Chapter 2: A Shocking Experience
As the morning unfolds, the rest of the squirrels in the area wake up and begin collecting food to satisfy their daily needs as well as to prepare for the winter that will come in four months. Despite not getting first dibs on the best nut-gathering spot, Barry is glad that his family is working hard. He just loves seeing his mate, sons and daughter get along so well while working.
For squirrels, foraging was more than just a way of life, it was a spiritual release with everyone looking out for each other in the completion of a common goal. Families and friends grow and are brought closer together in the process. Even Taylor's family knew this, as long as such a means served as an end to boost their ego.
At noon the whole community of squirrels takes a break and count up their forage.
Barry: "Mmkay, family what have you got?"
Halle: "You and I collected 54 walnuts."
Sammy: "I got 23 pecans."
Hammy: "The total quantity of acorns I was able to forage to add to our long-term food storage for hibernation totals to 35, father."
Sammy rolls his eyes at how unnecessarily long his little brother's answer was, but decides not to say anything that will get him in trouble.
Tammie: "And I collected 71 sunflower seeds."
Barry: "Super! Way to go family. Put a'there!"
The five squirrels high-four each other, and soon a male gray squirrel named Jack pats Barry's back in admiration.
Jack: "Nice job, Barry! That's 15 more total forage than yesterday."
Barry: "Well, what can I say? My family works hard together."
Tammie: "Did we beat the Taylor's, huh daddy?"
Voice: "Very, interesting question, let's compare shall we?"
Barry rolls his eyes and turns around to face Taylor who has that ever-so-annoying smug look on his face, his eyes filled with confidence. He pompously walks over to the nuts Barry's family collected, with Michael and Alexandria following him in his strutting wake.
Taylor: "My, my. You have gotten quite a lot of nuts here."
Hammy: "To save you the time of counting up the amount, I can gladly say that my family gathered approximately 183 total nuts, Mr. Taylor."
Barry: "Yes siree-Bob. A new record."
Taylor: "Congratulations, all of you!"
Barry smiles and speaks to Taylor as he should, like a friendly neighbor.
Barry: "Well, thanks Taylor. I mean, we usually—"
Taylor: "Congratulations for graduating the level of infant into toddler when it comes to the amount of nuts you collect. Tell 'em dear."
Alexandria: "We happened to collect a new record not only for our own family, but also for the whole neighborhood. 471 total nuts."
Taylor: "And y'know what the pathetic thing is? You have five members in your family, and you still couldn't outdo my family of three."
Michael: "Yeah, 'cuz it's not the numbers, it's the foragers themselves that accounts for the skill and determination to gather nuts. You're family's just a bunch of losers, so eat your hearts out Barry Family!"
Taylor (warningly): "Mikey…What did I talk to you about a few minutes ago?"
Mikey: "Oh, sorry dad. Eh-hem," (loudly) "Eat your hearts out everyone! The Taylors have collected 471 nuts today with just three squirrels!"
Taylor (nods his head and happily puts a paw on Mikey's shoulder): "Atta boy son."
Jack: "Now that is incredible. But do you gotta gloat about it, Taylors?"
Alexandria: "Of course we do. Or have you forgotten how all squirrel communities operate? Whoever collects the ripest and most nuts are the Alphas, and we've been the Alphas for three years straight."
Taylor: "Soon to be four years, my lovely mate."
Taylor kisses Alexandria on her cheek. The other squirrels in the community grumble and walk off to enjoy their break. Barry has both paws clenched into fists, and it takes every ounce of energy he has to resist punching Taylor right in the mouth as he and his family go back to their foraging spot. To damage that stupid smile on his mug was tempting beyond imagination. Luckily, he has a group of people to help him out.
Halle: "Barry…Let it go. He isn't worth it. He's just a bully seeking attention. Don't lower yourself to his level. You're superior to him in every way. You're more polite, hardworking, humble, courageous, and loving than any of the Taylor's put together. That's why I love you."
