The Boastful Hare

Once upon a time, there lived a hare in the forest. In the summer, he was fine, but in the winter, things got tough—he had to go to the peasants' threshing floor to steal oats.

One day, he came to a peasant's threshing floor, and there was already a whole herd of hares there. So he started boasting to them:
"My whiskers aren't just whiskers, they're *whisker-monsters*! My paws aren't just paws, they're *paw-monsters*! My teeth aren't just teeth, they're *tooth-monsters*! I'm not afraid of anyone!"

The hares told Auntie Crow about this braggart. Auntie Crow went looking for the braggart and found him under a tree root. The hare got scared:
"Auntie Crow, I won't boast anymore!"
"How were you boasting?"
"My whiskers aren't just whiskers, they're *whisker-monsters*! My paws aren't just paws, they're *paw-monsters*! My teeth aren't just teeth, they're *tooth-monsters*!"
So she gave him a little shake:
"Don't boast anymore!"

One day, the crow was sitting on a fence, and some dogs grabbed her and started mauling her. The hare saw this.
"How can I help the crow?"

He jumped out onto a hillock and sat down. The dogs saw the hare, dropped the crow, and chased after him, while the crow flew back onto the fence. And the hare managed to escape from the dogs.

A little later, the crow met the hare again and said to him:
"You're a fine fellow—not a braggart, but a brave one!"

More fairy tales

• The Bubble, the Straw, and the Shoe
• Go There — I Don't Know Where, Bring That — I Don't Know What
• Sister Alyonushka and Brother Ivanushka
• The Clay Boy
• The Fox and the Hare