There was once a forest where all the animals lived in fear.
The reason was simple — a lion. Not cruel exactly, but greedy. Every day he hunted, not just when he was hungry, but for sport. The forest was getting quieter. Animals were disappearing.
The animals gathered and made a decision. They went to the lion with a proposal.
"We will send you one animal every day," said the oldest deer. "You will have your meal without hunting. And we will have our lives."
The lion agreed. It seemed like a good deal.
For many months it worked. Each day one animal went to the lion. A goat. A deer. A wild pig. The lion ate and slept and asked no questions.
Then came the day when it was the rabbit's turn.
The rabbit was small and clever and not ready to die. He walked very slowly toward the lion's den, arriving hours late.
The lion was furious. "You are late. And you are tiny. This is an insult."
"Your Majesty," said the rabbit calmly, "I am sorry. I was delayed because I met another lion on the way. He claimed this forest was his. I told him that was impossible — you are the true king. He laughed at me."
The lion roared. "Another lion? Show me."
The rabbit led the lion to a deep well at the edge of the forest. "He lives down there," said the rabbit.
The lion looked down into the well. He saw his own reflection — a lion, staring back up at him with the same furious expression.
He roared. The reflection roared back.
He leapt in.
The rabbit walked home slowly, twitching his ears. Behind him, the forest began — slowly, carefully — to get a little louder again. ✦
