Once there lived an old man and an old woman, and they had a granddaughter named Snegurushka. One day her friends came to call her to the forest to pick berries.
The old people did not want to let her go at first. But after many requests, they agreed and told Snegurushka not to fall behind her friends.
The girls walked through the forest and picked berries: tree after tree, bush after bush. Little by little, Snegurushka fell behind.
Her friends called and called, but Snegurushka did not hear them. It grew dark, and the girls went home. Snegurushka saw that she was alone, climbed into a tree, and began to cry:
“Ah-oo, ah-oo, Snegurushka! Ah-oo, ah-oo, little dove! Grandfather and Grandmother had a granddaughter named Snegurushka. The girls led her into the forest, then left her there.”
A bear came by and asked, “Why are you crying, Snegurushka?”
“How can I not cry, Father Bear? I am Grandfather and Grandmother’s only granddaughter. The girls led me into the forest and left me here.”
“Come down. I will carry you home.”
“No, I am afraid of you. You might eat me!”
The bear went away. Snegurushka began to cry again.
A wolf came by and asked the same question. Snegurushka answered him the same way.
“Come down. I will carry you home,” said the wolf.
“No, I am afraid of you. You might eat me!”
The wolf went away. Then a fox came by and asked, “Why are you crying, Snegurushka?”
“How can I not cry, dear Fox? The girls led me into the forest and left me here.”
“Come down. I will carry you home.”
Snegurushka climbed down, sat on the fox’s back, and the fox ran with her to the house.
At the gate, the fox tapped with her tail. “Who is there?” asked the old people.
The fox answered that she had brought their granddaughter Snegurushka home.
The old people were very happy. They thanked the fox, invited her inside, and treated her with milk, eggs, and curds for her kind help.
The End.