III. Deer

Deneb and Jupiter lived in an ungoverned pine forest. One day, the herd was disturbed by a thunderous explosion that left the twenty or so members of the herd trembling and restless. At midnight, the males of the herd decided to investigate the cause of the noise. When dawn came, most of them returned, but two were missing, and the others brought the terrible news of what had happened: they had been attacked by a monster whose face they could not identify. They tried to recover their bodies, but it was in vain, they had been cut down and devoured. The sad herd raised a beautifully flowered wreath in their names, but, although the monster had been driven away, they did not know if it would appear again. As the weeks went by, Deneb saw Jupiter’s spirit sullied: he would not eat, he would stare at the trees, he would wake up in anguish in the middle of the night and not sleep again, he would lower his head or hide it in the dry leaves for hours. The little deer laboriously prepared a plate of forest delicacies for him for days; there were different kinds of berries, pine nuts and vegetables, but even such care did not arouse his dejected companion, who threw away all the contents that were ultimately eaten by the ants.

Deneb went to the pond that night, it was said to have magical properties. She stayed there consumed in thought. A fat tear rolled down her golden cheek until it fell into the pond. She drank from the water and wished she could find a solution. Suddenly a creature emerged that resembled a fish, but much larger, its scales reflecting the moonlight. It underwent a metamorphosis: it took on a mostly human form, but its aquatic nature was still evident in the scales on its torso and the green nails. The little deer could not believe her eyes. “Surely this is what they call magic,” she thought. The fishwoman invited her to follow her until they were facing the impenetrable thickness of the forest. A light came out of her greenish nails, which opened the interior of a dwelling among the trees. She invited her in and served her some tea:

-You have seen me because your heart is pure and you need something.

-Since my husband returned from an excursion he has not been the same, I will do whatever it takes to make him happy again.

-I know of a potion that can help you, but you will have to bring me a hair from the crest of the beast that dwells on the hill in the forest.

The little deer took a deep breath, for she sensed that it was the same beast that caused the evil in the first place.

-How can I do it without dying in the attempt?

-You must keep his stomach full at all times. I will help you do that.

-How can I ever thank you for your help?

-I want you to clean every corner of my hut. Since I grew these nails, I can’t do it myself.

All day long she cleaned the jars, the pots, the pans of the creature that increasingly resembled a witch. There was something hidden and dark in its scales, in its slippery way of moving and its penetrating gaze. When she had finished, the sorceress gave her three magic apples, prepared a hearty breakfast for her and got her ready. Deneb rode merrily in the forest and, having left the witch up the hill, she sang: “Thanks to the forest for holding my feet, thanks to the air for holding my breath, thanks to the day I was born. Thanks to the sun for its warmth, thanks to the night for the coolness.”

She climbed over the snow. As her paws got wet, she found stones and mud. Sleepily, walking, she felt that the ground was about to move. A snake came out of nowhere, startling her, and then lay down in front of her:

-What are you doing up there, little deer? Here, if something happens to you, no one in your pack will be able to help you.

Frightened, Deneb raised her forelegs and when she put them back on the ground, she stepped on the snake’s tail, which cried out in pain. Deneb withdrew his paw in grief.

-I have come a long way with a mission, snake, please let me pass.

-When you come back you won’t be the same, venadita. Things will change forever. There is no turning back from what you are about to face.

-Things always change, snake. Who better to know that than you. I have at my disposal three apples that will help me with the beast.

-I will give you a gift, because I like you; if you want the bear not to eat you, you must find something it does want to eat, not your ridiculous apples. I have seen a dead animal by the fir trees, you must use its carcass, put it in front of the bear’s cave and find other dead animals to appease its hunger so it won’t bite you before you make your request.

-Thank you, snake, I will be indebted to you.

Before saying goodbye, the little deer gave the snake one of her apples, wishing it could heal from the damage it had inflicted on her. She heard a thunderous roar and knew that she was approaching the cave, she would have to be extremely stealthy so as not to ruin her mission. Fortunately, Deneb knew how to go unnoticed. So, the little deer found a dead rabbit’s body among the fir trees. She prayed to the spirits for the rabbit and took it to the bear’s cave, from whose hollow strong odors were emitted. She left it there and went to hide among some very high rocks.

