Story: It’s A Raid!

Pip, the deer mouse, stretches and scampers to the entrance of her hollow. “I love waking up to the sounds of birds chirping.”

Mia, the blue jay, hears Pip and swoops down from the branch where she roosts at night, “Good morning, Pip.”

“Good morning, Mia. Are you ready to go?” Pip asks as she starts down the trail through the Watercolor Woods.

“Yes. It is getting closer to harvest time. I love to smell the sweet and earthy aroma of the fruits, vegetables, and flowers in the community garden.” Mia replies as she follows Pip, her closest friend, down the trail to the garden.

Boone, Corvid, and Moon

“Hey, look! Boone is already here.” Pip waves to him as they arrive.

“Morning, Pip, Mia!” Boone, the raccoon, greets them.

“Morning, Boone!” Mia shouts.

“I am about to water the carrots. They are looking great! Look at these beautifully healthy carrot tops.” Boone points out.

Pip volunteers, “I will help with the tomatoes. They need water and weeding today.”

Mia adds, “I can start watering the corn. Look at how tall the stalks are now.”

“Good morning, everyone!” Caw Corvid and Moon, a pair of local crows. “We brought some mulch for the garden.”

“Perfect. Every little bit helps.” Mia exclaims.

“What can we do to help?” Moon asks.

Pip, thinking for a moment, “After spreading the mulch, you can help Boone water the carrots. They need a lot of water.”

“What was that?” Pip thinks out loud. “I’m sure I just heard a noise in the tomatoes.”

As soon as Pip speaks,a fox steps out of the row of tomatoes, “It’s a fox!” Pip shouts to the others. They all freeze as the fox walks over to the group of friends.

“Hello,” the fox greets them. “I’m Lily. I heard about the community garden and had to come to see for myself.”

Lily

Pip introduces herself, “H-H-H-Hello, Lily. My name is P-P-Pip.”

“Hello, Pip. The garden is beautiful,” Lily responds.

Mia flutters her wings, a bit nervous, “Thank you. We have all worked very hard in it.”

Lily smiles, “It shows. The garden is bursting with bounty!”

Pip’s whiskers twitch as she grins with pride, “It is. We are very proud of it.”

Lily steps closer, “Could I taste some? Just a small snack?”

Pip glances at her friends, and they nod in agreement, “Of course. Everyone is welcome to a fair share.”

Boone hands Lily a few tomatoes, “Here, try these. They are delicious.”

Taking a bite, Lily smiles, “Yes, they are. Thank you, Boone.”

Lilly turns to leave, and says, “I’ll be seeing you.”

Mia lets out a big sigh as Lily leaves, “That was a little scary.”

Boone nods, “I don’t know if I trust Lily.”

Pip frowns, “I know she seems….different. But, this is a community garden, and we welcome everyone in the community.”

Corvid and Moon are also suspicious of Lily, “We’ll keep an eye on her.”

A week goes by and the friends meet in the garden to water, fertilize, weed, and mulch the plants.

Moon shares, “Lily has visited the garden daily. She talks with the volunteers who are working, and takes a few vegetables.”

Corvid adds, “But, she never takes more than her share.”

Mia

Boone speaks up, “She is making everyone uncomfortable. Some of the volunteers are scared to tend the garden because she might show up for a visit.”

Corvid and Moon agree, “Yeah. She always looks like she is waiting for something. Looking around, and staring at everyone.”

Pip sighs, “She has not done anything wrong, and it is a community garden. She is welcome here as much as we are.”

Mia hops from one foot to the other shuffling, “Maybe we should talk to her and discuss how we feel.”

“We can meet in the morning. Mornings are when she usually visits the garden.” Boone suggests.

The next morning, Pip and her friends arrive early to the garden.

“Here she comes down the trail,”. Mia whispers.

“Good morning, Lily,” Pip greets.

“Morning,”. Lily replies.

“We need to talk,” Boone bursts out. “About your visits in the garden.”

Lily’s ears perk up, “Oh? What about my visits to the garden? Isn’t everyone in the community welcome here?”

Mia chirps, “It’s the way you watch us. It feels…creepy.”

Lily tucks her tail, “So, you don’t want me here?”

Pip

Pip shakes her head, “No. It’s not that. We don’t know you well. We need to know that you respect us and the others in the community. Maybe not look so sneaky when you visit, staring and lurking around the garden.”

Lily lowers her head and turns to leave, “Very well.”

Pip watches her leave, “I believe we made her feel unwelcome rather than solving the problem.”

On their way home for the night, Pip glances back and sees Lily sniffing around, “Look, it’s Lily. She’s in the garden lurking around again.”

Quietly, the group of friends follow her. Lily stops and looks back, “I know you’re there.”

Pip asks, “Lily, what are you doing?”

Lily shares, “I should have told this to you earlier. I heard rumors of a group planning to raid your garden. Today, I heard they will raid it tonight.”

Pip’s eyes widen, “Raid our garden? Who?”

Lily answers, “I’m not sure who.”

Mia asks, “Why didn’t you tell us before?”

Lily looks down at the ground, “I didn’t think you would believe me. Not after what you said.”

“If what you say is true, we should prepare. Can you help us?” Boone responds.

Lily nods, “We need to move fast to be ready for them.”

Corvid and Moon offer, “We will tell the others and ask for volunteers to help us.”

Pip nods, “We need to set traps around the garden.

Raccoons Raiding the Garden

Lily adds, “Also, we should create an alarm to tell us when they are close. Rocks and vines will do nicely.”

Boone organizes all the volunteers, “Everyone, take your positions, and stay alert. All we can do now is wait.”

Hours later, Pip whispers to Mia, “I wonder if…. Oh! Wait! I hear something.”

Mia, perching above Pip, whispers back, “It’s a group of raccoons. They are not from around the Watercolor Woods.”

“Now!” Pip gives the signal.

The group of friends and neighbors step out of the shadows, and Boone hisses, “Leave now, and you won’t get hurt!”

Pip steps up, “This is our garden! We won’t let you take from us.” All the volunteers step up behind Pip and Boone.

Mia lands beside Pip, “We stand together, protecting our garden.”

Lily growls, “Leave!”

Seeing the number of animals willing to protect their garden, and their determination, the leader of the group of raccoons hisses, “Let’s go! There are too many of them.”

After the raccoons left, Mia shouts, “We did it!”

Pip nods, “We did!”

Lily

Lily acknowledges, “Pip you were brave. All of you were brave.”

Pip smiles, “We could not have done it without you, Lily.”

Boone smiles too, “We were wrong about you. I’m sorry. Thank you for helping us.”

“You’re welcome!” Lily says turning to leave and grins, “I will be seeing you around.”

Pip and Mia walk home to their cypress tree. All the way home, they share the exciting tales of the night, and other adventures in the Watercolor Woods.

Mia