Pip and his friend reached for the same branch at once. 'I found this side first!' Pip said, dropping a handful of berries.
Pip marched back to his oak tree den. His friend called after him, but Pip did not stop.
Day one passed. Day two. Day three. Pip peeked out and saw his friend laughing with a badger near the berry bush.
Pip scuffed his paws in the dirt and turned back inside. His den was very quiet.
Inside, only the wind rattled the dried leaves by his door. Pip gathered blackberries from his own small bush.
Pip filled an old jar and carried it out to the meadow edge. He set it down with a soft clink.
He hid behind the oak trunk and watched. His friend spotted the jar and lifted the lid.
The fox's nose wrinkled at the smell. Pip stepped out from behind the tree.
'I saved these for you,' Pip said. The fox's ears perked up.
The fox looked at the jar, then at Pip. It picked out a single blackberry.
Pip said, 'I saved these for you.' The fox looked at the jar, then at Pip, and picked out a single blackberry.
Max broke the berry in half and offered one piece to Pip. They sat together on the moss and ate.
Pip's belly rumbled happily. The fox giggled.
'Next time,' the fox said, 'we can share the bush.' Pip nodded and ate his berry.
They sat together on the moss, eating berries side by side. The meadow glowed golden around them.
The wind rustled the oak leaves. Inside the den, two empty berry stems rested together on the moss.