Once upon a time, in a cozy little forest, there lived a small grey bunny named Sirko. He was tiny and soft, and he got scared of everything. A twig would snap—Sirko would shake. A bird would fly by—Sirko would hide under a bush.
One day, his friend Prickly the hedgehog came hopping by.
"Sirko, let's go play on the sunny meadow!"
"No, no," whispered the bunny. "It's too far. It's too scary."
Prickly laughed and ran off alone. Sirko stayed under his bush.
Evening came. Sirko waited for his friend to come home. He waited and waited, but Prickly didn't come. The forest grew dark. The moon came out in the sky.
"What if something happened?" Sirko's heart beat fast.
He peeked out from under the bush. The forest looked huge and dark. The trees swayed, shadows danced. So scary!
But Prickly was his friend. What if he needed help?
Sirko took one step. Then another. His paws were shaking, his ears twitching, but he kept going.
"Prickly! Prickly!" he called.
Then he heard a tiny voice: "Sirko, I'm here!"
He ran to the voice and found Prickly under an old linden tree. The hedgehog was tangled in prickly burrs and couldn't get out.
"I'm coming!" said Sirko.
He forgot all about being scared. Gently, he pulled apart the stems with his paws, pushed aside the twigs. He worked until his friend was free.
"You walked through the dark forest? All alone?" asked Prickly in surprise. "But you were so scared!"
Sirko looked around. The forest didn't seem so scary now. The moon shone softly, the trees whispered a sleepy song.
"I was scared," whispered the bunny. "But you're my friend."
Together they went home. Prickly held Sirko's paw, and the bunny didn't shake anymore.
At home, Sirko curled up in his cozy nest. He closed his eyes and smiled. He dreamed of the sunny meadow, playing with Prickly, not scared at all.
Outside, the moon shone through the leaves, and the forest breathed softly in its sleep.