The Wych Fables

A Loraurel Fairytale AU

A story of a boy in a red cloak sent as a sacrifice to the Witch of the Woods. As he makes his doomed journey, he manages to catch the eyes of a dangerous fiend. Will he fall prey to the hungry Wolf, or can he outwit the Witch's beasts to fulfill his own furtive ambitions?A grim retelling of the fairytale, Little Red-Riding Hood.

• Lorence & Laurel
• The Witch's Woods
• The Forest Dwellers
• The Fables (PDF)
• Commission Gallery
• Artist Credits

Laurel of the Briar

A boy chosen to deliver the Witch's offerings. He was expected to perish on his journey, devoured by the beasts of the woods as part of the sacrificial offering, yet he returned unscathed. For two years, he made this journey shadowed by an unexpected companion — the Wolf.He looks to be no more than twelve years of age. Despite his youth, the boy is cold of heart and unflappable even in the face of death. He looks delicate and frail, but has a chillingly sharp golden gaze. It is best not to underestimate him.

Lorence
the Dire Wolf

The Wolf is a fearsome predator of the Witch's Woods — inciting the fear of beasts and man alike with his unpredictable and wild nature. While most of his kin consume the flesh of humans, the Wolf feasts on the flesh of other beasts.Though normally he cares little for mankind, the Wolf was drawn by the delectable scent of the curious red-cloaked human child that crossed his territory. He prowled after his prey but did not devour him, amused that such a frail thing would dare to travel in the domain of monsters.Gradually though, the Wolf becomes increasingly infatuated with the boy, finding himself wrapped around those delicate little fingers.

The Witch
of the Woods

The Witch is responsible for the curse plaguing mankind. She lives in a cabin at the heart of the woods with her three skeletal pet cats. It has been centuries since she has last seen another human. That is until one day, a young boy and his wolf show up at her doorsteps.Seeing the boy's hatred for mankind that mirrors her own, the Witch takes in the child as an apprentice. A decision which eventually leads to her own demise.

Before she was the Witch, she was Fiametta Hart. A young girl inextricably connected to the natural world until a tragedy shattered the life she knew. She cast away her human name and sequestered herself deep in the woods where no mortal could find her.

"T'was the day the curse was born,
heart twisted in briar thorn."

The Four
Grim Heralds

Though many harrowing beasts stalk the Witch's Woods, none are as feared as the four Grim Heralds — the dominating powers of the woods as classified by the clergymen of the Last Bastion.The four Heralds consist of the Dire Wolf, the Harrowing Hart, the Weeping Owl, and the All-Seeing Moth King. Each reign within their respective domains creating a precarious balance of power within the woods.

The Dire Wolf

A wolf with coarse brown fur, a blackened mane, and wickedly verdant eyes. He leaves ashes in the destructive wake of his emerald hell-fire.Once a fearsome predator, now the Dire Wolf mostly spends his time leisurely by the side of a small human boy. A tamed hunting hound.

The Harrowing Hart

A colossal stag that stands taller than the forest canopy. His name comes from the massive beating heart that is visible from his exposed ribcage.

The Weeping Owl

A cunning and wily owl who desperately hungers for knowledge. His name comes from the crimson blood-like fluid that leaks from his eyes.

The Moth King

The petulant, immature king of the moths. He devoured his mother to earn his place amongst the Heralds.

Human
Residents

Bernhardt

Minister Marcel

Esminé the Whore

Dame
Lucine Sterling

Residents of the Briarwoods

The Harrowed Flock

The Lichen Keeper

Two-Headed Fawn

The Blooded Doe

The Corpse Eater

The
Lupines

The Hellhounds

The Blighthounds

The Bloodhounds

Witch's Familiar

Marrowick

Mortimer

Narcissa

Mothlings

Truesight

Lucidsight

Sightless Seer

Other Beasts

Winter Reverie

Mister Misery

The Wych Fables

The Briarwoods were once an ancient and peaceful forestland stretching across the entirety of the continent. Between the expanse of trees are human settlements forming in little habitable groves. These communes flourished with the alms of the enriched soil and the gifts of the wildwoods.However, those times are long gone. It’s been centuries since the Witch’s curse blighted these lands. Foul, man-eating monsters now dwell in the shadows of the thicket; they haunt and devour and terrorize the isolated man-made settlements. This wicked forest is now known as The Witch’s Woods – a symbol of terror and despair.
Somewhere, within its heart, lies the abode of the Witch that brought about this bane of monstrosities. Every year, from a small nameless village, an orphan tribute is sent as an offering to appease the Witch’s malice. Every one of these orphans have perished in the maws of beastsThis is a story of the tribute named Laurel.

Little Red-Riding Hood and the Wolf

The foundling orphan Laurel was chosen to brave the monster-infested woods to deliver the Witch’s offerings. As with every tribute bearer before him, he was expected to perish – an offering himself, to be devoured by the man-eating beasts. Yet, for two years, he makes this journey untouched. The villagers grow ever suspicious, wondering if the boy is touched by witch-blood himself.Little do they know that the most dangerous fiend of the woods – the Wolf – has taken a strange liking to the boy. An unlikely companionship forms between the foundling and the wolf as they traverse the vast stretch of woods together.Whether the boy is just another hapless victim to a predator toying with its prey, or if he can outwit the coiling paths of the Witch’s Woods to fulfill his own furtive ambitions, only time will tell.

The Huntsman and his
Hunting Hound

The Dire Wolf has been tamed and the Witch has been slain. The little prey-thing – that hapless foundling boy – has now become the hunter.The Woods have been freed from the Witch’s curse, and slowly the crumbled, winding trails between settlements are braved once more. Yet, with beasts still prowl the woods, not all is returned to the peace before the Witch’s curse.The boy and his devoted hound take the Witch’s secluded cabin as a new home – away from human settlements. From there, the two hunt the vestigials, the foul monsters that linger in the woods. A ruthless and cunning duo – soon the moniker of the Huntsman and his Hunting Hound ring with notoriety far and wide.Yet, their reputation brings about the eyes of other powers that wish to take advantage of the Witch’s absence to further their own schemes and ambitions.