Birds flooded the sky, whistling merry tunes as they alerted the entire forest of the new morning. Rabbits sprang out of their holes; squirrels ran down the trees and badgers poked their heads out of their underground burrows. The sun smiled as it watched the forest come to life. The trees stood tall and proud as they bathed in the sun’s rays and joined the animals in greeting the new day. Deep in the forest, a family of moose were arising. They had three children: Hazel, Hershel and Harmony. Hazel was the eldest and she was already up and jumping around. She tried to wake up the others, but her family were a big fan of lie-ins. Today was a very special day for her. Her father opened one eye and immediately closed it but Hazel saw and took that as an opportunity to nudge him hard. Just then her best friends Buttercup (a rabbit) and Avalon (a bird) came up to her.

“HAPPY BIRTHDAY HAZEL!” they both shouted at the top of their voices.

Buttercup gave her a variety of nuts wrapped in a big leaf and Avalon presented a selection of fruit in a small nest. Hazel let out a squeak of joy as she was overcome with excitement and thanked them both before they could start fighting over who gave her the best gift. Behind her, her family were starting to get to their feet after hearing the sudden uproar. Her mother came forward with a flower crown and necklace she had crafted herself and placed them on Hazel as she reminded her of her birthday party. The entire forest had been invited apart from…well…they should not be mentioned. The party was to take place at sundown and there was still a lot to be done. As the day carried on, decorations were put up, food was laid out and guests slowly started to arrive. The party was one of the best the forest had seen, and it turned out the weasels were amazing DJs! Everyone wished Hazel and just like that, as quickly as the day had come, it was over. As they were clearing up, Hazel’s father turned to her.

“The day isn’t quite over yet and I still haven’t got you anything. So, what would you like me to get you? The usual?”

Hazel laughed, “You know it. A bunch of cloudberries please!”

“Be careful though. Every year you go to the other side of the forest but that’s human territory,” reminded Hazel’s mother.

With that in mind, Hazel’s father left. They waited for him to get back and Hazel ate all the food she had received as presents, including her flower crown and necklace. She could see that her two siblings were eyeing it, but it wasn’t everyday she had a birthday, so she quickly gobbled them up. They waited and waited, and Hazel’s mother paced around anxiously. Hershel and Harmony tried to stay awake but failed miserably as they lay in a heap, sound asleep. Hazel too was finding it difficult to keep her eyes open. At long last a shadow appeared. It was hard to make out the precise shape but as Hazel squinted, she could see it was one of the local deer. He went up to her mother.

“I’m afraid I come bearing terrible news. Elwood went too far, and the hunters spotted him. I’m sorry but he didn’t make it. I saw his body drop before my own eyes and taken away. I was lucky that I even made it back alive. My condolences.”

Hazel and her mother gasped, and tears etched their way down Hazel’s face as she was overcome with grief. It wasn’t rare for a moose to be hunted but it was a sudden shock for her. Her mother however, had a fierce protective look in her eyes and managed to keep calm. The deer turned to Hazel and that’s when Hazel noticed he was holding something in his teeth. He dropped it by Hazel’s feet and there, right before her eyes, were the amber-coloured cloudberries she had been longing for all year. Her stomach turned as she realised that her father had died getting them for her. She never should’ve asked for them. Hazel felt devasted and responsible for her father’s death despite her mother constantly reminding her that the humans were to blame. Her heart felt heavy and the pain was like a ripping sensation inside but there was nothing she could do to bring him back.

There was a small gathering of moose family and friends. They had come to mourn Elwood’s death. There was no physical body to bury of course because the humans had taken it, but they lay some flowers and said some prayers in his favourite spot. Everyone was comforting Hazel’s mother and Hazel and her siblings, but Hazel wished they were alone. Or even better, back to the way they used to be. A family of five. Just then, a voice came from behind them during the ceremony:

“Well, well, well…what have we here? Has the old man gone?”

Everyone turned around to see a pack of wolves with gleaming white teeth and red menacing eyes. There were at least twenty of them as they came forward with their hungry smiles.

Hazel’s mother growled, “Malcolm, you’re not welcome here. Take your wolves and leave us be.”

