Adventures in Cottontail Pines - A Kanga-tastrophe

by TK Wade

  Both bunny and mouse replied, “We know.”

  Goober ignored the comment and said, “Do you think maybe we are making this party too small for Ptooie’s preference?”

  Before Flopsy or Gumdrop could answer, Blacky came out of nowhere with his clipboard and said, “This is a Cottontail Pines party–not a Down Undah party! She’s got to see what kind of parties we throw. Isn’t that the whole point, Goober?”

  The nervous, brown bunny had not expected Blacky to speak. “Well, I… er—.”

  “Exactly!” said Blacky without letting him speak. “Let’s keep working! We don’t have forever to do this! Put that cake on the table over there, Goober.” And the bunny was rushed away.

  Flopsy looked at Gumdrop and shook her head. “That skunk can be so bossy sometimes.”

  “And still not doing any of the work!” complained the mouse.

  However, many of the animals there were working quite hard so that this mysterious new visitor would be pleased. Oak Pass was full of hustle and bustle and was quite full of animals. They were so busy in fact, that they would have never noticed that they were currently being watched by a wolf just outside the borders.

  Yes, it was Fang–a creature who had been showing up once too often lately. He muttered to himself as he laid low, “It seems to me that they are planning some sort of party. The problem with parties is that sometimes children may stray from their parents. How terrible it would be if some hungry wolf would snatch them up during all the distractions?” He clicked his teeth a few times and chuckled.

  *****

  Well, as much as the animals tried, they could not get the party preparations finished by nightfall. They still wished to have the party in the evening, so it was decided that they would welcome the newcomer on the following day. This meant that Ptooie would have to stay the night with Wily the fox, and I am sure you may be wondering how that went.

  While Gumdrop assisted Goober with the final preparations at Oak Pass, Flopsy went with Blacky to check on their guest. What they found was rather surprising! Wily’s house had been partially collapsed. There was an arm coming out one window and a foot coming out of another. Inside was the sound of some very intense snoring which must have been coming from Ptooie herself. But here was the sad part: Outside, Wily was miserably laying on his belly with all four of his legs spread out. He looked fairly beaten up too.

  Flopsy–who was a bunny filled with caring for those in need–ran directly to him. “Oh, Wily! What happened?!”

  “I’m homeless,” said the fox without moving anything other than his maw.

  Blacky the skunk casually walked over to the downtrodden fox and leaned on him a little. “Giant kangaroo was too big for your house?”

  “Yes.”

  “Saw it coming,” said the skunk.

  Flopsy scowled at Blacky. “Why didn’t you say something then?!”

  “I didn’t have any better idea. Did you? We can’t make a house overnight. Besides, isn’t this Mister Hooty’s fault?”

  Flopsy was still rather annoyed with the skunk, but she turned her attention to the poor fox before her. “Are you mad at us, Wily? We’re really sorry about this.”

  You know, there was a day when Wily might lose his temper, but lately, it just was not in him. He shook his head and said, “I’m not mad at you. I mean… if you think on it… I may have had most of my furniture destroyed… and I may have had all my windows busted out… and I may have lost all of my foxy dignity… but at least, I still have a roof over my head when that kangaroo gets out.”

  There was a loud crash. Everyone jumped as Ptooie’s head poked through the roof of the house sending little wooden planks flying in every direction. “Oopsie!” she said. “I had a nightmare, and it startled me! I think I busted your roof, Wily.”

  The fox covered his face with his front paws and decided not to say anything. Ptooie added, “Did you want me to try and fix it?” She pulled her arm in and tried to stand up, but all she did was cause the roof to collapse even further. “Oop…sie,” she said slowly.

  Wily–who was still covering his eyes–muttered, “Is it over? Can I look now?”

  Flopsy tittered for a moment and placed her paws on his. “Might wanna keep them covered for now, Wily.”

  “Okay,” he said pitifully.

  While Ptooie struggled to remove herself from the crumbling house, Blacky pulled Flopsy aside and said, “This kangaroo is becoming a problem. I know Wily hasn’t been very nice to us in the past, but even I can’t stand seeing him like this. What are we going to do about it?”

