Little Red was a little girl with a bright red hoodie that she wore everywhere. One sunny morning, her mom handed her a basket of goodies and said, "Grandma's feeling a bit sniffly. Can you take these treats to cheer her up?" Little Red loved her grandma—and treats—so she bounced out the door with a big smile.

"Stay on the path, sweetheart, and don’t talk to strangers!" Mom called after her. Little Red waved. "Got it, Mom!" she chirped, skipping happily into the forest.

Now, Little Red wasn’t alone in the woods. A curious wolf, with a nose twitchier than a rabbit’s, caught a whiff of the treats in her basket. "Mmm, cookies and jam!" He licked his chops and stepped onto the path ahead. "Hello there, little one," said the wolf with his smoothest voice. "Where are you off to on this fine day?"

Little Red tilted her head. "To Grandma’s house. She’s not feeling well, and I’ve got treats to make her smile!" she said.

The wolf’s ears perked up. "What a kind granddaughter you are," he said with a sly grin. "Say, wouldn’t Grandma love a bouquet of flowers too? There are some beauties just off the path!"

"Good idea!" Little Red exclaimed. She wandered off to pick flowers while the wolf dashed away, faster than a squirrel at snack time.

When Little Red finally arrived at Grandma's house, the door was slightly open. "Grandma? It’s me, Little Red!" she called.

"Come in, dear," a raspy voice croaked from inside. Little Red stepped in and blinked. Grandma looked... different. Her bonnet was crooked, her nose was long, and her eyes gleamed like marbles. "Grandma, what big ears you have!" Little Red said.

"All the better to hear you with," came the reply.

"Grandma, what big eyes you have!"

"All the better to see you with," the voice said again.

"Grandma, what big teeth you have!"

"All the better to—"

BAM! The door flew open, and Grandma herself stood there, holding a rolling pin. "What’s going on here?" she demanded. The wolf, startled mid-sentence, jumped up from the bed, still wearing Grandma’s nightcap.

Little Red gasped. "Wait, if you’re Grandma, then who’s this?"

The wolf froze, his plan unraveling like an old sweater. "Uh-oh," he muttered, and before anyone could say another word, he bolted out the door, racing back into the woods.

Grandma shook her head and hugged Little Red. "Oh, my dear, you’re such a brave girl! Thank you for coming all this way to see me."

"And I brought cookies!" Little Red beamed.

Grandma laughed. "Well, in that case, all is forgiven! Now, let’s have some tea."

The wolf, meanwhile, decided that sneaky plans weren’t worth the trouble, and he stuck to eating berries and nuts instead. As for Little Red, she learned her lesson and always stayed on the path from then on.

Because when you listen to your mom, things tend to go a lot smoother!