Barry's fists loosen as he turns to his mate, his eyes brighter than the afternoon sunlight bathing the forest floor of shiny green grass.
Barry: "You're right, Halle. Come here."
The two mates wrap their arms around each other, close their eyes, and kiss affectionately. They are brought out of their trance when Barry feels Sammy tugging his hip fur, causing Barry and Halle to look down.
Sammy: "Ummm…We're sorry we didn't work hard enough to beat the Taylors, daddy."
Tammie: "We knew you really wanted to do that badly."
Hammy: "I operated at the full working capacity that a Tamiasciurus hudsonicus of my age and metabolism was capable of, but it was still insufficient to reach the results you had been hoping to achieve…
Barry (takes a knee and hugs all three of his children, speaking in a happy voice): "There's no need to apologize, kids. I'll love you, all of you, no matter how many nuts we collect. You could have collected nothing and I would still love you three.
(Lets go of his children so he can speak to them sincerely) "We don't need to collect the most and highest-quality foodstuffs or be the Alphas in our community to be a great family. That stuff is only good for bragging rights. Family comes from the heart, kids. And that's how we will always be better than the Taylors, because we have more heart in our family. I love you three so much."
Tammie (nuzzles her head against her father's knee): "I love you too, daddy!"
Sammy (hugs Barry): "Me three!"
Hammy (ditto): "I additionally have the utmost affection and feelings of love for you as well, father."
Barry lets his children finish hugging him before standing up to speak to them again.
Barry: "Now listen up, because I love you three and am proud to have you as my children, how about you kids take the rest of the day off and have fun? You're mom and I can forage for the rest of the day."
Sammy: "Really, you mean it?"
Hammy: "This is a most unexpected act of kindness if I dare say so, father."
Barry: "Yeah, of course I mean it." (Slowly looking over to his mate) "I just had to be reminded of the things in life that matter most." (Looks back at his kids) "And life is based on fun and rest just as much as it is on work. Go on kids, have a fun afternoon!"
Tammie: "Thanks, daddy."
She and her brothers head off to play with their friends who were also taking a break, leaving Barry and Halle alone. The two gaze into each other's green eyes, walk close so that both their ventral sides are touching, and hold their paws lovingly.
Barry: "Thanks for helping me remember who I am, Halle."
Halle: "I'm just doing my job of being your mate, Barry…And did I mention you're way more handsome than Taylor as well?"
Barry: "You didn't have to say that, the difference is clear as night and day."
Halle: "But admit it, you liked hearing it anyway."
Barry: "Sure did."
The two mates stare at one another for a full minute before Barry breaks the silence.
Barry: "Y'know, we don't have to keep working. Everyone else is out here, and our kids will be busy playing until 2PM…Let's go rest in the house."
Halle (giggles): "I love you, Barry."
Barry: "And I love you, Halle."
The two squirrels gather up as many nuts as they could and head home.
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While Tammie spends time playing with her friends of girl gray and red American squirrels and chipmunks, Sammy and Hammy go to see their mutual best friend Nymgoba "Nim," a Finlayson's Squirrel whose grandparents had come to America on a passenger liner fleeing their home country of Vietnam during the early 1960's. They also gather up Nim's best friend, Wu (a Prevost Squirrel with Chinese heritage), along with David (an American gray squirrel), and Skylar (a flying squirrel).
The six boys start off by playing Chinese freeze tag, a game that Skylar always enjoys being It because his ability to glide gives him a huge advantage over the ground-based squirrels, who also like having to be more creative in keeping out of Skylar's reach. They can't play too long though, because Nim, David, Wu, and Skylar had to be in good shape to help their families out when it was time to forage again.
Wu: "I really wish my dad was as cool as yours, Sammy and Hammy. Then we'd get to play all afternoon."
David: "Speaking of which, what should we play to pass the time now?"
Nim: "How about hide and seek?"
