While Leo the lion was, in appearance, the King of the Jungle, the real power behind the throne was a hippo named Herbert.
Leo would proudly roar orders in front of the other animals, but in private, all of the plotting and planning was being done by the hippo.
But one day, Herbert became seriously ill and was unable to provide advice to Leo. The lion’s first speech without the hippo’s help was disastrous and he struggled for a while making decisions,
raising some eyebrows (on the animals that actually had eyebrows). To get in a more “Herbert” state of mind,
Leo began wearing a baggy, gray suit and occasionally wallowing in the mud.
Eventually, by channeling his inner hippo, he became more comfortable ruling on his own and finally enjoyed being the power behind (and on) the throne.
So, when the hippo recovered, Leo told him that his services would no longer be needed. As he was leaving, he asked Leo what had changed and Leo replied
Well, I never thought I’d enjoy being a Herb before.