  Flopsy frowned. “I really don’t think she means any harm. She keeps saying ‘Oopsie!’ and I think there is a rule somewhere that says if you say ‘Oopsie,’ that you really don’t mean it when you do something terrible.” She looked at the skunk for support. “Isn’t that right?”

  Blacky stared at her for a moment. “Where is that rule written again?”

  “Never mind,” said the flustered bunny. She looked at Wily and pulled his paws away from his eyes. “We’ll help you rebuild your house after the party. It’ll be back up in no time.”

  “You promise?” asked the fox. “Furniture and everything?”

  “Everything, and yes, I promise! But for now, I’ll take her off your paws.”

  Wily–of course–did not disagree with this. Blacky walked over to the big kangaroo and signaled her over at the risk of being spit on. “Where are we going?” she asked the skunk.

  “We gotta see Mister Hooty again. Do you think you can make it all the way there without destroying anything?” Ptooie stared at him as if she was not sure. The skunk added, “Just try to stay a good distance from me and Flopsy. Can you do that?” Once again, she just stared at him. Blacky groaned and then said to himself, “Maybe, I should just run for my life.”

  *****

  “Whoa, whoa!” shouted Mister Hooty as he fluttered down from a tree. Flopsy, Blacky, and Ptooie stopped in their tracks.

  “What’s the matter, Mister Hooty?” asked the bunny.

  “We’re still quite busy at Oak Pass. We’d like to keep Ptooie away from it until we are ready for the party to begin.”

  “I can help… if you like,” said the kangaroo.

  “Thank you, dear, but we have everything well in hand. You are our guest after all.”

  “Okie dokie,” said Ptooie with a silly nod that made her ears flap.

  Blacky simply began walking away. “They probably need supervision while Mister Hooty is away. I’ll take care of it.”

  Flopsy ignored the skunk and stepped up close to the owl. She said to him quietly, “Mister Hooty. I’ve been thinking about it. I think Ptooie may have run away from home.”

  “You think so?” hooted the owl softly.

  “I don’t think any parent would just let their child run out into dangerous areas. Don’t you agree?”

  Both Mister Hooty and Flopsy looked up at Ptooie for a moment. The kangaroo made a silly smile and waved at them. They returned to each other, and the owl said, “I wondered as much, but I’m unsure if the girl would know any better. She does seem a little bit… oh, what is the word?”

  “Silly?” said Flopsy.

  “Quite so, but I am sure her parents will be worrying about her. I shall have to fly to Down Undah and inform them where their daughter is.”

  “You’ll miss the party,” said Flopsy with a frown.

  “Ah, but I feel that this was my fault to begin with. I shall inform the Badger Guard to watch over the town while I am away. Do try and keep Ptooie busy until the party… and please keep Goober away from her feet.”

  Flopsy nodded. “Oh, yes. That’s a good idea.”

  Ptooie suddenly spoke up, “You both sure are having a quiet conversation. Is it about me?”

  Mister Hooty fluttered up to a tree branch that was at eye level with the big kangaroo. He cleared his throat and said, “Ptooie Kangarooie, I want you to be honest with me. Tell me the truth. Did you run away fro
m home to come see us?”

  The giant kangaroo suddenly looked ashamed. “Well… They would understand if they knew where I was going. Cottontail Pines is the nicest place I ever heard about.”

  “But your parents did not give you permission?”

  “No. Oopsie. Am I in trouble?”

  “Well, not with me. But I will be flying to Down Undah to inform them of your whereabouts. Do not worry. I am sure they will be relieved to find out that you are well.”

  “Can I still go to the party tonight?” she asked timidly.

  “Of course, and I hope you shall enjoy yourself.”

  “Wahoo!” cried Ptooie as she jumped into the air and came down with a massive thud! Mister Hooty lost his balance in the quake and landed on top of Flopsy who had tried to break his fall. “Oopsie,” said the kangaroo with a blush.

  *****

  The party was finally set up. Almost all the animals from Cottontail Pines showed up–not just for the party but also to meet this kangaroo girl that had been talked about so much. It really was a jolly affair. Everyone was already eating and playing games. Many of the animals were trying to find Ptooie so that they could welcome her there, but the kangaroo was nowhere to be seen.

