The Hare Leopard

The Hare Leopard

by Michael Espinoza

Long ago in the days of perpetual winter, there were a rich Snow Leopard and his wife. They were kindly and loving but for years had no children. One day, Mrs. Snow Leopard said "Husband, go to the Witch of Winter and give me her magic fruit or I shall die! I must have a child, even if he were no larger than a Snowshoe Hare!" So Mr. Snow Leopard traveled for a week and a day until he came to the Witch of Winter's tower. He climbed the fence and beheld the witch's evergreen fruit tree, which only bore fruit in the winter. But when he picked the fruit, the witch, who was a Snow Owl, said, "Who dares steal my fruit! I shall change you into an icicle!" Mr. Snow Leopard begged for mercy and said, "If you please, your eminence, my wife must have your magic fruit or she shall die!" The Owl witch said, "Very well, she may have my magic fruit. But your child shall be no larger than a Snowshoe Hare!" So Mr. Snow Leopard gave his wife the magic fruit, and she conceived and bore a baby boy--but he was not a Snow Leopard but a Snowshoe Hare.

When the Hare Leopard was a youth, his father left for the winter festival, asking his son what he wanted to bring him back. The Hare Leopard said, "All I want, Father, is the first branch that brushes against your whiskers as you return." So when his father returned from the festival, he broke off the first branch that brushed against his whiskers and gave it to the Hare Leopard. After this, the Hare Leopard took the branch with him as he left to seek his fortune.

The Hare Leopard stopped as he came to a heated pool unaffected by the winter cold. It was here that he planted the branch and watered it from the heated pool. Before long the branch had sprouted into a beautiful tree that grew three silver apples. The first apple would protect him from the sharpest blade ever forged; the second apple would give him speed to fly like the Owls; the third apple would grant him his heart's fondest desire. The Hare Leopard picked the apples and kept them in the pocket of his Hare skin.

One morning, a Polar Bear arrived at the Hare Leopard's heated pool and sought to chop down the apple tree for firewood. But the Hare Leopard said, "You must not chop down this tree; it belongs to me." The Polar Bear said, "Do not hinder me, small one, or I shall kill you. My axe blade is the sharpest ever forged." Hearing this, the Hare Leopard ate of the first silver apple, saying, "This silver apple protects me from the sharpest blade ever forged." At this, the Polar Bear swung his blade to chop off the Hare Leopard's head--but he made not a dent in the Hare Leopard's neck. At this, the Polar Bear dropped his axe and said, "I see now that you are in earnest. I will do whatever you ask, only please let me warm up my cave." The Hare Leopard said, "Take only a single branch of the tree, no more, and water it with the water from this heated pool. Then you shall lack nothing. But return in three days' time for further instructions." So the Polar Bear broke off a single branch of the tree, and collected water from the heated pool in a bottle. Taking it home, the Polar Bear planted the branch and watered it with the water. Soon it grew into a beautiful tree, and the Polar Bear did not lack for firewood for the remainder of the winter.

But the Polar Bear forgot his promise and did not return in three days' time. When the third day passed, the Hare Leopard ate of the second silver apple and flew like the Owl to the Polar Bear's cave. While the Polar Bear slept in front of his fire, the Hare Leopard removed his Hare skin to reveal the Snow Leopard underneath. The Polar Bear trembled before the Snow Leopard. "You did not keep your promise, O disloyal Polar Bear!" said the Snow Leopard. "For that you must lose your tail." With one blow of his paw, he broke off the Polar Bear's long tail, and this is why Polar Bears have only short tails. "Forgive me, Master," said the Polar Bear. "I will not disobey your word again, but will do whatever you ask." At this, the Snow Leopard put on his Hare skin again and ate of the third apple, saying, "Travel to the north for a week and a day, until you come to the nearest town. There you will find me a bride from among the royal family of Snow Leopards whom you meet."

So the Hare Leopard returned to his home beneath the apple tree by the heated pool, and the Polar Bear traveled to the north for a week and a day until he came to a town made all of ice crystals. The royal family of Snow Leopards whom he met had three beautiful daughters. The Polar Bear said to the Snow Leopard king, "Good king, my lord the Hare Leopard seeks one of your daughters as his bride." The Snow Leopard king said to his first daughter, "You will go with this fellow and marry the Hare Leopard."

So the first daughter traveled with the Polar Bear for a week and a day until they reached the apple tree by the heated pool, where the Hare Leopard was waiting. The Hare Leopard said, "Until we are married you must not watch me as I bathe in the heated pool." The Snow Leopard princess agreed, and so slept on the side of the tree opposite the pool. But when the Hare Leopard removed his Hare skin and bathed in the pool, the Snow Leopard princess watched with her left eye as he bathed. At this he scratched at her left eye and blinded her in that eye, sending her back to her father with the Polar Bear.

At the town of ice crystals, the Polar Bear said, "Good king, your first daughter watched as my lord the Hare Leopard bathed. She is not a fitting bride for my lord. He seeks another of your daughters as his bride." The Snow Leopard king said to his second daughter, "You will go with this fellow and marry the Hare Leopard."

