Stories

It all started with a scent.

A glorious, irresistible, perfectly ripe scent that drifted through the air like a song only Lumi could hear. She froze mid-step, ears perking, nose twitching.

“Do you smell that?” she asked, her voice barely more than a whisper.

Pollox, gnawing idly on his Perfect Ball, looked up. “Uh. Smell what?”

Lumi’s tail quivered with excitement. “Berries.”

Pollox squinted. “Berries?”

“Not just any berries.” Lumi took a deep, reverent sniff. “Blackberries.”

Pollox tilted his head. “Oh. Well, that explains the look on your face. You’re doing that thing where your eyes go all sparkly.”

Lumi ignored him. “They’re close. Very close.”

Pollox sighed. “So we’re doing this now, huh?”

But Lumi was already moving.

-

They found it in a small clearing, bathed in golden sunlight—the biggest, juiciest blackberry patch Lumi had ever seen.

And it was fenced off.

Lumi stopped so suddenly that Pollox bumped into her. “Hey—what gives?”

Lumi just stared, horrified. “Who... who would do this?”

The fence wasn’t much—just a flimsy wooden barrier, strung with twine, with a hand-painted sign that read:
"DO NOT EAT. RESERVED FOR WINTER STORAGE."

Pollox read the sign out loud, then nodded. “Alright, case closed. Let’s go.”

Lumi spun to face him. “Excuse me?”

He took a step back. “I mean, uh… rules are rules?”

Lumi narrowed her eyes.

Pollox groaned. “Oh no. I know that look.”

Lumi was already pacing. “There’s no name on the sign.”

Pollox blinked. “What?”

“No name. No owner. Just a vague warning.” She stopped, tail flicking. “Which means… we don’t actually know whose berries these are.”

Pollox frowned. “So?”

Lumi smirked. “So, what if it’s a trap?”

Pollox groaned. “Oh, here we go.”

Lumi nodded seriously. “Think about it. A big, perfect patch of berries, right in the open, with a flimsy little fence and a sign? That’s suspicious. What if someone wants us to think we can’t have them?”

Pollox stared. “That is not how rules work.”

Lumi ignored him, deep in thought.

“This could be a test,” she murmured.

Pollox flopped dramatically onto the ground. “A test of what?”

Lumi’s eyes gleamed. “Our intelligence. Our courage.” She straightened. “The universe wouldn’t give me this opportunity if I wasn’t meant to take it.”

Pollox sighed. “Or, hear me out… we could not commit berry theft.”

Lumi grinned.

Pollox groaned again.

-

They circled the patch, studying the fence. Lumi sniffed at the twine. “Cheap. Not designed to keep anyone out, just to suggest we stay out.”

Pollox rolled his eyes. “Or, to politely ask that you don’t destroy someone’s berry stash.”

Lumi ignored him, shifting her attention to the berries. She crouched, tail wagging. “I bet if I just squeeze right here—”

The twine snapped instantly.

Lumi blinked.

Pollox’s jaw dropped. “You broke it! I knew this was a bad idea!”

Lumi hesitated, then straightened. “Actually, I liberated it. The fence was flimsy. Clearly, it wanted to break.”

Pollox stared in disbelief. “You are unbelievable.”

Lumi beamed. “Thank you.”

Pollox groaned.

But it was too late. Lumi was already inside.

-

The first blackberry was heaven.

Lumi let out a soft, blissful sigh as the juice burst over her tongue. “Oh, yes.”

Pollox, standing outside the fence like a responsible dog, frowned. “This feels morally wrong.”

Lumi ignored him, stuffing another berry into her mouth.

“Mmmfff.”

Pollox crossed his paws. “Lumi.”

She waved a paw dismissively, her muzzle now stained purple.

Pollox groaned. “Okay, fine. But if we get caught, I’m blaming you.”

Lumi barely heard him. She was in a blackberry-fueled trance.

Then—the bushes shifted.

A breeze passed. A bird took off. Pollox’s ears flicked.

"Uh… Lumi?"

She barely lifted her head from the berry bush.

“Mmf?”

A beat of silence.

Then—snap.

Lumi yelped as the ground beneath her gave way.

With a whoosh, she dropped straight down into a pit.

Pollox screamed, scrambling to the edge. “LUMI?!”

From the bottom of the carefully dug hole, Lumi groaned. “I think I fell into a trap.”

Pollox peeked over the edge. “Wow. You think?”

Lumi scowled up at him, purple juice dripping from her chin. “Don’t just stand there! Help me out!”

Pollox’s nose twitched. “Huh. You know… now that I really look at it, this hole is awfully well-built.”

Lumi’s eyes narrowed. “What do you mean?”

Pollox turned and gulped.

A soft chuckle echoed from the trees.

Slowly, Tara stepped into view.

Lumi froze.

Pollox immediately sat up straight, ears pinned. “Oh. Uh. Hi, Tara.”

Tara smiled. “Enjoying yourselves?”

Lumi swallowed. “Tara. Uh. Fancy meeting you here.”

Tara raised a brow. “In my blackberry patch?”

Lumi laughed nervously. “So technically… we didn’t know it was yours…”

Tara gave a long, knowing sigh. “Little one, I’ve pulled that exact fence trick before. You think I didn’t recognize the gleam in your eye when you sniffed the wind this morning?”

Lumi’s ears drooped. “Wait—you knew we were coming?”

“I counted on it,” Tara said, folding her paws. “And dug that trap with love.”

Pollox blinked. “That’s… deeply concerning.”

Tara tilted her head. “So. What did we learn?”

Lumi groaned. “Not to eat berries that don’t belong to me…”

“And?”

Lumi sighed. “And not to ignore fences. Or signs. Or gut feelings that say ‘this might be a trap.’”

Pollox snorted. “Which I said, for the record.”

Lumi glared at him, then mumbled, “…and not to assume the universe wants me to commit berry theft.”

“Very good,” Tara said.

She reached down and helped Lumi out of the hole—then pointed her nose at the snapped twine and toppled sticks.

“You broke it,” she said calmly. “You fix it.”

Lumi stared. “You want me to… what, rebuild the fence? With my paws?”

Pollox gave a lopsided grin. “Told you this was a bad idea.”

Lumi muttered, “Told you it was a test.”

Tara tilted her head. “You figured out how to break it. Figure out how to fix it.”

Lumi groaned. “This is the worst day of my life.”

Pollox nudged a stick toward her. “Here. Chief Fence Officer.”

They spent the next hour dragging branches back into place, pulling twine through brambles with their teeth, and patting down dirt where it had been disturbed. 

When they were finally done, sweaty and scratched, Tara examined their work and nodded once.

Then she picked two of the ripest blackberries from the bush, placing one gently in front of each of them.

“Earned tastes sweeter,” she said.

Lumi wasn’t sure she agreed—but it was a good berry.


As they walked home, Pollox licked a smear of juice from his nose. “So… when’s our next heist?”

Lumi gave him a sidelong glance. “Soon, but next time… we dig under the fence.”

Behind them, Tara called out, “I heard that.”

Lumi flinched.

Pollox snorted.

And Tara, wise as ever, just smiled.