Story by: Brothers Grimm

Source: Kinder- und Hausmärchen

Story illustration

Hans the Hedgehog

In a prosperous village where the houses stood neat and tidy along cobblestone streets, there lived a wealthy farmer and his wife who had everything their hearts could desire—except for the one thing they wanted most of all: a child.

Year after year passed, and still their home remained childless. The farmer would watch other men playing with their sons and teaching them the ways of farming, while his wife would see mothers caring for their daughters and feel her heart ache with longing.

One cold winter evening, as they sat by their fireplace feeling particularly melancholy, the farmer sighed deeply and spoke the words that would change their lives forever.

“I wish we could have a child,” he said bitterly. “I don’t care anymore what it looks like—even if it were covered in hedgehog spines, I would welcome it gladly, as long as we could have a child of our own.”

His wife nodded sadly. “Any child would be a blessing, no matter how strange it might appear.”

Now, as fate would have it, their desperate wish was heard by the same mysterious forces that sometimes grant such heartfelt pleas. Within the year, the farmer’s wife gave birth to a child—but their joy quickly turned to shock and dismay.

The baby was indeed half-hedgehog, just as the farmer had carelessly wished. From the waist up, he appeared to be a normal human child with bright, intelligent eyes and a sweet face. But from the waist down, he was covered in sharp hedgehog spines, and his legs were short and stubby like those of a hedgehog.

“What have we done?” whispered the farmer’s wife, looking at their unusual child with a mixture of love and horror.

The farmer stared at the baby in silence, remembering his rash words. “I spoke without thinking,” he said quietly. “And now we must live with the consequences of my thoughtless wish.”

They named the child Hans, and despite his strange appearance, they came to love him dearly. Hans was intelligent, kind-hearted, and possessed a beautiful singing voice that could charm birds from the trees. However, his appearance made it impossible for him to play with other children or live a normal life.

The sharp spines made it painful for his parents to hold him, and he could not sit in ordinary chairs or sleep in a regular bed. The villagers whispered and pointed whenever they saw him, and children ran away in fear.

As Hans grew older, he became increasingly aware that he would never fit into the human world. Though his parents loved him, he could see the sadness in their eyes whenever they looked at him, and he knew that his presence reminded them daily of his father’s careless wish.

On his eighteenth birthday, Hans approached his parents with a heavy heart. “Dear mother and father,” he said, “I can see that my presence here brings you more sorrow than joy. I think it would be best if I went away to live in the forest, where my appearance will not frighten anyone or cause you embarrassment.”

His parents protested, but Hans had made up his mind. “Please, father, give me a set of bagpipes, and ask the blacksmith to shoe my rooster with iron shoes. I will go live in the woods and make my own way in the world.”

The farmer, though sad to see his son leave, recognized that Hans might indeed be happier away from the stares and whispers of the village. He commissioned the finest bagpipes from the local craftsman and had the blacksmith forge special iron shoes for Hans’s rooster—for Hans had befriended a large, strong rooster that was the only creature that could carry him comfortably.

And so Hans the Hedgehog left his parents’ house and went to live deep in the forest. There he built himself a dwelling high in the branches of a massive oak tree, where he lived peacefully for many years. His rooster, now shod with iron, could fly great distances and carry Hans wherever he wished to go.

Hans spent his days tending to the forest animals, who were not frightened by his appearance. He gathered herds of pigs and donkeys that had wandered into the forest, caring for them with great skill. In the evenings, he would play his bagpipes, filling the forest with the most beautiful music anyone had ever heard.

One day, as Hans sat high in his tree playing a particularly lovely melody, a king came riding through the forest. The king had become lost during a hunting expedition and had been wandering for hours, growing increasingly worried as darkness approached.

When he heard the enchanting music drifting through the trees, the king followed the sound until he came to the base of Hans’s oak tree.

“Hello up there!” called the king. “I am lost and need directions to return to my kingdom. Can you help me?”

Hans looked down from his perch, and the king gasped in surprise at his unusual appearance. But Hans spoke politely and kindly, giving the king clear directions to find his way home.

“I am deeply grateful for your help,” said the king. “Please, tell me what I can give you as a reward for your kindness.”

Hans thought for a moment. “Your Majesty, if you truly wish to reward me, promise me the first thing that greets you when you return to your palace.”

