Chapter 10 Summary and Analysis – A Wolf for a Spell

⚠️ Spoiler Warning: This guide contains detailed spoilers for the entire novel. Proceed only if you've finished reading or are comfortable knowing the plot.

Summary

Nadya is left alone as the other orphan girls bustle around Katerina’s upcoming departure to the castle. She considers two futures: joining Katerina and Tsar Aleksander if she behaves perfectly, or escaping into the forest. While feeding the chickens, her one-eyed wolf appears, and she feeds him eggs. Katerina catches her and warns that the tsar will not tolerate lies. Katerina gives Nadya a carved wooden doll for safekeeping and reminds her to wear warm wool. After Katerina leaves, Nadya checks her hands; the salve has completely healed her cuts, leaving only the memory of the wounds.

Key Events

Nadya weighs two possible futures: a home at the castle (conditional on good behavior) or freedom in the forest.
She successfully carries grain to the chicken coop without dropping any, a small step toward proving herself.
Her one-eyed wolf visits and she feeds him eggs from the coop.
Katerina catches Nadya with the wolf and confronts her about lying, emphasizing that the tsar values honesty.
Katerina gives Nadya her childhood wooden doll, asking her to keep it safe.
Before leaving, Katerina reminds Nadya to wear her warm wool coat, hinting at coming snow.
Alone after Katerina departs, Nadya removes her bandages and finds her hands completely healed by the salve.

Character Development

Nadya experiences a deepening internal conflict between the safety and belonging she might find at the castle and the wild freedom the forest represents. Her lie to Katerina about the wolf shows she is still learning to trust others with her secrets, yet she also resolves to “try harder” to meet Katerina’s expectations—demonstrating a desire for acceptance and family. Receiving the doll affects her deeply; she notes that Katerina’s gift makes the farewell harder than a scold or reprimand would have.

Katerina appears both kind and stern. She gently confronts Nadya about lying, but also trusts Nadya enough to give her a prized possession. Her reminder about the warm wool shows a continuing caretaking role, even as she prepares to leave the orphanage.

The wolf (Nadya’s one-eyed companion) symbolizes the forest’s friendship and the bond Nadya would have to give up if she chooses the castle. His playful trust in Nadya contrasts with the danger others associate with the woods.

Themes, Symbols, or Motifs

Choices and Consequences: The chapter is built around Nadya’s internal deliberation. She explicitly lists the two paths open to her, and her small action of feeding the wolf becomes a test of which side she will ultimately choose.
Belonging vs. Freedom: The castle offers warmth, honeyed pancakes, and a family—but requires perfect behavior and the loss of the wolf. The forest offers independence but is dangerous and lonely. Neither option is wholly satisfying.
Trust and Secrecy: Nadya’s lie about the wolf and Katerina’s warning about the tsar’s expectations underline a theme of hidden lives. Katerina’s gift introduces a reciprocal trust: she entrusts her doll to Nadya, and Nadya accepts the responsibility.
Healing and Marking: The salve that healed Nadya’s hands leaves no physical scar, but she can still “feel where the wounds had been, as though the forest had marked her.” This suggests that experiences, especially those connected to nature, leave invisible, lasting impressions.
The Doll as Talisman: The crooked smile and homemade appearance of the doll represent childhood and the emotional bond between the two girls. By giving it to Nadya, Katerina transfers a piece of her own past into Nadya’s keeping.

Why This Chapter Matters

Chapter 10 crystallizes the central dilemma Nadya will face throughout the novel: the conflict between domestic belonging (represented by the castle) and wild independence (represented by the forest and the wolf). It also deepens the relationship between Nadya and Katerina, showing that Katerina is neither all kind nor all stern—she is a complex older-sister figure who truly cares. The magical healing of Nadya’s hands ties back to the forest’s powerful, ambiguous influence. This chapter sets up the emotional stakes for Nadya’s choices in subsequent chapters and reminds readers that her bond with the wolf will be a key cost of any decision.

Study Questions and Answers

What are the two futures Nadya considers, and what are the advantages and disadvantages of each?
The first future is joining Katerina at the castle with Tsar Aleksander, which offers security, warmth, and family but requires perfect behavior and would mean losing her wolf. The second future is escaping into the forest, which offers freedom and independence but carries dangers from poisonous plants and wild animals.
Why does Nadya’s lie to Katerina matter, according to Katerina?
Katerina warns that the tsar “will never allow you to join us if he knows that you lie.” This indicates that honesty is a critical requirement for entering the castle world, and that Nadya’s secret relationship with the wolf would have to remain hidden if she chooses that path.
Describe the healing of Nadya’s hands and its significance.
The salve Katerina obtained from the forest heals the cuts completely, leaving smooth skin with no redness. However, Nadya still feels a sensation where the wounds were, “as though the forest had marked her.” This suggests that the forest’s influence is not merely physical—it leaves an emotional and spiritual imprint that cannot be erased.