The Frog Prince and the Tiger

Once upon a time, right by the edge of a beautiful, sparkling pond, lived a very happy little Frog. His absolute favorite thing to do was to lie on a giant green lily pad, soaking up the bright sunshine, or to go for a splashy swim in the cool, clear water.

But one day, the peace and quiet of the pond was broken. Thump. Thump. Thump. A giant Tiger stepped out of the deep, dark woods. "Grumble, rumble, roar!" went his tummy. He hadn't eaten in days, and he was looking for a tasty snack!

With heavy steps and fierce, glowing eyes, the Tiger crept closer. Whoosh! All the little pond animals scurried into hiding. But not the little Frog. He stayed right there on his lily pad. You see, he had never seen a tiger before, so he had no idea what this giant, furry creature was.

The Tiger leaned over the pond, looked right at the little Frog, and growled a low, rumbling growl. "Who are you? And why aren't you running away?"

The little Frog blinked his big, bulging eyes and answered without a single ounce of fear, "I am the King of this pond! I am the Frog Prince! And who might you be?"

The Tiger blinked in surprise and then burst out laughing. "You? The Frog Prince? Don't be silly! I am the Tiger, the mighty King of the Forest!"

The little Frog puffed out his tiny green chest. "You don't believe me? Then let's have a contest to see who is truly the greatest!"

The Tiger chuckled. He thought this funny little Frog was quite a joke, so he accepted the challenge.

"Let's see who can jump the farthest!" the Frog chirped.

The Tiger nodded. Piece of cake, he thought. He crouched down low, and with a mighty LEAP, he sailed effortlessly over the pond, landing safely on the other side. But what the Tiger didn't know was that the clever little Frog had jumped up and clamped his tiny jaws right onto the tip of the Tiger's tail, going along for the ride!

Thinking the Frog was still on the other side, the Tiger puffed out his chest and shouted, "Your turn, Frog! Let's see you jump!"

But right behind him, the Frog giggled. "I'm already here! See? I jumped even farther than you did!"

The Tiger spun around, totally shocked. He thought this little Frog must possess some incredible magic. Suddenly, he felt a tiny shiver of fear.

To make matters worse, the little Frog opened his mouth and spat out a few hairs from the Tiger's tail. He whispered in a very spooky voice, "Oh dear... I had a whole tiger for lunch yesterday, and these are the only hairs I have left."

When the Tiger heard that, he gasped in terror! He turned around and ran as fast as his legs could carry him, not even daring to look back, fearing the Frog was going to eat him next!

As he was running away, the Tiger bumped into a Fox. Seeing the mighty Tiger in such a panic, the Fox asked, "Brother Tiger, what's wrong? Why are you running so fast?"

Panting heavily, the Tiger gasped, "Don't even ask! There's a Frog by the pond who claims he's the Frog Prince. He told me he ate a tiger yesterday! I barely escaped becoming his afternoon snack!"

The Fox laughed so hard he nearly rolled over. "Brother Tiger, you've been tricked! A little frog can't eat a huge tiger! Come on, I'll take you back, and we'll teach that silly Frog a lesson!"

The Tiger hesitated. "But... what if the Frog really is that powerful?"

The Fox puffed out his chest. "With me here, what do you have to fear?"

Still feeling a bit nervous, the Tiger mumbled, "But what if you get scared and run away, leaving me behind?"

The Fox had an idea. "Let's tie our tails together! That way, you'll know I can't leave you."

That made the Tiger feel a little better. So, they tied their tails into a tight knot and marched together back to the pond.

When the clever little Frog saw the Tiger and the Fox coming back together, he chuckled to himself. He put on his most serious, bossy face and shouted at the Fox, "Fox! I told you hours ago to bring me a nice, fat tiger for my snack! What took you so long? Hand him over! I'm starving!"

When the Tiger heard this, his heart nearly jumped out of his chest! He thought the Fox had tricked him and was bringing him to the Frog as a meal. Without a second thought, the Tiger turned and bolted!

He completely forgot that his tail was still tied to the Fox. As the Tiger sprinted blindly through the woods, the poor Fox was dragged along behind him.

"Tiger! Stop! Untie the knot!" the Fox yelled.

But the Tiger was too scared to listen to a single word. He just ran and ran and ran, dragging the poor Fox all through the bumpy, thorny forest until the Fox met his very bumpy doom.

From that day on, the Tiger never, ever went near that pond again. And the happy little Frog? He kept right on enjoying his sunny days, occasionally telling his pond friends the very funny story of how he scared away the mighty King of the Forest.