The next day he searched for another dead animal and found the rotting carcass of an old tlacuache. She carried it in front of the bear cave and waited for it to devour it from the heights.

On the third day she went through most of the forest, but found no creature to offer the bear and began to cry because she felt he had nothing left to offer it. She ate half of one of the apples as the tears flowed. In the voice of the birds she found solace and let herself be invaded by the songs of freedom from the depths of the forest. She heard a hooting squawk, followed the sound and found a dying owl and sat down next to it.

-There’s nothing you can do for me, venadita, but let me die alone.

-I would like to ask you if I can use your body once you are not here, to feed the bear.

-Why would a little deer like you want to feed a bear?

-My wish is to regain my husband’s happiness, and only one of the white hairs on his crest can complete the spell.

The dying owl agreed to the plan and the little deer sat down next to him. They laughed and cried the cycles of life as the owl lost its life in each exhale. She asked to put some of the apple juice in its beak so that he could feel the sweetness of life once again. Then the owl began coughing and soon died.

At sunset, the little deer carried the body of her new friend to the bear’s cave, placed it next to the last magic apple, but this time, instead of hiding, she waited there for the beast to come out. When the bear came out, it showed its gigantic bulk, its fierce claws, its prominent snout. The little deer began to tremble, without moving from where she was, allowing her body to bristle with fear.

-So it was you who brought food to my house during these days!

The bear reared up on its hind legs, opened its jaws and roared so loudly that the little deer could see the inhospitable crypt in his throat. She shuddered with the vibration of his roar. The bear stretched out his paws as if he wanted to tear her apart, while his eight claws were displayed like long knives above its head. Deneb stayed where he was.

-Please, dear bear, please.” She begged, “I have run all this way because I need a cure for my husband. I need a white hair from your crest.

The bear then looked into the deer’s eyes and saw himself reflected. He saw its unbridled ferocity and for a moment he felt ashamed.

-I agree to eat your friend, the apple and let you live, but for a hair of mine there will be something else you must do for me.

The bear asked her to fix his cave as if a monster did not live there, but a docile and weak forest creature like herself.

“Wow, everyone seems to be asking me to help clean up,” she thought. So she spent the whole night filling the cave with flowers and fruit. She cleaned and tidied it. In the early morning, the bear told her:

-Now take one of my hairs and go away because I’m getting hungry again.

The little deer took a hair from its crest. As she approached, she noticed that the crest was crescent- shaped. She took one of his hairs delicately and plucked it with her incisors. When she had plucked it, the bear let out a roar from its belly and the little deer, after looking him in the eye, ran down the hill as fast as it could. “If you tell anyone about this I’ll kill you!” the bear shouted. She moved in a hurry until she reached the lake where she had found the fishwoman.

The sorceress gently picked up the hair, looked at its texture and length for a while and finally said: “Yes, it is indeed a white bear’s hair. Then she looked at the little deer, which seemed to have a different look.

– What happened there, little deer?

-The bear was not what I expected, he asked me to clean his home and so I did.

She lit a purple candle. As she placed the hair in it, the flame first turned a bright, majestic blue and then exploded in various different colors. Deneb sighed as she saw what she had worked so hard to achieve fading in front of her. The fish woman said to her:

-The wisdom that you have acquired now lives in you and you can use it to get your husband back.

The little deer returned home disappointed, with empty paws and without the cure she longed for. When she returned home she started cleaning, “It seems to be the only thing I learned to do on this trip,” she said to herself. Jupiter arrived and when he looked at her, he pounced on her in a heart-to-heart embrace. The next day, she left at dawn and she picked berries, while singing to the trees in the forest. They dawned together in their beautiful, fragrant pine forest. They were never separated again. One day at dawn he noticed a white spot on his front paw. Looking at it more carefully, he noticed that it had the shape of a crescent.

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