Kancil the Mouse Deer - Indonesian

Look! In the warm, green jungle lives a little mouse deer named Kancil. He has big, bright eyes and very quick feet. The jungle smells sweet like flowers and fresh rain. One sunny morning, Kancil’s tummy rumbled. Rumble, rumble, rumble! He was so hungry for yummy, red rambutan fruit. But the best fruit grew on the other side of a wide, muddy river. The river was full of grumpy crocodiles with big, snappy teeth. Snap, snap, snap! Kancil was small, and the crocodiles were big. But Kancil was not just quick on his feet; he was quick in his head, too! This is the story of how a small mouse deer used a clever plan to get a tasty treat.

Kancil went to the edge of the big river. He called out in a loud voice, “Hello, crocodiles! The King is having a party!” A big crocodile swam over. He looked at Kancil with his grumpy eyes. Kancil said, “The King wants to invite all of you! He needs me to count you so there is enough yummy food for everyone.” The crocodiles loved parties! They all lined up, side-by-side. They made a long, bumpy bridge with their backs, just like a row of logs. Kancil hopped onto the first crocodile. “One!” he shouted. He hopped onto the next one. “Two!” he shouted. Hop, hop, hop he went across the crocodile bridge, counting each one. When he reached the other side, he took a little bow. “Thank you for the bridge!” he called. Then he scampered into the forest to eat the sweet, red fruit. Kancil was small, but his clever mind was very, very big.