As they ate supper – French bread with cheese and salad – Xanthe told them her news. ‘I was speaking to some of the other adults today and we’ve decided that with all these storms and strange stuff going on, we could do with having some fun so we’re going to celebrate the rising of Leo in the skies,’ she explained to Lucy. ‘We will have a feast in six days’ time.’ Lucy and Allegra exchanged excited looks. A feast! ‘How does that sound?’ Xanthe said. ‘Brilliant!’ they chorused. ‘Can we tell the others?’ Allegra asked. Xanthe nodded. ‘Of course.’ When they got to the clearing that night, Emma asked Lucy and Allegra if they would go and check on a pair of kingfishers who were nesting in the riverbank downstream from the otters. They headed off together. The kingfishers were nesting in a sandy burrow in the riverbank. They both seemed healthy and the rain had not damaged their burrow. On the way back to the main clearing, Lucy and Allegra stopped to check on the otters and the badgers too.
