6. Sadness and a discovery

In the morning the sun shone through the mist.  Igrene went out to find some fresh worms for the family’s breakfast.

The Fazzi birds were not in their tree, and Igrene saw scraps of eggshell, under it.

Swallows were darting about catching flying ants.  Some would have to build new nests.

Molly Mole was mending her molehill, and Igrene called to her, “Are you okay, Molly?”

Molly dived into her tunnel.  Out came only a scoop of mud, and a squeal of annoyance.”

Then Mr Fazzi walked towards Igrene.  He looked sad, and wasn’t crowing.

 

He pointed a foot towards the gully that ran down one side of the glade.  Igrene trotted across and looked into the gully.  There, caught in a mass of slushy weeds, she saw a baby mole, fighting to escape.

She ran to the molehill to tell Molly.

“Hey, Molly!  Molly!  Mr Fazzi has found a baby mole stuck in the gully,” she called.

Molly immediately scuttled out of her tunnel, and they ran to the gully together. She scooted down the side of the gully and spoke gently to the baby mole, “Dear baby, we’ll help you to get out of here.”

Igrene and Molly then tried to untangle the weeds, but it was not easy.  The weeds were too firmly rooted to be pulled out of the ground.  

Mr Fazzi was perched in a tree nearby, and with loud squawk, “JAGGERED” he flew down and fiercely ripped the weeds out.

Molly nearly fainted as he flew in, but she was so concerned for the baby mole that she quickly got back to parting the weeds.  When she got to the baby mole, she brushed mud off him, then helped him to climb up the side and out of the gully.

“Thank you for leading us to the baby mole, and helping to free him, Mr. Fazzi,” Igrene called out.  Then she remembered the broken eggshell that she had seen under Mr Fazzi’s tree.

“Oh, have all your eggs been broken?” she asked him.

Mr Fazzi nodded sadly.  Then he yelped out “CAWASI” and flew away.