Parable of the Wolf and the Shrew, part 1

Though most animals feared the Wolf, who lived deep in the darkest woods, hidden from sight, the little Shrew befriended him. One day, the Shrew asked the Wolf for help. ‘Oh mighty Wolf,’ she said, ‘let me draw from your power.’ The Wolf looked the Shrew in the eye and said: ‘I shall do as you ask, but know this: nothing comes free, my friend. You may call on me, but for doing so, you shall pay in your own blood.’ But the little Shrew wasn’t just little – she was also shrewd.