Hammy: "That particular leisure activity can turn out to be too time-consuming in its length. Not to mention that due to the Law of Motion, which states that a body at rest tends to stay at rest, the ones who are not It can become most jaded over extended periods of waiting due to the lack of stimulating neural incentives as they wait to be tagged."
Sammy: "Pipe down, egg-head."
Nim: "I still think hide and seek would be the best."
Skylar: "Me too, and can I—"
David: "NO, you can't be It. You've had your fair share, so it's my turn to be It. And we can climb only, no gliding."
Skylar: "Awwww…Alright."
Sammy: "Let's have base be the tree over to the left." (Points at the tree)
Wu: "Sounds good to me."
Hammy (sighs): "If that it is the leisure activity all of you want to partake in conducting, then I shall relinquish myself to participating in it as well."
Nim: "Ohhhh kayyyy…So I guess that means 'yes.' Seriously Hammy, I'm Vietnamese and my native language is easier to understand than what you say."
Hammy: "My sincerest apologies, Nymgoba. My father did recently inform me that I should let my actions speak louder than my words, but I theorize it will take some time for that routine to take effect in my cognitive abilities."
Sammy (headlocks his twin brother and lightly noogies his head): "Then stop talking and start acting, little brother!"
Hammy: "Ow! Sammy please cease your action of creating friction sensations on my cranium! Hard impacts to the cranium destroy brain cells which don't regenerate…! I'll tell father!"
That was more than enough for Sammy to release Hammy.
David: "If you two are done fooling around we got a game to play. Now get ready."
David turns around and starts counting as the other boys scurry off to look for hiding places.
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In no time, the hiders hear "Ready or not, here I come!" just as they found their hiding spots. The spot where Nim has chosen to hide is a tall tree. But as he gets ready to climb he notices something odd about the wood. It's too smooth compared to the bark of all the other trees. He looks up and sees there aren't any branches either. The only thing on top is a gray cylinder and several wires.
He stares at it for so long and so intently that he fails to see and hear David running at him, not even being tagged brings him out of his trance.
David: "Ha! You're It, Nim!" (Notices Nim is looking above) "What's up with you?"
Nim: "Have you seen anything like that before?" (Loudly) "Hey guys, over here! Come look at what I found!"
David (looks up): "Oh, that's a power pole. My parents say that humans use it for, uhhh, something, and that they're very dangerous…..."
Suddenly, David gets a crazy yet awesome idea.
David: "Dare yuh to cross the wire."
Nim: "Are you joking?! You said yourself that it's dangerous."
David: "That's what makes it so fun!"
The two turn around when they hear the approaching footsteps of the other boys who emerge shortly.
David: "Hey guys, check out this power pole. I just dared Nim to cross it, but he's too chicken to do it."
Hammy (as if giving a lecture): "Those are used to conduct and distribute electrical currents that supply humans with power. They can contain no fewer than 49,000 volts of electricity, and no more than 115,000 volts." (After remembering what David just said, voice becomes grim) "To transverse such a surging electrical conduit would result in instant fatality should any of our species, even in our adult forms, were to make contact with them anywhere on our bodies besides the paw-nails. There is an exact 1 out of 100 chance a squirrel could successfully cross the line without getting electrocuted."
Skylar: "Not even Mikey Taylor has crossed a power line. If we do it, then WE'LL have something to brag about for a change!"
Wu: "He and his bully-friends would leave us alone forever! Let's do it!"
Sammy: "I'm go first!"
Skylar: "Yeah! Way to be daring, Sammy!"
David: "I knew you'd have the courage!"
Hammy (frantic): "Sammy, desist! You're going to gravely injure yourself! You'll…you'll die! The fall itself would kill you by traumatic injury!"
Sammy: "Not if I'm really careful."
Hammy: "Please, Samuel, my brother, do not succumb to peer pressure!"
Sammy: "It's called life, Hammy. You have to take risks. You should take more instead of getting caught up in your facts and stadeekiacs."
