One sunny afternoon, a rather greedy Wolf was having his lunch. He was gobbling down his food so fast he didn't even chew properly. Suddenly, OUCH! A sharp little bone got stuck right in his throat.

He coughed. He choked. He hopped around on one paw. "Help! Help!" he howled, his voice all scratchy. "I can't breathe!"

Along came a Crane, with her long, elegant neck and skinny legs. She saw the Wolf in distress. "Oh dear," she said, "what's the matter, Mr. Wolf?"

"A bone!" gasped the Wolf, pointing to his throat. "It's stuck! If you can get it out, I'll give you a wonderful reward! Anything you want!"

The Crane was a kind bird, but she was also a little nervous. A wolf's mouth is a scary place! Still, she wanted to help, and a reward sounded nice. "Alright," she said. "Open wide."

The Wolf opened his mouth as wide as he could. The Crane carefully poked her long beak down, down, down his throat. It was dark and a bit smelly in there! With a little wiggle, she grabbed the bone and pulled it out. "There!" she said, stepping back quickly.

The Wolf coughed one last time and sighed with relief. "Oh, thank you, thank you!" he said, feeling much better.

"You're welcome," said the Crane, preening her feathers a little. "Now, about that wonderful reward you promised?"

The Wolf grinned, showing all his sharp teeth. "Reward?" he chuckled, a sly look in his eye. "My dear Crane, you put your head inside my mouth and I didn't bite it off. Isn't that reward enough?"

The Crane blinked. She realized the Wolf had tricked her. She just shook her head and flew away, a little sadder and a lot wiser. She learned that sometimes, helping a tricky character doesn't get you what you expect.

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