There lived a red-combed cockerel. There was a cockerel like all cockerels: the tail was green, the boots were yellow. He walked importantly around the yard, although he himself was a coward. He was afraid of everyone: a dog with a fluffy tail, a long-eared donkey, and a lame cat. Sometimes he would get scared of something, start flapping his wings, crowing, and the whole yard would rise to its feet.
Once a cockerel was rummaging under a mulberry tree and pecking at the grains. Suddenly a light breeze blew and knocked the berry off the lowest branch. The berry fell on the cockerel's back.
Our cockerel was frightened, and how he would scream:
- Oh-oh-oh! Who hit me?
- These are stones falling from the sky! - the wind joked.
- Cuckoo! - I screamed the cockerel and started running. He flew over the fences, over the roofs, and ran out of the outskirts. A quack duck met him there and asked:
- Why are you running, cockerel?
- Stones are falling from the sky! - the cockerel answers, and he himself barely catches his breath. - Run too, otherwise the stones will kill us!
- Here you go! - the quack duck quacked and ran waddle after the cockerel.
He runs, she runs, he runs, she runs, and they met an echinoderm hedgehog.
- Why are you running, cockerel? — the hedgehog raised his sharp nose.
- Ask the duck! - the cockerel answers.
- Why are you running, quack? - the hedgehog asks the duck.
- Stones are falling from the sky! - the duck quacked. - Run quickly before we get hurt.
And they ran after each other: a cockerel in yellow boots, a quack duck and an echinoderm hedgehog. They ran and ran, almost breaking their legs.
Out of nowhere a running bunny comes towards them. The bunny cockerel asks:
- Why are you running, cockerel?
- Ask the duck!
- Why are you running, duck?
- Ask the hedgehog!
- Tell me, hedgehog, why are you running?
— Stones are falling from the sky. Run too before it hits you on the head.
The hare also stuck to them. There were four of them. Do you remember them? — A cockerel in yellow boots, a quack duck, an echinoderm hedgehog and a running bunny. They rushed into the forest. As soon as they ran there, a little fox-sister jumped out to meet them.
- Why are you running, cockerel? - asked the little fox-sister.
- Ask the duck!
- Why are you running, duck?
- Ask the hedgehog!
- Why are you running, hedgehog?
- How can I not run when stones are falling from the sky! Run with us too.
- Fathers! — the fox clasped its front paws and ran after them.
There were five of them: a cockerel in yellow boots, a quack duck, an echinoderm hedgehog, a runaway bunny and a sister fox.
They ran and ran until they met a gray wolf.
- Why are you running, cockerel? - asks the gray wolf.
- Ask the duck! - the cockerel answers.
- Why are you running, duck?
- Ask the hedgehog!
- Why are you running, hedgehog?
- Ask the bunny!
- Why are you running, little runner?
- Ask the little fox-sister!
- Why are you running, little fox-sister?
“How can I not run,” answers the little fox-sister, “when stones are falling from the sky.” Run with us too!
- Aww! - the gray wolf howled and rushed after the fox.
There were six of them. Do you remember them? — A cockerel in yellow boots, a quack duck, an echinoderm hedgehog, a runaway bunny, a sister fox and a gray wolf.
They ran and ran and reached the bear clearing. The club-footed Mishka met them there.
- Why are you running, cockerel? - the club-footed Mishka growled.
- Ask the duck!
- Why are you running, quack?
- Ask the hedgehog!
- Why are you running, hedgehog?
—Ask the bunny?
- Why are you running, bunny?
- Ask the little fox-sister!
- Why are you running, little fox-sister?
- Ask the gray wolf!
- Tell me, kumanek, why are you running?
“Because... because others are running too,” answered the stupid wolf, having forgotten why he ran after his comrades.
“Well, then I’ll run too,” said the club-footed Mishka and dragged himself last.
There were seven of them: a cockerel in yellow boots, a quack duck, an echinoderm hedgehog, a runaway bunny, a sister fox, a gray wolf and a club-footed Mishka.
They ran and ran until they reached a deep hole and stopped.
- What should we do now? - asked the cockerel. - Let's go back.
- Here's more! - the fox screamed. “We didn’t run to come back.”
- And the pit? - the duck quacked.
- Let's jump over it! Well, cockerel, jump first, because you ran ahead of everyone.
- Cuckoo! - the cockerel sang, spread his wings and flew over the hole.
Behind him, a quack duck flapped its wings. She also flew over.
The hare also ran, and jumped so much that he flew not only over the hole, but almost through the entire forest.
It was the hedgehog’s turn, and he had short legs: he trampled, trampled, curled up into a ball and - bang! - I fell straight into a hole.
- Is that really how they jump? - the fox screamed, ran away with all her might and also found herself at the bottom.
The wolf fell after her, and the club-footed Mishka fell straight upside down.
- That's how we got caught! - The animals looked at each other and blinked their eyes in fear.
Three days and three nights passed. On the fourth day the fox said:
- I'm hungry.
- And I! - The wolf clanked his teeth.
“Me too,” the bear growled. Only the hedgehog was silent.
-Who should we eat? - asked the wolf.
- The smallest one! - the fox answered and looked at the hedgehog.
- Hold him! - the animals roared and attacked the prickly hedgehog.
But the echinoderm hedgehog immediately curled up into a ball and released its prickly needles. The animals grabbed him with their paws, but instantly pulled them back.
- Oh-oh-oh, he pricked me! - the fox whined.
- And me! - the bear groaned.
- And me! - the wolf gasped.
The animals in the deep pit became silent and did not move all day. And when night came, they attacked each other, roared terribly, clanked their teeth and tore each other to shreds. It’s hard to say who ate whom, because it was dark, but in the morning the hedgehog saw that there was no wolf, no bear, no fox in the pit.
The hedgehog was left alone and wondered: what should he do in this hole? Here two large wings blocked the sun from him.
- Eagle! - thought the hedgehog and was about to release the needles, but the eagle shouted to him:
- Don't be afraid, hedgehog! I didn’t come to destroy you, but to save you, because you are a good hedgehog. Last summer you ate that terrible snake that was creeping up the rocks to my nest and wanted to swallow my eaglets. Debt payment is red.
And, descending, the eagle grabbed the hedgehog with its claws, carried it out of the hole and carefully lowered it onto the grass.
The echinoderm hedgehog was very happy and slowly returned to his hole.
And the cockerel and duck, having jumped over the hole, ran for another hour, got tired and said to each other:
— Stones are no longer falling from the sky!
They returned to their home village, and the runaway bunny remained in the forest.
Translated from Russian · original on wisdomlib.ru