  Blacky and Gumdrop were together near one of the refreshment booths. The mouse was confused as to something. She asked the skunk, “Where is Flopsy and Ptooie? They’re missing the party, and it’s all for the kangaroo to begin with.”

  “It’s not my problem,” said the skunk before drinking some lemonade.

  His response annoyed the mouse. “What’s that supposed to mean?”

  “It was only my job to make sure you guys got the party made up right. Whether or not the guest of honor–or Flopsy–shows up for it is out of my hands.”

  Gumdrop stomped her little feet with indignation. “I wasn’t blaming you! I was just worried about where Flopsy was! Sometimes, Blacky, you can be just so… full of it!”

  “Full of what?” he asked.

  “Whatever it is that makes you so annoying!”

  “I can live with that,” he said with a shrug. “What’s with all the Badger Guards anyways?”

  “Huh?” said the mouse as she saw them. Yes, there were badgers standing about looking very intimidating. They did not look like they were there for the party but rather on duty. The Badger Guard was like the police force of Cottontail Pines, and they were not to be trifled with.

  The mouse replied, “Mister Hooty had to fly away. Maybe, he was worried something might happen while he was gone.”

  “Well, if something does happen,” said Blacky, “it won’t be my fault.” Gumdrop only scowled at him.

  Just outside of Oak Pass–where the party was currently being held–Flopsy was standing with Ptooie. “What’s the holdup?” asked the bunny. “The party is for you. Why won’t you go in?”

  “What if they don’t like me?” asked the kangaroo. “Not everybody likes me.”

  “But I like you,” said Flopsy.

  “Even after I knocked Mister Hooty down on top of you?”

  “Oh! I know you didn’t mean to do it,” the bunny said with a blush. “And besides, he’s nothing but soft feathers anyways.”

  “And I stepped on Goober,” added Ptooie.

  “You didn’t mean that either. It was an accident.”

  “I spit on Blacky.

  “He probably deserved it!”

  “I made Wily homeless.”

  “Ptooie!” Flopsy suddenly cried. “It’s okay! We’re going to rebuild his house tomorrow! You didn’t mean any of these things. Just come on. Everybody is dying to meet you. Cottontail Pines throws great parties. Let’s just go and have a good time. Okay?”

  The kangaroo released a sigh and nodded. “Let’s go have a party! I’ll race you there!”

  “Race me?” said Flopsy with horror. “Ptooie, no!” But it was too late; she was already gone.

  Blacky was standing next to the punch bowl. First, he noticed the drinks were wobbling in their cups. Then he felt a strange rumbling under his feet. It was here that the skunk began to realize that something bad was about to happen, and he was most certainly right.

  The crowds all stopped when they felt the tremors. The badgers all looked around thinking that some monster was soon to appear to accompany those quakes. “What’s going on?” asked a possum. “Is this an earthquake?” wondered a raccoon.

  Gumdrop the mouse was just as confused as everyone else, but then she saw Goober the brown bunny running towards her at full tilt. “Goober, what’s happening?” she asked him.

  “No time to explain!” he said whisking her up into his arms. After making a heroic dive to the side, Ptooie Kangarooie burst forth into the party knocking over a table of refreshments. Many of the animals ran away in fear of the hopping monster.

  “Oopsie!” the kangaroo cried. When she turned around to see what damage she had caused, her tail knocked over one of the game stands. The poor turtle who had been running it had to duck inside his shell to prevent himself from being harmed. “Oopsie!” she said again.

  Ptooie began to dance around worried she was going to knock more things over. Animals were kicked about in the process. More tables were overturned. Everybody was screaming. The badgers all ran to try and stop her, but some of them were trampled in the process. It was chaos for sure.

  Blacky–who had been standing at the perimeter of the disaster area–took a few steps back to prevent any harm from coming to him. He grumbled to himself about having a whole day’s work being ruined–which is very silly since he did very little work to begin with. Little did he know that a set of evil eyes were fixed on him from behind.

  Flopsy finally made it to the party. She hopped up and down and screamed, “Ptooie, stop! Please, stop!”

