About the Fox

The fox was sitting under a tree. A leaf fell from the tree onto the fox's back. The fox jumped up and started running, and on the way, she met a wolf:
— Little fox, what happened?
— What do you mean, what happened? The earth is crumbling, the sky is falling!
— Who told you that?
— I saw it with my own eyes, heard it with my own ears! — and she ran off.
— I’ll go with you! — said the wolf.
— Let’s run!

They ran and ran, and soon they met a bear.
— Wolf, where are you running? What happened?
— What do you mean, what happened? The earth is crumbling, the sky is falling!
— Who told you that?
— The fox.
— Little fox, who told you?
— I saw it with my own eyes, heard it with my own ears.
— I’ll go with you!
— Let’s run!

They ran and ran, and soon they met a goat.
— Bear, what happened? Where are you running?
— The earth is crumbling, the sky is falling!
— Who told you that?
— The wolf.
— Wolf, who told you?
— The fox.
— Little fox, who told you?
— I saw it with my own eyes, heard it with my own ears!
— I’ll go with you!
— Let’s run!

They ran and ran, and soon they met a ram and a rooster, and they told them the same thing, and they started running too.
So they all gathered together: the fox, the wolf, the bear, the goat, the ram, and the rooster.

By evening, they came to a mill and decided to spend the night there. They went inside and sat down: the fox in the first place, then the wolf, the bear, the goat, the ram, and the rooster in the last place.

The fox stood up and said:
— I am the eldest, the wolf is the eldest, the bear is the eldest, the goat is the eldest, the ram is the eldest, and the rooster is the youngest here.

They all pounced on the rooster and tore him to pieces. When they were done, the fox stood up again:
— I am the eldest, the wolf is the eldest, the bear is the eldest, the goat is the eldest, and the ram is the youngest here.

They pounced on the ram and tore him to pieces. They ate the meat and hid the fat in a pot. When they finished, the fox stood up and said:
— I am the eldest, the wolf is the eldest, the bear is the eldest, and the goat is the youngest here. They grabbed the goat, tore him apart, ate the meat, and put the fat in the pot. Again, the fox stood up:
— I am the eldest, the wolf is the eldest, and the bear is the youngest here.

The wolf and the fox pounced on the bear. A fierce fight broke out; they wrestled, rolled on the ground, and pulled at each other, but the wolf and the fox couldn’t overpower the bear!

They fought and fought, and finally, the bear grew weak. The wolf and the fox killed him, skinned him, cooked the meat, and put the fat in the pot. They filled the pot to the brim.

The bear meat lasted the fox and the wolf for a week. When they finished the meat, the wolf wanted to start on the fat, but the fox got angry:
— You wolves are always so greedy! Be patient; you know the longer the fat sits, the tastier it gets. Let’s wait another week, and then we’ll eat it.

The wolf agreed. Every night, the fox sneaked to the pot, stole the fat, and ate her fill, while the wolf starved.
A week passed, and the fox ate all the fat.
— Let’s open the pot today, — said the wolf.
— Alright, — said the fox, — but the wolf’s hand is luckier, so you open it.

She climbed onto the windowsill and let the wolf approach the pot. The wolf opened the pot—it was empty. Enraged, the wolf lunged at the fox, but she jumped out the window—swoosh!—and ran away. The wolf chased after her.

The fox ran, and the wolf chased her. They reached the forest. The fox ran into the forest, slipped between two trees, and the wolf, rushing after her, got stuck between the trees—he couldn’t move forward or backward. The fox turned around, looked at the wolf, and ran off. The wolf struggled for a long time, but he finally managed to free himself from the trees.

One day, the wolf was chopping wood in the forest when he saw the fox running by. He swung his axe and threw it at the fox, cutting off her tail. The wolf rejoiced: “Now I’ll find you; you can’t hide!”
The tailless fox ran on and met her friends.
— You’ve grown so fat, little fox!
— Tear off your tails, and you’ll grow fat like me.
— How can we tear off our tails? We’d love to!
— Come, I’ll show you.

The fox led her friends to the river; they all dipped their tails in the water and kept them there all through the cold winter night. By morning, all the foxes’ tails had frozen and stayed in the river. When the wolf found out, he was upset:
— How will I recognize my deceiver now?

He thought and thought, and then he came up with an idea; he stretched a rope bridge across the river, thinking: “All the foxes will cross the bridge, and it will hold them, but my deceiver won’t be able to cross—she’s the fattest.”
And so it happened. All the foxes crossed the bridge, but when the fox stepped onto it, it broke, and she fell into the water. The wolf ran over and grabbed her.

He dragged her home, held a knife to her throat, and was about to kill her when the fox cried out:
— Speckle-speckle, speckle-speckle!
— What are you shouting, fox? — asked the wolf.
— Nothing. Oh, you dirty thing, just finish it, kill me quickly!
— No, tell me what you were saying!
— I was saying that I can decorate you so beautifully that no one in the world will be more beautiful than you.
— How will you decorate me?
— Let me go, and I’ll tell you.

The wolf let the fox go. She told the wolf to bring an axe and heat it until it was red-hot. The wolf did as she said. The fox took the axe and said:
— Now lie down, and I’ll move the axe over your neck, and you say: “Speckle-speckle, speckle-speckle.”

The wolf lay down. The fox took the axe, moved it over the wolf’s neck, and cut off his head.
All the wolf’s belongings went to the fox.
If all this isn’t true, then may nothing hurt us.

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About the Fox

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