Hammy (patronizing): "They are correctly pronounced 'statistics,' brother. And I WILL tell father about this at once."
Sammy: "Go ahead, I'll have crossed the power line already by the time he gets here. I'll take whatever punishment he can throw at me if it means I can be better than Mikey with something other than just heart."
Before Hammy could open his mouth to speak some more, Sammy climbs up the power pole. Fearless, he gets a grip on the power lines, his paws vibrating in conjunction with the humming noise emitting from the thick wires, and goes across the 50 foot line which leads to a human house.
The other boys excitedly climb up the pole, with Hammy trailing behind in an attempt to stop them.
Nim: "Totally wicked, Sammy!"
Skylar: "You're better than Mikey! You're awesome!"
Sammy: "Come on guys, it's a piece of cake! Just look forward and not down."
Hammy: "NO! My friends, Sammy got lucky. Again, there was a 1 to 100 chance that he would do it successfully, and the same for all of you! Do not try your luck with such a reckless feat, I beg of you!"
Wu: "If Sammy can do it, then so can I. I'll go next!"
The young Prevost squirrel is a little nervous at first, but by following Sammy's advice he too makes it across the power line, as do Nim, David, and Skylar. Only one of them has yet to cross the line, and he is in no mood to do it.
Skylar: "C'mon Hammy! It's easy."
Hammy: "All of you may have had luck on your side, but I refuse to cross this electrical power line."
Nim: "There's nothing to it, Hammy. Just look forward and not down."
Hammy (while crossing his arms and turning his back on the squirrels at the other side of the wire): "Your attempts to persuade me will ultimately prove futile. I am NOT going to cross this power line."
Sammy: "What's wrong little brother, you chicken? Bawwwk-Bawk-Bawk-Bawk-Baaaaaawk!"
The other boys join Sammy in flapping their arms and making chicken noises, but Hammy seems intent on not crossing the line.
Hammy: "You do realize how unbelievably foolish all of you sound, right?"
Sammy: "Better to sound foolish and be brave and cool than sound smart and be a chicken!"
Skylar: "Besides, everyone will think you're foolish when we tell them us five were able to cross a power line and you wouldn't."
David: "Yeah. Do it so you'll feel proud about yourself!"
Hammy: "I would rather forfeit my sense of pride and honor than forfeit my life." (Smiles) "Besides, I am already proud enough with who I am. I am the most intelligent Tamiasciurus hudsonicus in our community."
Sammy: "You're also the most outcastiest squirrel too. You're the black sheep of our family and always will be if you let your words and statistics define yourself."
The mention of being an outcast among all others in his community, and the one who doesn't fit in with his own family, hits Hammy hard like a brick wall. Because no matter how hard he tried to deny it, and as much as he hated to admit it, it was true.
He recalls all the times he stood out among everyone in the community and his family due to his intellect. Each time, he vividly remembers, was not in a good way, but in a way that made his parents, and siblings feel awkward…As if they were embarrassed to have him as a brother and son. True, his parents and siblings loved him a lot, but didn't really like him because of his lack of character and personality. His arms fall down to his side, his smile and confidence in his intellect fade away. His eyes even water a little as the words of his father echoes in his mind.
"Oh, Hammy you're going to learn one day son that actions speak louder than words or statistics. Because there is one things fancy words and numbers can't do…Build character and personality."
The words cause Hammy to regain his composure, and for the first time in his memory he stops listening to his brain and listens instead to his brother and friends. More than that, he listens to his heart which begs him to actually prove to his brother, father, mother, sister, and especially himself, that he is someone more than a statistic/fact-driven individual. That he was a squirrel of this community.
Hammy turns around and looks his brother in the eyes from across the 50 foot space between the power pole and the human house. He has a response ready to say to his brother—that Sammy's words have impacted his mind deeply and that he will listen to his brother and attempt to cross the wire as well, in spite of being accustomed with letting his intellect run his life—but says nothing, because he wants his actions to speak louder than his words. If he took time to think about what to do and debate how to proceed, his social life will pass him by and leave him behind to wallow in self-pity and regret of not taking the initiative.