  Ptooie stopped and looked at all the frightened animals huddling in fear. Even the poor badgers were unsure how to deal with this monster. The kangaroo suddenly realized that she had done a very bad thing; although, it still somehow was an accident. “Oopsie,” she said sorrowfully.

  Nobody knew what to say. They just stared at this giant kangaroo while huddled in the shambles of a once happy party. Ptooie had never frowned so much. Flopsy walked to her front and could see how upset she was. “Ptooie, I know you didn’t mean to.”

  “They all hate me now,” said the kangaroo on the verge of tears. “I should have never come. I should have never, ever come.”

  Everything became very quiet. It was so quiet that a little voice crying, “Help!” was heard in the distance.

  Goober walked over to the kangaroo with Gumdrop. Everyone listened carefully. It was Gumdrop who figured it out. “That’s Blacky! What happened to him?”

  Ptooie suddenly hopped over to the border of the town with the animals following safely behind her. As the kangaroo was so very tall, she peered out over the field and saw what everybody was wondering about. “I see him! A wolf is carrying him away!”

  Flopsy cried, “It’s Fang! Oh,no! He has Blacky!”

  “Oh, no!” screamed little Gumdrop.

  Goober said, “He’s too far away at this point! He’ll be done for!”

  Ptooie looked out with determination. Suddenly, she took off–hopping at very high speeds through the field directly for the evil wolf. As fast as Fang was, he was no match for a kangaroo from Down Undah. In fact, he did not even know she was back there. He was confident that he had achieved his meal and that all there was left to do was take Blacky to the forest and gobble him up.

  Before he even understood his situation, the giant kangaroo leapt forth with her giant feet forward. She kicked him so hard that he went howling to the side letting go of the skunk in the process. Blacky hit the ground, but before he could thank her, she picked him up and shoved the skunk into a pouch that happened to be on her belly. All he saw was darkness which is really a shame when you consider what happened next.

  As the wolf tried to get up on his feet, Ptooie snatched him up from the ground, leaned
back on her tail, and used her feet to kick him up in the air over and over again. Finally, she kicked him so hard, he flew all the way into the forest–howling all the way there.

  Many of the animals had seen what Ptooie had done, and they all cheered from where they stood. The kangaroo hopped slowly back and was met by a crowd of happy animals. Blacky finally stuck his head out of the pouch with a gasp. “Oh, my gosh,” he groaned. “It’s really sweaty in there!” Flopsy and Goober helped pull him out, but they both thought he was kind of nasty from being inside of the pouch. Gumdrop still hugged him, however. She was just glad to see him all right.

  “Hurray for the hero of Cottontail Pines!” an animal shouted. “Hurray!” they all agreed. Ptooie looked down at all the animals who were so happy for what she had done. She could not help but smile. All of her mistakes had been forgiven, and she had been proven a good-hearted giant to all the animals of the town.

  *****

  In the coming days, Ptooie tried very hard to be gentle with her new animal friends. She walked around on her tippy toes and double checked the ground where she walked. Likewise, the animals were careful not to get in her way, but they all still wanted to stop and talk with her.

  Flopsy had become her especial friend. Ptooie and her helped Wily rebuild his house which was really nice of them I think. With the kangaroo’s help, the job took far less time than it had took to build it the first time. This made Wily quite satisfied; although, I doubt he would invite her in as a later courtesy.

  Mister Hooty soon returned with Ptooie’s parents. They were much larger than their daughter–so large that the owl thought it best that they all meet just outside the town. Ptooie looked quite ashamed when she met with them, but when she told them about how many friends she had made and also about the rescue, they did not go too hard on her.

  It then came to pass that Ptooie Kangarooie was to leave Cottontail Pines. Everyone gathered at the border to see her and her gigantic parents off. Mister Hooty announced to everyone, “I was quite worried that Fang would try something; although, I could not have known for sure. If it was not for this large–and often clumsy–kangaroo, we might have seen the last of Blacky. For this reason, I must say that Ptooie shall be welcome within our fine town any day she chooses.” But then he whispered to her under his wing, “But perhaps, you can send us a letter of warning beforehand?”