The Fox and the Crow

Once upon a time an elderly woman sat in a rocking chair knitting a quilt, while a hot apple pie cooled on the windowsill. Hiding in the tall grass outside the window, absorbing the delicious smell of the pie, was a hungry fox and crow. "There is no reason to starve," the crow said. "I will get the pie."

"You can't lift a pie, you foolish bird" the fox laughed. "Wait here. I will steal it."

With drool dripping down his fur, the fox slowly crept up to the house, but then the woman appeared and slammed a cookie dough roller against the shutters. "Get out of here, you wretch!" she yelled.

Then the fox dashed back into the tall grass, and the woman carried her rocking chair out to the porch, looking for any signs of the thief. "We better leave," the fox said to the crow.

But the crow took off and flew high in the sky, and then glided down to the windowsill and danced across the pie, creating bird tracks all over the crust, until the woman looked up and shooed the crow away. As the crow flew away smiling, the woman looked with disgust at the pie, which was now unfit to eat. So she tossed the pie into the tall grass, and as she sat back down muttering to herself, the fox and crow descended on the crumpled pie and had themselves a delightful meal.

 

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