The Kitten and the Rooster

Once upon a time, there lived a cat and a rooster, and they became sworn brothers. One day, the cat needed to go fetch firewood, so he said to the rooster:

"You, rooster, stay on the stove and eat the buns, and I'll go fetch firewood. If the fox comes, don't respond."

And he left. The fox came running and started trying to lure the rooster out of the house:

"Brother rooster, open up! Brother rooster, open up! If you don't open, I'll break the window, eat the borscht, and take you away."

But the rooster replied:
"Tock-tock! Tock-tock! The cat told me not to."

The fox broke the window, ate the borscht, and grabbed the rooster. As she carried him away, he called out to the cat, singing:
"Brother cat, the fox is carrying me beyond the maple forests, over the steep mountains, across the swift waters!"

The cat heard this, ran over, rescued the rooster, brought him home, and warned him again:
"Look, rooster, if the fox comes again, don't respond. I'm going farther away this time!"

And he left.
The fox came running again. Knock-knock at the window!

"Brother rooster, open up! If you don't open, I'll break the window, eat the borscht, and take you away."

But the rooster said:
"Tock-tock! Tock-tock! The cat told me not to!"

The fox broke the window, ate all the borscht, grabbed him, and carried him off. The rooster sang again:
"Brother cat, the fox is carrying me beyond the maple forests, over the steep mountains, across the swift waters!"

He sang once—the cat didn't hear him; he sang a second time, louder. The cat came running, rescued him, brought him home, and said:
"Now I'm going far, far away, and no matter how much you cry out, I won't hear you. Stay quiet, don't respond to the fox."

He left, and the fox was already there.

"Brother rooster, open up! Brother rooster, open up! If you don't open, I'll break the window, eat the borscht, and take you away."

But the rooster said:
"Tock-tock! Tock-tock! The cat told me not to!"

The fox broke the window, ate the borscht, and grabbed him. She carried him off, and the rooster sang once, twice, three times. The cat didn't hear him, and the fox took the rooster to her home.

In the evening, the cat came home—the rooster was gone. He was deeply upset, but then he made himself a small bandura, took a sack and a hammer, and went to the fox's house. He started playing and singing:
"Oh, the little fox has a new yard,
And four daughters to choose from,
The fifth is Filipok,
And he's mine!
Filipok, Filipok, come out and see,
How the drums drum, how the horns blow—look!"

The fox was baking bread. Her eldest daughter couldn't resist and said:
"Mom, I'll go see who's playing so beautifully and take some bread."

The fox said:
"Go ahead!" and gave her some bread.

The daughter went out, and the cat—whack!—hit her on the head and put her in the painted sack. Then he started playing again.

The fox's second daughter ran out of the house, and the cat—snap!—grabbed her by the temples and put her in the painted sack, all while playing the bandura and singing mournfully:
"Oh, the little fox has a new yard,
And four daughters to choose from…"

The third daughter ran out, and he grabbed her too. The fourth came out, and he got her as well. The son, Filipok, ran out, and he took him too. Now all five fox cubs were sitting in the painted sack.

The cat tied the sack with a rope and went into the fox's house. He saw the rooster lying there, barely alive. His feathers were plucked, and one leg was torn off. In the oven, water was already heating up to cook the rooster.

The cat grabbed the rooster by the tail and said:
"Brother rooster, perk up!"

The rooster perked up, tried to stand and crow, but he couldn't. He was missing a leg. The cat took the torn-off leg, reattached it, and stuck the feathers back into the tail. The rooster jumped up and crowed.

Then they ate everything in the fox's house, smashed the pots and bowls, and returned home.

And they live happily there to this day, chewing on bread, and now the rooster obeys the cat in everything. Trouble taught him wisdom.

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The Kitten and the Rooster

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