The Fox and the Quail

A hungry fox stumbled upon carrion and began tearing at it. She ate her fill but couldn't digest it. Worried, she started pleading with the quail:

"Just help me, neighbor, and I won't touch your chicks!"

"Alright!" agreed the quail. "I'll fly, and you run after me on the ground." The quail took off, and the fox ran after her. She ran over mountains, fields, and ravines until her sides caved in.

"Well, cousin, have you digested it?" asked the quail.

"I've digested it," replied the fox, "but now I feel like laughing. Make me laugh, dear cousin, and I'll never touch your chicks in my life."

"I'll make you laugh, it's not a big deal," replied the quail. "Run after me, and you'll see!"

The quail led the fox to the threshing floor, hid her in a haystack, and perched herself on the horn of an ox. A man swung at her to shoo her away, but she flew off, and the whip hit the ox's horn, breaking it off. The fox laughed until she nearly died.

Meanwhile, the quail landed on a pot of yogurt. Someone threw a stone at her but hit the pot instead. The pot shattered, and the yogurt spilled everywhere.

The fox laughed until she nearly died. The quail then perched on a child's head, and the child swung a twig at her. The quail flew away, and the twig hit the child's head. The child cried, and the fox laughed until she nearly died. The quail flew up to the fox and asked:

"Well, did I make you laugh?"

But by then, the fox had grown hungry again. She reached for the quail, trying to catch and eat her, but the quail flew up and perched on top of a haystack, calling to the fox:

"I'll make you laugh again!"

Threshers crept up to the quail and swung their whip. The quail flew away, and the whip struck the fox on the head.

The quail flew back to her nest and said to the fox:

"From now on, whenever you start boasting, remember me!"

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The Fox and the Quail

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