In a tall city, grand and wide,
In a metropolis far and far,
On the forest's edge, you see,
Grew an oak tree, wild and free!
Like in a magical land, an oak so green,
With a golden chain, a wondrous scene,
But a fox had stolen it away,
The one who with Basil would stay.
Basil was a learned cat so wise,
Who walked in circles, before our eyes,
And with his anecdotes so grand,
Made the mermaid laugh across the land.
One day she laughed so very hard,
Her fish tail broke—oh what a shard!
The doctors fixed her with great care,
Attaching legs beyond compare.
But the legs were far too small,
Three sizes short, that's not all.
Though stylish it appeared to be,
Not quite human, you could see.
From that day on, the creatures said,
Thumbelina was her name instead,
And in this lovely atmosphere,
She could have lived a hundred years, my dear.
But by the irony of fate,
She fell in love—oh what a state!
And her choice fell, I must say,
In the most unexpected way!
Of all the strong and sturdy men,
She met a rogue, and then, and then!
A hooligan who'd never seen the light.
Nosey was his name, athletic and bright.
And outwardly a handsome boy,
Thumbelina was his joy!
Their relationship, it's true,
Developed in a platonic way through and through.
But this tale is not about that,
Rather about this summer's chat,
When something magical came to pass.
I won't rush ahead through the grass.
I'll tell you everything step by step.
Thumbelina's birthday was kept,
And Nosey prepared a gift with care,
A couple of fancy cars to share.
Plus silks and emeralds so fine,
And beautiful dishes that would shine.
But then there came a problem true,
When he remembered what he knew,
That their family budget was quite tight,
And such a gift wasn't in sight.
A wealthy present for his dear,
He couldn't give, I fear.
So Nosey decided to go
And find a gift in the forest below.
But walking there seemed such a bore,
So he took a minibus to explore.
But he had no coins to pay the fare,
Just a couple of coins in his care.
He got off the minibus with a sigh,
And wandered down a path nearby.
To the land of Thrice-Nine he did go,
And found a place for adventure's flow.
He met a girl along the way,
In a red hood, come what may:
From home to Granny, back again,
Always carrying pies, now and then.
And by the way, she's friends with Wolf so grey,
And Grey serves her faithfully every day.
But that's not what we're talking about,
Rather how this duo, without a doubt,
Helped Nosey solve his question true:
What gift for Thumbelina would do?
And then Grey Wolf had a brilliant thought!
For once he'd traded pies he'd brought
To an old woman for forty roubles fair.
Plus Granny gave him a chest to care,
On which Red Riding Hood broke her heel,
Trying to open it with zeal,
To find a lock or secret button inside,
But nothing worked, though hard they tried.
In the end they gave it up,
And left it there, like an empty cup.
They gave the chest to Nosey then,
And placed it on the meadow's glen,
And thought: we should try once more,
Perhaps it will open, we're sure.
We need to know what's inside,
Thumbelina might not like what we find.
They thought long about how to try,
And decided with a magic cry:
"Eeny-meeny-miny-moe, quintet-finter-foe!"
Then the chest door opened wide,
And two men stepped out from inside!
Nosey, Red Riding Hood, and Wolf—all in shock!
They washed their faces by the forest's rock.
They looked at each other, at these two,
And realised they were twins, it's true.
Granny had locked them away,
Two hundred years ago, they say.
They were lumberjacks in their day,
And passed by Granny's hut one way.
She thought they were enemies, you see,
So she ran in her boots, wild and free,
Grabbed her gun and took aim,
Ordered them in the chest—what a shame.
Her granddaughter was about to call,
So she thought: let them sit in the hall,
My friends for a while, locked inside,
Then with Red Riding Hood they'll confide.
But many years had passed since then,
Beavers had eaten the chest again.
So Granny decided to give it to Wolf—
What use was it anyway, aloof?
The chest was finally opened at last,
The duo from the box was freed from the past!
Everyone had forgotten about the gift,
So they told Thumbelina with a shift.
They walked through the forest, laughing with glee,
While dragonflies buzzed in the tree.
Then coming towards them, askew,
Came a strange round thing into view!
—Who are you?
—What are you doing here?
—And why without a hat, my dear?
Gingerbread Man looked at them all,
And raised his brows, standing tall.
He'd been searching in the forest alone,
For a red fox, his heart full of moan.
He'd become quite detached and withdrawn,
His gaze empty, forlorn.
But when he saw the group appear,
His eyes lit up, crystal clear!
But his gaze was not what it seemed—
He was staring at Wolf's tail, it seemed!
And long ago, against all human ways,
Gingerbread Man had changed his days.
He was no longer a hero good.
He bit Wolf's tail as hard as he could!
Everyone heard the wolf's cry so loud,
Throughout the forest, the sound so proud.
Then Gingerbread Man, without care,
Cast his gaze at Red Riding Hood there.
She grabbed her legs and took to flight,
Running through the forest with all her might.
Nosey looked back and understood,
His end had come, as it should.
But wait—the twins from the chest so old,
Were not just any heroes, bold:
They beat up Gingerbread Man with might,
And damaged his face in the fight.
Gingerbread Man fell behind and lost his pride.
Nosey was shocked, I must confess,
He sat on a stump in distress,
And thought: "I must, come what may,
Thank those lads from the chest today."
Nosey granted their three wishes true,
Whatever they asked him to do.
But then all three decided as one:
"Let's give Thumbelina the chest—it's fun.
We'll tell her it's a jewellery box!"
Such was their adventure, round the clock.
Nosey couldn't have guessed before,
That the fairy tale world could be so sore.
But he learned his lessons well,
And became clever, I can tell.
From that day on, they forgot his past,
That he was slow—he'd changed at last.
With Thumbelina he lived happily ever after,
The twins would visit, bringing laughter.
The magical chest served them well,
And so their family happiness fell.