The king, eager to get home and thinking that his favorite hunting dog would surely be the first to greet him, readily agreed to this bargain. “Certainly! You have my royal word.”

But when the king arrived at his palace, it was not his dog that ran out to greet him—it was his beloved daughter, the princess, who had been watching anxiously for his return. She threw her arms around her father’s neck, overjoyed that he had returned safely.

The king’s heart sank as he remembered his promise, but he was an honorable man who always kept his word. With a heavy heart, he told his daughter about the strange creature who had helped him and the bargain he had made.

The princess was frightened at first, but she was also brave and understood the importance of keeping promises. “If you gave your word, father, then I will honor it,” she said. “When the time comes, I will go to this Hans the Hedgehog.”

Several years passed before Hans came to claim what had been promised to him. When he arrived at the palace, riding on his iron-shod rooster and carrying his bagpipes, the entire court was amazed and somewhat frightened by his appearance.

The princess, however, came forward bravely to meet him. Though she was startled by his hedgehog spines and unusual form, she treated him with courtesy and respect.

“I am here to claim what your father promised me,” said Hans gently. “But I do not wish to force you into anything against your will. If you come with me willingly, I will be the kindest husband any woman could ask for. If you refuse, I will release your father from his promise and leave in peace.”

The princess looked into Hans’s eyes and saw kindness, intelligence, and deep loneliness. Despite his frightening appearance, something in his gentle manner touched her heart.

“I will come with you,” she said quietly. “My father gave his word, and I will honor it.”

And so the princess climbed onto the rooster behind Hans, and they flew away to his home in the forest. The princess was surprised to find that Hans had created a comfortable dwelling in the trees, complete with furniture sized for humans and beautiful decorations he had crafted himself.

At first, the princess was afraid and homesick. But Hans was patient and kind, never demanding anything from her and always treating her with the utmost respect. He played beautiful music for her on his bagpipes, told her fascinating stories about the forest creatures, and showed her the peaceful beauty of his woodland realm.

Gradually, the princess began to see past Hans’s strange appearance to the gentle, loving soul within. She realized that despite his hedgehog spines, he was more kind and thoughtful than any of the handsome princes who had courted her at home.

One evening, as they sat together watching the sunset through the forest canopy, the princess turned to Hans with tears in her eyes.

“Hans,” she said softly, “I have come to love you not despite your appearance, but because of the beautiful person you are inside. Your kindness, your wisdom, your gentle heart—these are the things that matter to me.”

As she spoke these words from her heart, a remarkable transformation began to take place. The hedgehog spines started to fall away from Hans’s body like autumn leaves, revealing the form of a handsome young man beneath. His strange legs became strong and normal, and soon he stood before her completely human, more handsome than any prince she had ever seen.

“My dear princess,” said Hans, his voice filled with wonder, “your acceptance and love have broken the spell that bound me. I was cursed to remain half-hedgehog until someone could love me truly for who I was inside, not for how I appeared on the outside.”

The princess threw her arms around Hans, overjoyed at this miraculous transformation. But she was careful to tell him, “I loved you just as much when you were covered in spines. Your appearance has changed, but the person I fell in love with remains the same.”

Hans and the princess were married in a beautiful ceremony deep in the forest, with all the woodland creatures as their witnesses. The king, though initially shocked by his daughter’s choice, came to see that she had found true happiness with someone who valued her for her kindness and courage.

Hans’s parents, now elderly, were overjoyed to be reunited with their son and to see him so happy. They welcomed the princess as their daughter and marveled at how their son’s patient acceptance of his fate had ultimately led to his happiness.

The couple lived partly in the forest and partly at the palace, bridging two worlds with their love. Hans used his knowledge of nature to help both kingdoms become more prosperous, while the princess brought wisdom and compassion to all their endeavors.

Years later, when they had children of their own, Hans would tell them the story of his transformation. “Remember,” he would say, “true love sees beyond appearances to the heart within. And sometimes, the very thing that makes us different is what makes us special.”

The bagpipes that had comforted Hans during his lonely years in the forest were kept as a treasured reminder of his journey. On quiet evenings, he would still play them, filling the air with melodies that spoke of patience, acceptance, and the transformative power of love.

And it was said that whenever young people in the kingdom felt different or outcast, they would remember the tale of Hans the Hedgehog and take comfort in knowing that everyone, no matter how unusual they might seem, has the potential to find acceptance, love, and their own happy ending.

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