The diary of the Tambov Wolf
Tsvetana Alеkhina
© Tsvetana Alеkhina, 2022
Created with Ridero smart publishing system
«Dont you believe in these fairy tales?
When suddenly you give a heart to a wolf,
The Tambov wolf is not a beast to you,
The Tambov wolf is your comrade.»
Vladilen of Olives
CHAPTER 1
Autumn is a wonderful time of the year. It is a beautiful time. Especially if it is a warm autumn. I still do not want to return home from the street as it happened in the summer. Hot, fun, noisy time of the year it was replaced by a warm, beautiful, autumn coolness. The golden color of the trees fascinates with its beauty, makes you think. Someone is sad about the past summer, and someone about the past life. The autumn forest is beautiful, especially if this forest is Tambov. I walked slowly, knowing this forest like the back of my hand. Despite the fact that I was born and raised in Tambov, I did not believe in the existence of the Tambov wolf until I met him personally. I took the expression «Tambov Wolf» with humor, considering that this phrase sounds like a harmless joke.
October 1, 2015. Late autumn. It was getting dark early. My walk today was short-lived, and I did not go as far as the previous times. I wanted to get home as soon as possible, drink tea with raspberries and wrap myself in a warm blanket. Indian summer lasted all September. The cold snap started from the first days of October. The trees did not have time to shed their leaves before the onset of cold weather, their bright crowns fascinated with their beauty. A red maple leaf with an orange border slowly swirled in the air and fell right at my feet. I bent down to pick it up, perhaps it was my fate, with which this beautiful maple leaf brought me, but it was when I picked it up that I saw a product that I did not understand lying on the dry yellowed foliage, and only when I picked it up I realized that it was a wolfs fang. How did he get here? I felt uneasy, I looked around trying to find people walking in such a non-walking place, but knowing Knowing in advance that I was alone here, I decided to leave the twilight-shrouded forest as soon as possible. Thrusting the fang, along with the torn cord into my pocket, I almost hurried to the car left on the side of the road. I do not know why, but my heart was pounding with fear, and my legs carried me to my car by themselves. It was only when I slammed the door and started the engine that I felt safe. The dark blue sky spoke of the coming of night, but it was nothing compared to what I heard I heard a wolf howling. Exactly the howl of a wolf. I did not believe in the existence of wolves in our forest, believing that such animals do not inhabit our Tambov forest. After hitting the gas, I sped off along the Rasskazovskaya highway towards the city.
My house was located on Moskovskaya Street, not far from the Rasskazovsky highway. My parents and I have lived all our lives in a one-room apartment, the windows of which looked directly at the highway that led into the forest. My father taught me to walk in the woods from early childhood. He did not like to walk on the childrens sites, considering that there is nothing good in this. Maybe he was right. My mother often had to work on weekends. It was a duty at the childrens hospital, and we were alone with my father. If the weather was warm on the weekend, it meant that we were going to the forest. My fathers name was Yura, and my mother loved him so much that she named me after him. Childhood flew by, and with it youth, youth, maturity came. My parents went to live in the village of Streltsy, leaving me this apartment with a view of the suburban forest. My personal life did not work out in my youth, and over time, I did not notice how I turned into a loner walking through the Tambov forest.
When I got home, I hastily took off my shoes, without taking off my jacket, went into the kitchen and turned on the kettle. The apartment was warm. I warmed up quickly. Taking out of my pocket what I was so interested in all the way and putting it in the palm of my hand, I brought the strange thing to the light. It looks like a real wolfs fang. Is he real? I turned the amulet in my hands. The silver casting attracted attention much more than the fang itself. This old silver tip. But the fact was, this little silver head was so old. At first glance, even for the most inexperienced historian, it was possible to understand that this thing, and with it the lace on which it hung, belongs to ancient times. Considering the amulet, I did not pay attention to the white fluff, or rather the wool left on the black leather cord. Touching the fur with my fingers, and finally deciding to smell it, I realized that it did not fall from the dogs neck. What is it? The kettle had been boiling for a long time; the muddy sediment was visible through the thermal glass. Throwing the charm on the table, I took off my jacket and washed my hands. What should I do about it?
Being an only child, of course I was selfish, and I was not used to sharing with anyone. Deciding to keep everything a secret, I decided to wait until morning and go to the same place in search of evidence. Well, or to my regret, or the owner of the amulet herself.