Now, he simply acts.
Hammy grabs onto the power line and begins scurrying across it. He doesn't feel anything around him or acknowledge the positive feedback he is receiving from his brother and friends. He just keeps crossing the wire, unaware that Skylar's parents are searching for their son nearby.
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With 10 minutes until 2PM approaching and their son having not returned, Skylar's father, Guile, and mother, Judy, set out to locate Skylar and bring him back to continue foraging. The two adult flying squirrels know where to look after one of their neighbors informed them of the direction they saw their son and his friends go off to in order to play. Naturally, they have been searching high up in the trees by calling out their son's name.
After reaching the area where the power pole is, Guile catches a glimpse of Hammy crossing the electrical wire and sees his son at the other end. He is both afraid and angry for the young red squirrel who could get electrocuted at just the slightest wrong movement. Knowing he would increase the chances of that happening if he breaks Hammy's concentration by calling out his name, Guile perches on a branch overlooking the area that Hammy is halfway done with crossing, waiting for him to finish before making a move.
But fate, as it turns out, has a different plan for Hammy.
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Just as Hammy passes the halfway point in his line-crossing, a sudden and powerful wind gust occurs. He loses balance and falls, only to be lifted up into the air, his body rising above the power line by 2 feet. Every onlookers' hearts stop in sheer terror at what is unfolding. And as quickly as it had begun, the wind gust dies down and gravity kicks in immediately. Hammy's back is arching as if he attempted a hand/paw-stand and is falling legs-first, making his paws at an awkward angle that prevents him from grabbing the power line. Not that it would matter being that his head will most likely hit the power line with the way he is falling.
Hammy has screamed with his mouth wide open ever since he was flung into the air, and continues as his head gets nearer and nearer to the power line. What's worse is that even if he doesn't hit the line, the fall will kill him, making his situation of certain death only a matter of when and how it will occur. When his mouth makes contact with the power line, he instinctively bites down—
—Creating the catalyst for 69,000 volts of electricity to begin electrocuting him.
The pain felt by the 10 year old American red squirrel both inside and outside his body is excruciatingbeyond belief; like millions of knives hitting him in every square inch of his body, coupled with the burning sensation of being shocked. The onlookers shriek as see the blue/white/yellow colors of pure electricity "flowing" over his body in waves, making his fur stand straight up. Some of his fur jumps out of his body, and some of it burns off.
The electrocution goes on for a staggering minute and a half when, finally, having lost his life, Hammy's jaws let go of the power line and he begins to fall. Guile snaps out of his trance and swoops down from above, diving as fast as he can...not even thinking about what would happen if another wind gust would occur—which it does. His parachute-like patagium fur catches the next wind gust head-on and blows him five feet away from Hammy just as his paws make contact with Hammy's limp body, causing Guile to lose his grip on the young squirrel. Fortunately, Judy shows up out of nowhere, uses the wind to generate more speed, grabs Hammy, and lands him gently on the ground; however, he isn't showing any signs of life whatsoever. Hammy's fur is gone in several patches of his body which is also smoking from the experience he just endured.
Judy shakes him, listens to his heart—hearing nothing—and discovers he isn't breathing. She tries doing CPR for a full minute, but nothing seems to work. Knowing that the young red squirrel is gone, she decides to take Hammy home, and break the news to Barry and Halle.
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Inside their home, Barry and Halle hear a commotion coming from outside that seems to be coming toward their direction. Barry gets up to go check and sees Judy carrying something that is making everyone in the community stare in shock and sorrow.
Before Judy can speak with a voice of reason that will deliver the news as calmly as possible, Sammy beats her to it, unable to keep his tantamounting grief in check.
Sammy (shrieking in loss and dread): "MOOOOOOOOM! DAAAAAAAAAAAD! Hammy's DEAD!"
