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Weldon. Today's story is called

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A Friend in Need, an adaptation

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of an Indian folktale written for you

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by Daniel Hines.

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3:51

A friend in need. Once

3:56

upon a time, deep in the jungles

3:58

of India, there was a little girl named Audible. was an unlikely

4:01

pair of best friends. They

4:03

were named Chandu and Parvati. Chandu

4:07

was a Bengal fox, clever and

4:09

cunning, with tall, pointy ears

4:11

and a tail so bushy, it was as

4:14

big as his body. Parvati

4:17

was a small turtle with a big head

4:19

and round leopard-spotted shell.

4:22

They had met when they were young, both of

4:24

them digging for snails and slugs to

4:26

eat, and had been the best of friends

4:29

ever since.

4:31

One day, they met up in the morning, as

4:34

they so often did.

4:36

Their special spot was a marshy offshoot

4:38

of a river deep in the jungle,

4:40

where the water met the thick jungle grass.

4:44

Parvati the turtle could walk on land,

4:46

but preferred the water, just like Chandu

4:49

could swim, but preferred the land, so

4:51

it was a perfect place for them both.

4:54

Good morning, Parvati, Chandu

4:57

said, his bushy tail bobbing in the

4:59

breeze. Hey, Chandu,

5:01

Parvati said, sliding

5:03

herself out of the water and onto the beach.

5:06

How's things on land treating ya?

5:09

Pretty good, the fox replied.

5:11

I found a big patch

5:13

of snails up the trail a bit.

5:15

Wanna go get some breakfast?

5:17

Definitely, said the turtle,

5:20

and she made her slow way onto

5:22

land. The pair

5:24

walked together for a time, listening

5:26

to the sounds of the jungle around them.

5:29

It seemed to get louder in the morning, as

5:31

the birds and monkeys woke up and started

5:33

their tweeting, screeching, hooting

5:36

and hollering day, flitting from

5:38

limb to limb in the trees above. Of

5:41

course, the jungle was loud at night too,

5:43

with buzzing bugs and bustling bats,

5:46

and who knows what else scuttling about

5:48

in the dark.

5:50

It was a world of lush green, with

5:52

vibrant pops of color from flowers

5:54

and stranger things.

5:56

The air was thick with the smells of old

5:59

growth and decay. decay in a steadily churning

6:01

cycle, mixed with the sweetness of

6:04

fruit and the earthy musk of mushrooms.

6:06

The pair dawdled along,

6:09

not in any hurry at all, and eventually

6:11

came to a patch of freshly dug dirt

6:13

by a steady stream.

6:16

The soil was a deep, rich brown

6:18

and absolutely stuffed with glistening

6:21

grubs.

6:22

The chubby bugs were sparkling silver

6:25

white and rolled into little balls when

6:27

they got pulled into the air.

6:29

Yum! said Parvati.

6:32

She made her slow way over to the grubs

6:34

and settled her shell down in the cool

6:37

dirt.

6:38

The grubs were as juicy as they looked,

6:40

and soon she was slurping them up

6:42

with chundu by her side.

6:45

It was basically a perfect little morning,

6:48

until they heard a sudden sound

6:51

behind them. Grrrrr.

6:55

From a deep and throaty growl, like

6:58

two boulders shuddering together, What

7:01

do we have here? Parvati

7:04

turned and nearly jumped out of her shell.

7:08

Behind them, lounging on the low branch

7:10

of a tall tree, was a giant

7:13

leopard.

7:15

He was tawny, which is a golden

7:17

brown color, with dappled

7:19

black spots and a smooth white

7:21

stomach.

7:23

His eyes were pale yellow orbs,

7:25

and worst of all, his teeth were

7:28

bared in a predator smile that looked

7:30

like a trap about to snap shut.

7:33

Aaaah!

7:35

Chundu screamed. The

7:37

fox turned his bushy tail and disappeared

7:39

into the thick brush. Parvati

7:42

turned to follow him, but, well, turtles

7:45

aren't nearly as fast as fox. And,

7:48

even worse than that, they aren't as

7:50

fast as leopards. Parvati

7:53

had only managed a few stuttering steps

7:56

before the big cat pounced, landing

7:58

right in front of her with a

7:59

another throaty growl.