Night came. But I didnt feel like sleeping. I twisted the fang in my hands. Realizing that I had a real wolfs tooth in my hands, or rather a fang, I felt that I had found something very valuable, and very significant, but of course, I did not understand this value, and most importantly its purpose. Putting the amulet under my pillow, I tried to fall asleep, but I could not. I tried to imagine our meeting with the owner of this amulet, and how proud I am to return this pendant to him. Finally, not imagining the image of this man, I sighed easily and lay down from my back on my stomach. Putting my hand under the pillow, I squeezed the fang. I will keep it for myself. What fell is gone. This is mine now. With these words, I fell asleep. The hand on the clock has long past midnight.
«Do you have any idea what youve done?» Take back what doesnt belong to you. A womans voice woke me up and made me afraid. The voice was imperious and menacing. When I opened my eyes, I realized that I was safe; my hand was clenched into a fist, a fang in my hand. The feeling of fear continued to overwhelm my subconscious. The pounding of the rain outside the window did not let me fall asleep. A well-developed intuition told me that something was wrong. I understood that in my hands there is a talisman, an amulet, or maybe just a pendant from which I inflated a whole story, but whatever it was, this thing has a valuable value for its owner. The white fluff on the leather cord gave me no peace.
Scrolling through the different options in my head, I settled on a more plausible one. This fang belonged to a white collie dog. She lost it while walking. There is no other excuse. But walking for several days in a row in the same place, I did not see any people, much less dogs. I did not hear the barking. It seemed to me all the time that I was the only one going into such a depth, considering this forest a second home. But, nevertheless, the fact was the following, the hair on the string was quite tough for the collie breed, and how to explain the wolf howl that I clearly heard when getting into the car. There was only one thing left, to return to the scene of the accident. Throwing the bad dream out of my head, I went to the kitchen and turned on the kettle. White Fang was lying motionless under the pillow, I forgot about him for a while. Small raindrops dripped from the window. This fine frost foreshadowed the arrival of winter. After putting on warm clothes, I went outside and began to warm up my Renault.
Early morning of October 2. Fifteen minutes away, and I am there. The path ended a long time ago; I walked into the depths of the forest without looking back. This time I felt a sense of fear. Straining my ears, I tried to catch outsiders. Even if this fang decorated the dogs neck, the owner had to return with his pet. But to my regret, I didnt hear anything. The cloudy morning did not have its hospitality; I put my hands in my pockets and squeezed harder. These movements enveloped me with heat from the inside; I realized that I had forgotten the fang under the pillow. What a fool I am. How could I. Returning to the car left on the side of the road and experiencing a great sense of chagrin, I had to return home.
Midday. Lunchtime. I had no appetite, satisfying my hunger with a cigarette, which I took out only occasionally, in extreme cases, I walked busily around the kitchen, fiddling with a fang in my hand. And what if I tell my father about everything that happened. I am sure he knows the value of this pendant. Alternatively, an antique dealers appraiser. Holding the phone in my left hand and the cord in my right, I walked into the bedroom and found myself in front of the wardrobe mirror. My reflection of me is quite satisfied. I thought I was attractive. Height of one meter eighty. White skin, thick black hair, combed on the right side. A sharp nose, thin lips, wide cheekbones, and gray-green eyes attracted the attention of girls. Bringing the lace to my neck and putting it close, I watched how this thing would look on me. Throwing the phone on the bed, I made an irreparable mistake; I tied the shoelace into a knot while looking at my toes. Raising my head, I recoiled from the reflection; a black wolf with gray-green eyes was looking at me, standing on its hind legs. Not believing in what I saw, I touched myself with my hands, my hands and body remained the same, human. Coming closer to the mirror, a wolf was walking on its hind legs in the reflection; I stretched out my palm to the glass. A wolfs paw touched me through the glass, and I felt cold. What is it? How is that? I did not believe what I saw, and began to take off this fang. But to my surprise, I did not succeed. The knots were too tight. A wolfs howl rose in my ears, an animal instinct took over my body in a split second. I wanted to tear up anyone who comes to hand. The craving for war, and with it for victory, called me to feats. I wanted to fight. Howl and fight. I did not even feel hungry, as a wolf usually feels. Continuing to try to remove the lace, I came to the kitchen and took a knife to cut the tourniquets that bound my neck. The incoming stop signal forbade me to do this. Driven by wolfish instincts, I went downstairs and started the car.
