I spied a young woman way out in the woods
Her home she'd forsaken, she sought to be free
Now lost in the wilderness, sought to return
But not one familiar sight could she see
She spied a red fox that was standing nearby
And seemed not to care that a human was near
But led her quite gently and looked to make sure
That the girl was to follow the fox without fear
With nothing to guide her except for the fox
The girl thought to follow as long as she could
And thought of the story she'd tell once back home
When a magical fox lead her out of the wood
But foxes care nothing for human concerns
And a plan more peculiar was on this one's mind
But would she have followed had she been aware
Of just where she would go and just what she would find?
At last through the trees she could someone there
It's Etin, the hermit, who lives in a shack
He made out of branches and leaves and some pitch
She hoped that he'd know of the way to go back
Poor Etin knew nothing but how to survive
Ascetic his practice, contemplative life
The shelter he offered was all that he had
He secretly hoped he could make her his wife
A fox is a trickster, as surely you know
And tricks have a victim, as well you can see
But tricks have a purpose, a lesson in mind
In this case it's hard to say what it could be