Chapter 2: Black Berry Shopping Centre

Popkin awoke with a startled, cold and hungry. It was early hours and all three ( Twix,Dook and Popkin) were awake. Popkin and Dook were eating the last on the carrot cake while reading a crumpled. Old map their mother had given them. 

“ We shall head to Black Berry Shopping Centre for essentials”, proposed Twix reading a note from Robert the robin. They packed their sleeping bags and bottles then headed to the shopping centre.

The weather was cold and gloomy, as a blanket of thick,white snow laid on the uneven forest floor. Icicles hung from the bare trees like sharp tiger teeth. They could smell the grey smoke billowing behind them and taste the bitter,cold on the tip of their tongues. Paranoid, they looked around thinking the Gorm was behind them waiting to pounce!

Popkin, whose eyes were wide with paranoia, saw buildings in the distance covered in white,heavy fog. 

“There is it”, shouted Popkin, proud of himself. 

The Gorm hasn’t traveled to the Southeast yet where Black Berry Shopping Centre stood, which was lucky. Rabbits (like them) Were trading unique and unusual trinkets. Dook awoke in Twix’s arms but nodded back to sleep still tired. Twix, who took a couple of gold coins from a young rabbit, brought food and water for the later tips to come. But!

Popkin got lost in all of the fuss near the trading posts and got hit by a very large, pink bag.

He awoke! The shopping centre was cleared with no people and saw homes and trading posts burned to soot and ash. Twix and Dook were nowhere to be seen and echoing cries faded in the distance…