Running with the Wolves

The Day

Yanjmaa was sick of these stories. There was Emüjin, who really didn't deserve her name. "She was the ivy," and she was evil. Madda was a living bonfire, a body of destruction. And Safire? Safire was just magical. All of them had those stupid sparks zapping down their arm. Ugh. Yanjmaa was in no way, shape, or form magical, except for that time. And that wasn't magic. That was just a wolf pup following her home. A wolf pup with a red scarf. But Altansukh talked. First, the cry for help, and then as he grew, he spoke more. Some days, they were so close that Yanjmaa could hear the burble of the stream and smell yesterday's stew that was thrown out.

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Today was the day. The youth in the village would receive their places today. Yanjmaa spent all night picking at the calluses on her hands, clawing at her limbs, and punching herself repeatedly in both eyes, with the hope that she wouldn't be chosen as some high-ranking official's wife. She woke up earlier than any of her six brothers and looked in the polished silver mirror. I look worse than I expected, she thought. What can a girl like me be? Maybe a... a what? A nothing. A liability. Yanjmaa remembered to put these thoughts aside. She walked outside to feed Altansukh the last bits of yesterday's meal. Getting down on her knees, she whispered, "Don't be scared. It's still me. See? No, don't see. It's not pretty." Lifting the now-large wolf off the ground, she said, laughing, "I should have thought twice about naming you. I should have called you Ganbold." A young boy from the nearby village came outside and laughed. "Talking to that stupid wolf again? It would be better if you just killed him." And with an unintelligible battle cry, he swung his wooden sword.

"Look what you've done! You made him scared. Now he'll try to eat you when he sees you next. It's what wolves do," Yanjmaa scolded. She lifted the boy over her head and threw him to the ground, just to make him feel bad and soil his clothes. Yanjmaa walked back into the hut and quickly changed into her best robe, the blue one with the silver threads. "Get in the cir– what happened to your face?" her mother said. "Nothing," Yanjmaa mumbled, and sat down outside the ger.

A booming voice rang out from the center of the circle. "The male hunters will be..." Yanjmaa sighed and decided to ignore this part. It was a full hour before the announcer began to list the attainable female places for her. "The shamaness will be..." Yanjmaa hoped she would be the shamaness. It took skill, but she had skill. It took patience, but she had patience. She was the best choice, for she could talk to animals. If you can talk to animals, you can see. Maybe she was magical. But not in the stupid "sparks fizzing, shooting fire, saving lives" way. The pause seemed to last for hours. Long enough for Yanjmaa to go feed Altansukh, eat her own food, take a nap, groom all the horses, herd the sheep, and come back. "Yamaha- wait no, Ya... Yanj... Yanjmaa? Is that it?, daughter of Tolui and Byambasuren."