Plucky blinked several times. His mother was indeed missing. He called out for his mother as he searched from one room to the next and hoped to find her, but to no avail. Tears poured down his cheeks as he pushed the front door open. He stumbled outside and rubbed his eyes in vain. The tears would not stop flowing. He noticed how peaceful it was in the Forest. Whoever had interrupted the party was long gone. He looked upon the field and saw the seven Lions lying on the grass, apparently in a deep sleep.
"Who could have done this?" Plucky asked out loud on the off chance someone would answer him. No answer was given. He walked up to the closest torch - the only one still burning. He thought he would check up on his friends. If he could find them, maybe they would know what to do. He rushed over to the tiger house. He pulled the window curtain open to one side. There was his friend, snuggled up in his parent's embrace. All were in a deep sleep. He let go of the curtain and went to the next house. He beheld a similar sight. Plucky tried one more place. It seemed that everyone was in the same profound sleep. Why was his mother the only one missing? Then he discovered that several birds had fallen out of their nests, breathing quietly. Tears began to flow once more. He was indeed all by his lonesome. When Plucky could cry no more, he slowly made his way back home. All hope for his mother had since vanished. As if confirming his worst fear, the last burning torch was extinguished by a gushing wind. Plucky closed the door behind him. He went into his bedroom and climbed into bed. He covered himself with his quilt. A heavy sleep came over him, and despite his best efforts to fight it, he could not resist.
Plucky did not wake up until the following morning. The first thing he noticed was his groaning stomach. He remembered the food that remained on the banquet table. There was no point in trying to eat what was left - any food there would be spoiled by now. The kitchen was his only option. There was one glaring problem with this as well. Plucky knew very little about cooking. He could stir the cauldron with the best of them, but he had never expressed interest in learning how to prepare a meal from scratch.
I wish I could figure out what happened to my mother, thought Plucky. He went back to his room and stared out the window. He held the curtain open with his right paw for a few moments, then let go. He suddenly heard a new noise as this happened. It was a melody he had never heard before, calm yet haunting. It seemed to come from everywhere at once. The singing was in a language Plucky could not recognize. It was not his mother's voice, but it also mesmerized him. He was drawn to the music and began pacing toward the front door. He opened the door and continued outside. The music was much louder now. It seemed to be coming from the east side of the Forest if the volume was any indication. For a tense moment, Plucky thought he saw the Great Lion stir. The very thought stunned him, and he stopped just beyond his doorstep. The music continued to rise in volume and was deafening. Covering his ears did little to help. He turned around and went back inside, shutting the door behind him. As if in sync, the music stopped as the door shut. After a few moments, he could hear the shuffling feet of someone approaching the front door. Three sharp raps on the door followed the shuffling feet. Plucky wondered who this could be. There were three more quick raps on the door, this time crisply tinged with a sense of urgency. Despite his mother's repeated warnings to never open the door without identifying who it was first, he reached out to the door handle and pulled the door towards him. He looked up and saw an elderly bear. She was dressed in a dark red velvet gown, girded with a black belt. She held a smooth brown stick in her right paw, capped with a cracked red ruby, the same color as the ruby shard that hung around his neck. Plucky was sure he had never seen her before, but she seemed familiar.
"Who are you?" Plucky asked her in an innocuous manner.
"I am nothing more than a humble old bear. My name is Olive. I used to live in this forest before you were born. I have returned to visit some old friends... If you would let me sit down? I have traveled a great distance, and my feet are weary of walking."
Plucky gave it some thought, then let her inside.
"Oh, thank you very much!" she said, sitting in the first chair she saw. Plucky hesitated, seeing her sit in his mother's rocking chair, but decided against asking her to switch to a different seat.
"I would offer you some food to eat, though what we had available has been left out for too long, and I am afraid I'm not much of a cook." Olive, noticing the pangs of regret in Plucky's voice, sympathetically asked, "You poor thing! When was the last time you had a decent meal?"
"Uh... I think it was yesterday morning."
"My dear cub! I'll make you something to eat right away!"
Olive stood up from the chair and walked effortlessly into the kitchen. Plucky decided that she was a good bear. Still, he remained curious about her, so he followed her.
"I do hope your mother won't mind my feeding you this time," Olive said without looking up. Plucky stuffed his hands into his pockets. She continued.
"Pardon my intrusion, but what is your name, teddy bear?"
"Plucky."
"Ah, Plucky. Such an excellent name! If you don't mind my asking, where is your mother?"
"I don't know," Plucky replied, looking down at his feet. Olive stopped what she was doing and looked at Plucky. She was now visibly worried. "Has... something happened to your mother?"
Plucky couldn't hold it in any longer. He opened up and told Olive what had happened the evening of the celebration. When he reached the part where his mother had disappeared, he sniffled and began crying.
