I don't own Hilda.
One autumn day in the vast wilderness outside Trolberg, Hilda was exploring the forest, admiring the bright, color-changing foliage, and occasionally stopping to draw nearby animals in her sketchbook, who didn't seem afraid of her presence at all.
"That'll do." Hilda spoke triumphantly, finishing her sketch of two squirrels gorging on acorns.
As Hilda closed her sketchbook and stuffed it into her backpack, a sudden howl of distress echoed through the forest.
"AWWWOOOOOOOO!"
This startled her and the nearby squirrels, who dropped their nuts and scattered up the trees.
"What was that?" Hilda exclaimed while putting on her backpack.
The howling continued, sounding more and more despairing.
"AWOOO! AWOOOOOOOOOO!"
"I better investigate." Hilda said as she began to race toward the noise.
After crossing a creek, climbing a small rocky cliff, and leaping over a fallen tree, Hilda reached the spot of the disturbance.
"Oh no…" Hilda whispered. She was horrified to see that a small, white deerfox was stuck in a hunter's bear trap. The trap's iron spikes had pierced through its hind leg, causing it to bleed profusely and wail in agony.
"AWOOO! AWOOO! AWOOOOOO!"
Hilda didn't hesitate. She slowly approached the deerfox. Seeing that it was being approached by a human, the deerfox whimpered and attempted to crawl away, but the trap obviously prevented its getaway.
"It's okay." Hilda spoke, "I'm gonna help you."
Hilda reached out her hand and allowed the deerfox to sniff it. The white critter whiffed her hand several times. Identifying Hilda as friendly, it licked her hand and sadly looked back at the trap that had penetrated its leg. Hilda approached the small mechanism.
"This is gonna hurt a little," Hilda warned as she pat the deerfox gently on its head, "but don't worry, I'll get you home soon and my mum will fix you up."
Hilda grasped both jaws of the trap and pulled. After a brief struggle, the trap finally split apart, releasing the spikes from the deerfox's leg.
"AWOOOOOO!" The deerfox screeched in agony.
Although the deerfox was free, blood started to rush out of its wound like a raging waterfall.
"Not to worry." Hilda said.
She removed her scarf and wrapped it tightly around the deerfox's leg, blocking the wound and soaking in the escaping blood like a sponge. Hilda lifted the weakened deerfox from the ground.
"Just hold on, okay?" Hilda said before making a break for it back to her cabin.
Back home, Hilda's mother, Johanna was preparing a stew in the kitchen for dinner when Hilda came exploding inside the cabin.
"Mum! Mum!" Hilda cried, out of breath from running.
"Hilda?" Johanna hurried into the living room, "What are you carrying?"
She quickly realized what it was.
"A deerfox? Where on Earth did-"
"It's hurt, mum!" Hilda explained, "I found it stuck in a hunter's trap in the woods. It needs help!"
"Hilda, I-"
"You can fix him, right?" Hilda asked abruptly.
"I don't kno-"
"Mum, please!"
Johanna gazed at her daughter, taken aback by her passion. She was beginning to cry. Hilda looked down at the deerfox and noticed its eyes were barely open. At this point the entire scarf bandaging its wound was caked in blood.
"We can't just let it…" Hilda sniffled, "You know…"
Johanna took a deep breath and nodded. "Here, give it to me. I'll do what I can."
"Oh thank you, mum!" Hilda gratefully handed her mother the barely conscious critter.
"You wait in here, okay?" Johanna said, "You've seen more than you needed to."
Hilda watched her mother carry the deerfox into kitchen before sitting down on the nearby arm chair. As she waited, Hilda was twiddling her fingers and restlessly kicking the chair with the heels. Minutes (what felt like hours) passed before Johanna finally emerged from the kitchen. Hilda jumped off the chair and anxiously approached her mother.
"How is it?" Hilda asked.
"It was hurt very badly." Johanna said, "but I managed to clean and stitch up the gash on its leg. It's gonna be alright."
"Oh mum, thank you so much!" Hilda hugged her gratefully, shedding tears of joy and relief.
"You're welcome, Hilda." Johanna hugged her child back, "You did just as much as me, using your scarf to stop the bleeding. That was good thinking. I'll knit you a new one soon, okay?"
"Awww, thanks mum!"
"It's gonna be awhile before it can walk again. It'll need a lot of rest. Come, you can see it now."
Johanna lead Hilda into the kitchen where the deerfox was resting on the dinner table with a bandage wrapped around its leg and various medical tools and bottled antibiotics scattered around it. It was barely awake, recovering from the harsh pain it endured and its sudden operation.
Hilda timidly looked up at Johanna, who gave her a nod of approval. She approached the deerfox slowly. It raised its head and looked at Hilda, exhausted, but still submissive.
"Hi there." Hilda spoke. "I hope you're feeling better."
Hilda stroked the deerfox's back carefully. The deerfox reached up and gave Hilda a tiny lick on her cheek, surprising her.
"I think it likes you." Johanna said. Hilda smiled at her mother before looking back at the deerfox.
Hilda nuzzled her head against the deerfox's, who reciprocated with affection. "Everything's gonna be okay."