Disclaimer for this theory post!
I originally shared this thread on Twitter in 2024, but I've rewritten it to better support my claims with imagery and audio citations, as well as add new points that personally make sense.
This is a theory, so please don't take my word as canon; I'm not affiliated with Tale of Tales, nor did I get intel from Auriea Harvey and Michäel Samyn about any of my claims.
Lastly, This post contains spoilers for The Path (2009), specifically for Rose’s story. Read at your own discretion for said spoilers. P.S., this is terribly formatted and goes beyond just my theory about Rose, including my personal idea that the girls’ father was their mother’s wolf (and other related theories).
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Theory Time! ~ The Mystery of Rose Red, and my personal interpretation.
What if the two stories narrated by Jarboe are actually the tales that led up to the game? Grandmother was the one who’d gotten away from the bzou (Father Wolf), but perhaps Grandmother’s own daughter was not as lucky?
When we see Grandmother's room in the game, the wolf is stuffed, leading me to assume that the stuffed wolf in her bedroom is a memento, not her actual wolf, since its real body was never recovered. If we accept that spirits, doppelgängers, and Fae exist within this game's universe, we can also consider the possibility that the Cloud Wolf is not a god, but rather a spirit of a wolf with unfinished business on Earth, tied to the Red family. There are six sisters, possibly five he hadn't expected, but we can assume that Grandmother and Rose share parallels that may have drawn him to Rose in particular.
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"I am a little bird, making sweet forest music. Floating on the waves of sound."
While this may be a result of the game having a small budget, just to add creepiness, ambience, or otherwise… My first citation of evidence comes in the form of the audio associated with not only Rose, but Grandmother, and the Cloud Wolf.
Going off of the in-game soundtrack which is a collection of sounds to play at random, each sister has their own personal “wolf themes,” in which they will play at specific “attractions” once the girl arrives to meet their wolf and eventually come to Grandmother’s house, injured in the rain.
When Rose is with her wolf, we can distinctly hear the sounds of girls or women vocalizing. This only happens after Rose has a direct, up-close interaction with her wolf; however, in the digital releases on streaming platforms, it starts around halfway through the track and continues for a while until the organ drowns it out.
In the game files, these sound effects are referred to by the following names:
The files “CloudWolf_ahhh1.cgr” and “CloudWolf_ahhres1.cgr” (with “res” likely referring to ‘resolution’ for improvement, reverb, or just an alternative variation for the sound.)
The combination of this and the screeching sound in the files, possibly referred to as “CloudWolf_lp(1-5).cgr,” creates a distinct sound for the theme. Nature itself is represented through the serenity of the birds chirping, the gentle strums of acoustic guitar, and running water. This is Rose’s perfect picture of sound, which is also the ambience heard in the story “Grandmother’s Tale,” documenting the horrors she experienced as a young girl.
We can compare the audio here:
It may take a few relistens, but I divided them into small sections, separating the peaceful beginnings from the more aggressive halves.
The screeching ambience of Rose's Wolf, as well as the general ambience of her Wolf's theme, can be clearly heard in the background. Although they're difficult to hear, the 'Ahhh's' (screeches) are present in the Cloud Wolf's theme if you listen closely beneath the vocals and whatnot. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------
"The cycle of life and death knows no beginning and no end..."
Rose's story may be one of generational mistakes, where it's easy to repeat the same pitfalls as those in your family's lives, perpetuating a cycle with no end in sight. Upon entering the Old Cemetery and burying the human skull, her quote could be foreshadowing her own fate, which is to fall into the clutches of Grandmother's Wolf, Old Father Wolf, the bzou.
When “the dead go in the dirt while their souls fly to the sky,” this may not be possible for the Cloud Wolf. He may remain imprisoned at the bottom of Misty Lake, where he had never been buried, until it fulfills an ancient obligation: killing a daughter of Red Riding-Hood. It'll happen once Rose rows out into the lake, right into his domain.
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"I am too heavy. Or too weak. Will I ever get up?"
My second hint toward this theory is Rose’s recurring descriptions of “wise,” “old,” and “mature.” Children are often told to take pride in themselves and their knowledge by being referred to as these adjectives, but it's usually not the case. This is our background Rose Red. A girl who has an “old soul” who is really just a young child taking a different approach to life. A more comforting and gentle route which involves care and love even for nature's smallest creatures. Grandmother, while we do not know much about her, is much alike to Rose in her wolf’s eyes. Black dress, bitter voice. She has black hair and brown eyes. Tasked with delivering bread, cream, and wine, she takes on the role of a grandmother to her six granddaughters.
Rose's personality offers a clear insight into how the two are intertwined in this narrative. Rose, likely the same age as the older woman and reminiscent of her when he was slain, is the perfect victim of her generation for straying from the path. What satisfaction could this mystical being possibly find in murdering an old woman who will die shortly anyway? Mother Red has met her wolf (potentially the Red girls' father, explaining his absence/lack of mention in-game or out of the game), which only left her daughters, and little Innocent Red was his perfect choice. What must be done must be done, otherwise the tale is never complete.
This also relates to how Grandmother reacts when asked why the girls are not allowed to enter the forest. “And whenever I ask her something like this, she just smiles with tears in her eyes.”
This statement from Rose made while the LiveJournal accounts were still active alone implies that Grandmother knew what would happen not only if she told the girls about the forest's temptations, but also about the beings that lay in wait for each of them. Rose of course, would be the worst to tell. How would you explain to your granddaughter that she'll be vulnerable to something you thought you had killed long ago with your cleverness? Not to mention if you didn't even realize it had taken on a spiritual form, wishing to seek revenge for its more than right fate at the hands of the lake?
It's inevitable that Rose will “die.” Grandmother knows this, as she herself was a survivor of it. Depending on interpretation, every girl survived these nightmares, but the implication that wolves can die suggests that the girls could also meet the same fate. In the past, some Reds have been murdered, while others have survived. Grandmother is just the most infamous example. ..............................................................................................................................
I know this theory is bad. But I thought to make something of the extra content the game soundtrack can give fans and tying it to the enigma that is Rose's story. Thank you for reading!
