Mustel: the Serpent Mouse
From the ground emerged the Mus. From the ground emerged the Wyrm.
On the plain a war, in the fields a battle,
In the cold, a dormancy, with neither side firm.
Mustel nibbles with his nibbling mouse kind any food that any fool with foolishly leave behind,
Summer time for the mouse kind is paradise of course, Summer time for the wyrm kind is paradise by force,
Devour the mouse kind the wyrm kind did, Mustel and his family alone they hid,
Hiding was the mouse kind way, Hide until it went away,
Sometimes it worked, sometimes not, But a mouse hid and no mouse fought.
Mustel was a mouse, but he wanted not to hide, He wanted revenge, to think he tried,
A plot for a serpent that he could slay, Maybe he could fight a serpent when it lay.
Come night Mustel went to their nest, He had to be quiet, he tried his best,
SNAP! A twig alerted. Serpents awake. They saw a mouse beginning to shake.
A MOUSE! A MOUSE! A MOUSE IS HERE! A MIDNIGHT MORSEL, IT WOULD APPEAR!
A TREAT! A BITE! ATTACK! GET IT NOW! Mustel ran and hid, he'd stay hidden for now.
How would a mouse get near a serpent and not be eaten? How would a mouse not be at once beaten?
Mustel knew what to do, A long con he must persue,
Bye family, he bid goodbye, He'd return at the end of his plot or die.
On forked tree branches the Mustel's back sat, while forward his little legs and head were at,
FORWARD! AND FORWARD! AND FORWARD he stepped, while his back end remained where he had left,
As far as he could walk, he walked still, Breaking under the strain, until,
Pop! Mustel looked to see, A charming furry noodle he be,
Bending and stretching and knotting he could do, Just like a serpent, Mustel knew that was true.
Back to the den of the serpents he went, Bending through the tight descent,
Amongst the serpents he sat discrete, But the serpent eyes notice not the deceit.
Another wyrm, they opined no qualm, And rested back feeling only calm,
Mustel kept up his act,
As it got darker, And colder,
Come Winter, His trolling grew bolder.
With them night and day, Mustel would join in their naps and play.
In the chill of the coldest day, the snakes slept hard, Dreams of a hot Summer sun, down was their guard,
With fur to fight the freezing air, Mustel awoke and, with teeth bare, Devoured the snakes, one by one, And left with a full belly to the waiting sun.
Mustel clambered through the ice, returning home to his fellow mice,
Upon his return, as he drew near, The Mouse family ran in fear,
A SERPENT! A SERPENT! A SERPENT IS HERE! HE'S COVERED IN BLOOD, IT WOULD APPEAR!
A MONSTER! A KILLER! RUN! HIDE AWAY! From Mustel they would hide, and hide they would stay.
Alone Mustel was, Alone with his thoughts, To consider his past, To consider his oughts,
As a mouse, I had a family, As a serpent, I had two, As a killer, I'm left with neither, What Mustel thought was true.
Now Mustel: the Serpent Mouse, Is Mouse nor Serpent not, A solus furry noodle, That both other families forgot.
On the plain a war, in the fields a battle,
In the cold, a dormancy, with neither side firm.
Mustel nibbles with his nibbling mouse kind any food that any fool with foolishly leave behind,
Summer time for the mouse kind is paradise of course, Summer time for the wyrm kind is paradise by force,
Devour the mouse kind the wyrm kind did, Mustel and his family alone they hid,
Hiding was the mouse kind way, Hide until it went away,
Sometimes it worked, sometimes not, But a mouse hid and no mouse fought.
Mustel was a mouse, but he wanted not to hide, He wanted revenge, to think he tried,
A plot for a serpent that he could slay, Maybe he could fight a serpent when it lay.
Come night Mustel went to their nest, He had to be quiet, he tried his best,
SNAP! A twig alerted. Serpents awake. They saw a mouse beginning to shake.
A MOUSE! A MOUSE! A MOUSE IS HERE! A MIDNIGHT MORSEL, IT WOULD APPEAR!
A TREAT! A BITE! ATTACK! GET IT NOW! Mustel ran and hid, he'd stay hidden for now.
How would a mouse get near a serpent and not be eaten? How would a mouse not be at once beaten?
Mustel knew what to do, A long con he must persue,
Bye family, he bid goodbye, He'd return at the end of his plot or die.
On forked tree branches the Mustel's back sat, while forward his little legs and head were at,
FORWARD! AND FORWARD! AND FORWARD he stepped, while his back end remained where he had left,
As far as he could walk, he walked still, Breaking under the strain, until,
Pop! Mustel looked to see, A charming furry noodle he be,
Bending and stretching and knotting he could do, Just like a serpent, Mustel knew that was true.
Back to the den of the serpents he went, Bending through the tight descent,
Amongst the serpents he sat discrete, But the serpent eyes notice not the deceit.
Another wyrm, they opined no qualm, And rested back feeling only calm,
Mustel kept up his act,
As it got darker, And colder,
Come Winter, His trolling grew bolder.
With them night and day, Mustel would join in their naps and play.
In the chill of the coldest day, the snakes slept hard, Dreams of a hot Summer sun, down was their guard,
With fur to fight the freezing air, Mustel awoke and, with teeth bare, Devoured the snakes, one by one, And left with a full belly to the waiting sun.
Mustel clambered through the ice, returning home to his fellow mice,
Upon his return, as he drew near, The Mouse family ran in fear,
A SERPENT! A SERPENT! A SERPENT IS HERE! HE'S COVERED IN BLOOD, IT WOULD APPEAR!
A MONSTER! A KILLER! RUN! HIDE AWAY! From Mustel they would hide, and hide they would stay.
Alone Mustel was, Alone with his thoughts, To consider his past, To consider his oughts,
As a mouse, I had a family, As a serpent, I had two, As a killer, I'm left with neither, What Mustel thought was true.
Now Mustel: the Serpent Mouse, Is Mouse nor Serpent not, A solus furry noodle, That both other families forgot.
This tale was likely birthed from the belief that Weasels were once mice that had stretched their bodies to imitate snakes.
It is worth considering that the tale was given additions and corrections over time. For example, the use of the early word for snake being "wyrm" being changed to "serpent."
One of the most noticeable was the ending. Earlier renditions of this tale ended with Mustel leaving the den of the snakes, essentially being a tale of triumph through cunning and patience. However, later additions interpret the tale around the theme of family. Born as a mouse, Mustel left them and instead augmented his body into something that was unrecognisable for the other mice. This could be interpreted as him leaving his family of mice. Later in the story, Mustel had integrated himself with the serpents and, instead of being content to live amongst them, tricked and ate them. Then, due to both the physical changes and the bloody appearance of Mustel, the mice did not recognise him as one of them and they hid. This version of the tale seems to suggest that family, either original or found, is easily lost, if you abandon or abuse those in it.
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