The Huntsman and the Fox



The Huntsman and the Fox

The fable involves a fox, a huntsman, and his demanding fiancé. The fiancé asks the huntsman to kill a fox and create from it a beautiful fur boa. The huntsman goes into the forest and encounters the fox, however, the fox convinces the huntsman to spare it for the sake of its family. The fiancé is furious and threatens to leave the huntsman if he does not produce a boa, and the huntsman confronts the fox again. The fox strikes a deal with the huntsman, offering its tail in exchange for its life and the vow of the huntsman to never again harm a fox. The fiancé however rejects the tail alone as too inadequate to make a beautiful boa with, and the huntsman decides to break his deal with the fox. The fox warns the huntsman that if he is killed, the huntsman will never be able to leave the forest, as it is the only guide in or out; as the master of the forest, the huntsman is disbelieving and kills the fox. However, the fox proves correct, and the huntsman soon becomes hopelessly lost. After much wandering, the hunstman encounters an abandoned house and enters it, only to be sealed inside by an unknown force forever. The fiancé is left pining for the huntsman, eventually forgetting about the boa but never of him. Sebastian later suggests that the huntsman eventually became the new forest guide.