The Four Friends and the Hunter

Long,  long  ago  there  lived  three  friends  in  a  jungle.  They  were  a  deer,  a  crow  and  a  mouse.  They  used  to  share  their  meals  together.  One  day,  a  turtle  came  to  them  and  said  I  also  want  to  join  your  company  and  become  your  friend.  I  also  want  to  join  your  company  and  become  your  friend.

I'm  all  alone.  But  what  about  your  personal  safety?  There  are  many  hunters  around.  They  visit  this  jungle  regularly.  Suppose  a  hunter  comes,  how  will  you  save  yourself?

That  is  the  reason  why  I  want  to  join  your  group,  said  the  turtle.  No  sooner  had  they  talked  about  it  than  a  hunter  appeared  on  the  scene.  Seeing  the  hunter,  the  deer  darted  away.  The  crow  flew  in  the  sky,  and  the  mouse  ran  into  a  hole.  The  turtle  tried  to  crawl  away  fast,  but  he  was  caught  by  the  hunter.

The  hunter  tied  him  up  in  the  net.  He  was  sad  to  lose  the  deer,  but  he  thought  it  was  better  to  feast  on  the  turtle  rather  than  to  go  hungry.  The  turtle's  three  friends  became  much  worried  to  see  his  friend  trapped  by  the  hunter.  They  sat  together  to  think  of  some  plan  to  free  his  friend  from  the  hunter's  snare.  The  crow  then  flew  high  up  in  the  sky  and  spotted  the  hunter  walking  along  the  riverbank.

As  per  the  plan,  the  deer  ran  ahead  of  the  hunter  unnoticed  and  lay  on  the  hunter's  path  as  if  dead.  The  hunter  saw  the  deer  from  a  distance  lying  on  the  ground.  He  was  very  happy  to  have  found  it  again.  Now  I'll  have  a  good  feast  on  it  and  sell  its  beautiful  skin  in  the  market,  thought  the  hunter  to  himself.  He  put  down  the  turtle  onto  the  ground  and  ran  to  pick  up  the  deer.

In  the  meantime,  as  planned,  the  rat  nod  through  the  net  and  freed  the  turtle.  The  turtle  hurriedly  crawled  away  into  the  river  water.  Unaware  of  the  plot  of  these  friends,  the  hunter  went  to  fetch  the  deer  for  its  tasty  flesh  and  beautiful  skin.  But  what  he  saw  with  his  mouth  agape  was  that  when  he  reached  near,  the  deer  suddenly  sprang  up  to  its  feet  and  darted  away  in  the  jungle.  Before  he  could  understand  anything,  the  deer  had  disappeared.

Dejected,  the  hunter  turned  back  to  collect  the  turtle  he  had  left  behind  on  the  ground  in  the  snare.  But  he  was  shocked  to  see  the  snare  lying  nibbled  at  and  the  turtle  missing.  For  a  moment,  the  hunter  thought  that  he  was  dreaming.  But  the  damaged  snare  lying  on  the  ground  was  proof  enough  to  confirm  that  he  was  very  much  awake  and  he  was  to  believe  that  some  miracle  had  taken  place.  The  hunter  got  frightened  on  account  of  these  happenings  and  ran  out  of  the  jungle.

The  four  friends  once  again  started  living  happily.