A Day on the Farm

It was a gentle autumn season, though the weather didn’t seem to notice, as it was still a steaming warm humidity with green poking out of anywhere you look. The grass was healthy, tall and mingling with weeds. The trees, old and weathered on their bark, but a deep green in their foliage, and soaking in sap. If you look close enough into the wildlife though, you might even find a few bug friends. A gentle little ladybug passes by one blade of grass, to the other, for example. Maybe a tiny beetle comes out of a hole in a tree, or a praying mantis adventures into a field beyond the woods.

But, if you look even closer, you might find a little apple bush. It’ll wriggle a bit, seemingly from squirrels or other critters, but with enough patience, you might find the true source. A small, shy pacapillar is connected to that apple bush, and it’s got leafy ears to match! It’ll gently waddle along the forest floor, going about it’s day, oblivious to how adorably bright it’s colors are in comparison.

Bapple, this cute little friend, is a gentle little creature. And they love to meet new friends in the forest they reside in. Oftentimes, they do get mistaken as a small set of bushes, their bright red apples drawing attention from passersby. The shine of the sun will only make their apples more beautiful. This shine, rarely poking through treetops, though when it does, Bapple looks as though a magical critter in the wildlife surrounding them.

The tiny chompers on the little paca are nothing to mess with though. A few critters have already been scared off, just by seeing them barred. Thankfully Bapple only bites when in serious danger, like the one time a human chose to pick one of their apples. This human screamed quite loudly, as a result of the tugging and twisting of the paca’s poor apples. Bapple’s bushes weren’t fodder like the ones that dropped from trees nearby. These beautiful treats were rather features of the little critter, and understandably quite a bit when tugged.

Nowadays though, if Bapple even sees a human, they tend to run and hide quickly. Even in the luscious brush of the forest, their apples are quite the desired delicacy. A few times now, the local animals have spoken about rumors they’ve heard, regarding the musical pacapillar. And of course, local legend of what happens if you find it. Especially if those beasts are tired and hungry from their long treks into this deep of a wood, needing a snack to quench their sore muscles.

Luckily, they have invested in a hiding spot. Bapple made a nice deal with some nearby groups of squirrels. As it turns out, they aren’t too good at finding nuts that fall in brush. So naturally, Bapple, an expert in bushy greens, offered to give them a hand whenever they can. In exchange, for a no questions asked home visit, if they do see a human nearby. Some of the critters’ families were bothered quite a lot by these visits, while some were happy for the company.

Through all this though, the little paca seemed to make a new friend, in the form of a lone chipmunk. He already didn’t mingle well with others in the area, so it was nice to find someone odd like them. The two of them often would meet up, regardless of the small pact with the community. And it was nice, having a friend there to visit and chatter with, Bapple really appreciated this friend of theirs