Free Poppy and Ereth by Avi Page B

to turn, only to catch a glimpse of his reflection there.
    Ereth rarely looked at himself. It happened occasionally when he had to bend down to take a drink from a pond or stream. In those moments, he did not like what he saw and quickly shut his eyes.
    This time he stared hard at the image of his face as if searching for something. “You,” he said, “are not handsome. You are prickly! Ugly! Grumpy! Not friendly!”
    He gulped down a rasping breath and then suddenly bellowed, “Erethizon Dorsatum, you are a self-centered and conceited porcupine! You should be ashamed of yourself, feeling angry because of Poppy. Think how she feels being dead!” Tears trickled down his blunt face.
    He shifted his head in various directions, all but crossing his eyes to see himself. Then he moved his body around, trying to get a glimpse of his whole self. Finally, he pressed his nose flat against the mica, so that his eyes stared intotheir own reflection. “You,” he said, as if addressing a stranger, “are a porcupine. An old porcupine . A very old porcupine. An antique porcupine. A prehistoric porcupine! A fossil porcupine. But what,” he asked the image, “have you done with your long life?”
    When no answer came from the stone, he supplied it himself. “Not much,” he said.
    â€œHave you done anything good?” he demanded. “Did you build anything? Solve any problem? Make anyone happy? Teach anyone anything?
    â€œErethizon Dorsatum!” he shouted. “You have done nothing with your life!”
    He stood still, gazing at himself, panting with emotion.
    â€œThe only good thing you’ve done is love Poppy,” he gasped. “And now that she’s gone, what do you intend to do with what’s left of this empty life of yours? Just tell me that , Mr. Ereth Dorsatum!
    â€œYou,” he said, accusing his image, “were going to learn to…to…smile. Like Poppy always did. Fine! That will be your farewell gift to her. From now on you will…smile! Like Poppy!”
    Ereth stepped back so he could see his whole face. “Did you hear me? Smile!” Peering at the mica, he tried to smile, but the creature that looked back at him only grinned hideously.
    â€œYou look like a belching bug,” he cried. “You’ll have to do better than that!” He twitched his lips, first one way and then another. He pushed a paw into his mouth and pulled up one corner of his lips and then the other. Desperate, he snatched up a twig and stuck it in his mouth, pulled it out and up so as to create a smile.
    â€œIf Poppy were here,” he cried, “she could have taught me to smile. She would have done it well, too! Well, I’m not budging until I teach myself!”
    The porcupine stood in front of his reflection, struggling to smile. At last he sighed. “Smiling is too hard!” he yelled. “I should have started a long time ago.”

CHAPTER 23
Bounder the Fox
    P OPPY CERTAINLY KNEW foxes ate mice. When she had met Bounder during her first visit to Dimwood Forest, he had tried to catch her but had succeeded only in chasing her into Ereth’s smelly log. That was when she first met Ereth. The porcupine drove the fox away. She smiled at the thought. And here—after all that time—was the same fox! She wished Ereth were with her now. Her smile faded.
    Poppy wondered if Bounder would remember her. Not that it mattered. If she was going to get out of the cave, she had to get past him.
    She stayed where she was, occasionally peeking around the tunnel bend to study the fox. All the while Bounder remained asleep, barely stirring, taking deep, long, and sleepy breaths.
    Poppy tried to recall what she knew about foxes’ habits: they were fast, and clever, and did most of their hunting at night. That meant she would have to be very patient, and hope that when the day was over Bounder would get up and leave. Of course, this