Ugly Friend

"Would you like to be my friend?" the hippo asked with a hopeful smile.

The duck puffed out her chest and shook her feathers. "No way!" she quacked. "I am sleek and beautiful, and you are... well, you’re just big and bumpy. I don’t want to be friends with someone like you."

The hippo felt a heavy sadness in his heart, but he quietly splashed away to the other side of the pond.

One afternoon, a shadow crept across the water. A mean, hungry crocodile had arrived. Before the duck could fly away, the croc lunged and caught her by the wing! The duck let out a terrified cry.

Suddenly, the water began to churn. Splash! Crash! Boom! The hippo charged across the pond, roaring louder than the wind. He fought the crocodile with all his might until the bully finally turned tail and swam away as fast as he could.

The duck had fainted from the fright, but when she woke up a few hours later, the hippo was still there, quietly watching over her.

"I am so sorry," the duck whispered, hanging her head in shame. "I was wrong about you. You aren't just big—you are a hero."

The hippo smiled, and from that day on, the sleek duck and the big, bumpy hippo were the very best of friends.