Together, hand in hand, they turned towards the glen. Their eyes lingered over its rugged contours. Contently they listened to the distant laughter of Joe and Brett rising through the glen.

From beneath the thicket Figan gave a faint groan and turned in disgust to Hyde. "This is awful! It's worse than I thought. These humans are going to nest right here!"

"What you mean, Figan?"
"I mean they're going to build their house right here. A big house. And they're going to rip up our woods to do it."

Hyde's body abruptly tensed, and his eyes blazed. "They not rip up my favorite tree," he mumbled harshly, his neck fur bristling. And with that Hyde yanked a pike from his quiver and leapt to his feet.