Storyclover
Storyclover
At the end of a warm afternoon, a small country mouse named Rowan carried a sprig of wheat home along the meadow path. His burrow waited beneath an old apple tree, with supper tucked safely inside.
The City Mouse Who Could Not Sleep Through the FeastA country mouse sees the glittering table his cousin envies, but chooses a smaller meal without fear over plenty guarded by danger.
1. At the end of a warm afternoon, a small country mouse named Rowan carried a sprig of wheat home along the meadow path. His burrow waited beneath an old apple tree, with supper tucked safely inside.
2. At the burrow, his cousin Felix was waiting. Rowan set out oat cakes, berries, and sunflower seeds, while Felix described a feast in the city that glittered like a treasure chest.
3. “Come with me tonight,” Felix said. “There will be sugared fruit, warm cream, and crumbs from every dish. You should see how the city eats.” Rowan glanced at his little supper and wondered what he was missing.
4. Before the moon rose high, Rowan followed Felix toward the city. Behind him, the apple tree stood quiet and familiar; ahead, hundreds of windows shone.
5. Felix slipped through a crack beneath a kitchen door, and Rowan followed. There it was: a table crowded with cream, cheese, pastries, and fruit polished bright enough to catch the lamps.
6. Rowan tasted a sugared fig and closed his eyes. It was sweeter than anything he had found beneath the apple tree.
7. Then a house cat appeared beneath the table. Rowan froze with the fig in his paws. Felix pulled him behind a table leg, and neither mouse breathed until the cat padded away.
8. When the room grew quiet, Felix hurried back for cake. Rowan tried to enjoy the feast, but every scrape of a chair made his ears rise.
9. At last, Rowan placed the crumb on the floor. “Your table is magnificent,” he said, “but I cannot sleep through a feast that may wake a cat.” Felix looked at the shining dishes, then at his cousin’s open doorway.
10. Felix did not argue. He took one oat cake for the road, and the cousins left the city while its windows still glittered.
11. At dawn, Rowan and Felix sat beneath the apple tree with oat cakes, berries, and sunflower seeds between them. The meal was small, but no footsteps waited beyond the door.
12. Felix watched the sunlight gather in the grass. Rowan leaned back against the tree, and for the first time all night, he slept through the feast.
Make a story like this →