October 2. Evening. Suburban forest. My feet brought me to the place where I found the ominous thing yesterday. The howling in his ears displaced all extraneous noises. You are doing great! He came alone. A womans voice silenced the howling of wolves. Silence. I could hear my heart pounding. No outsiders are needed here. Now give it to me. After these words, she appeared in front of me, a white wolf with human eyes. But, most of all me I was struck by the fact that she and I had the same gray-green eye color. The she-wolf was slowly coming at me, wagging her hips. If she had been in human form, she would not have left any man indifferent. Her strong paws slowly touched the wet foliage, she walked as if on a tightrope, smoothly and without fear. Her pale pink tongue licked her thin lips, revealing teeth as white as snow. There was nowhere to run, and there was no point. I could only wait for her approach, and then
Jump and I am on my shoulder blades. I remember her open mouth in front of my face. Her tail was banging against my legs. The paws pressed me to the ground with such force that I managed to estimate the weight of this individual. About eighty kilograms. Her teeth closed around my neck, and I thought this was the end. But she just threw a black leather cord over her fang and jumped off my half-dead body with lightning speed. Here, of course, there was magic, the lace untied itself, it did not have to be torn, and especially cut with a knife. The wolf disappeared as suddenly as it appeared. I remained motionless for about five minutes. Not believing what I saw, I felt my neck with my hand, trying to find the shoelace. Finally making sure he was not there, I got to my feet. Looking at myself, I realized that this was not a vision, and not a hallucination, and I did not even go crazy. Her paw prints were left on my jacket. White fluff covered my jeans and jacket. Apparently, this female changes her fur coat for the winter. For a moment, I realized that I was lost and did not know in which direction to go back to the car. The trees seemed the same. The foliage merged underfoot into one big spot. Frost covered my hair with a nasty cold. Finally coming to my senses, I slowly walked to the exit from this thicket of the forest. I did not want to go home. I realized that I had lost something very valuable, and I would never be able to get this thing back for myself. My wolfish instincts disappeared like lightning with the loss of this amulet. The wolf disappeared along with the amulet, and I did not hear her howling reluctantly getting into the car. And I really wanted to see her again. I realized that she was not dangerous. What is it? Who is it? The adventure in the autumn forest touched my subconscious. I decided to get to the truth.
Late in the evening, I got to my apartment. Despite the fact that it was hot in the apartment, I began to shake from the cold. Without taking off my warm clothes and without turning on the kettle, I took a hundred-gram bottle of whiskey from the kitchen cabinet and drank it in one gulp. At that time, it was the best cure for the stress experienced over the past 24 hours. The kettle turned on, my hands washed in hot water warmed up, my body is outside. Going into the bedroom, I forgot myself and I went to the wardrobe to get clean clothes, when I saw my reflection, I recoiled from the door and peered into my face. It seems like everything is the same as always, but something was wrong. My longitudinal nose looked like a wolfs, my eyes burned with a wild fire in which savages danced around the fire. What is it? When will it all end? The answer was not long in coming. A soft female whisper ran along the wall of my room.
Its just started.
Clean clothes, clean hands. Delicious and hot dinner. Anyway, the white wolf did not leave my head. She was beautiful, graceful, strong, and at the same time gentle. I will never forget how she carefully removed the leather cord from my chest by impaling it on one fang. Comparing the facts, I realized that the female voice that I heard belongs to this wolf. She was talking to me. What then?» What is the conclusion? Is she a werewolf? This is a female werewolf. And most likely a blonde werewolf with gray-green eyes. Does this happen? No. There are no werewolves exists. This is a myth from horror movies. Since ancient times. The word of ancient times shocked me. So is the fang that I found yesterday from ancient times. Is it true? I was sitting on a stool leaning against the wall and could not believe my thoughts. Ancient times. Witches. Werewolves. Amulets. Witches were burned at the stake. There are no werewolves. But I saw him. And this werewolf is blonde. I wish I could see her in human form.
Sleepless night. I could not get a wink of sleep. I did not know what to do. To share with someone about what happened or to keep everything a secret. Realizing that no one would believe me, and I did not want to let anyone into this secret, I decided to keep silent. My father called all morning, I did not give myself away by answering the call. The secret remained a secret. The image of the white wolf continued to haunt me, and I mentally tried to establish contact with her. Of course, I was more interested in her appearance. What a wolf she is with human eyes. The weight of eighty kilograms is certainly noticeable. I imagined a plump girl with a long braid and lush breasts, round gray-green eyes, pupils running and burning with fire and a white, long, thick braid.