The symposium was all Bert could talk about the next day. He was out on Evergreen Lake with Ralph and Melissa, and they were smacking around a hockey puck.

"This is sure to be a blast!" he shouted.

"I'm a little surprised you're excited about this, Bert," Ralph said.

"Yeah, what exactly is a symposium?" Bert asked.

"It's usually a meeting of people to discuss a topic," Melissa replied. "In this case, the topic is hockey."

"You mean we're not gonna go there to play hockey?" Bert asked.

Before Ralph or Melissa could answer, Cedric and Sophia skated by, with Forest. Bert saw them, and practically flew over to them.

"Hey Cedric!" he shouted. "Aren't we going to be playing hockey at this symposium?"

"I don't know, Bert," Cedric replied. "All I know is that it's going to be a discussion about hockey, and it's in Anaheim, California."

"Oh no," Bert groaned. "Dullsville. Snore City."

"Well, you can discuss how you saved Evergreen Lake," Sophia suggested.

"Works for me," Bert said. "How 'bout a little hockey before we leave for the symposium?"

"Not for me," Sophia said. "I have to work on my swan glides."

"And someone's got to watch Forest while Sophia works on her swan glides," Cedric replied. "At least I know Forest will sit still now. He likes to watch his mommy figure skate."

"We'll make a skater out of my little buddy yet," Bert said. He always called Forest that. Forest loved it. Every time Bert called him his little buddy, he would giggle and clap his hands.

The raccoons and the aardvarks separated. Bert, Ralph, and Melissa went to play hockey, and Cedric took Forest off the ice so they could watch Sophia skate. It was a big lake, so there was plenty of room for them to do their own activities without getting in each other's way. Unfortunately, when Bert got involved in a wild hockey game, nothing stopped him, and he was usually flying all over the place. And this time was no exception. Ralph had tried to pass the puck to Bert, and Bert missed it by a mile. So he skated after it, determined to score a goal with it. Unfortunately, Sophia was twirling around in circles, and she didn't see Bert coming, and Bert didn't see Sophia, either. But the others did.

"Look out, Bert!" Melissa shouted.

"Sophia, watch out!" Cedric yelled.

Their warnings came too late, and Bert and Sophia collided with each other, and both of them landed hard on the ice.

CRASH!

Sophia also heard a nasty crunching sound, and a painful sensation shot through her left leg. The others quickly skated over to see if they were all right.

"Are you guys all right?" Ralph asked.

"How many points was that worth?" Bert asked, dazedly.

"He's okay," everyone said in unison.

"How about you, Sophia?" Melissa asked.

"I don't think so," Sophia replied. "I'm not sure, but I think my leg's broken."

Cedric handed Forest to Melissa, and he and Ralph helped her to her feet. Then the two of them helped her off the ice, and got her over to the doctor's office as fast as they could. They were just glad that their community was on the small side, and the doctor's office wasn't too far away.

"Uhh, sorry about the collision, Sophia," Bert said, as the doctor was X-raying Sophia's leg. "Maybe it'll teach me to watch where I'm going."

"And it'll probably teach me to keep off the ice when you're playing hockey," Sophia replied.

After awhile, the group got the diagnoses. Sophia's leg was definitely broken, and it was a pretty bad break, too. She would have to stay at the hospital for a few weeks.

"Well, so much for the hockey symposium," Cedric said.

"What do you mean?" Sophia asked.

"I'm not going to go. Someone has to stay home and take care of Forest. I don't know if Pop can really handle it on his own."

"Cedric, you go to the symposium," Sophia insisted. "I'm sure Ralph and Melissa wouldn't mind looking after Forest."

"Sure," Ralph said. "We'd be glad to."

"It'll be no problem at all," Melissa said.

"Come on, Cedric, it's a once in a lifetime chance to see all the greats in hockey!" Bert shouted. "Like Wayne Grizzly!"

"I don't know if Wayne Grizzly will actually be there, Bert," Cedric said. "But okay, you guys talked me into it."

Cedric and Forest staid at the hospital until visiting hours were over, and then they headed home. When Cedric walked through the front door, Cyril was walking out of his office, and he noticed something right away.

"Where's Sofa Girl?" he asked. "I thought she was coming back with you."

"She broke her leg, Pop," Cedric said. "She was practicing her swan glides and stuff while Bert was playing hockey, and they collided. She has to stay at the hospital for a few weeks."

"So I take it you're not going to go to the symposium you were talking about."

"Well, I wasn't at first, but everyone talked me into it. You don't have to worry about taking care of Forest, though. Ralph and Melissa are going to do it."

"Cedric, you know darn well I can handle running a business and baby-sitting at the same time! I've done it with you until you were old enough for boarding school!"

"I don't know, Pop, Forest is a lot more active than I was when I was his age. I mean, he wanders off a lot when you're not looking."

"I can handle it! I've baby-sat this kid plenty of times when you and Sofa Girl were out!"

"Yeah, Pop, but that was only for a couple of hours at the most. This is going to be for a couple of weeks!"

"Cedric, you worry too much. I can handle Forest, and my business at the same time!"

Cedric gave in. Cyril certainly sounded like he was able to handle Forest, but he wasn't so sure. He would have felt a lot better if Ralph and Melissa were going to watch Forest. It was easier for two people to keep an eye on Forest instead of one, especially when he was out of his playpen. But he didn't say anything.