Title may change. I can't think of a better one. Anyway, enjoy! C:
Sadie yawned when she heard Verne's voice from outside of the log. A moment later, everyone rushed out of the log like they were on fire. Sadie however, slowly got up and shook the leaves off herself. She knew that Stella was only helping Verne get everybody up. She padded out and into the sunlight with a smile. Her silver body glimmered lightly and she watched as everyone happily talked for the first time in months. She headed over to Heather and Ozzie, two animals who favored her company.
"Morning!" Heather greeted her with a smile.
"Morning, you two." Sadie replied and popped her neck.
"Really is nice outside." Ozzie crossed his arms behind his back. "A little chilly, but crisp and fresh!"
"I agree." She laughed and shook off some dew from her fur. Suddenly, Hammy ran over to them and his eyes were big.
"Where's the food?" He asked. "Is there any left? I'm hungry, so is there any left?"
"We ate all the food, Hammy, during the winter." Heather told him in a parent-like voice. "So we gotta go get some more now."
"Oh, RIGHT!" He jumped up. "I buried some nuts in the woods and I know where they are, so I'll be right back! Bye!"
"Where he gets all of that energy, we will never know." Sadie scratched the back of her head and Ozzie nodded. Suddenly, a little patch of snow came off the branch and hit him in the head. He groaned and toppled over. The porcupine triplets, to Heather's dismay, started mocking him and giggling. She let out a nervous giggle herself and then leaned over her father.
"Dad, it was just snow." She muttered.
"But it could have been a predator!" He replied and stood up.
"Isn't playing dead a little...weak?" She asked and tilted her head. He placed his hands on both of her shoulders.
"Heather," He said sternly. "How many times must I say it? Playing possum is what we do. We die so that we live!"
"I bet you'll have to do it sometime when you're older." Sadie smiled and one of her ears went flat. "It's just what possums do. It's completely natural!"
"Your ear..." Heather giggled and covered her face to muffle the noise. Sadie reached up and fixed her flattened ear so that it would stay up. She smiled with embarrassment as it fell over again. Suddenly, a throat clearing from Verne made them all turn. He was holding some grapes.
"Well, I think you know what this means." He gestured to the berries just as Hammy zoomed back to them.
"Verne!" He yelped.
"Just a minute, Hammy." He said before continuing on with his speech. "This means we were nine berries away from starvation."
"Oh!" Sadie gasped with the others, her eyes widening slightly.
"Oops, that was really intense." Verne frowned for a moment. "I meant really bad hunger pains."
"Verne!" Hammy yelled and then covered his mouth.
"Not finished yet, Hammy." He scolded and then passed out the berries. "So, what I want to tell you all is-"
"Verne!" Hammy let another time slip and Verne rounded on him.
"I'm not done yet, Hammy!" He groaned. "If you have to go again, just go! Okay, so all I'm saying is that we cut it a little close. So this year, we need to make sure we fill the log..."
"All the way to the top!" Ozzie finished and Verne nodded.
"Exactly!" He smiled. "Because what are we?"
"Foragers!" Everyone cried.
"What do we forage?" He asked.
"Food!" They cheered.
"Okay Hammy." Verne and the others turned to the squirrel. "What is it?
"What is what?" He tilted his head, seemingly confused.
"What is it you want to tell me?" He asked and then Hammy jumped.
"Oh!" He exclaimed. "What was it? What was it? What was it? Right on the tip of my tongue...Oh yeah! There's a weird thing over there that I've never seen before! It's really scary! Follow me!"
"Um..." Sadie tilted her head as the squirrel rushed off.
"Okay," Verne chuckled. "Meeting called on account of the 'weird scary thing'."
They all walked after Hammy, honestly going as slow as possible. Most of the time, Hammy was scared of everything. It was a totally normal day if he scared himself on accident. As he came into view, something else did as well. Sadie stood beside Heather and Ozzie with frightened eyes.
"Alright, what weird..." Verne looked up at the plant that towered before them. "Oh. That weird thing."
"What is it?" Heather reached out for it, but her dad slapped her hand away.
"I'm scared..." One of the possum children whined.
"Me too, momma." Another one whimpered.
"It's okay, it's just a..." Penny drew a blank. "What is this thing, Lou?"
"I...well..." He stammered. "It's...it's a...Verne?"
"Well, it looks like some kind of bush." He said.
