Lilac Fairy Book

Chapter 9: Monkey's Heart (2)
"Once upon a time there was a washerman who lived in that great forest on the other side of the village, and he had a donkey for company, and he carried him about. They got along very well for a time, but after a while the donkey became lazy. Becoming ungrateful again, he ran miles and miles into the depths of that forest, where he did nothing but eat, eat, eat, until he was so fat that he could scarcely walk.

"One day the donkey was tasting a weed he had never seen before, and was wondering if it was as good as the ones he had eaten the day before, when a hare happened to pass by.

"'Ah, this fellow is so fat,' thought the rabbit, and he told the news to a lion on purpose, because the two of them were friends. At that time, the lion was very sick, and was too weak to forage by himself. Depression and weakness brought tears to his eyes when he came to tell him that a fat donkey had been found just a few hundred yards away.

"'What's the use of telling me?' he asked weepingly. 'You know, I can't even get as far as that palm tree.'

"'Don't worry,' replied the Hare cheerfully, 'and if you can't come to your good meal, your lunch will be brought to you automatically.' She nodded her good-bye to the Lion, and went back to the Donkey.

"'Good morning,' she said, bowing politely to the donkey, who looked up in surprise, 'forgive me for disturbing you, but I have come on something very important.'

"'Really?' replied the donkey, 'it is very kind of you to take such trouble. May I ask what it is?'

"'Certainly,' replied the hare; 'I have a friend who is a lion and has heard a great deal about your charms and good qualities, and has sent me to ask you to marry him. Why can't he ask you in person? It is with deep regret that this request was made, he was ill and too weak to move.'

"'Poor man! How miserable!' said the Donkey. 'You must tell him that he has honored me with his marriage proposal, and that I will gladly agree to be Queen of Beasts.'

"'Would you not like to go and tell him these words yourself?' asked the Hare.

"So they set out side by side on the high road to the house where the Lion lived. They walked for a long time, but walked slowly because the donkey was too fat. It took about 5 minutes to finish the run, but now the hare had to crawl forward slowly, and finally almost collapsed. When they finally arrived at the lion's house, the lion was sitting at the door of the house, looking very pale and thin. The donkey suddenly became shy, and lowered her head. The lion pretended to be very polite, and invited the two guests into the house, asking them not to be polite.

"Soon the hare got up and said, 'Ah, I have another appointment, you stay to get acquainted with your future husband.' She winked at the Lion and bounded away.

"The Donkey thought that when they were alone in the house, the Lion would begin to talk about their marriage and where they were going to live. But the Lion said nothing, and she could not help looking up. To her surprise and horror Surprisingly, she saw him crouching in the corner with blood in his eyes, and roaring loudly, he jumped at her. At that moment, the donkey still had time to prepare, and she jumped aside and kicked hard The lion screamed in pain. He grabbed her again and again with his paws, and the donkey, like the lion, could bite with his teeth. The lion was weak after being sick. Finally, the donkey's heavy blow The kick made him fall to the ground, moaning in pain, and rolled over. Before he could get up, the donkey ran away and disappeared into the forest.

"The rabbit knew very well what was going to happen. She didn't go about her own business, but hid in the bushes behind that cave, from where she could hear very clearly the struggle coming from the cave. When everything was calm again, she crept out gently and sneaked around.

"'Ah, Lion, did you kill her?' she cried, running quickly down the road.

"'Kill her?' answered the Lion displeased. 'She nearly killed me. I was careful not to let her escape from my claws, but I never knew a donkey could kick like that.'

"'My God! I can't believe such a big fat donkey can fight!' cried the hare. 'Don't be angry. Just lie still, and your wounds will heal soon.' She said good-bye to her friend, I went home.

"Two or three weeks passed, and the donkey's back was bare only where the marks of the lion's scratches were still visible, and as far as the lion was concerned, he had recovered from his illness and was as strong as ever. A day In the morning, he was thinking it was about time to start hunting again, when he heard a rustle outside as animals scrambled by, and then the head of a hare poked in.

"'Ah! No need to ask how you are,' she said. 'You can't be overtired, you know. Shall I get you something to eat?'

"'If you get me that donkey, I'll tear her in two,' cried the Lion ferociously. The Hare smiled and nodded, and went about her business.

"This time, the donkey ran deeper into the forest, and the hare searched for her for a long time. Finally, the hare saw four hooves raised in the air, and ran over. The donkey was lying on a mossy bed by the creek. The soft cool bed was rolled happily on it.

"'Good morning,' said the Hare politely, and the Donkey slowly got up to see who her guest would be.

"'Oh, it's you, isn't it?' she cried. 'Come and chat with me. Any news?'

"'I cannot stay here,' answered the Hare. 'I have promised the Lion to come and ask you to visit him, but he is not well enough to come and visit you.'

"'Oh, you don't know,' replied the Donkey despondently, 'he scratched me so badly the last time we went, that I was really frightened.'

"'He just wanted to kiss you,' said the Hare, 'and you bit him, which of course made him very angry.'

"'If only I could have been sure of that then,' said the Donkey hesitantly.

"'Oh, you are quite sure of that,' said the Hare, laughing, 'and I know many Lions well. Let us hurry.' So the Donkey set off reluctantly.

"The Lion saw them coming, and hid himself behind a tall tree. When the Donkey and the Hare came up, he sprang out, and killed the poor, stupid animal with one paw.

"'Take the meat back and skin it and roast it,' said he to the hare. 'My appetite is not very good, and I want only the heart. You may eat the rest yourself, or give it to a friend.'

"'Thank you,' replied the hare, taking the donkey on her back, and though its legs trailed the ground, she managed to drag him quite far out into the open field, where she lit a fire and roasted the meat. Come, as soon as the donkey was roasted, the hare took out its heart, and she had hardly finished eating it when the impatient lion came up.

"'I'm hungry,' he said, 'give me the heart of this fellow. That's what I want for dinner.'

"'But what's the heart?' replied the Hare, looking at the Lion in bewilderment.

"'Nonsense!' said the Lion. 'You speak as if every beast had no heart. What do you mean?'

"'It's a washerman's ass,' answered the hare calmly.

"'Ah, so what?'

"'Oh, bah bah!' cried the hare, 'you, a lion, a grown man, would ask such a question. If the donkey had his heart, would she be here now? She came the first time I knew you wanted to kill her and ran away. And then she came back again. Gee, if she wanted to, would she come back a second time? Would she be what she is now?'

"The Lion replied slowly, 'No, it won't.'

"Then, do you think I'm the washerman's donkey?" said the monkey to the shark when the story was over. "You're wrong, I'm not. The sun's in the west, you should go home. It's going to be a cool ride." I hope you will find the Sultan well. Good-bye!" The monkey disappeared into the green foliage and went away.

(End of this chapter)