"To·Mo·Da·Chi"

"To·Mo·Da·Chi"

Best Fairy Tale

by Yoshikazu Saito (Tokyo)

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It seems like an unusual combination, but Bibi and Taro are already best friends. Whenever they have time, they always spend it together. They take walks together and talk about lots of things. Bibi talks to Taro about the queen bee, who lays eggs every day, and about the male bees who buzz around doing nothing all day. She also tells him about royal jelly and how magical and delicious it is. Taro tells Bibi about the fights he gets into with the bulldog in the next town, about the cute Welsh corgi that just moved into his neighborhood, and about a delicious dog food he once ate with lots of beef in it.

Bibi thinks it strange that Taro takes such a great interest in the smell of other dogs' pee-pee and poo-poo, but she is a little envious at the way Taro always seems relaxed and never has to work. Taro marvels at how well Bibi and the other honeybees work, sharing the jobs of caring for the eggs and larvae, even using their own bodies to make the wax that they use to build the nest. All of this is very interesting to him and he grows to like Bibi more and more. Tired out from talking on these spring afternoons, Bibi cuddles up in Taro's soft fur and takes a nap on his back.

"Do you know the honeybee dance?" Bibi asks Taro. "No, please show me." Taro is always full of curiosity. "It's a dance to let each other know where the flower field is. When the field is far away, we dance in a figure eight. The angle of the dance and the number of times we turn in a certain direction tells everyone how far away it is." Usually the dance is performed on top of the hive, but just to show Taro, she flies around, exaggerating the movements. Taro follows Bibi's movements closely with his eyes until he becomes dizzy and falls over.

"Since you like sweet things, Bibi, here is a present for you!" Taro gives her a can of juice that he found somewhere. "Oh, thank you." Bibi immediately gives it a taste. "Mmm, it's very nice, but it can't compare to the real thing from a flower." Taro seems a little disappointed, but he soon cheers up again and says, "Then on our walk let's find a garden with some tasty-looking flowers." Taro is quite a good-natured chap.

One day on a walk to a field a bit far away, the eerie sound of hundreds of beating wings approaches from the west. It is a swarm of savage wasps. Bibi and Taro hide in the grass. If such a swarm attacked, it would be very dangerous even for Taro. Bibi's hive would be completely destroyed. They wait, hiding for the swarm to pass. "How many are there?" they wonder. As the swarm flies into the distance they come out cautiously. Taro breathes a sigh of relief. But just then they hear a buzzing sound right above Taro's head--the sound of beating wings.

One wasp was still there. Up close it really has a wicked-looking face. "Bibi, fly away! I'll be a decoy." Taro starts running around in the grass to make noise. He sometimes stops to catch the attention of the wasp and provokes it to attack him. The wasp closes in on Taro. Even a single sting contains deadly poison. It aims for a sensitive spot on the back of Taro's head. Taro is in great danger. Suddenly, the wasp is hit by something and is stunned. It's Bibi! She has come back to help Taro, bumping the wasp with all her might. Before the wasp can recover, Bibi and Taro run away as fast as they can.

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