"I'd be a lot less afraid of it if I just knew what it was called!" Penny sighed irritably.
"Let's call it 'Steve'!" Hammy suggested.
"Steve?" Verne asked.
"Steve sounds nice." Heather nodded.
"I'm a lot less afraid of Steve." Penny smiled.
"Oh great and powerful Steve!" Ozzie leaped onto his knees and Sadie rolled her eyes. "What do you want?!"
"I don't think it can speak." Verne commented.
"I heard that young man!" A voice from the other side of the bush made them yell in surprise. "You get over here right now!"
"Okay..." Hammy sighed and trudged towards the bush. Verne pulled him back.
"Hammy, no!" He scolded.
"But Steve is angry!" Hammy whined.
"I think the voice came from the other side of Steve." He said. "I mean the bush! I mean...jeez! There's only one way we're gonna find out what this thing is and what this is all about. I'm gonna go and check it out."
"Be careful..." Sadie warned as the group followed him step by step. Suddenly, he stopped moving and they collided with him. He turned and yelped which made them let out a shriek.
"Ay yi yi!" He rolled his eyes and turned. As he tried to walk, his foot caught a root and he went flying into the bush.
"Steve ate Verne!" Ozzie cried in fright.
"Alright Steve." Stella began to turn around. "You brought this on yourself!"
"No Stella!" Verne cried from inside the bush. "I'm not eaten! I just tripped! I'm gonna go over there, so don't anybody move."
"I hope he comes back okay..." Sadie said softly and Heather nodded.
"Well, if it's just a bush like Verne says," Penny. "He should be alright, there."
"Yeah." The others agreed softly.
Heather leaned into Sadie and she smiled. Ever since they first met, Sadie was like an older sister to the young possum. She taught her about boys and they played in the mud. They had a great time when they were younger, and that hadn't ended when they got older. To break her thoughts, Verne suddenly came flying through the bushes at top speed. They all fretted and rushed over to aid their friend.
"There were these freaky pink primates!" Verne gasped. "They must have come while we were hibernating! It was awful! They had wheels on their feet and these sticks...they whacked me around like I was some sort of sick game!"
"You should have died." Ozzie scolded. "You should have laid down, and died!"
"Dad." Heather rolled her eyes.
"That wasn't the worst part." Verne got up. "Half the forest is gone! The oak trees...the berry bushes...they're just...gone."
"What are we gonna do for food?" Stella asked and they all turned to Verne.
"I..." He began and then sighed. "I don't know. But what I do know, is that we will all be fine as long as no one goes over Steve again."
"It's called a 'hedge'!" Someone yelled and they turned towards the source of the noise. "It is not to be feared, my amphibious friend. It is the gateway to the good life."
"I'm a reptile, actually." Verne responded, sounding less than happy. "But you know, it's a common mistake. You are?"
"Oh, where are my manners?" The voice chuckled and out of a tree came a raccoon. "I'm RJ. Now please don't think I'm prying, but I couldn't help overhearing and I think I can shed some light on what this whole hedge situation is about."
He began to toss things out of a bag. Sadie caught a reflective disc in her hand and looked at it. Heather was holding a silver device, but glanced over to see what Sadie got. Murmurs rippled through the gang and Sadie caught a glimpse of her reflection in the back. Her light silver body with dark gray flecks and markings. Her one blue eye covered by an extra bit of hair, her brown eye visible.
"You see," She turned her attention to RJ, who was now holding a map. "What was once mere wilderness, is now fifty-four acres of man-made, manicured, air-conditioned paradise. Except for that little bitty speck. You are here."
"Oh no!" Sadie gasped.
"No, that's a good thing." He smiled at her. "You're hibernators, right? Gather up food and store it for the winter?"
"Yup!" Hammy chirped. "We fill the log!"
"Hammy!" Verne snapped.
"Really?" RJ snagged the object in Hammy's hands and extended something out of it. "This log? This, cave-like log?"
"All the way to the top." Ozzie said proudly.
"Ozzie!" Verne cried out. He was obviously irritated with the raccoon.
"Lemme ask you, how long does it take?" RJ asked as she walked into it. "To fill the log."
"Two hundred and seventy-four days." Heather responded as if it wasn't a big deal.
"Ooh!" RJ popped out. "Ever done it in a week?"
So there you have it! The first chapter! If you like it, consider adding it to your favorites and writing a review. :)