The troll who was a cat

(a Danish folktale)

About a fourth mile of Soröe is Pedersborg, and a little bit far away is the town Lyng. Exactly between this both towns is a mountain called Bröndhöi, as legend has it that he is lived-in by trolls.

Under this trolls on the Brondhöi-moutain lived an old grumbling troll called "Knurremurre" because he was always the reason for riot and troubles on this mountain.

One day, Knurremurre saw, that his young wife and a young troll was too closely together. He was getting angry and swear vengeance and he would kill this young troll. The young troll noticed it and he thought, it's better to leave the mountain till better times will come. He turned into an noble cat and was leaving his home early in the morning. He was wandering into the nearby town Lyng and there he was living in the house of a poor man, called Plat. Plat called him now Harkye. Here he got a very comfortable life, he doesn't have been disturbed by anything and he was very happy, aside from his lovesickness. Each day he got his cup of milk and very good food and the whole day he was sleeping on the armchair beside of the warm stove.

One evening Plat returned late and when he came into the house, the cat was laying on his armchair and was licking his pads. "Harkye", said Plat, when he opened the door, "I have to tell you something. Just when I passed this evening the mountain Bröndhöi, a troll popped out from behind a stone and told me: Plat, let know your cat that Knurremurre is dead".

At the moment when the cat heard this words, he was jumping out of the armchair and on his hind legs he was running out of the door and was crying jubilantly: "Knurremurre is dead! Now I'm running home as fast as possible"!