Sunija lived at the edge of a great jungle. The jungle was full of wondrous things, and she loved playing there in the afternoons. One day, a cry rang out in the village. Someone had seen the mighty Tiger Warrior! The tiger had not been spotted near the village since before Sunija was born. Stories about the huge killer tiger had become legend, and some began to doubt that such a tiger existed. But Sunija's father had seen the tiger himself when he was a small boy. The massive animal would have devoured him in a single bite if it had not been for the sudden appearance of Sheba, the queen of elephants. She distracted the tiger just long enough for Sunija's father to run home.

Later that night, her father gathered the family together, "Some in the village are laughing about the Tiger Warrior, but he is no laughing matter. He is shrewd and hungry. He killed many when I was a boy. You must be careful. No more playing in the jungle... Sunija, that means you, my precious girl... Do not go into the jungle without me."

Sunija couldn't believe what she was hearing. "But father," she cried, "I know the jungle as well as I know this house. The animals are my friends. I will not let the tiger surprise me."

"Trust me, daughter, he is too crafty. He will be ready to pounce before you know he's there. No. You must not play in the jungle."

Not all the father's in the village agreed with Sunija's. Tigers were a reality of life in the jungle, and they were sure their children could handle it.

A week later, Sunija was playing by her house when her friends asked her to join them. They were going to swim in the spring just inside the jungle. Sunija was terribly bored with playing by the house, and she longed to swim in the jungle spring... but her father's words kept ringing in her ears, "Trust me, daughter, he is too crafty. He will be ready to pounce before you know he's there. No. You must not play in the jungle."

Sunija hung her head and told them she couldn't go, "Maybe you could stay and play with me here!"

Her friends laughed at her and made fun of her father. "You're all such scaredy cats!" they said as they turned toward the jungle.

She sat in the dirt as her friends' laughter faded into the trees. "How could he do this to me?" she thought, pounding her fists into the earth.

You may have guessed what happened. Sunija was still sitting in the dirt, feeling sorry for herself, when screams erupted from the jungle. Girls burst through the curtain of trees, their eyes bulging with terror... all the girls but one.

Sunija stood as the girls ran past her. Then she saw him. At first, it was only a flash of color on the green canvas, but the color grew as the Tiger Warrior approached. He did not leave the safety of the trees: he simply stood at the jungle's edge watching her. Sunija couldn't make her legs move. Her eyes were locked on his. She felt something brush beside her on the right and then on the left. Her father and brothers surrounded her, and they, too, stared at the great tiger. For a moment all was still. Then the Tiger Warrior turned and disappeared in to the jungle.