Farmyard Advice Overload

The world outside the coop, Pip discovered, was not just big and unknown, but also surprisingly noisy. He’d tumbled out in a flurry of feathers and panic, the deafening *BANG!* of Farmer Giles’s errant toolbox echoing in his ears, and now he was… out. Utterly, completely, and terrifyingly out. His heart hammered against his ribs like a frantic drummer, each beat a tiny explosion of “What have I done? What have I done?” He scurried under a broad, leafy rhubarb plant, its enormous leaves feeling like a flimsy shield against the vast, green expanse.

It was then that a deep, resonant voice rumbled from somewhere near his tiny hiding spot. “Well, well, well. What have we here?”

Pip squeezed his eyes shut, willing himself invisible. He was sure it was a fox. Or a badger. Or perhaps a particularly peckish weasel. He braced himself for the worst, picturing sharp teeth and even sharper claws.