Lannie Butterworth's Arc

Chapter 1 of 4

Lannie knelt by the front steps of the red brick school, scooping a wandering beetle into her clear plastic carrier. Three pill bugs already huddled inside. A spider watched from the corner of the lid with steady, careful eyes. Lannie sighed. She saved them every morning. By afternoon, they crawled right back into danger. "They keep returning," the spider said flatly. His name was George Silkweaver. "I have mapped it. Four rescues. Same tile. Same bug." A small june bug shuffled up beside her shoe. "I keep thinking the grass is safer," he said. "I keep thinking that every time." He stared at a boot print in the dirt and said nothing more. Lannie looked at the carrier. She looked at the wide lawn behind the school. Saving wasn't enough. They needed somewhere to stay. Somewhere shoes could not reach. She spent the afternoon building it. Scrap wood, smooth stones, soft moss, tiny doorways at every level. She added shelves, hollows, and a little porch with flowers in cups. By sunset, a small wooden house stood tucked beneath the hedge, far from any footpath. Lannie opened the carrier lid. George Silkweaver stepped out first and inspected the third doorway. The june bug followed, quiet as ever. The pill bugs rolled inside. For the first time, Lannie's rescues had a home — and tomorrow, she would need to tell the others where to find it.