Me: Manuel says Dave refused a second pancake.
Nell: He didn’t want any cereal either.
Me: Maybe he’s coming down with something after all the excitement of the last week?
Nell: No, it’s because of Sally.
Me: Sally?
Nell: Yes. She’s going back to London.
Me: Oh dear. Why?
Nell: Her mission was successful. The cubs are safe. In fact Beauregard is taking Tigerlily home to his brother today.
Me: Roary will miss her.
Nell: Yes, he will. Fortunately, he has Oliver to play with.
Me: Is Oliver happy about that? Only opossums don’t usually have lions as playmates.
Nell: Oliver has a tiger as a best friend. I’m sure he can deal with a lion cub.
Me: I expect Mrs King is keeping an eye on everything.
Nell: She certainly is. She’s not letting Roary out of her sight.
Me: What about Lionel King and the rooks?
Nell: The Royal Owl Force are continuing to monitor their activities.
Me: My poor Big Brave Beautiful Boy. He’s going to miss Sally dreadfully.
Nell: Yes. Long distance relationships aren’t easy.
Me: Have you ever had one?
Nell: There was a rather attractive Irish Wolfhound from Belfast I dated for a while in my youth, but it never really worked.
Me: Too far away?
Nell: Too hairy. I’m not keen on beards.
Me: I see.
Nell: Talking of hairy, my friend Dorothy said two rather unkempt bears have been spotted on Dartmoor.
Me: Gosh. I didn’t know there were wild bears roaming around.
Nell: They aren’t wild. They’ve got rucksacks on their backs and good sturdy boots.
Me: Are bears even allowed on Dartmoor?
Nell: Of course. Well behaved walkers are always welcome.
Me: I’m going to call them the Beary Hikers. See what I did there?
Nell: Good grief.
Me: Sorry.
