Plucky blinked his eyes a few times in disbelief. His mother was nowhere to be seen. He called out for his mother as he searched from room to room, hoping to find her, but was fruitless. Tears began to trickle down his cheek. He pushed the front door open and stumbled outside, then rubbed his eyes in vain; the tears wouldn't stop flowing, until he noticed how unusually quiet it was in the forest. Whoever or whatever it was that had interrupted the feast had left. He looked to the field and saw all seven Lions laid out on the grass, seemingly in a deep slumber.
"Who could have done this?" Plucky asked out loud, half-hoping someone would answer him. No response came. He wandered over to the nearest torch, the only one still burning. He then thought to check on his friends. If he could find them they would know what to do. He scurried over to Mondo's house and pushed the curtain open. Mondo was huddled in the embrace of his family, but all had collapsed on top of each other in a deep sleep. He let the curtain close and cautiously went to the next home and beheld a similar sight. Plucky tried one last house. It seemed everyone was in a deep slumber. Why then, was his mother the only one missing? He noticed then that birds had simply fallen out of their nests, quietly breathing. Tears began flowing once more. He was utterly alone.
When Plucky could cry no more, he slowly made his way back to his house. Any hope of seeing his mother had since vanished. The last burning torch had finally died down. Plucky shut the door closed behind him. He went to his room and climbed into his bed, covering himself with his quilt. A heavy sleep came over him and despite his efforts to fight it, he could not resist. He faded into the darkness of sleep.
Plucky didn't wake until the next morning. The first thing he noticed was his rumbling stomach. He thought about the food left on the banquet table. There would be no point in going outside - any food that had not spilled out would be cold and spoiled by now. That left the kitchen as his only option.
Plucky knew very little about cooking. He could stir the stew pot with the best of them but he simply had not taken an interest in how to prepare a meal from scratch. If I could just figure out what happened to my mom, thought Plucky. He went to his bed room and looked out the window, holding the curtain open with his right paw. After letting go of the curtain, he heard a new sound. It was the quiet sound of someone singing a haunting melody but seemed to be coming from everywhere at once. Plucky listened closer. The singing was in a language Plucky was not familiar with, and was accompanied by music Plucky had never heard before. It was not his mom's voice, but it had a strange effect on him. He felt drawn to the music and at length he decided to see if he could discover the source of it. He made his way to the entrance of his house, opened his front door and stepped out. He noticed the music was slowly but surely getting louder. It now seemed to be coming from the east of the forest - at least, it sounded loudest in that direction. He thought he saw the Great Lion stirring, which made him stop on his porch. The music was terribly loud now. He covered his ears with his paws, to no avail. He turned around and went back inside, shutting the door behind him.
As if on cue, the music stopped as the door shut. Plucky uncovered his ears and after a few moments, heard someone slowly walking up to his door. They knocked slowly three times. Plucky wondered who it could be. There were three more knocks, this time crisp and tinged with a sense of urgency. Plucky decided to open the door. So he did.
He looked up and beheld an older bear, wearing a dark red velvet gown, girt by a black sash. She held a smooth brown staff in her right paw upon which rested a cracked ruby - the same color as the ruby shard around his neck. Plucky had definitely never seen her before, yet he had the strangest feeling he knew her somehow.
"Who are you?" Plucky asked innocently.
"I am but a humble old bear. My name is Olive. I used to live in this forest a long time ago. I have come now with some old friends. Please be so kind as to let me sit down. I have traveled a long way and my feet are weary."
Plucky thought for a moment, then let her inside.
"Oh thank you very, very much," sitting down on the first chair she saw.
"I would offer you some food to eat but what we had available has been left out too long, and I'm afraid I'm not a very good cook," Plucky said as he held his grumbling stomach.
Olive, having noticed this, sympathetically said, "You poor thing! When was the last time you ate?"
"Um... last night."
"My dear bear cub, I will make you a delicious meal right this instant!"
Olive rose from the chair and effortlessly found her way to the kitchen. Plucky decided she was a good bear, but remained curious about her, so he followed her in.
"I hope your mother won't mind my feeding you this once," Olive said without looking up. Plucky drooped his head and stuck his paws into his pockets.
"Forgive my intrusion but what is your name, bear cub?"
"Plucky."
"Plucky... such a good, strong name. If I may ask, where is your mother?"
"I don't know," Plucky replied, still looking at his feet. Olive stopped what she was doing and looked at Plucky; she was visibly concerned.
"Did something happen to your mother?"
Plucky couldn't hold it in any longer. He opened up and told Olive about what had happened the night of the feast. When he reached the part where his mother disappeared, he sniffled and began to weep. Olive stopped her meal preparation and rushed over to Plucky, wiping the tears from his eyes, and in a mellifluous voice said, "Dearest Plucky, I cannot imagine what you feel right now, but I will promise you this: I will do everything I can to see you and your mother reunited."
Olive hugged Plucky, and smiled when he hugged back. Plucky made himself stop crying. It was evident Olive reminded Plucky of his mother very much. Regaining his composure, he asked, "You already know about me. What is your story?"
"Indeed, it is only just I tell you about myself," Olive replied. "Let me finish preparing your meal and I shall gladly tell you everything you want to know, dearest Plucky." Olive soon had cooked some peeled potatoes and assorted vegetables. Plucky hungrily dug in while she began her tale.
