The Lion Who Fell in Love

A powerful lion, wandering near a woodcutter's cottage, fell deeply in love with the man's beautiful daughter and approached her father directly to formally ask for her hand in marriage, promising great devotion and protection in return. The woodcutter, terrified of refusing a lion outright and risking his fury, could not simply say no — but was equally unwilling to hand his daughter to a creature with claws and teeth capable of tearing her apart in a single moment of anger.

Thinking quickly, the woodcutter praised the match warmly and said he would gladly agree, but that his daughter, being delicate and easily frightened, could never feel safe marrying a creature with such fearsome teeth and claws — if the lion truly loved her and wished to prove his devotion, he would first need to have both removed as a gesture of trust and gentleness.

The besotted lion, blinded by his own affection and eager to prove his sincerity, agreed without hesitation, allowing his claws to be pulled and his teeth to be filed down entirely. Once he returned, now completely harmless and unable to defend himself in any way, the woodcutter picked up his own sturdy club and drove him from the property with ease, laughing at how easily love had disarmed a creature that force alone could never have touched. The lion limped away having learned, far too late, that giving away your own defenses to prove devotion to someone who was never negotiating in good faith leaves you with nothing but the love you were fool enough to trust completely.