The Secret Transformation
Métis Roogaroo & Superstition Stories.
“The Secret Transformation” was originally published in Métis Roogaroo & Superstition Stories, a compilation of stories from members and friends of Gabriel Dumont Local 11, a Métis Local in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan. Most began as oral stories, presented over Zoom, and then transcribed, revised, and edited for this publication. Some participants were inspired and created new stories, plays, and artwork, some of which you will see in the publication. For the Métis/Michif, storytelling is very important in validating experiences and nurturing relationships through shared knowledge. Our hope is that these stories inspire, entertain and resonate with readers, encouraging them to look for similar stories in their own lives. Métis Roogaroo & Superstition Stories was published as a Special Edition of Folklore Magazine in January 2024.
Connie Sanche, "Spirits In The Sky," 2023. Watercolor painting. Source: Connie Sanche.
Kiyas, a long time ago there was a very successful trapper named Hubert who travelled across Saskatchewan on the many lakes and rivers in this land. The odd thing about this trapper was that he always travelled alone. Many voyageurs travelled together as a team, sharing the work and the profits. Not Hubert.
One day Hubert was visiting a trading post to trade furs and gather supplies. A young man named Andre saw Hubert and wished to be a successful trapper like him. Andre thought if he could earn enough money, he could afford to support a wife and family. Bravely he approached Hubert and tapped him on the shoulder. “Can you help me?” he asked. "I’d like to learn your trade. I could travel with you for free and share the work as I learn from you.”
The clerk shook his head as he knew Hubert was a loner and didn’t enjoy other people’s company. He was shocked when Hubert seemed to be contemplating this and then agreed to take Andre along with him.
“You can come along with me,” he replied. “It won’t be easy, but I believe you are going to be helpful.”
Andre went to get his gear before Hubert changed his mind. He had never been away from home before, so his emotions were running from excitement to anxiety and fear. Once he had his gear, he bid farewell to his family and met Hubert at the river by the trading post.
The first day of paddling was strenuous. Andre was a fit young man, but he was relieved when Hubert finally signalled they would seek shelter for the night. They arrived at a small cove and pulled their canoe up high up on the beach. Andre gathered wood for a fire while Hubert prepared their supper. After their meal, they settled for the night. Andre placed his bedroll close to the fire where it would be warm, and he knew he’d be safe from wild animals. Hubert, however, placed his bedroll on the other side of the camp, far from the fire. Andre was not used to being away from home, so he didn’t sleep well. He woke up in the night and saw that Hubert was gone.
The next morning Andre questioned Hubert. “Where were you last night? I woke up, and I didn’t know where you were. I was really anxious.”
“Don’t worry about me,” responded Hubert. “I had a cramp in my leg and had to go walk it off. I didn’t want to disturb you.”
Andre was relieved with the simple explanation. That day Hubert taught Andre how to locate different animals and how to set traps for them. He also taught him survival skills of shelter building and food gathering. It was a long day, but Andre was pleased with everything he was learning from Hubert. They returned to camp, had supper, and turned in for the night. Even though he was really tired, Andre had trouble sleeping through the night. He woke to find Hubert was gone again. In the morning, Andre enquired about Hubert’s disappearance.
“Don’t worry about me,” Hubert replied. “I had to go to the bathroom. I didn’t want to do that here, so I went further down the beach.”
Hubert could see Andre was anxious, so he went to his backpack and pulled something out.
“I have something for you, Andre. It’s a good luck charm.” He showed Andre a necklace made of bone, teeth and claws. “Each time you get anxious, I want you to hold it, and it’ll bring you comfort. You’ll know what to do with it when you’re in danger.”
Andre was grateful for the gift and put it around his neck. At night, when he woke up and Hubert was gone, he’d clutch his necklace. He found it gave him comfort, and he slept better.
Lucille Scott, 2022. Acrylic. From this Window. Burton, Wilfred, 2022, p. 19. Source: Wilfred Burton.
Days turned to weeks, and they eventually came to another trading post. As Hubert was dealing with the clerk, a trapper named Leo started a conversation with Andre. They soon realized they were all going in the same direction.
“It just makes sense we travel together,” stated Leo.
“That’s a great idea,” replied Andre. “Come with us! You’ll be welcome.”
When Hubert heard that Andre had invited Leo to join them, he was not happy. However, it would be considered rude and disrespectful to rescind the offer without a good reason. Hubert reluctantly agreed to travel together for a short while. Hubert took his frustration out by setting a quick pace and taking few breaks. By dusk, all three men were exhausted as they pulled their canoes onto the shore of a large lake. They started a fire and shared supper. Andre and Leo placed their bedrolls on each side of the fire while Hubert placed his bedroll away from the fire in the shadows.
Late that night, a sudden, loud wolf howl woke Andre. He looked around the camp and saw that Leo was still close to the fire, sleeping, but Hubert was gone. By habit, he reached for his good luck charm and trusted that everything would be fine.
Suddenly he heard a rustling noise coming from the direction of the lake. Andre crept soundlessly to a bush overlooking the lake. As his eyes adjusted to the gloom, he could see that Hubert was crouching by the shore of the lake. As Andre watched in horror, Hubert started to growl. His body started to contort and change. Where he saw his friend standing moments before, now stood a monster! Andre knew the stories of the Roogaroo, and he knew this man had to be one.
McKenna Ramsay, "Li Roogaroo," 2023. Digital painting. Source: McKenna Ramsay. Used with permission.
Andre was too frightened to move and prayed the creature would not look his way.
