Four Friends

Told in English, Telugu.

Once upon a time, in a big green forest, there stood a tall banyan tree. High in its branches lived a clever crow named Laghupatanaka. And down below, in a snug little hole between its roots, lived a mouse named Hiranyaka.

One morning the crow saw something wonderful. A flock of pigeons had been caught in a hunter's net. They flapped and cried, but they could not get out. Then out ran the little mouse, who was their friend. Nibble, nibble, nibble went his sharp teeth, until every string was cut and every pigeon flew free into the sky.

The crow said to himself, "A friend like that is worth more than gold." So he flew down and called into the mouse's hole, "Little mouse, will you be my friend?"

The mouse peeped out, but he did not come any further. "You are a crow," he said, "and crows eat mice. How can we ever be friends?"

"If I ate you, I would have one small meal," said the crow. "But if you are my friend, I will have a helper for my whole life. I give you my word, I will never harm you."

The mouse looked into the crow's eyes and saw that he was telling the truth. He smiled and came out. And from that day on, they were the best of friends.

After some time, the crow said, "Hiranyaka, I have an old friend, a tortoise named Mantharaka, who lives in a cool lake on the other side of the forest. Shall we go and live near him?" The mouse agreed. So the crow gently picked him up in his beak, and away they flew over the treetops.

The tortoise was so happy to see them. "Welcome, welcome!" he said, poking his wrinkly head out of the water. "A friend of my friend is my friend too."

The three of them were sitting by the lake, talking and laughing, when suddenly they heard thud, thud, thud. A young deer came running out of the trees, panting hard. The crow flew up, the mouse hid, and the tortoise slipped into the water. But the deer only looked frightened and tired.

"Please don't be afraid of me," said the deer. "Hunters were chasing me. I have run so far."

"Then rest here," said the tortoise kindly. "Drink some water. You are safe with us." The deer's name was Chitranga, and soon he became the fourth friend.

Every evening, the four friends met under the trees by the lake. The crow told stories of what he saw from the sky. The mouse told jokes. The tortoise shared wise old sayings. And the deer told them about the sweetest grass in the meadow.

But one evening, the deer did not come.

The friends waited and waited. The sun went lower and lower. "Something is wrong," said the tortoise. "Crow, you can fly the fastest. Please go and look for him."

The crow flew over the forest, searching. At last he saw the deer at the edge of the meadow, caught in a hunter's snare. The more the deer pulled, the tighter the ropes held him.

"Don't worry, Chitranga!" called the crow. "I'll bring help!"

He flew back, picked up the mouse in his beak, and hurried to the meadow. At once the mouse began. Nibble, nibble, nibble. One rope broke. Then another. Then another.

Now, the tortoise could not sit still at home while his friend was in trouble. So he started walking to the meadow, slowly, slowly, step by step, as fast as his short legs could go.

Just as the last rope broke, they heard footsteps. The hunter was coming!

The deer leapt away into the bushes. The crow flew up into a tree. The mouse dived into a little hole. But the poor tortoise had only just arrived, and he was much too slow to run.

"Hmm," said the hunter, looking at his empty snare. "No deer today. But here is a tortoise." He tied the tortoise up with string, hung him from his bow, and began walking home.

The three friends gathered together, very worried. "He came all this way because he loves us," said the deer. "We must save him."

The mouse thought hard. Then his whiskers twitched. "I have a plan," he said. "Chitranga, run ahead and lie down near the lake, right beside the hunter's path. Lie very still, as if you are hurt and cannot get up. Crow, you sit on him and peck about, as if you are waiting for him to stop moving. The hunter will want the deer. He will put the tortoise down to run after him. And then, I will do my work."

Can you guess what happened next?

The hunter came walking along and saw the deer lying still with the crow sitting on him. "A deer!" he cried. "What luck!" He put the tortoise down on the grass and crept towards the deer.

Quick as anything, the little mouse ran out. Nibble, nibble, nibble. Snap went the string! The tortoise crawled to the edge of the lake and slipped into the cool water with a soft splash.

Just as the hunter came close, the crow gave a loud "Caw!" Up jumped the deer, and away he bounded into the forest, faster than the wind.

The hunter stared. Then he turned around. The tortoise was gone too! He looked here and there, scratched his head, and walked home with nothing at all.

That evening, under the trees by the lake, the four friends sat together once more. The crow, the mouse, the tortoise and the deer. None of them was big. None of them was strong. But together, they had beaten the hunter.

The tortoise looked at his friends and smiled. "One stick breaks easily," he said. "But tie four sticks together, and no one can break them."

So, my dear, who are your good friends? And how can you help them tomorrow?