Myths of Magical Gods

The Gentle Hippo: The Goddess Taweret

If you saw a real-life hippopotamus, you might be a little scared of its huge size, but kids in ancient Egypt absolutely loved it! They drew a goddess named Taweret who had the head and body of a hippo, the tail of a crocodile, and the claws of a lion! Even though she looked a tiny bit scary, she was actually the kindest goddess in all the myths. Her main job was to protect moms and little kids while they slept, keeping all nightmares and bad dreams far away. Her little statues were placed right next to kids' beds to watch over them like a sweet, gentle guardian.

If you invented a magical guardian to chase away nightmares, what imaginary animals would it be made of?

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