For five long years, a mischievous monkey had gotten into the habit of mocking a powerful lion and teasing him. Every day, the monkey would go into the lion’s den, make funny faces, emit ridiculous noises, and even throw stones at the predator.
Monkey Business
At first, the lion ignored the monkey, perhaps deeming that chasing after him wasn’t worth the effort. But as time went on, the monkey’s teasing became more and more unbearable. The lion was starting to lose patience but never dared to hurt the monkey. One day, the monkey sneaked up behind the sleeping lion with a stick in hand. What did he intend to do? This was the last straw…
An Impossible Prediction
As soon as the monkey jumped into the lion’s enclosure, the zookeepers realized something had changed. Usually, Mufasa the lion wouldn’t move an inch when Freddy the monkey approached him and began to annoy him. Mufasa would usually just roar a bit at the monkey.
Yet, that day, the lion’s behavior changed completely. The team nervously paced, watching the monkey while fearing the lion’s reaction to the monkey’s antics. They could feel the tension in the air. How could the caretakers have predicted something was going to change?
A Scene Impossible
Forget Zookeepers and zoo visitors; everyone held their breath as the monkey slowly approached the lion. Some people closed their eyes; others couldn’t look away, waiting to see the seemingly angry lion’s reaction.
What was about to happen in that enclosure would mark them for the rest of their lives… But why had the monkey begun to bother the lion daily? Why was the animal only reacting now, and what would it do to the monkey?
James the Zookeeper
It had become a real custom. A few years earlier, young Freddy, the monkey, had started to play and tease Mufasa, the lion. James was a veteran among the zookeepers and was responsible for feeding both Mufasa and Freddy.
The keeper had never been really worried about the situation between the lion and the young monkey. He couldn’t imagine that things could escalate one day. What started as an innocent play between two animals was about to turn into something entirely different.