Once upon a time, when animals were divided into Longteeth and Shorteeth, there was a wonderful kingdom. It was a prosperous place filled with happy citizens, where the sun warmed the land and the rain nourished it. The kingdom was ruled by a wise king and queen, as well as a beautiful princess.
This was not to say that the kingdom was perfect, for kingdoms seldom are. Lurking in the darkness were thieves and ruffians, ready to pounce on unsuspecting animals and steal whatever they could get their paws on.
One such thief was a sly Longtooth, whose fur was red as embers. Although he was nothing more than a petty criminal, he was ambitious, dreaming of a day when he would be surrounded by glistening riches. Robbing the common folk was getting him no closer to his dreams, so he often stole from the rich.
His greed only grew, and he began seeking out only the richest targets. One day, a brilliant idea struck him. Why not go after the richest animals in the kingdom? The royalty, of course! So that very night, the Longtooth snuck over the castle walls, across the moat, around the sentries, and through the parapets. For most, breaking into the fortified castle would be an impossible feat, but the thief was experienced and very cunning. At last, he reached the window of the castle's lowest tower.
Although it was very late at night, he was surprised to hear a beautiful melody emanating through the open window. Dangling from the windowsill, he spies inside the room. There, seated by a grand piano, was the Shortooth princess. Her long ears were poised above her head, protecting her shimmering tiara like guards. Her delicate fingers danced over the piano's keys, creating a wonderful but lonely sound that the thief was enraptured by.
Without warning, the princess's fingers stopped moving, and her ears turned to face the window. "Who goes there?" She asked in a soft voice.
The thief said nothing, hoping to remain unseen. He held on to the windowsill with only the tips of his fingers. However, his discretion was in vain. The princess walked over to the window and peered down, catching the red thief red-handed.
"Good evening," she greeted. "Thou wouldst not happen to be a thief, crimson haired beast?"
The thief looked sheepishly away. "N-no."
"What pity. Even if thou art a thief, I would not dream of summoning guards."
"No?" The thief asked. "Why not?"
"I have plenty of riches," She explained. "I do not mind parting with some of them. What I truly lack is company."
The Longtooth looked at her confusedly. In return, she offered her hand and pulled the thief inside her chambers. She beckoned him to sit on a polished chair.
"Thou mayst take anything from this room, but thou must first listen to me play."
The thief agreed to her terms, and sat quietly as the princess continued to play her piano. The concert went on for hours, but neither of them felt the time pass. Once the Shortooth was finished, she smiled at the thief.
"Thou art free to collect thy reward."
The sly thief thanked the princess and after searching around, settled taking on a beautiful golden pendant from her nightstand. It was sure to be worth a fortune.
"May I come see your highness again?" He asked despite the absurdity of his question.
Somehow, the princess nodded. "Please return upon tomorrow's moon."
The thief couldn't believe his luck. To have a beautiful female serenade him and even pay him with riches for it! As promised, he returned the following night, sneaking through the palace gardens and climbing the princess's tower. Now expecting him, she helped pull him up and offered the same chair as the previous night. And just like the previous night, she began to play the piano for him. Her melodies were so beautiful, it began to break through the fortified walls of the thief's heart. The songs were so lovely, yet so sad.
Eventually, the princess stopped playing, and turned to the thief once more. "Thou art free to collect thy reward."
This time, the thief chose to take a luxurious silk gown. He had never seen such high quality material. And just like before, he asked her. "May I come see your highness again?"
"Please return upon tomorrow's moon."
Night after night, the two would repeat the same tradition. Each time, the thief would climb up the tower to hear the princess's playing, and after, pick out one of the expensive items in the room. Despite the fineries bestowed upon the thief, he found himself more compelled to return simply to hear the princess playing her piano, and to hear her voice.
This continued until one fateful night. The thief clambered up the tower as he always did only to find that the princess's signature smiled replaced with a mournful look of heartbreak.
"What is wrong, your highness?" He asked.
"I'm afraid I cannot play for thee today, dear thief," she began with tearful eyes. "For thou hast taken all that I can give. I no longer have anything thou desires, and so I cannot reward thee for staying here."
The red Longtooth dutifully kneeled before her, taking her delicate hand in his. "If that is so, then I will return all I have taken to thee, so that your highness may reward me once more and permit me the honor of hearing thy melodious voice, far sweeter than the chimes of thy instrument."
The princess gasped. "Are thy words true? Wouldst thou come to see me even though I have not a cent to offer thee?"
The thief looked into her eyes. "Thy wealth means less to me than the fleas upon my tail. If thou were to offer me my truest desire, then I shalt stand by you for eternity and evermore."
"And what desire, pray tell, is that, o crimson beast?" The long-eared animal asked.
"Thy most precious treasure. Thy heart, your highness, which I covet so hungrily. I shall listen to any song if thou canst grant me thy heart." The thief said.
The Shortooth fell to her knees to embrace her thief. He wrapped his arms around her in turn.
"Thou shalt be my last theft." The thief swept the princess off her feet and together, they leapt out the window and into the night.
The castle was in an uproar the following morning when it was discovered that the princess had been abducted, and a large bounty was placed on her captor. As the whole kingdom searched far and wide for its missing princess, a cheerful couple spent each day and night playing lovely music together, and lived happily every after.
AN: Thank you for reading this bonus chapter.
I imagine this fairytale to be as iconic as our Cinderella or Beauty and the Beast. The story actually has many different endings: the thief devours the princess, the princess kills the thief out of revenge, the thief dies protecting the princess, the thief runs off leaving the princess heartbroken, the thief and princess marry and he becomes heir to the throne... Most people know all of the possible endings and have their own favorites. I would have liked to have written many of these endings but I chose simply to stick to the one used in the Lupercalia play so you have some context for the fox and rabbit masks, the piano, etc...
And yes, Longtooth and Shortooth means carnivore and herbivore respectively. Though it's never stated in the story, the thief is a red fox and the princess is a rabbit.
I like writing fairytales. They have a very whimsical tone even if it is about dark things.
Take it easy and stay safe.