The tiger watched her backing away. It suddenly occurred to him to grab her, but since she was facing him and keeping her bright eyes on him, he wasn’t sure what to do. “Why are you going in like that?” he asked. “Oh, I could never insult such an important one as you, mighty tiger, by turning my back on you!” she said, and, while the tiger was feeling pleased and flattered by this polite speech, she disappeared completely into the narrow den. The tiger waited for a few more moments, then he heard the mother fox calling from below.