Deep, deep in the jungle, past the tickling bamboo and the giggling gorillas, lived a lion named Lester. Now, Lester was a fine lion, with a mane like sunshine and a roar like thunder. But Lester had a problem... a rumbling, grumbling problem! His tummy was making the fussiest noises!

"Oh, my tummy!" groaned Lester. "It feels like a herd of gazelles is tap-dancing in there!"

Lester tried to go for a hunt, he really did. He tiptoed and he tiptailed, but his tummy rumbled so loud, it scared all the yummy zebras away!

"This is simply unacceptable!" roared Lester. "A hungry lion is a grumpy lion!"

Then, Lester had a thought. Not a very nice thought, but a thought nonetheless. He'd pretend his tummy ache was so bad, he needed help!

So, Lester lay in his den and moaned, "Ohhh, woe is me! My tummy! My tummy! Will someone get me a juicy papaya, please?"

Along came Henrietta the Hippo, her heart as big as her bottom. "Oh dear, Lester! You poor thing!" she worried. "I'll get you some papaya right away!"

Henrietta hurried into Lester's den, but before she could say "papaya," Lester... Well, let's just say Henrietta didn't need papaya anymore.

Next came Monty the Monkey, swinging by his tail. "What's wrong, Lester?" he asked. "You sound like my Uncle Murray after a banana buffet!"

"My tummy, dear Monty! It needs a tickle!" called Lester. "Tickle it, and maybe the grumbling will go away!"

Monty, being a trusting monkey, swung right into Lester's den. And just like Henrietta, he didn't need any more tickles.

Lester chuckled to himself. "What a clever lion I am!" he thought. "Tricking everyone with my terrible tummy!"

Now, Sammy the Snake was no fool. He slithered past Lester's den and noticed something strange. "That sneaky lion," he hissed. "All those animals went in, but none came out!"

Sammy peeked into the den and saw Lester's trick. "Lester!" he called. "Your tummy isn't the problem, your tummy is TOO full!"

Lester was caught! He blushed redder than a flamingo wearing lipstick. "Alright, alright!" he grumbled. "My tummy is full of tricks, but it's also full of friends!"

From that day on, Lester learned a valuable lesson. Tricking friends for a rumbling tummy wasn't very nice. Sharing a meal and laughter, now that was a recipe for a happy tummy!