At first Barry and Halle believe they misheard their oldest child, until the crowd of squirrels moves so Judy can lay Hammy down on the ground at the base of his home tree, giving them a clear view of the miserable, broken body before them.
Taylor (approaches Hammy, but doesn't see his body): "Calm down, Sammy and everyone. Let me look at your brother and decide if he really is no more."
As soon as Taylor sees Hammy, he freezes in place, his face pales, and he has to fight to keep his lunch in his stomach. He looks up when Halle and Barry have climbed to the ground and they get on their knees while holding Hammy as their eyes well up.
Halle: "H-Hammy? HAMMY! NOOOOO! He's dead! HE'S DEEEEEAAAAAAAD!"
Barry: "NonononononoNONONONO! HAMMY! My son! My boy!"
Taylor places his paw on Barry's shoulder and speaks in the most sincere tone that his sneering accent can produce.
Taylor (mumbling in shock): "M-my deepest c-c-condolences…"
He then slowly walks away, visibly rattled at what he had seen. The other squirrels also leave to give Barry's family some alone time. Judy stays only to deliver her final testament of all her efforts to save him.
Judy: "I tried everything, Halle and Barry…But your son is…gone. If you ever need help, you know where to find us..."
She then goes over to her family, leaving the Barry's alone.
Halle (screaming in loss): "How did it happen? What happened to my son?!"
Sammy: "It was all MY fault, mommy! I made him cross a power line. I said he was too chicken and that he'd always be an outcast if he didn't! I KILLED MY BROTHER!"
Tammie (while sobbing and hitting Sammy repeatedly with both paws even though her five-year old strength causes no harm): "How could you DO that, Sammy?! I loved him SO MUCH!"
Barry: "Don't talk to your brother that way, Tammie. He didn't mean to do this…It's terrible, but your brother Sammy is really sorry."
Sammy: "Punish me mommy and daddy. Please punish me! I deserve to be punished for killing my brother!"
The mournful parents both know that Sammy will have to endure the grief of having unintentionally killed his brother for the rest of his life, and therefore decide not to punish him. The guilt will be punishment enough. They also want the funeral to be over with as soon as possible so their sorrow won't become all-consuming and drives them mad.
Halle: "We're not going to worry about punishing you, Sammy. Let's just all kiss your brother good-bye before burying him."
Tammie (kisses Hammy): "I love you Hammy! You were the smartest person I ever knew! I'll always miss you!"
Sammy (ditto): "I'm sorry, Hammy! I'm SO SORRY! I should have been a better brother and not made you cross the power line! I love you, and I'm sorry!"
Halle (ditto): "I love you, Hammy. You were the sunshine of my life…It's not going to be the same without you! I love you!"
Barry (ditto): "Hammy…Hammy! I'll never forget the times we had together…I always loved you son, I loved you with all my heart! I will love you forever!"
Suddenly, Hammy's emerald eyes open with a groan and he coughs a bit, causing his family to look down at him. They pause in disbelief, then smile and give Hammy a big but gentle group hug.
Sammy: "HAMMY! YOU'RE ALIVE!"
Tammie: "We thought you were dead! But you're back!"
Halle: "Thank goodness you're alive son! It's a miracle! I don't know what we would have done if you didn't wake up!"
Barry: "Welcome back home Hammy! Welcome back to the world of the living! We thought we lost you, but you're ALIVE!"
The yelling draws the attention of the other squirrels who come running back to Barry's family to double check if their ears weren't deceiving them. The sight of Hammy looking up and breathing causes everyone to cheer loudly, even Taylor, Alexandria, and Michael.
Hammy, his body and mind overloaded with everything that's happened to him today and with what is going on around him now, passes out and falls asleep. Barry quickly checks to ensure his son was indeed sleeping before he allows himself to feel even the slightest relief. He smiles up at the other squirrels when he finished.
Barry: "He's ok, everyone. He just needs to rest."
