Page 81 - The Black Deer and Charlie Rabbit

The Black Deer and Charlie Rabbit 79
‘Well done Badger! Well done, Jackson!’ he grinned, turning to the woodland animals who were staring vacantly at the flowers. He was puzzled by their stunned silence.
‘The deer is dead! We did it! We actually did it! We have done this together,’ Charlie beamed.
One by one, the animals turned their heads to smile at each other and as if in a dream reached out to their neighbour. Sam jumped in the air with relief; Alfie grabbed his son, Jackson and hugged him. Otter did a jig and suddenly the animals were alive and dancing wildly with relief and sheer happiness. Sophia quietly returned to her residence.
Suddenly, a clear strong voice rang out across the garden. ‘And what about us? Can’t we join in the celebrations?’ asked Sadie Squirrel, smiling at Jackson and at Alfie, who was dangling from a branch.
Alfie was astounded. ‘Have you been here all evening?’ he asked, falling to the ground.
‘Yes! We saw everything,’ said Tilly Rabbit. ‘I know that you were concerned about our safety, but we were worried about you, so we sneaked around the wood and hid in Sophia’s residence.’
‘Sam Hedgehog!’ Betsy called. ‘Did you really think that we would just sit in the wildlife garden waiting and hoping for you to come home? Anyway, we have our own spies. You can all come out now.’
Following Sophia into the garden were a host of fairies, gnomes and elves and young woodland animals who crept