A sudden noise in the bush caught the monster’s attention, and in a flash, it was after an animal. Andre was frozen in place not sure what to do next. Dawn was near, and he didn’t want to be seen by the Roogaroo. Before Andre could sneak back to camp, the creature reappeared from the forest and returned to the shoreline. Andre was compelled to watch as the creature folded in on itself, shrinking in size and shape until it was Hubert again.
In a flash, Andre realized that Hubert would return to camp and notice that Andre was not in his bedroll. In a panic, Andre ran as quietly as possible back to his bed. Clutching his necklace, he tried to control his breathing as he pretended to be asleep.
Hubert crept into camp and paused over Andre, looking down at him. Andre could sense Hubert studying him and prayed for him to walk away. Eventually, Hubert seemed satisfied and went to his own bedroll and went to sleep.
Andre waited until he could hear Hubert’s even breathing before he climbed out of his bedroll and tiptoed over to Leo. He gently shook him and told him to be quiet. Leo listened attentively to Andre’s recollection of the night’s events. He didn’t believe Andre. Leo didn’t know what a Roogaroo was and believed Andre had a nightmare. Andre was frantic, and Leo could see that he was terrified.
“Okay, if you want to leave, we’ll go,” he whispered to Andre. “We’ll sneak away.…get your stuff.” Andre did as he was told, but he made too much noise and woke up Hubert. Hubert looked around and could see that they’d been loading a canoe.
“What are you doing?” he stammered. “Where are you going? Are you leaving me alone? What is going on?”
Leo confronted Hubert and said, “I don’t know what happened last night, but you scared this man.” Leo pointed at Andre and continued, “He doesn’t want to be here and so we’re going to leave, and there’s nothing you can do to stop us.”
Hubert and Leo began to argue, and things escalated quickly. When Leo went to walk away, Hubert grabbed his arm. Leo spun around, shoving Hubert hard. He tripped on a rock and fell to the ground. All of a sudden deep sounding growls came from Hubert’s throat. His body began to shudder. As he began to stand, his body grew and transformed into a huge wolf-like creature. Leo and Andre were terrified. Leo recoiled in fear as Andre stood petrified, clutching his good luck charm. The beast roared at Leo, startling Andre and causing him to break the necklace free from his neck.
Hubert had always said Andre would know what to do with the charm in a moment of danger. Instinctively he ran between Leo and Hubert and swung the necklace at Hubert, hitting him in the side of the face and cutting his ear.
As blood began to drip from Hubert’s ear, the monster gasped and fell to the ground. His body began to shudder as, once again, it began to transform. In just a few moments, Hubert was back in his human body, gasping for breath with tears running down his cheeks.
“The curse is broken,” he managed to whisper as he sat up to look at the men. “I was cursed because I was selfish and mean. I only cared about myself and used other people to get what I wanted.”
“If you were so horrible, why did you let me come with you?” asked Andre.
Hubert then looked directly up at Andre’s eyes. “That day when I met you, I was feeling so lonely that I let you come with me. I wanted to hide the curse from people so that’s why I always travelled alone.”
“Weren’t you worried that he would discover your secret?” asked Leo.
“I thought maybe this was my opportunity for redemption,” Hubert continued. “Maybe if I was good to this young man and taught him how to be a good trapper, then there would be a way for my curse to be lifted.”
“You always told me to trust the charm you gave me, and I did,” said Andre kneeling beside his friend. “Cutting your ear with it was an accident, but maybe it was meant to be. I’m just glad it worked, and you have been cured.”
Now, the three men were bonded together by their shared experience, and from that day forward, they travelled together as a team. Hubert asked them to never tell people this story because he felt shame and embarrassment. Only after Hubert passed on were they free to tell this story to their family and friends, who told it to their family and friends. They told it to me, and now I’m telling it to you…a story of a Roogaroo looking for redemption.
*This story originated on CBC Indigenous (audio file: Beware the Roogaroo). The story was incomplete, and I finished it.
A Second Story: Black Dog Secret
Many years ago, Kohkom was shopping with my mom in Saskatoon. They were standing right in front of the King George Hotel when Kohkom saw this black dog running up the sidewalk.
It leapt on her, put its large paws on her shoulders, and nuzzled its massive head up against her ear. It spoke to her. When it finished whispering, it got down and ran away.
Wilfred Burton. Photograph, 2015. Mask, painted foam, by Mary Quickfall. In Where’s the Rugaroo? by Wilfred Burton and Angela Caron, p. 2. Pearson Canada, 2015. Source: Wilfred Burton. ©Gabriel Dumont Institute. Used with permission.
Kohkom turned to my mom and said they had to go home. The Roogaroo had told her that somebody had died, and she was going to get a phone call. They got on the bus and went home. Kohkom anxiously sat by the phone. She waited and waited until it rang. She was told her brother Johnny had passed away. The Roogaroo had told the truth!
I shared this story with a Grade Five class at Westmount School. One of the students told me he knew who the Roogaroo was. I asked how he knew, when I didn’t.
He said it had to be a family member. Someone who was with my grandma’s brother when he passed or received a phone call first and knew the rest of the family was also going to get a phone call. They knew where she would be that day and went to scare her. That made sense.
There may be a Roogaroo in my family!
CORT DOGNIEZ was born and raised in Saskatoon. He was an educator for over forty years until his retirement in 2020. He was fortunate growing up listening to his Kohkum’s stories about her life and her family. He now honours those stories and passes them on to his family, relatives and friends, and the general public wanting to know more about the Métis people. His first children’s book, Road to La Prairie Ronde, was nominated for two Saskatchewan book awards in 2021. Cort's in retirement as a writer and presenter at schools and in public events. He is a consummate storyteller who dazzles his listeners with traditional and contemporary stories.
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