Pip and Rusty both grab the shiny acorn at the edge of the clearing. "I saw it first!" Pip says. "No, I did!" Rusty snaps.
They pull until the acorn pops free, then march off in opposite directions without looking back.
The afternoon stretches long and quiet. Pip chases butterflies near the den, but the clearing feels too big and too still.
A leaf drifts down and lands on his nose. He brushes it off and keeps walking, ears drooping.
Pip finds the acorn half-buried in the dirt where they had been playing. He picks it up and rolls it between his paws.
He hears Rusty's laugh echo in his head from this morning. Pip's tail gives one slow thump against the grass.
Pip marches across the clearing with the acorn held out like a peace flag. Rusty is sitting by the old oak, staring at his paws.
Pip sets the acorn down between them and says, "I'm sorry. You can have it."
Rusty looks up, blinks, and bursts out laughing so hard he rolls onto his back. Pip giggles too.
Pip and Rusty share the shiny acorn, holding it between them as they sit under the tall trees. Their tails thump side by side.