Fable Fun, sequel

Having a few spare minutes that aren't fit for any other employment, I thought I'd post my Fox and Crow rendition.

Lessons at Leisure

On a genial afternoon in May, in a majestically swaying young maple tree, there resided a nondescript crow, whose ordinary aspect rather marred the poetic atmosphere of the day. Surveying this tableau from the surrounding forest, a bright-eyed fox noted an object yet more out of place; a particle of cheese, residing temptingly in the bird’s mouth. The crow, proudly appraising her cheese, did not observe the fox sauntering forward with convincing nonchalance. Politely interrupting her reverie with an unobtrusive cough, he determined on introducing a topic of conversation.

“Madame,” quoth he, “You make too elegant a picture to refrain from commenting on. In this graceful young tree, surrounded by such gloriously animated countryside, your plumage glinting as though fashioned of onyx, your eyes holding a deep enigmatic luster…” He persisted with this device, fluently fabricating foolishness for the crow, who inflated noticeably with pride. “Indeed,” he continued, “the only element lacking in this paradisiacal scene, the one touch that can complete the atmosphere, is music: one delicate, satisfying melody, as only a magnificent bird such as you can bestow.”

It was enough. The gullible crow, in her ignorant vanity, could not resist; it was either sing or detonate with the conceited delight the fox’s lavish admiration had kindled. Although she tried her best, the one, brief note she gave was exceptionally sour, particularly because it quickly morphed into a scream of disappointment and indignation. Feigning still to be amiable, the fox, who had dexterously snapped up the rapidly descending cheese, intoned, “To be sure, there is nothing in existence as delicate or satisfying as a fragment of Gruyere, though never have I before known it to be defined as a melody.” Complacently chuckling, he strolled blithely away, leaving the crow to ponder this lesson in a rueful sense of injustice.

THE END