CHAPTER 19 – FOX

Then the fox comes.

“Good morning,” says the fox.

“Good morning,” the little prince says. “Who are you? You are very pretty.”

“I am a fox,” says the fox.

“Play with me,” the little prince says, “I am very sad.”

“I can’t play with you. I am wild,” the fox says.

“Ah! I am sorry,” says the little prince. But after some time, he asks, “What is wild?”

“You are not from here,” says the fox. “What are you looking for?”

“I am looking for people,” says the little prince. “What is wild?”

“People,” says the fox, “have guns. They hunt. It is a problem for me. They also have chickens. I like chickens. Are you looking for chickens?”

“No,” says the little prince. “I am looking for friends. What is wild?”

“When I am wild, I am not connected to you and you are not connected to me.”

“You are not connected to me?”

“It is true,” the fox says. “For me you are only a little boy, like other little boys. And I don’t need you. And you don’t need me. For you I am only a fox like other foxes. But if I am not wild for you, you need me and I need you. You can be the only boy in the world for me. I can be the only fox in the world for you.”

“I start to understand,” the little prince says. “I have a flower. I think that she isn’t wild for me.”

“It is possible,” says the fox. “On Earth we can see many different things.”

“Oh, my flower is not on Earth,” the little prince says.

The fox asks, “On another planet?”

“Yes.”

“Are there hunters on your planet?”

“No.”

“It is interesting. And chickens?”

“No.”

“Oh, nothing is perfect,” says the fox.

After some time, the fox says. “My life is always the same. I hunt chickens. Men hunt me. All the chickens are similar, and all the men are similar too. So, it is a little boring.

My life can be better if I am not wild for you. When I hear your steps, I can be happy. The other steps can scare me. But your steps are like music to me. And it is not all. Do you see the corn fields there? I don’t eat bread. For me corn is not important. The corn fields say nothing to me. And it is sad.

But you have golden hair. You hair is beautiful. The corn is also golden. When I see the corn, I remember you. When I hear the wind in the corn, I can be happy.”

The fox is quiet. The fox looks at the little prince for a long time. “Please, stay with me for some days!” the fox says.

“It can be nice to stay with you,” says the little prince. “But I don’t have much time. I want to find friends. I want to learn new things.”

“We only learn about things which are connected to us,” says the fox. “People don’t have time to learn. They buy things from shops. But because there are no shops where you can buy friends, people don’t have friends. If you want a friend, be connected to me!”

“OK, what do I have to do?” asks the little prince.

“You have to be very patient,” says the fox. “First, you have to help me not to be wild. You have to sit at a little distance from me in the grass. I can watch you with one eye and you say nothing. Words can be a problem sometimes. But every day you can sit a little closer.”