Once upon a time, in a lush green forest, there lived a mighty lion named Leo. He was king of that forest, and every creature in it both feared and respected him. But for all his size and all his roaring, Leo had a kind heart, and he valued friendship above everything else in the world.
His closest friend was a clever monkey called Miko, who always had a trick or two tucked away and who loved nothing better than making the great lion laugh until the branches shook.
One morning, while the two of them were exploring the far edge of the forest, they came upon a magnificent horse. Her coat was a sleek and shining gold, and her mane flowed down her neck like a river of silk. She was standing quite still among the trees, looking about her, and she seemed very tired indeed.
“Welcome to our forest!” Leo called out, in the friendliest roar he could manage. “What brings you here?”
“I have been travelling for days and days,” the horse replied. Her voice was weary. “My name is Hera. I am looking for somewhere to rest, and for friends, if there are any to be found.”
“Then you have come to exactly the right place,” chirped Miko, swinging down from one branch to the next to get a better look at her. “We should be delighted to have you stay!”
Grateful for such a warm welcome, Hera decided to stay, and it was not long before the whole forest wondered how it had ever managed without her. She could carry what no one else could carry, and reach what no one else could reach, and outrun anything on four legs or two. She and Miko became the very best of friends, racing along the forest paths in the afternoons and swapping stories under the moon at night.
Then, one dreadful summer, the rain simply stopped coming.
Week after week the sun beat down. The streams shrank to trickles, and the trickles shrank to cracked brown mud. The grass withered where it stood. The animals gathered in worried little groups, whispering about what would become of them all without water.
Leo called a council beneath the great fig tree.
“We must find a new source of water,” he declared, and his voice carried right to the back of the crowd. “I mean to lead an expedition to search for one. Miko — Hera — will you come with me?”
“Of course,” said Hera, and her eyes were steady and determined. “Together, we shall find water and save our home.”
Miko nodded. For once there was not a trace of mischief in his face. “I’ll go ahead and scout the way.”
The three of them set out the next morning, heading into country none of them had ever seen. It was hard going from the very start. There were steep mountains where the loose stones slid away underfoot, dense tangles of jungle that had to be forced through step by step, and treacherous swamps where the ground looked solid right up until the moment it wasn’t. But their friendship held, and so did their tempers, and they kept on.
Each of them gave what they had. Miko’s quickness carried him to the tops of the tallest trees, where he shaded his eyes and searched the horizon for any glint of water. Hera’s strength let her carry every scrap of their supplies, and more than once she braced herself against a rock face so that Leo could climb where his heavy paws could find no grip. And Leo’s steady leadership kept them on course and kept their spirits from sinking, even on the worst days.
On the fifth day, from the top of a thorn tree, Miko went very still. Then he began to shriek.
“WATER! Water! I can see it!”
They came over the last ridge together, and there below them lay a hidden oasis, its water so clear it threw the sunlight back at them in a thousand pieces.
“We did it!” Miko cried, leaping onto Hera’s back in his excitement and nearly falling straight off the other side.
“Yes,” Leo said, and his triumphant roar rolled away across the rocks. “Now let us go and bring our friends.”
Back they went, and the whole forest followed them out to the oasis — the old and the young, the swift and the slow, all of them together in one long, hopeful line. The community flourished again, and the bond between Leo, Hera, and Miko grew stronger than ever.
From that day on, the tale of the lion, the horse, and the monkey was told all across the animal kingdom: a story of friendship, of courage, and of not giving up. And the three of them lived happily ever after, quite certain that whatever came next, they could face it so long as they faced it together.