The Cat, the Rooster and the Fox

Once upon a time in the forest there lived a Cat and a Rooster. The Cat went shooting and the Rooster cooked a meal, cleaned up the hut and sang merry songs. One day the Cat left to go shooting as usual. The Rooster locked the door and began to cook dinner. Meanwhile a fox sneaked up to the hut. She sat under the window and began to sing:

"Come, Friend Rooster, Golden-crested,
You who are so brave and tested,
Look out of the window, please,
And you'll get some tasty peas!"

The Rooster looked out of the window. The Fox seized him and rushed towards home. The Rooster began to shout loudly:

"Save me, Cat, I beg and pray,
Fox is taking me away!
Beyond the thick forests,
Beyond the dark groves
Beyond the high mountains
Where the wild wind roves...
She means to eat me up, bones and all!"

The Cat heard the Rooster's cry, overtook the Fox and took away the Rooster. The friends came back home together. The next day the Cat had to go shooting again. Before leaving the hut he said to his friend Rooster:

"Be careful, don't go out from the hut and don't look out of the window. I'll be going far into the forest and it will be difficult to hear you!"

"All right," replied the Rooster. As soon as the Cat left the hut the Fox appeared. She sat under the window and began to sing:

"Come, Friend Rooster, Golden-crested,
You who are so brave and tested,
Look out of the window, please,
And you'll get some tasty peas!
And some corn as well!"

The Rooster said, "I won't look out of the window! You will eat me!"

"No, I won't eat you. I will give you wheat to peck!" answered the sly Fox. The Rooster believed the Fox again and looked out of the window. The Fox seized him and started to carry him home to her children. The Rooster began to call his friend Cat:

"Save me, Cat, I beg and pray,
Fox is taking me away!
Beyond the thick forests,
Beyond the dark groves
Beyond the high mountains
Where the wild wind roves...
She means to eat me up, bones and all!"

Fortunately, the Cat didn't go far from the hut. He overtook the Fox and managed to snatch the Rooster out of the Fox's clutches. When the friends were at home the Cat began to scold the Rooster. "I've told you that you mustn't look out of the window! Why haven't you followed my advice? Tomorrow I will go shooting far in the forest again. Don't look out of the window otherwise the Fox will eat you!"

"Don't worry, everything will be all right!" replied the Rooster.

As soon as the Cat left the hut the Fox came. She sat under the window and began to sing:

"Come, Friend Rooster, Golden-crested,
You who are so brave and tested,
Look out of the window, please,
And you'll get some tasty peas!
And some corn and wheat as well!"

And then the Fox added, "Come see how many wonders I have at my home! Just look out of the window! I am not your enemy, I am your friend. Don't believe the Cat!"

The Rooster believed the Fox again and looked out of the window. The Fox seized him and carried him home to her children. The Rooster began to cry loudly and call the Cat, but it was all in vain. The Cat was very far from the hut. The Fox carried the Rooster home and told her daughters, "Stoke the stove and make chicken soup of this Rooster!"

Having given instructions to her daughters, the Fox went to invite guests to dine with her family. Meanwhile the Cat returned home and found that the Rooster disappeared. "It's the Fox's tricks!" he understood.

The Cat devised a plan to save his friend. He took a violin and went to the Fox's hut. Then he sat near the gates of the Fox's hut and began to play. The Fox's daughters heard the wonderful tune and one of them said, "Sisters, do you hear the wonderful tune? Who is playing so skillfully? Let's go to the yard to hear the music! We have enough time to boil the Rooster."

The Fox's daughters ran to the yard, sat near the gates and began to listen to the music with delight. Meanwhile the Rooster ran out of the Fox's hut and the two friends rushed back home.

Since that time the Rooster didn't believe the Fox and in time, she stopped trying to trick him. The Cat and the Rooster lived happily and never quarreled.