The Story of the Foolish Lion and the Clever Rabbit...

Hi!!! Today's short story is about how a scrawny, old rabbit saved the lives of all the animals in the jungle. I love this story, because it says that anyone, even the meekest of the lot, can make a difference and, maybe, do a huge act of kindness. Let's go…

Deep in the centre of the dense, thick jungle lived a kingdom of animals. There were birds and bugs, stripy zebras and spotty giraffes, giant bears and gallant deers, hilarious monkeys and hefty elephants. And to top it all off, the king of the jungle, the lion. He had a burgundy mane, which fluttered in the warm, humid wind. He had fur as soft as cotton, which engulfed his body in a fluffy coat. Sharp teeth lined his huge jaws. All of the animals feared him. And rightly so, because the lion was a murderer.
It is the natural instinct of a lion to hunt for food, but not as crazy as this one. He would pounce on a running gazelle, and rip its flesh from the bones. He wouldn't eat the meat, nooo. He would just fling it away. He would have eaten his fill long before, but he would kill other animals for the fun of it. With a roar, he would bound off, into the distance…

This continued, day after day. The other (living) animals couldn't stand it at all. Such massacre was only to be for terrorists (in the animal world, they consider terrorists as hyenas)!!! This upset all of the animals. They decided to talk to the king, and reason with him.

"Your majesty, we are all blessed to have you as a king. We are all the more happy to have you in this meeting," said the representative of the animals. "What is the matter, animals? Why have you called me here?" questioned the lion. "Sir, it's natural that you have to kill us for your food. But killing more than what is required is not a good approach. If you go on slaughtering us without any purpose, a day will come where there will be no more animals left in the jungle." The lion roared in anger, "SO WHAT!! I will do what I want. But, I do agree with you. I shall stop my excessive hunting ways. How shall I get my food?"

The animals quickly stated, " Your Majesty, we have already discussed this problem and have come up with a solution. We shall send one animal to your den, every day. Then, you may eat them. This will also save you the trouble of hunting. The lion replied, "Fine. I agree to this proposal. But, I have one condition. You must make sure that the animal comes to my den on time, otherwise, I'll kill all of the animals in the jungle!!"  The animals all went home, happy that the lion had given up his ways.
This process continued smoothly, with animal after animal going to the den of the lion. The king would then munch on the animal, and have a hearty meal. The whole jungle kingdom lived in harmony, until it was the turn of an old, skinny rabbit. 

He protested against going, "Nooo!!! I won't go!!!!!! NOOOOOO!!!!!" The other animals fight with him (Do you know who won? Guess. It was......drumroll please......... The ANIMALS! Obvious, right?). The grey bunny was kicked out. He was told that the lion's den was three miles west. The bunny was in a deep trance. He was thinking of a plan to save his life, and the other animals'.

The bunny sauntered around the whole kingdom, visiting places he had never been to. He went to New Stork City, Grizzlybaad, Pandatown, and many other places. He almost forgot that he had to execute his plan and go to the lion's den.

"ROAR!!!!!!!!! Why are you so late!!!!!! You puny rabbit!!!! Do you know who I am?" bellowed the lion. "I am so sorry, my liege." murmured the bunny. "You are the only thing they have sent? First, they starve me. Then, when they give me food, they send so little of it!!!! I shall slaughter them!!!!!!!!!!!" The king roared. The bunny stated to the lion, "Your majesty, the subjects didn't send only me. They sent six bunnies!! All were eaten up on the way, except me." The lion was confused. "Who ate my food? Who, I say?!!" questioned the lion. The bunny said, "He claimed to be the king of the jungle. He was another lion!!!" The lion roared in rage, "RRROOOOOOOOAAAAAAAAARRRR!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Let us go find that so-called 'king of the jungle'. I shall murder him!!!!!!" The bunny got on the back of the infuriated lion. Then, they burst out of the den, and the lion ran like the wind. 

The rabbit directed him to a well,  full of water. If you fell, you wouldn't be able to climb back up. The lion shouted into the water, "O you fool!!!! You ate my food!!!! I shall murder you!!!!! RRROOOOOOAAAAARRR!!!!!!!" He looked left. There was no lion. He looked right. There was no lion. Then, the bunny suggested, "O king, why don't you look down into the well?" The lion immediately looked into the water and saw his own reflection. He mistook it to be the 'other lion'. "You… I'll kill you!!!!" He jumped into the water, but he found that the lion was nowhere to be found. He pleaded the rabbit to pull him out, but the rabbit just walked off. The lion eventually drowned to his death. He was fooled by an old, scrawny rabbit. The other lion was fake. There was no lion. The bunny just made up the six other bunnies and the killing of those bunnies.

He returned to the jungle and all of the residents were shocked! He then narrated the whole story to the animals, and they treated him like their new king. He had saved them from imminent death!! Thus, the jubilant bunny saved the animals and they lived cheerfully thereafter.

Moral: Brain is always better than brawl.

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