The Lion, the Pike, and the Man

Once upon a time, by the river, a lion was talking to a pike, while a man stood at a distance and listened.
As soon as the pike noticed the man, it immediately slipped into the water.

Later, the lion asked the pike:
— Why did you go into the water?
— I saw a man.
— So what?
— He’s cunning.
— What kind of man? — asked the lion. — Bring him to me, I’ll eat him.

The lion went off to look for the man. On the way, he met a boy.
— Are you a man?
— No, I’m not a man yet. I’m just a boy. I’ll become a man someday!
The lion left him alone and moved on. Next, he met an old man.
— Are you a man?
— No, dear lion! What kind of man am I now? I was a man once, long ago.

The lion didn’t touch him either.
— What a strange thing! I can’t find a man anywhere!
The lion walked and walked until he met a soldier with a rifle and a saber.
— Are you a man?
— Yes, I am.
— Well, then I’ll eat you!
— Wait a moment, — said the soldier. — Step back, and I’ll jump into your mouth myself. Open your mouth wider!

The lion stepped back and opened his mouth wide. The soldier took aim and fired his rifle! Then he ran up and sliced off the lion’s ear with his saber. The lion ran away.
He reached the river. The pike surfaced and asked:
— So, did you see the man?
— Oh, — said the lion, — the man is cunning! At first, I couldn’t find him: one said he used to be a man, another said he would become a man someday, but when I finally found a man — I didn’t like it at all. He told me to step back and open my mouth, then he spat something into it, and it still burns! After that, he stuck out his tongue and licked off my ear!
— I told you, the man is cunning...

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The Lion, the Pike, and the Man

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