DJ's nose twitched as a flash of blue wings drifted past the twisty pine. He dropped his morning sniffing and padded after it along the winding path.
The butterfly darted higher, and the tall trees leaned inward, blocking the sun. DJ pressed his whiskers to a broad fern and watched the blue wings vanish into the green.
DJ pushed through a curtain of hanging vines that tickled his ears. He paused to nibble a clover leaf, crisp and sweet, then squeezed between two oak trunks.
The forest floor dropped away suddenly, and a warm scent of ripe fruit rose to meet him. DJ stepped onto the meadow edge and his eyes went wide.
DJ waddled toward a bush heavy with purple berries, but sticky sap caught his front paw. He tugged once, twice — pop! — and the sap sprang loose.
One berry rolled toward a sun-warmed rock, and DJ hopped after it. He snatched the berry mid-roll and popped it into his mouth — bursting with juice.
DJ climbed the sun-warmed rock for a better view and spotted more berry bushes glinting across the meadow. He hopped down and trotted eagerly toward the nearest one.
A line of eager ants marched across his path, carrying crumbs twice their size. DJ froze, tipped his head, and let them pass. Then he carefully stepped around them.
At the third bush, he found a cluster so big it nearly tipped over. Berries tumbled into his open mouth — sweet, tart, and perfect.
DJ rolled onto his back in a patch of clover, belly full, and watched the blue butterfly return to land on his nose. He sneezed — a tiny musical sneeze — and the butterfly danced above his paws.