Taylor (loudly so everyone can hear him): "Eh-hem. In light of what has just happened now people, I, as Alpha of our community advise you to return homes if you want to. As for my family and friends, we'll keep foraging and welcome anyone who will join us."
The congregation of squirrels congratulates Barry's family and proceeds to either their homes or back to foraging with their heads high and spirits up.
Everything was going to go back to the same, good life they had…Or so they thought.
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That night, Hammy wakes up in his house to see his family's smiling faces hovering above him.
Tammie: "Hi, Hammy! You awake now?" (Reaches out to touch her brother)
Halle: "Easy Tammie, don't overwhelm your brother more than he already has been."
Barry: "Hammy, since you're still alive I want to know that we are all—"
As soon as Hammy responds, his family notices something very different about him. His genius and cultured voice was gone, replaced with a voice that was shrill, hyper, and sounded like—for lack of a better term—a bozo. He spoke much faster too, and his eyes darted all over the place as if they were unable to focus on one thing for longer than a second.
Hammy: "Hi mom! Hi dad! What's for dinner tonight? Is it peanuts? Walnuts? Bark? Honey suckles? Berries? Huh? Huh?! Oh, I loooove acorns! Let's have a leaf-bed fight!"
Hammy hypnotizes everyone in sheer (but not good) wonder by getting to his feet and running—no, zooming—over to bed with blistering speed that creates wind so strong that it blew the neatly-placed leaves in their house all over the place!
Hammy: "Wheeeeeeee! That was fun! Let's play tag now!"
Hammy zooms over and says "Tag, you're It!" each time he touches his family members on the back. Barry manages to grab his son by the shoulders and speaks in genuine concern.
Barry: "H-Hammy…Are you ok? What happened to your voice? Your smarts? And why do you have super speed?"
Hammy: "Hey, check this out, I can burp my ABC's. A…B…C…D…E…F…G—!"
Barry (shakes Hammy which makes him stop burping): "Hammy snap out of it!"
Hammy: "Huh?! Snap? Yeah I can snap!"
Hammy snaps his fingers rapidly while humming a tune, his brother and sister, not knowing any wiser to concern themselves with Hammy's sudden change, join in while his parents converse. Barry and Halle make sure to remember their son's scientific sayings as they piece together the puzzle of what happened to Hammy.
Halle: "The…the electricity from the power line. It must have given the electric neurons in his central and peripheral nervous system a 'supercharge' of some sort."
Barry: "Making electricity course through his muscles, giving him boosted energy and faster speed and speech…But he was electrocuted so hard that his brain must have been 'fried' in the process."
Although their explanation isn't as thorough as Hammy's would have been before this afternoon, it's sufficient enough. The two look over at their kids who have stopped snapping and humming.
Hammy: "Let's do the twist!"
Tammie: "Wheee! I love to dance!"
Sammy: "You're a party animal now, brother! I like it!"
The three siblings happily twist and turn, even though Sammy and Tammie have a tough time keeping up with Hammy. Halle and looks into Barry's eyes, and Barry into her's.
Halle: "What are we gonna do about this, Barry?"
Barry: "I don't know. But something tells me our lives are never gonna be the same again…"
Both squirrels look back over to their kids…Uneasy about what the future will hold for Hammy, their kids, their family, and their community.
A future that, unbeknownst to them for now, will hold great opportunities and hardships.
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While watching Over the Hedge I, like any viewers, always wondered where Hammy got all that energy and speed from. Then while brainstorming for this story, an idea came to me: Electricity. The human body can generate as much (or even more) electric energy as power plants can, so all I had to think of was a way for Hammy to get a permanent energy boost at the cost of losing his intelligence. It certainly would NOT work in the real world, but Over the Hedge is a cartoon/animated movie where the rules of the world do not apply. The same goes for this story which is fiction.
Regardless, I hope you found my personal answer to the mystery intriguing, and hope you will stick around to see what will happen.
See you whenever I update!