So the second daughter traveled with the Polar Bear for a week and a day until they reached the apple tree by the heated pool, where the Hare Leopard was waiting. The Hare Leopard said, "Until we are married you must not watch me as I bathe in the heated pool." The Snow Leopard princess agreed, and so slept on the side of the tree opposite the pool. But when the Hare Leopard removed his Hare skin and bathed in the pool, the Snow Leopard princess watched with her right eye as he bathed. At this he scratched at her right eye and blinded her in that eye, sending her back to her father with the Polar Bear.

At the town of ice crystals, the Polar Bear said, "Good king, your second daughter watched as my lord the Hare Leopard bathed. She is not a fitting bride for my lord. He seeks another of your daughters as his bride." The Snow Leopard king said to his youngest daughter, "You will go with this fellow and marry the Hare Leopard."

So the youngest daughter traveled with the Polar Bear for a week and a day until they reached the apple tree by the heated pool, where the Hare Leopard was waiting. The Hare Leopard said, "Until we are married you must not watch me as I bathe in the heated pool." The Snow Leopard princess agreed, and so slept on the side of the tree opposite the pool. And when the Hare Leopard removed his Hare skin and bathed in the pool, the Snow Leopard princess did not watch him, neither with her left eye nor with her right, until after he finished his bath, left the pool, and once more put on his Hare skin. To her he said, "You have kept your promise. You shall be my bride. We shall be married in a year and a day. But until then you must not see me without my Hare skin on." The Snow Leopard promised, and the Polar Bear took her to the town of ice crystals.

But as the time for the wedding was nigh, her two older sisters became jealous, and so went to see an Owl witch. She said, "I will give you a magic brooch for your sister's wedding dress. She will prick herself, and draw blood, and fall into an enchanted sleep. You must give me a thimbleful of her blood for the spell I will cast." So she gave the two older sisters the magic brooch, and they returned home to give it to their sister. When the bride-to-be opened the brooch to place it on her wedding dress, she pricked her finger and fell into an enchanted sleep. Her older sisters locked her in the topmost tower of the palace and took a thimbleful of her blood back to the Owl witch.

The Owl witch took the blood and said to the first daughter, "I will cast a spell upon you that will make you look exactly like your youngest sister, the Hare Leopard's bride-to-be. But you must give me your tongue." The first daughter, who had seen how handsome the Hare Leopard was without his Hare skin on, cut out her tongue and gave it to the Owl witch. The Owl witch used her tongue to make a potion which she had the oldest daughter drink to the dregs. Immediately the oldest daughter looked exactly like the Hare Leopard's bride-to-be. But the Owl witch warned her, "You must not open your mouth to speak, or the Hare Leopard will know." So when the time came for the Hare Leopard to call for his bride-to-be, he came to the palace and said, "Where is my true bride?" The first daughter came to meet him, and he led her to a faraway palace. But before entering, he said, "My love, let me hear your sweet voice as you sing me a song." But when the first daughter opened her mouth, no song came out, but only blood. At this, the Hare Leopard became angry and scratched out her one good eye, leaving her blind and mute and returning her to the town of ice crystals.

The Hare Leopard said, "Where is my true bride?" The second daughter, seeing what had happened, said, "I shall fetch her, if it please my lord." But once she was out of his sight she returned to the Owl witch, who said, "I will cast a spell upon you that will make you look exactly like your youngest sister, the Hare Leopard's bride-to-be. But you must give me your tongue." The second daughter, who had seen how handsome the Hare Leopard was without his Hare skin on, cut out her tongue and gave it to the Owl witch. The Owl witch used her tongue to make a potion which she had the second daughter drink to the dregs. Immediately the second daughter looked exactly like the Hare Leopard's bride-to-be. But the Owl witch warned her, "You must not open your mouth to speak, or the Hare Leopard will know." So the second daughter came to meet him, and he led her to the faraway palace. But before entering, he said, "My love, let me hear your sweet voice as you sing me a song." But when the second daughter opened her mouth, no song came out, but only blood. At this, the Hare Leopard became angry and scratched out her one good eye, leaving her blind and mute and returning her to the town of ice crystals.

The Hare Leopard said, "Where is my true bride?" The king said, "She sleeps in yonder topmost tower, lord Hare Leopard. But it is too high for you to jump, and you surely cannot climb." But the Hare Leopard had eaten of the second apple, which let him fly like the Owl, and of the third apple, which gave him his heart's desire. And so he flew to the topmost tower where his bride lay asleep. Moved with love for her, he removed her brooch, and because he had eaten of the first apple, which protected him from the sharpest blade ever forged, he did not draw blood. He kissed his bride awake, and said, "My love, let me hear your sweet voice as you sing me a song." And she sang to him:

My heart is full, my sorrow ended,
With my love, my life is mended.
Oh, that you and I may soon
Be wed beneath the silver moon.

"You are my true bride," said the Hare Leopard, and he summoned her to the faraway palace, where they were to be married. At the wedding, the Polar Bear served as best man, but the bride's two older sisters were thrown out--but they were forced to hear their sister marrying the handsome Hare Leopard, and they wailed and gnashed their teeth. But once the Hare Leopard and his bride were married, she said to him, "My love, I love you even though you are no more than a Snowshoe Hare." At this, the Hare Leopard removed his Hare skin for good and all, revealing himself to be a handsome Snow Leopard. And he and his bride lived happily ever after.