• The Bird Woman of Wano •
The spooky story of Monet the Bird Woman of Wano started centuries ago and is rooted in Kuri, Kibi, and Udon folklore. Legend has it the Bird Woman was a witch named Monet who was exposed for practicing the Akuma's magic. The folks of Kuri weren't happy with that so they murdered her. Seems reasonable. To enact her revenge, Monet came back having white feathered wings instead of arms that fade to light green at the edges, talons instead of feet, and a tail. She had the build of an average human, but her long legs made her taller.
In fact, she can shapeshift and appear as an ordinary person with long, wavy, light green hair and brown eyes with normal human limbs, during the day and at night a woman with bird limbs . So, basically, it is a huge half bird lady who kills people.
According to most variations of the legend, the Bird Woman Monet was wronged in the past and now seeks revenge. In some version the villagers killed her child, another version the child was killed by a drunk (and Monet is known to attack drunkards). Other versions of the legend tell that the Monet herself was killed by locals and came back to seek revenge on them. Depending on where you hear the tale, Monet is sometimes just one witch, but in other places, any witches can become this giant bird by sold their soul to the devil and they can transform at night.
Legend says that the cry of the Bird Woman mimics the cry of a baby or whistles and they use it to lure you outside, to take you and make you their meal. Sometimes the cry of the Bird Woman is said to be an omen of death, if you hear it, a family member will die. Some say dreaming of the Bird Woman is also an omen of death. The Bird Woman is so big that it can carry a grown adult in its talons. The Bird Woman is said to bring storms with it and cannot be harmed by weapons. It is also said to prey on human emotions, often appearing during domestic disputes and waiting for her next victim to storm outside.
Some versions of the legend, the Bird Woman only preys on adult men, drunks specifically, but in others she craves the blood of newborn babies.
It is common to be told, "do not whistle three times at midnight" for it is an invitation for the Bird Woman. It is said that Monet has swooped down on travelers at high speed just because they whistle three times.
If she's particularly hungry, she has no problem selecting a villages with a huge population as her next meal and will fly towards you and lift you off the ground so she can eat you.
Basically, it's rare to encounter Monet and survive. If you find that you have encounter Monet, good news is there are a few ways to get rid of her. You can drive Monet away with salt or you can try screaming and cursing at it. They say sacred salt can protect against it, and many put salt on every enterance at night for protection. If you see it, you should also cuss her out to drive it away, but other versions of the legend say this may make it more mad, so beof your home to wary her off. Tying a rope of 7 knots and hanging it on your doorway will also protect you, since it is a sign of acknowledgement and respect toward the Bird Woman. Some say praying can also save you, even in backwards.
There are many stories of sightings of Monet the Bird Woman, one of them is in Kuri, in the past, Monet terrorized a small village, and the residents came up with a plan to kill her. Monet was lured out of the trees by residents using a child named Momonosuke as bait. When the Bird Woman attempted to take Momonosuke, locals fired at it with their bows and arrows, but only hit the claws before she flew away. The next day, they went to the house of the bruja they believed to be the Lechuza and she answered the door with a bandaged leg.
In another account in Kibi, Monet whistled and screeched outside a resident's home window it was so irritating that the resident open the window to find the source of the sound and then bam! Monet will pounce on the resident and scratch their eyes out.
There have been instances where people who have encountered Monet and instead of killing them, she merely showed her presence. Just by seeing her often indicates something more sinister or dangerous to come, like a deadly thunderstorm or sandstorm. So even if you do see her and she doesn't hurt you, well, bad stuff is still going to go down.
A 9 year old living in Udon, when the sun had just set and it was a full moon. The Child went home and started hearing noises outside and thought it was their dad coming home from work and naturally went outside excited to greet their dad. However, their dad was not out there, instead it was Monet. It was sitting on a picnic table across the street and looking right at them. The massive bird was light green hair. The child stared directly towards brown eyes for about 15 minutes but then left when the child's father arrived home. The kid told their grandma about this and she began praying and start putting scared salt on every enterance and told the kid the story of Monet the Bird Woman. The kid did not feel fear however, and wondered if the bird woman was there to warn them about something. Not too much later, there was a giant thunderstorm that damaged a lot in their home village, except the house and the picnic table where the Bird Woman was sitting.
The legend of Monet the Bird Woman is one that can be heard all over Wano. This terrifying monster in Kuri, Kibi, and Udon folklore, and her spooky stories passed down over generations. When asked Wano residence about who Monet they'll tell you the tale of a Monet the Bird Woman who sold her soul for magical powers, uses her powers to turn into a half bird, taking revenge on those who wronged her in her previous life.