Louie slammed the door to his brother’s house, clicking the deadbolt and struggling for breath. He’d never ran his overweight porcine butt so far, so fast in his life, and his short legs wobbled, threatening to turn to mush and leave him a puddle on the floor. Danny sat on a chair in the corner of the room, feet propped on a milk crate, a book resting on his plump stomach. His gaze was on Louie.
“Hi.” He smiled, but Louie could tell it was strained. “I didn’t know you were planning on visiting today.”
Louie stumbled into the room, flopping into another chair.
“Sorry.” His heartbeat slowed and his breathing started to return to normal. “I didn’t plan on coming over, but the wolf attacked me. Blew my house right over.”
Danny’s eyes widened.
“What? But how? How can anyone, even a big, bad wolf, blow apart a house?”
Louie shook his head.
“Penny was right. I should’ve taken more time, made sure it was solid. Straw isn’t the best choice for home construction.”
“Well, I could’ve told you that.” Danny chuckled, patting the twig wall at his side. “That’s why I chose something sturdier. Something to really put down roots with.”
Louie narrowed his eyes, ready to question his brother’s thinking when the walls began to tremble with the force of someone pounding on the door. His heart started racing again. The wolf had followed him.
“Little pigs, little pigs, let me come in.”
“Not by the hair on our chinny, chin, chin,” Danny croaked.
Louie stared at him. “Really?”
Danny shrugged.
“Little pigs, little pigs, LET ME IN!” The wolf roared the last part, his jagged breath huffing and puffing, shaking the twig walls, threatening to topple them just as easily as he’d toppled Louie’s house.
Neither Louie nor Danny could manage a “no.” Their fear choked them, blocking out reason, blocking out everything except the growling, the clank of snapping teeth, and the pounding of hundreds of feet closing in on the doorstep until they were nothing but fear.