In the Grimm tale, Little Red Riding Hood meets the wolf on the way to her grandmother’s house.
The girl is sent through the woods carrying food for her sick grandmother. The wolf approaches her, asks where she is going, and learns the location of the grandmother’s house. He then tricks her into stopping to pick flowers while he takes a shorter route.
The wolf reaches the house first, deceives the grandmother, and disguises himself in her bedclothes. When Little Red Riding Hood arrives, she notices that her supposed grandmother looks strangely different. The familiar questions about large ears, eyes, and teeth lead to the wolf’s attack.
Many modern retellings soften the story or replace its rescuer with a lumberjack. In the Brothers Grimm version, a huntsman intervenes, cuts open the sleeping wolf, and rescues both victims. The tale belongs to the wider European family of “Little Red Cap” stories, including Charles Perrault’s 1697 version.