The Unlikely Union of The Tortoise and The Hare
We've all heard the story of the tortoise and the hare, but there is another more important story, involving these two individuals, which is seldom told. It is the tale of their unlikely union. For few know that the tortoise is a she, and a fair she, she is. It's also scarcely known of the secret wager that was made the day of that fateful race, but that is of no importance now. For one can not know the end with out first knowing the beginning. You see the lives of our two characters had been intertwined far before the day that we all know about. And the past is where this story begins
At a young age Little Turtle became fond of Little Rabbit, and Little Rabbit became fond of Little Deer. Why it was a sad day in the school yard when this truth was revealed. Never had one seen a young turtle with such fury. The monkey bars were bent beyond repair, the tether ball pole snapped in half by the ferocious little jaws of the once joyful creature. But that, like all young loves, soon faded. Little Turtle moved passed her giant heart break, and soon became Adolescent Turtle and paid no attention to the now awkward rabbit. The path of our two players of love seemed to all but separate. That is until that one summer of chance, in which the path of these two individuals came careening back together.
Now friends. That is the untold prelude to the fable we all heard as children, but there is still much more to tell. We all know of the great race that took place on that blessed day. But since historians and storytellers alike have a knack for leaving out parts of the story that do not suit their fancy (and it is widely known that the historians and storytellers are rather boring, and not a people blessed with the gift of romance). I will tell you what they left out. It is a story of love, revenge, and much patience. Some might say it is the greatest love story ever witnessed but never told. That is until now.
As you know from the fable Hare was faster than any other creature in the forest. And with his great talent came great pride, and with great pride there is always a great fall. You see the day came when an opponent would rise to challenge Hare. The opponent, as you know, was Lady Tortoise. As though it seemed she had long gotten over her school yard crush, it was not the case. However her passion for Hare no longer stemmed from an undying love for him, but from an unquenchable desire to avenge her broken heart. (For a moment I would like you to recall the rage expressed on the playground over a decade ago, now imagine that rage multiplied exponentially by years of reminiscence, and terrible dreams.) But Lady Tortoise was good at concealing her rage. She had learned to channel it, along with all of her energy into a unified purpose, exacting revenge on Hare.
Lady Tortoise pondered day and night. She spent countless hours watching Hare, searching for a way to trap him; all the while remaining nearly invisible to him. It came as quite a surprise to Hare when a messenger, from the court of Lady Tortoise approached him with a note. It read, "Mr. Hare it is well known throughout the land that you are the fastest in the forest ." Hare like the sound of this and his chest swelled with pride as he continued to read. "But alas sir I have found an opponent, against whom you do not stand a chance." A puzzled look replaced Hare's proud smile. Who could this contender be? "Mr. Hare I, Lady Tortoise, challenge you to a race." The air that was once used to puff up Hare's chest now exploded out of him in one loud, "Ha! Lady Tortoise is no match for me. It would be a mere waste of time to prove my superiority." But Lady Tortoise knew her opponent all to well to let him slip away.
"She wishes to make a wager on the race." Said the messenger. Hare's eyes grew wide with excitement. Lady Tortoise was a woman who possessed many mystical things one of which was a Crystal Carrot.
It is said that the Crystal Carrot, if held in your hand, would grant that individual the desires of his heart. The only trouble is, being a mystical carrot it had the ability move at such a high rate of speed that only someone as fast as Hare had a chance of catching it.
Now you may be asking yourself if this carrot is only able to be caught by Mr. Hare. How did Lady Tortoise come to have it in her possession? Well the answer to that is this. While the Crystal Carrot is very fast it is also very predictable. Lady Tortoise set her court of mathematicians (like the historians and the storytellers mathematicians are also very boring people) to work calculating the logarithmic formula for the carrots movements allowing the mystical carrot into a glass case, where it is trapped but untouchable, thus unusable.
"Lady Tortoise is prepared to wager the Crystal Carrot," said the messenger.
"And what does she ask of me?" asked Hare in a joyous tone He was confident in his ability to defeat Lady Tortoise.
"She asks that you give your hand in marriage." The exuberant smile on Hare's face quickly faded. For the marriages of this world are not like the marriages of your own. In this world, the world of talking animals and magic carrots, marriage is an eternally binding agreement never to be broken. And once this institution is finalized the husband comes under the complete control of his wife, maybe it is not so different from the marriages of your world. In either case this idea of marriage was one that Hare had long scorned. He enjoyed his freedom. But just as Lady Tortoise knew the offer was irresistible.
"Tell lady Tortoise that I accept her challenge." Hare replied, his chest still puffed with pride.
"She will be pleased to hear of this," said the messenger. "My Lady has one final request."
"What is it?"
"She requests that the race take place two weeks from today."
"Perfect," said Hare.
The next 13 days were the longest days of Hare's life. He could do nothing but contemplate what he would do with his new toy. His thoughts raced through infinite possibilities. His restless mind lead to 13 restless nights and on the day of the race he was exhausted. But he was not discouraged because he was still much faster than Lady Tortoise.
It needs to be noted that the miserable condition of Hare was of no surprise to Lady Tortoise. She knew very well what would become of Mr. Hare after the deal was made. Slowly yet surely all of the pieces of her puzzle were coming together.
The race course was simple and long. It stretched around the outer reaches of the forest in a wavy oval. This was nothing unusual Hare he had many times ran the trail that circled the forest just to pass the time.
Soon enough the race began and as you know Hare got an early lead, but the further he ran the more exhausted he became, and the more he started to notice sleeping nets(I believe in your world they are called hammocks) hung in the trees along the race course. This was something Hare had never noticed it before, but found quite convenient. "What a pleasant surprise that I, a tired rabbit, should find a bed," He thought. "I am so far ahead and so very tired, maybe I'll stop and rest for awhile." And awhile he did rest.
What may seem like a helpful coincidence in the life of Hare, was nothing more than another step in Lady Tortoise's plan, for while these white nets were foreign to Hare they were not to Lady Tortoise, she had been the one who had hung them in the trees over the previous weeks.
Hare sprang to life not knowing how long he had slept, but knowing it was for far too long. He could hear the faint cheers of a distant crowd, and he began to run as fast as his groggy legs would carry him. The cheers grew louder and louder as he approached the finish line, arriving only in time to see Lady Tortoise cross it. Hare was stunned; not only had he never lost a race, he now found him is an inescapable situation of eternal entrapment. "You tricked me!" he cried, tears coming to his eyes.
"Is that not the case with all marriages?" Lady Tortoise replied. The tears were now freely flowing down Hare's furry cheeks and creating little trails of matted fur; not because he was sad, for he did not know what exactly he felt, but because it was the only response he was capable of.
"But why?" He said. His voice was sad. "Why did you trick me?"
"Because it was the only way I could make you see." She said as she strolled away. Slowly the tears began to stop; Hare realized something about himself that he had not known before. You see he spent many days pondering the desires of his heart in hopes of attaining it through victory. But as he sat there defeated he realized that his utmost desire was for Lady Tortoise. It was his pride that had clouded his judgment, but now he saw clearly. His cheerful grin crept back on to his face. He felt a joy inside greater than any joy he had ever known or hoped to know. And with this came the completion of Lady Tortoises plan. She knew all along that Hare loved her, he was just too dumb to see. So she spent the better part of a decade planning his demise, only to discover that she could not live in the forest with out him. Her hatred eventually faded and replaced with pure love.
And now you know the tale of The Unlikely Union of The Tortoise and The Hare, you maybe curious to know what happened next? What were there lives like after this fateful day? Well that is a tale for another time, for that part of the story has not yet been written.