The Royal Toothache

The lion was the king of the jungle. Everyone shivered and shook when he roared.

He had a terrible toothache since two days. “Maharaj, get this tooth extracted,” suggested the monkey, the jungle physician. “Alright,” agreed the lion.

Who would extract the lion's tooth? They were all terrified of him! “Maharaj, I will give you a kick with my hind legs. The tooth will pop out,” said the foolish donkey.

“You will dare to kick the king?” roared the lion peevishly. The donkey tucked his tail between his legs and ran off.

The elephant, cheetah, bear and deer were all worried. Who would stick their hand into the lion's mouth?

Two days passed. The toothache was getting unbearable. “Should I take a look?” asked the mouse one night when the lion and he were alone. “Alright,” said the lion and opened his mouth wide.

“Oh! There is a lot of dirt trapped between your teeth!” said the mouse taking a peek inside. Using his sharp teeth, he cleaned out the lion's teeth. The lion felt much better.

“Maharaj, please clean your teeth everyday, or else your teeth will rot,” said the wise little mouse.

“Yes, you are right. But please don't tell anybody or they will say their king doesn't keep clean...” pleaded the lion.

"Alright," laughed the mouse.

The lion also laughed.