How the Crab Won

Once upon a time, there was a small red crab that lived in a small pond alongside her friends, which happened to be fish, in the pond. They were all very close friends and loved to play and race together.

One day, they began to realize that the pond was shrinking! It had been particularly hot that season, and the pond was evaporating. They were not going to fit much longer... Luckily for them, an enormous crane flew from a tree and landed next to the pond.

"Hi, fish!" he said. "I have come to help you. I can carry you in my mouth to a large pond not too far away. Although, I can only take you one by one. It is a pond big enough for all of you to share comfortably!"

This seemed like a great proposition, but the crab was very observant. She was certain that she had seen this same crane swoop down and EAT one of the fish only a few days earlier. She listened to the crane persuade the fish to allow him to help, and reluctantly, she allowed the crane to take one of her friends.

"I don't trust him," she said to the fish, after the crane left.

"We don't have any other options!" they responded.

The crab understood this and agreed.

The crane came back each day and carried another friend away every time.

Eventually, the crab was the last friend left and very lonely. She spent her days crawling and swimming by herself. The crane came back to check for more fish one day and only found the crab.

The crane thought, "Maybe this will do for food as well," and offered the crab the same deal he offered the fish.

The crab scratched her head for a moment and came to agree to his offer. The crane opened his mouth to allow the crab in, but she was smarter than him.

She said, "Allow me to hold on around your neck. It will be a more comfortable ride for us both." Flustered and distracted by hunger pangs, the crane agreed.

As they flew over the pile of dead fish bones, the crane began to understand his mistake. The crab had seen the bones, tightened her grip around the crane's neck and said,

"You will put me in the lake or you will not live long enough to regret your mistake."

Of course, the crane agreed.

Upon arrival, the crane gently set the crab down, but the crab did not let go.

"This is for all of my friends whom you've taken from me," said the crab. With a quick clipping motion, the crane died.

As the crab backed away from the bird, she realized the beauty of the new lake. It was vast, blue and teeming with life. It was truly all a crab could hope for.

"I could learn to like it here."

Author's Note:

This story is pretty similar to the original story that I read, as I liked the majority of the storyline. I used the same theme and characters, such as the crane pretending to help the fish, eating the fish, and then the crab outsmarting him and killing him. My intentions with this were to make the characters more realistic and relatable. So, I added dialogue, gave the characters more personality, and tried to portray their interests and hobbies so you are able to feel like you know them a little more. I also made an effort to create a dialogue that is more relaxed and easy to read. This also gives some insight as to what is happening internally in each character. In addition, I attempted to incorporate imagery that makes the story more engaging and easier to visualize. I like to think that my rendition of the crab is a little bit more assertive! **In my post recent edit, I changed some of my phrasing and word choice for the sake of reading clarity. I also gave a reason as to why the pond was drying up. I hope that you find this update a little easier on the eyes and brain!

Bibliography. "The Cunning Crane and the Crab" by W. H. D. Rouse.