Lion was sleeping, and Mouse ran on top of him.
Lion woke up, grabbed Mouse, and was about to eat him.
"Mercy!" squeaked Mouse. "You'll need my help someday."
Lion laughed and let the Mouse go.
Later, Lion got stuck in a snare. "Help!" he yelled.
Mouse chewed through the ropes, freeing Lion.
"Thank you, Mouse," Lion said. "You're a good friend! I like you."
Afterwards Lion and Mouse became like brothers. They decided to live in the same house.
But one day Lion said, "I don't think I like you after all."
Then Lion killed Mouse and ate him.
[an Igbo story from Nigeria]
Inspired by: "Lion Goes Hunting" in Anthropological report on the Ibo-speaking peoples of Nigeria, III by Northcote Whitridge Thomas, 1914.
Notes: You can read the original story online. This is similar to the Aesop's fable about the lion and the mouse, but without the happy ending.
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