With special thanks to Looniekat for her constructive feedback.
Fox licked his bright orange fur. After being chased out of the more comfortable side of the jungle, he now had to live in a big-dog-eats-small-dog environment where he was always being chased by one trouble after another. In fact only rodents and birds with broken wings were afraid of him. He lord over them as best as he could, but he would shirk away every time a large carnivore passed the area.
A skinny rat scampered past him, and he pounced on the rodent with a yelp of victory. The rat begged, "Please sir, Please Mr. Fox. Please don't eat me."
Feeling a little playful he asked, "Why should I let you go? Your life is meaningless anyway."
"Oh great, Fox. If you release me, I will tell you where Tiger is meeting tomorrow night. I heard that he plans to choose a new successor to his presidency."
Fox's mind raced. What? A new successor. Dammed Wolf, for not telling me. He stared at the rat, not willing to let go of his dinner just yet.
The rodent stroked the white paw pressing down on his belly. "You are the only predator that has an orange fur like the President. I can help you paint some black stripes on it to make you look like a tiger. Surely, everyone will vote you as their new ruler."
Fox smiled, it was an excellent plan. He released Rat who immediately dug his paws into soft mud and lathered his own belly with the dark muck. Then he climbed onto Fox, spread-eagled and slide down the side. He did this over and over until Fox’s body and tail was all covered in stripes.
Once the mud dried, they strolled through the forest. Fox remarked, “My goodness. This place is so quiet you would think that all the animals had disappeared.”
“The animals are there, sir. But they are afraid to even breathe in your presence because they are terrified of you.”
Fox puffed his chest. He was still hungry, but it didn’t matter because he now has everyone’s respect.
None too soon, the night of the meeting came along. The bears, wild cats and wild dogs gave way to him as he strode to the front of the circle with Rat by his side. Old Tiger’s eyes narrowed: What in the world is that animal? Wolf growled deep down in his throat: Fox.
Rat bowed before Tiger and said, “Mr. President, I present to you Fox, who has come forward as a candidate to contest as your successor.”
Tiger said, “But I have already chosen my successor. It is Wolf here.”
“Has his election been confirmed yet?” Rat asked. The other animals looked at each other and shook their heads one by one.
Fox was elated, and it was all he could do to keep calm. Rat continued, “The party rules state that a successor to the presidency must be voted by more than half of the members of the party.”
Tiger shook his head at Wolf, who was about to pounce on Fox. Rat was right. There has to be an election.
News spread through the jungle like wildfire. Party members began to deliberate amongst themselves over who to choose as their new leader. Wolf was mean, proud and harsh. Fox on the other hand was nicer and had never caused them any trouble for he only preyed on small animals. The votes were counted in the wee hours of the morning, and Fox won an overwhelming majority.
Every animal, especially the rats, began to take life easy. They bred and grew fat under the patronage of Fox, who relaxed the rules on the protection of young plants. Crops that the birds had planted on the jungle floor barely made it beyond two inches before they were munched and uprooted. Deer ran out of food to eat so they moved on to greener pastures in the neighboring valleys. After a while, the larger predators followed them.
The growing rat community, however, attracted a new kind of predator. Clumps of discarded snake skin began to appear on the jungle floor. Some were so wide they made even the hardier animals shuddered. Tiger was livid. All the years of hard work he had done in building a balanced eco-system was ruined even before he was dead. The scent of a young tiger reached him, forcing him to struggle to his feet.
“They are here,” he said to Wolf.
“Yes, I know. Is there any fight left in you?”
“I may be toothless and clawless, but I am not dead.”
The wolf watched as a family of rats left a trail of droppings and pee behind them. He suspected that unhappy predators had persuaded the young exiled tiger to return so he could wrest control away from Fox, and rebuild the old eco-system.
Old Tiger would have preferred that the jungle inhabitants elect Wolf to take over, but since Fox had gained power through his government, anything that either he or Wolf might say will be judged in the light of Fox's actions. The ex-President thought deep into the night.