The leading wolf chuckled, “My dear Fern, I was rather surprised that we weren’t invited to the party of the year. It’s all the animals ever talk about nowadays. So, I thought I’d come visit and settle everything between us. You see, my pack are rather hungry…”

All the moose stepped forward and they clearly outnumbered the wolves however, you could never be too careful with wolves. They were cunning and constantly on the search for prey. Hazel and her siblings backed away as they didn’t know what to do and hid behind a tree. The wolves started to get closer and pounced. The scene was very violent as wolves sank their teeth in skin and moose kicked them off and stamped them with their heavy weight. It carried on until the wolves formed a tight circle around the moose. Hazel’s mother’s eyes held fear in them but not the fear of getting eaten, but fear for her children.

“HAZEL RUN! Take Hershel and Harmony with you and run! I’ll come find you, just GO!”

Hazel was trembling but managed to round up her siblings and they fled. She glanced back and could see that Malcolm had sent two wolves after them as well. Panic jolted through Hazel’s body, but she had to stay calm and responsible on behalf of her siblings. At last, she lost the wolves and was so exhausted she immediately fell to the ground. Her siblings rushed up to her and laid down next to her. Everything had changed so rapidly in the last couple of days. They were all alone now and it was up to Hazel to keep them safe. Hershel peered anxiously at Hazel and then got to his feet.

“You two stay here. It’s clear that you’re both worn out. I’ll see if I can find some food and we’ll worry about shelter later. We don’t know how long mother will be.”

And with that he broke off into a fast gallop before Hazel could stop him. It was at least an hour before Hershel got back and Hazel was worrying her head in. Hershel had acted like he was the one in charge and she’d let him go on his own into who knows what kind of dangers. She’d already lost her father, been separated from her mother and had enough to stress about without the additional worry of Hershel going missing. When he did come back, Hazel first checked he was alright and then hit him over the head with her leg.

“Don’t you EVER do that to me again! Have you any idea what you put me and Harmony through? You don’t leave unless you consult me first.”

“Calm down,” soothed Hershel, “Look I found some nuts. This should last us for a while.”

After finishing the food, they ventured to find a suitable shelter. They finally found a huge tree which had twisted branches that reached out to form a comfortable den of some sort with a gnarled roof and the ground below it embedded with multiple leaves. It was perfect. The sky was a dozen shades darker than before with white speckles dotted all over it. They snuggled together as they watched the starry sky.

“Do you think mummy will ever come back?” asked Harmony.

Hazel and Hershel glanced at each other. They weren’t entirely sure, but Harmony was too young to be worrying about these things.

“Yes, she will. But for now, it’s just the three of us and we need to take care of each other and have each other’s backs. Think of it like this. We’ll learn to fend for ourselves and discover key survival skills. We’re not under mother and father’s protection now but if we put our minds to it, we can overcome all the dangers in the forest,” replied Hazel.

“But why do we have to stay here? Why can’t we go home?”

This time Hershel replied.

“Because Harmony, we don’t exactly know the way home. Mother and Father never let us out on our own and the wolves probably know where we live. It wouldn’t be safe. Now look, there’s a shooting star! Make a wish.”

Days flew by and turned into weeks and weeks to months. They came across many new friends who helped them but wherever they went, danger closely followed and there were many near death instances. From starving coyotes to grizzly bears, they were always alert and on the lookout for any threats. At one-point Hazel and Hershel woke up to hear Harmony screaming as she was dragged away by a coyote and they immediately rushed to her aid and fought the coyote till he fled. Hazel was left with a massive scar across her cheek but saw it as a memory of the fight they won. Their story travelled by word of mouth throughout the forest and soon Hazel, Hershel and Harmony were known for their bravery and strength as three young children. Some even called them the warriors of the forest.

One day, when they were discussing how they were going to celebrate Harmony’s birthday next week, an owl flew up to them.

“I come with an announcement. I know how you’ve been all alone having to survive in the forest and taking care of each other even though you’re still very little. But never fear because I’ve got good news. You see, your mother is very much alive. She sent me to find you and tell you to stay where you are because she’s on her way right now in search for you three. It’s been a difficult past few months for her.”

Their eyes lit up as they were overcome with excitement and happiness. They hadn’t seen their mother in a very long time and had already accepted that she was gone. Harmony, who was the youngest of them all, had started to forget what her mother looked like and was delighted. They thanked the bird and sent him to tell their mother exactly where they were inhabiting.

The next morning, they woke up with the bright summer light shining upon their faces and in front it, their mother’s face with her brilliant blue eyes which filled with joyous tears and the widest smile.

Moral: Even when life throws the most difficult obstacles at you, fight back and find the courage to carry on. Amongst this pandemic, find the strength to see the positives.

THE END.

Thank you to my brother Liam Thomas for his amazing support during the construction of my story.