Cheetah-Gazelle: Two Dopes, One Rope

Fickbear Unbreakable Rope - Perfect for bondage!  Guaranteed inescapable!

So read the label on the box Cheetah's new rope had come in.  He was sure this new toy would be exactly what he needed to bring Gazelle into his clutches... of course, he thought that about everything he ordered from Fickbear Corp., and none of them ever panned out, but that didn't mean this one wouldn't.

Cheetah had already tied one end of the rope around a sturdy tree to one side of the road.  From there, the rope ran slack across the road to a bush, where the spotted feline waited with the other end in his grip.

The telltale noise of approaching hoof-beats caused Cheetah's ears to perk up.  He peered out of hiding, and sure enough, an ever-unsuspecting Gazelle was trotting down the road.  It was time to spring his trap.

A second before Gazelle reached the rope, Cheetah yanked it taut.

Immediately, he felt the tension Gazelle's momentum added to the rope.  Cheetah held his ground.  The rope stretched out like a rubber band as Gazelle tried to continue on against it, the rope making a seventy-degree angle against his body.  Sixty degrees.  Fifty.

Then, all at once, Cheetah lost his footing.

Gazelle could only duck and cover as Cheetah found himself yanked through the air, across the horns of his would-be prey, and then around and around the tree in a blur.  When the dust settled, the tension had wound the rope tightly around the tree, somehow binding Cheetah underneath it.

Cheetah blinked in surprise, still having trouble processing what had just happened.  Only his head and feet were visible, the rest hidden under the coils of the rope.  Gazelle trotted joyfully up to his bound rival, stuck out his tongue at him, then left.

Letting out a frustrated sigh, Cheetah began to struggle against the bonds of his unbreakable rope.