8:02

"'And where are you going?'

8:05

he said, his

8:07

voice a rumble that made Parvati's shell

8:09

feel all icy cold. "'Your

8:13

little friend left you behind. Looks

8:16

like your lunch.' The

8:19

leopard reached out a paw and tip-tapped

8:21

his killer claws on her shell. "'Oh,

8:25

and this lunch comes in its own

8:27

lunchbox. How

8:30

convenient.' "'Eep!'

8:33

was all Parvati managed to say. She

8:36

pulled her arms and legs and finally her

8:38

little head back into her shell, turning

8:40

her body into a little fortress hard

8:43

as stone.

8:45

"'Oh, trying to hide,

8:47

are we?' the leopard said.

8:50

"'I'm actually quite friendly.

8:53

Why don't you come out and say

8:55

hello?' "'H-hello?'

8:59

said Parvati, voice echoing

9:01

from inside her shell. She

9:03

was a little silly, but not so silly

9:06

that she thought it was a good idea to listen to anything

9:08

the leopard had to say.

9:11

"'See? I can talk to you just fine

9:13

from right in here, thank you.'

9:16

The leopard laughed and Parvati wondered where

9:18

her fox friend, Chandu, had run to. When

9:21

the leopard appeared, he had just taken off.

9:24

He had left her behind. How

9:27

could he have done that?

9:28

He knew how slow she was. Couldn't

9:31

he have at least tried to help her?

9:33

"'Well,' said the leopard,

9:36

if you don't want to come out, I

9:38

guess I'll have to invite myself

9:41

in.'

9:43

He picked up Parvati in his mighty jaws

9:45

and bit down hard, trying

9:47

to crack her shell. She

9:50

squeaked as her shell creaked and groaned

9:52

in the powerful mouth. From

9:54

the safety of her shell, she was peering

9:57

now right down the leopard's throat,

9:59

dark

9:59

and scarier than any cave.

10:03

Come on, Shell, she whispered

10:05

to herself. Hold strong, hold

10:08

strong.

10:10

The leopard bit down harder and harder,

10:13

and just when Parvati was sure her shell

10:15

would shatter, the big cat finally

10:18

gave up.

10:20

Ugh, he growled, hard

10:23

as a rock. That's a neat

10:25

little house you have there.

10:28

He dropped her back on the grass and prowled

10:30

around her in small circles, eyes

10:33

narrowed and hungry.

10:35

I guess if I can't eat you

10:37

whole, I'll have to fish you out.

10:39

How does that sound?

10:43

It sounds bad, Parvati said,

10:45

pulled as far back into her shell as she could.

10:48

Have some grubs instead. They're tasty

10:51

and full of protein. Bah,

10:54

grubs, the leopard spat.

10:57

Bugs aren't food. Bugs

10:59

are the food that my food eats. I

11:02

like deer and boar. I

11:04

like bunnies and birds and I,

11:06

I think I will very much enjoy

11:09

some turtle.

11:11

With this last one, he darted

11:13

forward and started to bat at poor Parvati's

11:16

shell.

11:17

His paws raked against the hard surface

11:19

and his hooked claws stretched into the little

11:22

hole where Parvati kept her head.

11:25

She could see the razor sharp talon

11:27

crusted with dirt, scratching and

11:29

scratching and reaching deeper, trying

11:31

to hook her and pull her out, trying

11:34

to snatch her and make her a meal.

11:37

Yeeep, she said again, scrunching

11:39

up as small as she could.

11:41

How could Chandu have left her? Weren't

11:44

they supposed to be friends? He had

11:46

led her right to the leopard and then

11:48

he had left.

11:50

As the claw tried to dig ever

11:52

deeper, the turtle had a terrible

11:54

thought. Had Chandu lured

11:57

her here on purpose to get eaten?

11:59

She had always heard that foxes were very

12:02

sly.

12:03

Was he actually friends with the leopard

12:05

and had been faking all this time?

12:08

No, it couldn't be. Could

12:11

it? As if reading

12:13

her mind, Chundu's voice came from

12:15

a nearby pile of brush.

