Black Forest for several years now and noticed that with each passing year, her scent was becoming more alluring. He knew that humans aged differently than wolves, and her scent told him that she was coming of proper age to 'mate'. He didn't know why he would care about such a thing, but the thought of it made his heart pound.
"Ja, ja, ja, ja, daß uns die Liebe vereint~ "
He couldn't wait for that day to come…
Her memories were a blur. She remembered coming into her grandmother's cottage and then she was eaten whole by the wolf she knew as Bigby…
Is this what death is like? She asked herself but she knew that no one could answer that question for her. She was told that when people die, their spirits would be free and ascend to Heaven, but she was surrounded by closed walls and darkness.
Surely this cannot be. She thought. Maybe the priests from the church were lying or maybe she wasn't really dead…
Suddenly her eyes were blinded by a bright white light and then witnessed series of memories, but it wasn't hers…
…A gang of wolf cubs were nipping and pulling at his ears, laughing at his small size. Despite his threats, his brothers taunted at him because he was the runt. A beautiful, but weak, white she-wolf came over and told her children to stop picking on him. She lied down near him and licked his ears like a loving mother would do and he happily nuzzled into her…
…The wolf cub let out an anguish howl as his mother laid dead; she had died of a broken heart. He held anger and resentment for his older brothers, who quickly abandoned their mother after she died to search for their father and teach them his powerful wind abilities. He had a burning rage for his father was the one that caused of his mother's death. He desperately tried to protect his mother's body from the scavengers, but he was too small and weak to vend them off…
…The cub started hunting on small prey. With each kill he moved onto something bigger, and every time he killed a bigger prey, his size grew. Before he knew it, he was bigger than the average wolf…
…The wolf had killed a lot of creatures, but he never killed a human before. While he was searching for his first human prey, something sweet caressed his nostrils; it was so delicious that he had to have it. When he followed the scent, he learned that the scent belonged to a young girl in a red cloak…
And then she was awoken and breathing heavily as if she had a nightmare. She saw that she was back in her grandmother's bedroom and covered in blood; the events that had occurred suddenly rushed back into her head.
She knew that she would never be the same, ever again…
Rouge felt a tingle down her spine. She knew that Bigby was nearby but she wasn't afraid. In fact, she felt quite safe. As a child, she always felt more connected with animals than with humans because they never judged or expected her to be a 'good and God-fearing little girl'.
She never told anyone (not even her grandmother with whom she's always close to) about her experience, for she feared that people might think she's either insane or a witch. She never could recall what happened during that time, but she knew that she became attuned to his feelings, and the connection deepened as she got older.
Most people would think that after her encounter with the Big Bad Wolf, she would never leave the comforts of her home; she'll admit that it was a terrifying experience, but she didn't want to spend the rest of her life locked in just because of a bad experience.
Since that incident, she's heard that Bigby was nothing but an evil and ravenous monster, but she couldn't sense any evil, even before that incident. Since being in his body, she felt an overwhelming flow of anger, sadness, and loneliness from him, emotions that she can relate to. In the past years, she knew that he felt content whenever she was in his presence, although she couldn't see him, and she was happy to bring him some joy.
"Du, du liegst mir im Herzen~
Du, du liegst mir im Sinn~
Du, du machst mir viel Schmerzen~
Weißt nicht wie gut ich dir bin~
Ja, ja, ja, ja, weißt nicht wie gut ich dir bin~
She walked along the beaten path singing a folksong about love, which was a favorite of hers. Like every maiden, she wanted to fall in love with a handsome man but doesn't want to sacrifice her freedom. She's seen girls her age marry the man of their dreams, and then they do nothing but make babies and serve their husbands. Local men and even faraway travelers who have heard of her terrifying tale, offered her pretty trinkets and petty promises to protect her from the Big Bad Wolf; she knew that they were only attracted to her because they saw her as an desirable conquest to be tamed.
"So, so wie ich dich liebe~
So, so liebe auch mich~
Die, die zärtlichsten Triebe~
Fühl' ich allein nur für dich~
Ja, ja, ja, ja, fühl' ich allein nur für dich~
When she first met Bigby, she knew that he was no ordinary wolf; he was kind and charming towards her. She now knew he was only trying to get close to her so that he could eat her, but she somehow felt that it was still genuine.
"Doch, doch darf ich dir trauen~
Dir, dir mit leichtem Sinn?~
Du, du kannst auf mich bauen~
Weißt ja wie gut ich dir bin!~
Ja, ja, ja, ja, weißt ja wie gut ich dir bin!~
For as long as she could remember, wolves have been her favorite animal. Most people seem them as predators that hunt down the innocent, but they are protective and loyal to their mate and family, as well as strong and free, traits that she admired. She saw them as misunderstood but majestic creatures.
"Und, und wenn in der Ferne,~
Mir, mir dein Bild erscheint,~
Dann, dann wünscht ich so gerne~
Daß uns die Liebe vereint~
When he came back to these woods, he would do small but kind things for her, like retrieve berries or flowers that were too high for her to reach, or create a breeze for her on hot summer days when she came to the woods. Of course, these acts of kindness were done from a distance and when she tried to find him to thank him, he was gone. She would try to find ways to lure him out, but he always eluded her. She knew that they would meet face to face someday, and the thought of that made her heart pound.
"Ja, ja, ja, ja, daß uns die Liebe vereint~ "
She couldn't wait for that day to come…
So this chapter mostly explains the relationship between Bigby and Red, as well as some of Red's background. Hopefully it wasn't too boring, but there'll be more dialogue and action in the next chapter.
The song that Red sings is actually a German folksong called "Du, du liegst mir im Herzen" which translates to "You, you are in my heart"; I thought song was a good fit for their 'future' relationship. ;) The lyrics are on Wikipedia. If y'all want to listen to the song, listen to Dagmar Frederic's version on YouTube; she has the most beautiful voice for that song.
Stay tuned for the next chapter!