Putli the Carabao trots in the forest, proud of his big horns, his big body, and his pale skin. Along with him is Gaitom the Cow, timid as he was, with his tiny horns, his tiny body, and his dark skin.
Everyone in the forest wonders how two creatures so different get along with each other so well.
At noons they go to the lake in the middle of the forest, take off their skins, and freshen themselves up. Sometimes they walk the downhill path to the edge of the forest, where there is a farming village. Putli and Gaitom like to watch men till their big fields all by themselves. Putli often laughs at the men. Gaitom shushes him.
“It’s not right to laugh at men like that. They need help,” Gaitom says.
One day they reach the edge of the forest, farther than they had gone before. It is noon, and time for their dip in the lake.