Page 126 - Contrast2015

The sound of clinking glasses floated through the trees
followed by a chorus of whistles and applause. Batch raised an
eyebrow at the noise.

“What’s goin’ on over there, anyway?” He craned his neck,
looking for the source of the racket.

Clarissa sighed and took a seat beside him, forgetting for
the moment that her nice dress would probably be ruined. “A
wedding.”

“I love weddings!”
She shook her head and pulled her knees to her chest,
resting her chin on her knees. “Why? They’re so boring.”
“Nah! They’re great. There’s dancing, and cake, and
everyone is so happy.”
Clarissa took a moment to think and then made up her
mind. “You should come back with me.”
“What? Really?”
She stood up and held out a hand. Batch looked at it
incredulously. He laughed, jumped up, and took her hand in
his. They started to walk out of the woods, but Batch stopped
abruptly.
“Oh!” he exclaimed. “Your basket!” He ran back to the
spot they had been sitting in. The little white basket was right
there. He picked it up and took it to her. Clarissa led the way
toward the party, each of them with one hand on the basket’s
handle. The sun had set and the lights over the dance floor
twinkled like the stars in the sky. Clarissa’s mother caught
sight of her at the edge of the crowd.
“There you are, sweetheart. Oh, your dress is filthy! What
have you got in your basket?”
Clarissa looked behind her. The man was gone. In her
basket sat a little sand-colored hedgehog happily chewing on
a flower petal. She smiled down at him. “This is Batch.”

| 124