What metaphors are used in Women Who Run with the Wolves by Clarissa Pinkola Phd Estes?

In Chapter Three, Nosing Out the Facts, the girl meets the witch and finds that she can have what she wants, but she must be willing to trade for it with her labor. There is fear, adventure and a series of 8 tasks. The girl is not taught fire-starting, but instead is sent with a skull upon a staff that harbors fire. Perhaps this is a metaphor of the female reproductive aspect.