High up on a grassy hill, where the wind whispered secrets to the flowers, lived a young shepherd boy named Pip. Pip's job was to watch the fluffy white sheep. But oh, it was a bit boring! The sheep just munched and munched on grass. Munch, munch, munch. All day long.

One sunny afternoon, Pip had an idea. A mischievous idea. He took a deep breath and shouted, "WOLF! WOLF! A big, scary wolf is here!"

Down in the village, the kind farmers heard him. They dropped their tools and ran up the hill, huffing and puffing. "Where's the wolf, Pip? We'll help!"

Pip giggled. "Oh, just kidding! No wolf here!"

The villagers were not amused. "Pip," said one, "that's not funny. We were worried." They grumbled and went back down.

A few days later, Pip was bored again. The sheep were still munching. The sun was still shining. "I know!" he thought. "I'll do it again!"

"WOLF! WOLF! Help, a wolf is chasing the sheep!" he yelled.

Again, the villagers came running. This time, they weren't as fast. They looked around. "Pip," said another villager, her voice a bit stern, "are you tricking us again?"

Pip grinned. "Yup! Gotcha!"

This time, the villagers were cross. "Don't cry wolf if there's no wolf, Pip! We have work to do!" They stomped back to the village, shaking their heads.

Then, one quiet evening, as the sun began to set, painting the sky orange and purple, Pip saw something. Something with pointy ears and gleaming eyes, creeping out from the woods. It was a real wolf! A big, hungry wolf, looking right at his sheep!

Pip was truly scared. He jumped up and screamed as loud as he could, "WOLF! WOLF! A real wolf! Please, help me! This time it's real!"

Down in the village, the farmers heard him. One said, "Oh, that's just Pip, playing his silly games again."
Another sighed, "He won't fool us a third time."
So, no one came.

The wolf chased the sheep, and poor Pip could only watch, wishing he had told the truth before. When the wolf was gone, and some of his sheep were too, Pip felt very sad and very foolish. He learned that day that if you tell lies, people won't believe you, even when you're telling the truth.

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