This short story was based on a randomly assigned prompt from my English teacher. We were to write the story behind a Ancient Roman superstition. So here we are. There is mentions of childbirth, but obviously nothing graphic.
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The night was dark, though alive with movement. Inside a modest home within the typically busy center of Rome, a woman was in labor. Her husband, Valerius, paced anxiously back and forth, his heart steadily pounding in his chest.
Valerius knew well that childbirth was often a risky event, so he and his wife had taken the utmost precautions in preparation of the wondrous yet worrisome endeavor. He knew his wife to be surrounded by sacred herbs, and those who knew them prayed for his wife and their child's survival. As did he. But nothing could be said for certain, and thus, he fretted over them with all of his tumultuous heart.
As he paced, a spectacular howl shattered the localized bustle of the night. The call of the mighty wolf had sounded, alongside it, the wailing of a babe. Wolves were sacred creatures to the Romans, and hearing one's call at such a turbulent hour could only be a good omen.
Valerius let out a shout of triumph as his heart flooded with joy. And not long after, he finally heard news from the midwife of his resting wife and newborn son. His son would most certainly be named in nine days' time, as he had no doubts the boy would survive. Surely the call was a testament to his child's ability to survive, to his strength. And later, he'd find, the boy would live.
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In the story itself, there are ways to attract good luck mentioned. Childbirth was a dangerous thing during the time period, a stillborn child wasn't uncommon during Roman times, nor was the death of the mother herself. Sacred herbs were one way they ensured things would go well. Wolves were also loved by the Romans, as they were integral to the myth surrounding the origin in Rome. Praying to many gods was also seen as important to the safety of the mother and child in Rome within this period. I will not get into the strange things they did throughout the process, the research was interesting though.
