Lazy Ant

There was great excitement in the Ant Hill. It was August and it was
nearly time for the princes and princesses to fly away. All of the ants
were busy making everything ready for this special day. All except one
ant, Amy. Amy was a lazy ant. She was a worker ant who never did any
work. Everyday she visited the Queen and pretended to have a bad back.
Today was no different to any other day.

"Oooooh, Your Majesty," groaned Amy to the Queen. "The pain is very bad
today. I don't know how much longer I can put up with it."

The Queen looked down at Amy and said, "I do not wish to see you again.
For months and months you have called to see me, moaning about your bad
back. Everyday I have excused you from work. I have allowed you to look
after the young princes and princesses in the nursery, whilst your
sisters have had to work hard. Well from today you will no longer be
needed, as the princes and princesses will be leaving the nest. Now
go."

"B..but, Your Majesty," stammered Amy.

"No buts," replied the Queen angrily. "Go now."

Amy couldn't believe it. What would she do now? She wasn't a princess.
She couldn't fly away. She had no wings to take her to faraway places.
Amy hurried back to the nursery to pack her bag. As she was packing she
could hear some of the other ants talking about her.

"Knew it would come one day," said one.

"Yes, but not soon enough," said another."Serves her right, lazing
about. Pretending to have a bad back. Humph, whoever heard of an ant
with a bad back. Why, we're made to carry as much as a hundred and
fifty times our own weight," said another.

Amy couldn't stand it anymore. She picked up her bag and ran away
crying. She didn't stop until she had reached the entrance to the ant
hill. Once there, she stopped to wipe her nose and dry her eyes.

Suddenly, there was a loud rumbling noise. It came from somewhere in
front of her. Amy stood perfectly still. She turned slowly to where the
noise was coming from. Then she saw it. A huge clump of earth was
rolling towards her. Amy dived into a nearby hole for cover. The noise
grew louder and louder. Then suddenly it was quiet again.Amy slowly
popped her head up out of the hole. She couldn't believe it. The
entrance to the ant hill was completely sealed.

Without a thought, Amy started digging with all of her energy."Oh
please, oh please, don't let everyone die," Amy sobbed as she dug at
the dirt.

After some time, Amy had made a hole big enough to crawl through. She
ran to the Queen's room first. She knocked frantically on the door. No
reply. She pushed the door open. The room was empty. Amy ran to the
nursery but it was also empty. Amy searched everywhere. It was the same
in every room. All of the ants had gone, but where and how?

Eventually Amy crawled back to the entrance. She crawled through the
hole that she had made. The sunlight blinded her. Amy rubbed her eyes,
and when she opened them, she couldn't believe what she saw. For there,
in front of her was the Queen and the whole colony of ants. Amy ran to
the Queen.

"Oooooh, Your Majesty," panted Amy. "I thought you were all dead. There
was this big clump of earth, and, and I...."

"Hold your tongue, young lady," commanded the Queen. "I know all about
the earth blocking the entrance. Had you been a worker ant, who had
worked with the other ants, you would have known that there is always
more than one entrance to an ant hill. You would also have known there
are ants who look for such problems. I was made aware of the problem
and I took the necessary action."

Amy looked down at the ground. She felt ashamed. "Yes, Your Majesty.
I'm sorry. I've been lazy for so long, it sort of just became a habit.
Please forgive me. I promise that if you let me back in, I'll work
twice as hard as the other ants, and I promise I shall never complain
again. Please," begged Amy.

The Queen paused before answering Amy. "Because of your actions today,
and because you put your own life at risk for the good of the colony, I
shall forgive you. However, should you ever complain again about a bad
back, or indeed any other illness, I shall immediately throw you out.
Do you understand me?"

"Oooooh yes, Your Majesty," answered Amy, bowing low. As Amy bowed she
got a nasty twinge in her back. "Oooooh," she said as she stood
up.

"Now what's the matter?" asked the Queen.

"Nothing, Your Majesty. Nothing at all," replied Amy.

THE END