12:17

An old tree had fallen and was now

12:20

overgrown with vines and prickers,

12:22

making it a perfect little hiding spot that the

12:24

leopard couldn't fit into.

12:27

You'll never get her out of her shell like that,

12:29

Chundu said. Who

12:32

said that, said the leopard. Is

12:34

that you, little fox? He

12:38

peered into the brush with his big pale

12:40

eyes. It's me, and

12:43

I know that turtle better than anyone, Chundu

12:45

said.

12:46

I can help you get her out of her shell.

12:49

No, Parvati thought.

12:51

Chundu really had tricked her.

12:54

Was he helping the leopard now? And

12:58

why would you help me? Asked

13:01

the leopard, clearly having the same

13:03

thought.

13:04

Parvati tried to take this moment to crawl

13:06

away, but the second she inched a

13:08

little leg out of her shell, the leopard snapped

13:11

at her, making her pull it back before it was

13:13

chomped.

13:14

Well, I'm hungry too, said Chundu,

13:17

his whiskers waggling.

13:19

I'll help you out if you give me a bite.

13:23

Said the leopard, lying down and resting

13:26

one massive tawny paw on Parvati's

13:29

shaking shell.

13:30

I've heard foxes are very

13:33

cunning. Why should I trust

13:35

you? You shouldn't,

13:38

Parvati wanted to scream. I thought

13:40

he was my friend. Well

13:42

foxes are cunning, agreed Chundu.

13:46

That's why I lured her here. She's

13:48

the one I'm tricking, not you. Chundu,

13:52

Parvati cried from deep inside her shell.

13:54

How could you do this to me?

13:57

Chundu sniffed, not even looking in her direction.

16:00

herself sink in the stream, and then

16:02

when she was deep enough to be hidden by the

16:04

sunshine on the water, she stealthily

16:06

swam downstream and away from

16:09

the hungry cat.

16:11

How long do we have to wait? asked

16:14

the leopard, staring at the rippling

16:16

water where the turtle had sunk.

16:18

There was no answer. Fox?

16:22

The leopard snarled. I said how

16:24

long do we wait?

16:26

There was still no answer.

16:29

The leopard peered into the brush and

16:31

saw that the fox was gone.

16:34

With a growl, he

16:36

splashed into the water and found that the turtle

16:38

was gone as well. He'd been

16:40

tricked. He let out a mighty

16:43

roar of anger and then stalked away

16:45

into the jungle, looking for a less

16:47

devious meal.

16:50

Meanwhile, Parvati paddled her

16:52

little heart out underwater until she

16:54

was safely back home in her marshy

16:56

little cove.

16:58

She pulled herself up onto the muddy shore

17:00

and let out a sigh of relief.

17:03

A second later, Chandu slipped in,

17:06

panting hard himself from his own mad

17:08

sprint away from the leopard.

17:11

Oh, thank the jungle, he said.

17:13

Parvati, you made it.

17:16

You too, said the turtle

17:18

with a smile.

17:19

I'm sorry I ran away, Chandu

17:22

said. I knew I couldn't take the leopard

17:24

in a fight and I knew I couldn't carry you

17:26

and still get away quick enough. I

17:28

had to buy myself a minute to think up a plan.

17:32

That's okay, said Parvati. I'm

17:34

sorry too. Why?

17:37

asked Chandu. I thought

17:39

you left me on purpose, she said. When

17:42

you disappeared and then offered the leopard help,

17:45

I thought maybe you really did want me for lunch.

17:48

Never, said Chandu.

17:50

You're my best friend.

17:52

Don't feel bad for thinking that though.

17:54

I did leave, but just know I'll

17:57

always help you, no matter where you go.

18:00

Me too, said Parvati. It

18:02

just might take me a while to get there.

18:05

They both laughed and off they

18:07

went,

18:08

looking for something to eat and staying

18:10

well away from any leopards.

18:14

The End

18:17

Today's story, A Friend in Need, was

18:19

an adaptation of an Indian folktale, written

18:22

for you by Daniel Hynes, edited

18:24

and produced for you by Ellie Hynes, and

18:26

performed for you by me, Amanda Weldon.

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