Transcription
[Music] [Applause]
The Lion, the Mouse, and the Sleepy Bear
Once upon a time, in a lush forest, there lived a small mouse. There was a huge bear who lived in a neighboring cave. The big bear, who had hibernated months ago, was still sleeping and snoring loudly.
The little mouse went to him one day to wake the bear up because he could not sleep all winter due to the bear's noisy snoring. "Mr. Bear! Hey, Mr. Bear! Hey! Summer has come. You can wake up any time now."
However, the bear still did not wake up. The little mouse came to the bear this time with a bugle. He blew vigorously into the bugle, but the bear continued to sleep.
While the little mouse was wandering sleeplessly in the forest, he met several animal friends. "What happened, little mouse? Why are you sad?"
"Oh, don't ask, guys! All winter, I could not sleep because of the bear's snoring, and he still won't wake up."
"Hmm, maybe the lion can help you."
"What? Why would I go talk to him?"
"Because the lion roars so loud that everyone jumps up the instant I hear his loud voice."
Though the little mouse was a little scared by the thought, he went to the lion, the king of the forest, to request his assistance. The lion was sleeping in front of his cave. The little mouse was terrified when he saw the mighty beast, so he decided to give up his plan and go back home.
But when he accidentally stepped on a branch in front of him, the big cat woke up, and a tiny, trembling voice reached his ears. "What's that noise? What are you doing in front of my cave?"
"Um, well, the king of the forest, sorry to wake you up. Well, I, um, came to ask for your help."
"You're not even big enough to be considered snack size, little mouse. Why should I help you?"
"Dear, fearsome lion, you have to wake up my neighbor, the big bear, who won't wake up from hibernation. Nothing I do seems to wake him. Since I'm small, I have a little voice, but one roar from you can solve everything."
"I don't have time to spend for a tiny, little, useless mouse like you. I am king of the forest." The lion walked away without helping the mouse.
He went to a corner where no one could see him. He leaned against a tree and started to itch like crazy.
[Music]
The lion was so itchy that he didn't want anyone to see him like this because he was the king of the forest. The little mouse, on the other hand, was coming home sadly and heard wheezing from the depths of the forest. He went where the voice came from, and he saw the lion. Moreover, the lion was itching himself non-stop and looking rather silly in the process.
The mouse immediately approached the lion. When the lion saw him, he stopped itching, but it was clear he was still in pain and discomfort due to the itch. "Mr. Lion, what happened to you?"
"I don't know, mouse, I don't know. I can't stop itching myself. You haven't seen or heard anything, mouse, are we clear?"
The mouse carefully fixed his tiny eyes on the lion and saw a bunch of tiny fleas jumping in his fur. The mouse understood why the mighty cat was itching so much. "Oh, you have fleas! Let me help you."
"How can you help me? You're just a little mouse. Leave me alone."
The little mouse bravely jumped on him, ignoring the lion's rude comments.
[Music]
"What are you doing? Get off of me!"
The mouse started to crawl through the thick, scruffy fur and throw out all the fleas. But this made the lion's situation even worse. He started itching himself with his paws. The lion could not bear the itch and leaned his back against the tree. This time, he started to rub right and left.
"Oh no! I was almost crushed! I can't stop! I can't stop! The more you run over me, the more I itch! Get off, sir!"
The lion ran to a nearby lake. He quickly jumped into the water. The mouse on his back was nearly drowned. "Mr. Lion, get out of the water right away, or I'll drown!"
The lion came out of the lake but then proceeded to shake himself dry. He was shaking his body so hard and so fast that the mouse barely was able to hang on to that thoughtless lion. "I've almost got the edge taken care of, Mr. Lion. Just a little bit more to the left."
The lion finally stopped himself. The mouse threw out the last few fleas that remained on the lion. "How do you feel now?"
"Well, it's like my itching is gone because I have cleaned all the fleas for you, sir."
The lion was very embarrassed with how rude he was. "When you asked for help, I looked down on you, mouse, but you still did everything in your power to save me from this difficult situation. Thank you."
"You're welcome, Mr. Lion. Come on, hop on my back, and I'll take you home."
When the little mouse and the big lion arrived at the mouse's home, they heard loud snoring sounds flooding out of the big bear's cave. "Huh? What's that noise?"
They then entered the cave. "Ah, you were right, mouse. Summer has come. The big bear is still sleeping."
The lion, the king of the forest, took a deep breath and roared so powerfully right into the ears of the big bear that the stone floor of his cave shook. Thanks to this powerful roar, the bear finally woke up and ran out of the cave.
[Music]
"What happened? Is there something wrong? What happened? Did the sun come out? Is it summer? Where is it?"
Well, all the forest animals laughed at the big, silly bear. Little mouse was also very happy that the snoring was finally over.