I flew beside him, hoping he would think of me. He was in a race with a cunning witch who kept slipping past him. But he had the power to change his shape. He wished himself into a pigeon, then a crow, and then a hawk, but still, he fell behind. His eyes grew dim and his wings flapped heavily, and the witch got past him again.

“Turn yourself into me! Into me!” I cried into his confusion.

All at once he understood. He dressed himself in green and blue, flashed past the woman, and won the race!

Why, do you think he won? How fast can a hummingbird fly?

Hummingbird in How Ball-Carrier Finished His Task, Brown Fairy Book