One day, a mighty lion was enjoying his afternoon nap right outside his cave, snoring so loudly that birds were falling off branches in shock. Meanwhile, a little mouse—who clearly hadn’t mastered the art of “quiet playtime”—was zooming around like it had just chugged an entire espresso bean. Zipping left and right, the mouse accidentally ran straight across the lion’s massive, hairy belly like it was a furry trampoline.
ROAR! The lion woke up, eyes blazing, mane fluffed up like he’d stuck his paw in a power socket. “WHO DARES RUN ACROSS THE KING OF THE JUNGLE?” he bellowed.
The mouse froze mid-scurry, gulped loudly, and turned around slowly—like it was in a slow-motion action movie. “Uh… that would be me. But in my defense, Your Majesty, your belly did look like a lovely piece of jungle real estate.”
The lion snarled and raised his paw. “Do you know what I usually do to creatures who wake me up during nap time?”
The mouse squeaked, “Invite them to tea?”
The lion narrowed his eyes. “I eat them.”
“Oh,” said the mouse. “Right. That would’ve been my second guess.”
Just as the lion was about to squash him, the mouse squeaked again. “Please don’t eat me! If you let me go, I promise I’ll help you one day!”
The lion burst out laughing. “You? Help me? That’s like a banana promising to rescue a gorilla from starvation!”
But the lion, still chuckling, decided to let the mouse go. “Go ahead, little snack—I mean, friend. Try not to run over royalty next time.”
A few days later, the lion was out for a stroll, doing lion things—scaring antelope, posing dramatically on rocks—when suddenly he stepped into a hunter’s trap and was caught in a net! He roared and thrashed, but the net was strong, and the more he struggled, the more tangled he became.
“HELP!” he roared. “I’m stuck, and I have a tickle in my nose!”
At that very moment, the mouse happened to be passing by, pushing a miniature shopping cart full of crumbs.
The mouse saw the lion, blinked, and said, “Wow. The jungle is full of surprises.”
The lion looked down. “You! The trampoline trespasser!”
“That’s me,” said the mouse proudly. “Now, remember when you laughed at me and said I couldn’t help you?”
The lion sighed. “Yes, yes. If you save me, I promise to never underestimate anyone again. Even mice with shopping carts.”
With a tiny squeaky war cry, the mouse climbed the net and started gnawing at the ropes. It was like watching a mini lumberjack chew through spaghetti. After a lot of chewing—and a snack break—the net finally broke, and the lion rolled out, free at last.
The lion stood up, shook himself, and looked at the mouse with new respect. “I take back what I said. You’ve got bite.”
The mouse bowed dramatically. “All in a day’s work. And now, about that tea you mentioned…”
The lion laughed. “Fine. But only if you bring biscuits.”
