“A ny t h i n g , a ny t h i n g! ”
“You must give me whatever living creature
first greets you when you are close enough to
see your castle gates.”
The king thought carefully. Whenever he
got home, his pack of hunting hounds raced out
to greet him. Surely he could spare one of those!
“I promise,” said the king. So Hans flut-
tered down on his rooster and led the king
and his crew north through the tangle of trees.
At daybreak they were in sight of the castle,
and the king rode up to the gates. Out came
his band of dogs to greet him, and so did his
daughter, the princess, who outran the dogs
and flung herself, laughing, into her father’s
arms to hug him.
Hans, astride his rooster on a nearby hill,
nodded. “I’ll be back in a year and a day for
what you promised!” he called and rode back
into the Great Forest.
After a year and a day, Hans returned.
The king had ordered that if a half man–half
hedgehog should ride into town on a rooster, he
was to be greeted like a prince. So Hans had a
procession of men lead him to the castle, right
into the throne room, where the princess was
hiding behind her throne sniffling, and the king
and queen both looked like they’d eaten frogs.
“King, will you give me what you prom-
ised?” asked Hans.
“Yes,” said the king, and a tear rolled down
his cheek.
“And what is that?”
“My daughter the princess,” the king
answered, and a tear rolled down his other
cheek.
Hans turned to the princess. “And you?
You are what is promised. Do you stand by
this decision?”
The princess peeked out from behind her
throne. “Yes,” she said, swallowing hard. “A
promise is a promise!”
So they were married.
It was the saddest wedding you ever saw!
The bride and the bridesmaids cried until
the carpets were damp, the king and queen
wrung their hands, and Hans looked grimly
from one unhappy face to the next. When the
wedding was over, Hans called the king aside.
“Promise me this,” he said. “Tonight, have
two guards stand outside our chamber door
and light a great fire. Anything that comes out
of the room before daylight, they are to throw
into the flames until it is consumed. Promise?”
The king shuddered at what this might
mean, but he promised.
Hans called the princess aside. “Promise
me this,” he said. “Have your maids put a great
tub of hot water in our chamber this night,
with rags and sponges close by. Promise?”
The princess shuddered at what this
might mean, but she promised.
That night the princess huddled under
the blankets, waiting for the hedge-beast. In
he came, but not to her! He stood in the mid-
dle of the room and began to tremble, then to
shake most fearfully. The princess peeked out
from under the covers.
“Husband! Are you all right?”
Hans didn’t answer. He shook and
flailed, and the coat of quills fell away
from him like a cloak. Hans caught it upHAVE YOU EVER THOUGHT
OF GETTING A ROOSTER,
INSTEAD OF A HORSE?YOU’RE KIDDING, RIGHT?
ROOSTERS EAT BUGS!